Mississippi

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The Great Seal of the State of Mississippi features a bald eagle with wings spread, holding arrows in its left talon and an olive branch in its right, with a shield on its chest. The seal is encircled by a rope border and a dark blue ring with the words The Great Seal of the State of Mississippi and In God We Trust.

Mississippi: state bird

Mississippi: state flower

Political map of Mississippi showing state and county boundaries, county names, and major cities. State capital Jackson is marked, along with other cities such as Gulfport, Hattiesburg, Biloxi, and Tupelo. The map includes surrounding states-Louisiana, Arkansas, Tennessee, and Alabama-and features a small locator inset of the southeastern United States highlighting Mississippi's position.

Aerial view of the illuminated Mississippi State Capitol building with its domed roof, surrounded by trees and city buildings at dusk in Jackson, Mississippi.

Map of the United States highlighting the state of Mississippi in orange, with its capital, Jackson, labeled. Surrounding states and major geographic features such as the Gulf of Mexico are shown for context.

Longwood Mansion in Natchez, Mississippi, a large octagonal brick house with a white dome, surrounded by trees draped with Spanish moss.

Map of Mississippi highlighting physical features such as major rivers, lakes, and reservoirs, with state boundaries marked. Key water bodies like the Mississippi River, Yazoo River, Pearl River, and reservoirs including Sardis, Enid, Grenada, and Ross Barnett are labeled. The map also marks dams, Vicksburg National Military Park, and Tupelo National Battlefield, with a small locator map showing Mississippi's position within the United States.

Regional map of the Deep South in the United States, highlighting the states of Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, Georgia, South Carolina, and parts of Arkansas, Florida, Texas, North Carolina, and Tennessee. The map shows major cities, state capitals, rivers, lakes, and physical features such as the Mississippi Delta, Appalachian Mountains, and swamps like the Okefenokee and Atchafalaya. Insets indicate the region's location within the continental United States.

At a Glance

Plantation in Natchez, Miss.

Mississippi summary

Mississippi: Media

state, United States

Images

Mississippi

Flag of Mississippi

Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc.

The Great Seal of the State of Mississippi features a bald eagle with wings spread, holding arrows in its left talon and an olive branch in its right, with a shield on its chest. The seal is encircled by a rope border and a dark blue ring with the words The Great Seal of the State of Mississippi and In God We Trust.

State seal of Mississippi

Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc.

Mississippi: state bird

Mississippi: state bird

The mockingbird is Mississippi's state bird.

Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc.

Mississippi: state flower

Mississippi: state flower

The magnolia is the state flower of Mississippi.

Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc.

Political map of Mississippi showing state and county boundaries, county names, and major cities. State capital Jackson is marked, along with other cities such as Gulfport, Hattiesburg, Biloxi, and Tupelo. The map includes surrounding states-Louisiana, Arkansas, Tennessee, and Alabama-and features a small locator inset of the southeastern United States highlighting Mississippi's position.

Map of Mississippi

Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc.

Aerial view of the illuminated Mississippi State Capitol building with its domed roof, surrounded by trees and city buildings at dusk in Jackson, Mississippi.

Jackson, Mississippi

State capitol building (front) and the cityscape of Jackson, Mississippi, U.S.

© Sean Pavone/Dreamstime.com

Map of the United States highlighting the state of Mississippi in orange, with its capital, Jackson, labeled. Surrounding states and major geographic features such as the Gulf of Mexico are shown for context.

Mississippi

Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc.

Longwood Mansion in Natchez, Mississippi, a large octagonal brick house with a white dome, surrounded by trees draped with Spanish moss.

Mississippi, U.S.: Longwood mansion

Longwood, an antebellum mansion in Natchez, Mississippi, U.S.

Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc.

Map of Mississippi highlighting physical features such as major rivers, lakes, and reservoirs, with state boundaries marked. Key water bodies like the Mississippi River, Yazoo River, Pearl River, and reservoirs including Sardis, Enid, Grenada, and Ross Barnett are labeled. The map also marks dams, Vicksburg National Military Park, and Tupelo National Battlefield, with a small locator map showing Mississippi's position within the United States.

