Chief Tishomingo Honored

Susie Dent has forwarded me the following:

Thanks, Susie!

"A very special event will take place this weekend. On Saturday, June 6, 2009, 9 a.m. to 11 a.m., the historic Chickasaw Chief Tishomingo will be honored at the site of his old homestead west of Guntown, MS. Representatives from the Chickasaw Nation, headquartered in Ada, OK, will be in attendance when a historic marker will be unveiled on the farm now owned by Mr. and Mrs. Lawrence Edwards. Traditional Chickasaw songs, dance and games will be performed.
Chief Tishomingo was the last chief to serve in North Mississippi before the tribe was forced to cede their lands and be removed to Indian Territory (now Oklahoma) to be placed on reservations. The removal of the Chickasaws took place in 1834-35 when the 5 "Civilized Tribes" were forced on a journey called "The Trail of Tears" to Indian Territory.
Many towns, counties, historic sites and properties in northern Mississippi and Oklahoma have Chickasaw names. There is Tishomingo, town and county, in Mississippi, for example.
The public is invited to attend the event. Directions to the site: travel NORTH from Tupelo, MS on Highway 45 north, go about 10 miles to Guntown, MS and exit on Highway 348 WEST toward New Albany, MS. Go between 2 and 4 miles, more or less, turn RIGHT onto County Road 503 near the Blair Community, go about 1 mile. The marker will be seen on the left of the road on the property of Mr. and Mrs. Lawrence Edwards' farm.
For more information, contact Susie Dent, nems.hgs@gmail.com"

Gordons of Lochinvar

Annette McGregor of Pontotoc County Library has sent us the following announcement. If anyone needs additional information, please contact her at 662-489-3960!

Thanks for letting us know, Annette!

Lunching With Books
Pontotoc County Library
June 9, 2009
Noon

GORDONS OF LOCHINVAR

Dr. Forrest T. Tutor, M.D.

The Gordons of Lochinvar descend from a notable Scot family and later were successful landowners in Chickasaw Indian Territory, which became North Mississippi. The book describes the life of James Gordon and his parents Robert and Mary Elizabeth from mid-nineteenth century to turn of the twentieth century America. It describes Colonel James Gordon's experiences during the Civil War, and transcribes his noteworthy address to the United States Senate long after Reconstruction shattered his fortune. Included are many of James Gordon's own poetry and hunting short stories, and Robert Gordon’s diary entries from several years prior to the War Between the States.

May Meeting

The Northeast Mississippi Historical and Genealogical Society will meet Thursday, May 28, 2009 at 6 p.m. in the Helen Foster Auditorium, Lee County Library, 219 North Madison, Tupelo, MS. Edwina Carpenter, director of Brices Crossroads National Battlefield and Visitors Center, Baldwyn, MS, will present a program on the Civil War Battleground and the upcoming Civil War re-enactment planned in June. The public is invited. For additional information, call Susie Dent, 662-844-2307 or email nems.hgs@gmail.com.

April Society Meeting

Hello all!

Sorry to be a bit late in publishing details about the upcoming NMSHGS meeting!

Susie Dent sent me the following information:

" World War II veteran Eugene Spearman from Tupelo, MS will present the next program for the Northeast Mississippi Historical and Genealogical Society. Mr. Spearman served in the Air Force during World War II and has been a participant in the Society's oral history program. He will tell stories of his experiences in combat and also will entertain by singing. The public is invited to attend.
"The meeting is scheduled for Thursday, April 23, 2009 at 6 p.m. in the Helen Foster Auditorium, Lee County Library, 219 North Madison, Tupelo, MS. For additional information, call Susie Dent, 662-844-2307 or email nems.hgs@gmail.com.

Hope to see you all there!

Bill Miles at Columbus-Lowndes Public Library

I just received the following email from Mona Vance, archivist at the Columbus-Lowndes Library. Sounds like a wonderful program for anyone who is able to attend!

If you are interested, please contact Brenda Durrett at (662) 329-5300!

************************************************************************************

Former State Representative, newspaper editor-publisher and political consultant Bill Miles will be discussing his recently published memoir, Scribe Among Pharisees on Monday the 27th from 2 until 3 p.m. at the Columbus-Lowndes Public Library.

The book is a collection of first-hand stories and memories of by-gone days. Miles chronicles more than a half century of Mississippi politics and southern life. Scribe Among Pharisees documents the good and the bad about Mississippi as seen through this newspaperman-educator-public relations/advertising executive turned politician.

