The Johns-Manville plant operated in Natchez from 1947 to 2002. I came across this article when it first opened. Johns-Manville Sets Date For Completion Natchez Plant To Cost $5,000,000 Natchez, April 12–Construction of the large Johns-Manville unsulating board plant at… Read More ›
Month: August 2017
MissPres News Roundup 8-30-2017
Let’s jump right into this week’s roundup. This last Monday, a car did significant damage to a historic church in the Silver Creek community of Lawrence County. The Silver Creek Baptist Church, built in 1899, was struck in the southeast… Read More ›
Katrina at 12: What FEMA did
Twelve years ago, the rest of the world was watching on their TVs scenes from the Mississippi Coast and New Orleans that were very similar to what we’re watching on our smart phones from the Texas coast today. After Katrina… Read More ›
Friday is a Gas: Booth Form Gas Station c.1960s-c.1980
This week’s Friday is a Gas post is not about a specific brand of station, but rather a specific type of station form. This week’s stations represent the antithesis of the full-service station: the booth form gas station Aberdeen, Mississippi… Read More ›
1929 Was a Very Good Year . . . For Concrete in Jackson
It’s hard to imagine now how fast tall buildings went up back in the day when labor was relatively cheap and huge forces of men could be thrown onto a project. The year 1929, which as we all now know… Read More ›
“America’s Finest”: Alamo Plaza Hotel Courts
The recent post by Thomas Rosell on photographer John Margolies “roadside Americana” images had some wonderfully intriguing photographs. I thought it might be fun to trace a few of them. The Alamo Plaza Hotel Courts has been featured before on… Read More ›
MissPres News Roundup 8-22-2017
Busy week in the world of Mississippi Preservation. Let’s jump right into this week’s roundup. Last Tuesday a public meeting in Hattiesburg was held to determine a course of action for the former Mount Carmel Baptist Church on Main Street. According to… Read More ›
Historic For Sale: Two antebellum houses in Starkville
Two antebellum houses in Starkville, the Gillespie-Jackson House and The Cedars, have recently gone on the market, according to the Commerical Dispatch, and unfortunately, the Gillespie-Jackson property is being offered as a commercial or mixed-use development, which seems to imply the owners… Read More ›
Friday is a Gas: Phillips 66 Stations c.1950-c.1970s
During the c.1950-1970s, Phillips had two station types: an oblong box, and the batwing or gullwing design. The latter of these was my holy grail of gas stations. I honestly thought I would never find one in Mississippi, let alone… Read More ›
48th Anniversary of Hurricane Camille
This August marks the 48th anniversary of Hurricane Camille. We mostly think of hurricanes having an impact on the coastline but they do indeed have a far reach. In the Clarion Ledger article below you can see reports from both… Read More ›
Valentine Diners: Falk’s Waffle Shop
I confess, at first glance, I had no idea what would have prompted John Margolies–as featured in Thomas Rosell’s post in July–to take a photograph of Pud’s Package Liquor on Route 49, Gulfport, even for the sign and the vivid… Read More ›
MissPres News Roundup 8-15-2017
Let’s jump right into this week’s roundup. Tonight in Hattiesburg there is a public meeting to determine a course of action for the former Mount Carmel Baptist Church on Main Street. Hattiesburg City Council will hold a public hearing at 5 p.m…. Read More ›
Historic For Sale: Mt. Hope Plantation near Hazlehurst
If you’ve always dreamed of a country retreat that’s near enough to civilization to get groceries or go to a restaurant but far enough out to see the stars and enjoy the sound of frogs and crickets instead of highway… Read More ›
Friday is a Gas: Lion Stations c.1940
I’m not very familiar with Lion brand gasoline. Established in Arkansas during 1922, Lion Oil is still around in the refinery and asphalt products business, but I don’t believe they have branded stations any longer. Between 1985 and 2011, Lion… Read More ›
Walking To School
I believe that Grenada Public Schools Start back today. Some of you may be groaning, while other may be cheering for the start of school. But one of the best benefits of towns and cities should be their walkability. This view… Read More ›
MissPres News Roundup 8-9-2017
Let’s jump right into this week’s roundup. Following up on the partial collapse of McComb’s downtown theater, MSNewsNow has reported that approximately 75% of the collapsed roof of the building was removed by July 31, with the remainder expected to… Read More ›
Neither the Sun nor the Hand Will Come Out Tomorrow
Due to the rain that’s expected to continue through tomorrow, The Hand Pointing to Heaven will not be placed back on its perch in Port Gibson tomorrow morning, so if you were planning to make the trek to watch, keep… Read More ›
Yes, Virginia, there were alligators!
It’s been five years to the day since I asked the MissPres universe to “Show Me the Alligator Gargoyles!” and now that no one has stepped forward with pictures, I felt it was time to take matters into my own… Read More ›
See The Famed Port Gibson Hand Up Close
This Wednesday the landmark hand of the First Presbyterian Church in Port Gibson will be returned to its place on the church steeple. If you’d like to see the hand up close before it returns to its lofty perch, you… Read More ›
20th Anniversary of Paul Rudolph’s Passing
Tomorrow marks the 20th anniversary of Paul Rudolph’s passing. Were he still living, he would be 99 years old. Born in Kentucky, Rudolph graduated from Auburn University and Harvard Graduate School of Design. After successfully practicing architecture in Florida as part… Read More ›
Friday is a Gas: Classical Revival Stations c.1930-?
Mississippi is known for its fondness of columned buildings. Surprisingly that appreciation doesn’t seem to have translated over into the design of Classical Revival service stations. The 2016 TxDOT Field Guide to Gas Stations in Texas doesn’t specifically have an entry… Read More ›
Those Disappearing Telephone Booths
As one of the few people on earth who hasn’t yet embraced the smart phone fad, I have had cause to miss the conveniently located but humble telephone booths that used to dot our towns, shopping centers, gas stations, and… Read More ›
The Aladdin Company’s Order Ledger
You might recall that The Aladdin Company had a mail order catalog that offered plans and all the lumber you would need to build a house, pre-cut. Thanks to the efforts of kit house researcher, Cindy Catanzaro, we have the information… Read More ›
MissPres News Roundup 8-1-2017
Let’s jump right into this week’s roundup. History professor Andrew Kahrl tracks racial discrimination through the tax assessor’s office. This article provides interesting insight concerning race and property ownership and cites several Mississippi examples in Edwards and Waveland. It also touches… Read More ›