Mississippi

Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc.

Regional map of the Deep South in the United States, highlighting the states of Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, Georgia, South Carolina, and parts of Arkansas, Florida, Texas, North Carolina, and Tennessee. The map shows major cities, state capitals, rivers, lakes, and physical features such as the Mississippi Delta, Appalachian Mountains, and swamps like the Okefenokee and Atchafalaya. Insets indicate the region's location within the continental United States.

United States: Deep South

The Deep South.

Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc.

Yazoo River, Mississippi, U.S.

Yazoo River, Mississippi, U.S.

Yazoo River, western Mississippi, U.S.

Alfred Dulaney/U.S. Army Corps of Engineers

Mississippi, U.S.: catfish farming

Mississippi, U.S.: catfish farming

Workers harvesting catfish from a fish farm in Mississippi, U.S.

Ken Hammond/USDA

Mississippi State Capitol building with a central dome topped by a golden eagle, flanked by flags and trees, and the Our Mothers Monument in the foreground.

Jackson, Mississippi

State Capitol, Jackson, Mississippi, U.S.

© amadeustx/Shutterstock.com

Large white antebellum mansion with two-story columns and wraparound porches, Dunleith Plantation in Natchez, Mississippi; two women in period dress stand on the front walkway.

Mississippi, U.S.: Dunleith mansion

Dunleith, a 19th-century mansion in the Greek Revival style, Natchez, Mississippi,...

Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc.

Vicksburg, Mississippi, during the American Civil War

Vicksburg, Mississippi, during the American Civil War

Artillery captured at the surrender of Vicksburg, Mississippi, during the American...

Courtesy Meserve-Kunhardt Collection

New Albany, Mississippi

New Albany, Mississippi

New Albany, Mississippi, c. 1900.

Library of Congress, Washington, D.C.

Tupelo, Mississippi

Tupelo, Mississippi

Cotton mill in Tupelo, Mississippi, 1911; photograph by Lewis Hine.

National Child Labor Committee collection, Library of Congress, Prints and Photographs Division (LC-DIG-nclc-02049)

Yazoo City, Mississippi., U.S.: yarn mills

Yazoo City, Mississippi., U.S.: yarn mills

Overseer supervising a girl operating a bobbin-winding machine at the Yazoo City...

National Child Labor Committee collection, Library of Congress, Prints and Photographs Division (LC-DIG-nclc-02093)

Mississippi, U.S.: tenant farming

Mississippi, U.S.: tenant farming

Tenant farmers' cabins in Mississippi, c. 1930s.

Library of Congress, Washington, D.C.

James Meredith, wearing a suit, walks toward a building entrance at the University of Mississippi, flanked by federal marshals and officials, with onlookers behind them.

James Meredith

James Meredith, flanked by federal marshals, entering the University of Mississippi,...

Hulton Archive/Getty Images

Bayview Bridge

Bayview Bridge

Bayview Bridge over the Mississippi River at Quincy, Illinois.

MadMaxMarchHare

Natchez Trace Parkway

Natchez Trace Parkway

Natchez Trace Parkway, Mississippi.

Carol M. Highsmith's America, Library of Congress, Prints and Photographs Division, Washington, D.C. (Digital file no. LC-DIG-highsm-04384)

Infographic showing Hurricane Katrina's path from its formation over the Bahamas to landfall in Florida and Louisiana, with a curved track across the southeastern U.S. It highlights nearly 1,400 lives lost, about $125 billion in damages, 62 tornadoes in 8 states, and a maximum storm surge of 26 to 28 feet in Mississippi. Flooded areas of New Orleans and storm categories at each location are also illustrated.

Hurricane Katrina in numbers

Hurricane Katrina formed on August 23, 2005, and in less than a week grew from a...

Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc./Christine McCabe and Kenny Chmielewski

Plantation in Natchez, Miss.

Plantation in Natchez, Miss.

Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc.

Interactives

United States size comparison tool with dropdown menus to select two states and a large black map of the US on a purple background.

Which State Is Bigger?

Choose two states from the drop-down lists to compare their sizes.

Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc.

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