Former Mississippi Governor William F. Winter who wrote the Foreword said: “Writing out of his own personal knowledge, Bill Miles is able to frame events in a way that makes us feel a part of the story - as we identify with various unforgettable characters this book brings to life. Reading this book is like unlocking a vault where heretofore unknown tales are stored.”

Bobby Harrison, Capitol Bureau Chief for the Northeast Mississippi Daily Journal, said: “As a journalist-private businessman and politician, Bill Miles has seen history made in Mississippi and in some instances helped make it. He compellingly puts his journalistic instincts to work in Scribe Among Pharisees whether talking about farm life and a three-legged cat in Itawamba County, covering crime in Northeast Mississippi and the integration of the University of Mississippi, consulting for some of the state’s most powerful politicians or serving in the Mississippi Legislature. Bill has an easy, enjoyable writing style that makes his recollections even the more memorable.”

Bill Miles grew up on a farm in Itawamba County as the youngest of five children. He attended Itawamba Junior College (now Itawamba Community College) and received his B.A. with a major in journalism from the University of Mississippi. He has worked for various newspapers including The Birmingham, AL News, the Memphis Commercial Appeal, the Memphis Press Scimitar and the Daily News (Jackson, MS). Later, he formed the magazine Mid-South Publications, Inc. and was instrumental in creating Bristow-Miles Associates, Inc., the region’s first advertising and public relations firm. In 1996, Miles was elected to the Mississippi House of Representatives for District 21 where he served for the next twelve years.

For further information about Miles’ presentation at the library, contact Brenda Durrett at (662) 329-5300.

Hope to see you all there!


Mona K. Vance
Archivist
Local History Room
Columbus-Lowndes Public Library
314 North Seventh Street
Columbus, MS 39701
662-329-5304
archives@lowndes.lib.ms.us
www.lowndes.lib.ms.us

March Meeting - Women's History Month!

Susie Dent sent me the following information about our meeting for March. We'd love to have a good group for this meeting! Please plan to attend - visitors are welcome!

" This month's program is in observance of Women's History Month. We will meet at 6 p.m.
Thursday, March 26 in the Helen Foster Auditorium at the Lee County Library, Tupelo, MS.

Mrs. Alice Ruth Chastain will present a program on her life experiences and her memories of internment in a Japanese prisoner of war camp in Manilla, Phillipines, during World War II. She has authored a book "Pioneer Girl" which will be available after the program and outside the library building. We aren't allowed to sell anything inside the library building.

Mrs. Chastain is a professor of nursing having earned her PhD in nursing from Union University School of Nursing in Jackson, TN. She was born of missionary parents in Manila, Philippines shortly before WWII and was interned with her family in Santa Tomas Internment Camp until liberated in 1945. She has four children and nine grandchildren. She lives in Saltillo, MS. (Note: she was my nursing instructor in 1980 at ICC). She recently made a trip to China to the sites where her parents were missionaries and to where her father is buried.

Just a little serendipity to mention here: one of our Historical Society's members Faye Moreland called me this morning. Her brother was one of the soldiers who opened the gates of Santo Tomas for General McArthur to enter and liberate the camp. It was likely that Mrs. Chastain saw him then since she remembers when McArthur entered the camp. She was around 4 years old at the time.

Ya'll come if you can make it. Susie Dent, Northeast Mississippi Historical and Genealogical Society ... nems.hgs@gmail.com"

FEBRUARY MEETING

Please join us for our February Meeting! Here are details I received from Susie Dent, society President.

"The Northeast Mississippi Historical and Genealogical Society will meet at 6 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 26, 2009 in the Helen Foster Auditorium, Lee County Library, 219 N. Madison, Tupelo, MS.
In observance of Black History Month, Mrs. Margaret Baker will present a program on 'Look How Far We've Come', a brief narrative on the Mrs. Baker's Allen Family of Verona. The program will contain songs and stories about the family from her birth in 1938 to the present day in 2009.
Mrs. Baker states 'I am a proud resident of the city of Verona. I retired from Sears, Roebuck and Company in 1999 after 32 years of service. I was elected the first African-American female alderman in 2001. I am a community volunteer, a certified T'ia Chi Chih teacher, certified Municipal Official and owner of Hems 'N More Alteration Shop. My passion is working to make a difference in the lives of others.'
The public is invited to attend the meeting. For more information, contact Susie Dent, 844-2307."

Hope to see you there!