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About Mississippi Department of Archives and History (MDAH), Old Capitol Museum

Location:

100 South State Street, Jackson, MS 39201, US

Mission Statement

The Old Capitol Museum shall educate the public about the history, people, and architecture of the building, the governmental processes of the state, and the importance of historic preservation.

Description

Originally called the State House, the Old Capitol has served numerous functions in its long history - state capitol from 1839 to 1903, state office building from 1917 to 1959, and state historical museum from 1961 to 2005. In 2009, the newly-restored Old Capitol began a new chapter in its storied existence as a museum dedicated to tell the history of the building itself and the momentous events that took place within its walls.

Within the walls of the State House/Old Capitol many dramatic and significant events occurred:

Passage of the first law in America giving property rights to married women, 1839

Events honoring Andrew Jackson during his last visit to the city named for him, 1840

Gathering of Jefferson Davis and the Mississippi Volunteers on their victorious return from the Mexican War, 1847

Passage of the Ordinance of Secession, 1861

First constitutional convention in the South after the fall of the Confederacy, 1865

Election of Hiram Revels to the U. S. Senate, the first African American to serve in the U. S. Congress, 1870

Last address by Jefferson Davis to the legislature, 1884

Establishment of the first state-supported college for women in America, 1884

Adoption of the present Constitution of the State of Mississippi, 1890

Inauguration of Governor William F. Winter, 1980

Presentation of the French Legion of Honor award to writer Eudora Welty, 1996

Signing of the Accord between the State of Mississippi and the Mississippi Band of Choctaw Indians, 1997