‘Tis the season for architecture lovers to get out and tour historic (and even a few newish) places around Mississippi. Christmas in Natchez, of course, has been going on for a few weeks now, and to see their full and… Read More ›
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New Deal in Mississippi: Madison-Ridgeland High School addition
It has been a while since we have been on the New Deal Tour for Mississippi, so I decided it was high time to get back on the road. The Public Works Administration-funded annex to the Madison-Ridgeland High School was… Read More ›
MHT featured on Mississippi Roads
Check out the feature that Walt Grayson did on the Mississippi Heritage Trust and preservation around the state on his recent episode “Helping One Another” on MPB’s Mississippi Roads.
MissPres News Roundup 11-21-2016
Several preservation stories have popped up in the last couple of weeks, enough to squeeze in a Thanksgiving week news roundup to keep all y’all on top of things.
Help Clean up the Mississippi River Basin Model
Get up off your duff, grab your gloves, gulp some water, and come help clean up the amazing Mississippi River Basin Model!
Mound Bayou Craftsman
Did I.T. Montgomery build his imposing Craftsman-style house in 1910 or 1920? Read on.
Before and After: Taborian Hospital
If you are up in Bolivar County this weekend for MHT’s Delta Drive-In, try to leave time to head up the road to Mound Bayou where you can see the Taborian Hospital, now called Taborian Urgent Care Center, reopened after… Read More ›
Come to the Delta Drive-In!
If you like old movies, old cars, and old houses, the Mississippi Heritage Trust has just the event for you, happening this Saturday at the Burrus House in Benoit, MS. As you may recall, the Greek Revival Burrus House, also called… Read More ›
Veterans Day 2016
Today we honor all Mississippians who have served, here or abroad, in wars hot or cold.
McAfee Repair Shop and the Farish Street Garage
The block of storefronts along 744-752 N. Farish Street was built c. 1928 (Cramer, 1979). According to the nomination form for the National Register of Historic Places, the one-story, stepped parapet roofline with patterned brickwork in the frieze and cornice… Read More ›
MissPres News Roundup 11-7-2016
Let’s get caught up on preservation events around the Magnolia State. . . Over in Meridian, WTOK’s headline is “Interior demolition to begin soon on Threefoot Building.” As you recall, Meridian’s Art Deco office skyscraper, buit in 1929, has been… Read More ›
Mississippi Capitol Earns National Landmark Status
I didn’t plan on taking a vacation from the blog this week, but how could I have known the Cubs would take me through such a nerve-wracking World Series and making me stay up so late on Wednesday to get them through those… Read More ›
How about a little history with lunch? The evolution of Home Dining Room on Farish Street
Like most of Farish Street, the story of the Home Dining Room is deeply embedded in the early cultural experiences of the street known as the “Black Mecca of Mississippi.” Home Dining Room was not originally located at the building… Read More ›
Second Empire = Haunted House?
On Halloween, the thoughts of most Americans turn to haunted houses, and odds are, those who do think about haunted houses are picturing what architectural historians would call Second Empire style buildings, complete with a tower (or two), mansard roof… Read More ›
Friday Film(s): Two Natchez Architects
Last week’s post about the Natchez Cemetery Shelter House by architect Samuel Marx brought a comment from Kathleen Bond that gave us a link to a recent Natchez History Minute video about the celebrated furniture designer and architect, who spent… Read More ›
Farish Street: A street that defines America?
A helpful MissPres reader sent me a link to a longform series in Curbed called “10 streets that define America,” with a teaser line, “What do America’s streets—and the people who inhabit them—say about the state of our country in… Read More ›
Modernism in Natchez: Natchez High School
Can there be any Modernism in Natchez, home of the Natchez Pilgrimage? The answer, my friend, is yes.
Main Street Greenwood Starts a Preservation Revolving Fund
Last week, Main Street Greenwood announced the availability of the Antoon’s Department Store, built in 1908, and a longtime mainstay in downtown Greenwood. What’s exciting about this is that it marks the beginning of a larger effort that has paid huge… Read More ›
Going Inside: Cathedral of the Nativity, Biloxi
I came across this postcard showing the inside of what is now known as the Cathedral of the Nativity in downtown Biloxi and realized I had taken a picture of almost the same view a couple of years ago to… Read More ›
Craftsman in Mississippi: Natchez Cemetery Shelter House
We’ve taken a break from the Craftsman series, but there are just too many nice Craftsman-style buildings in Mississippi to ignore, so here’s a new one on me, the Natchez City Cemetery Shelter House, which I “discovered” back in the… Read More ›
Architects of Mississippi: Raymond Birchett (1902-1974)
A long while ago, I did a post about the abandoned Mercy Hospital in Vicksburg, which continues to be a popular post here on MissPres. I used a newspaper clipping from the special edition of the Vicksburg Post that ran the… Read More ›
Paris on Farish: Visiting Mississippi’s “Black Mecca”
Congratulations galore belong to Mr. and Mrs. Jesse [sic] Williams, head of the Paris Cleaners in Jackson. They moved recently into their brand new $50,000 home. Success has been and is yours! (Anselm J. Finch’s Mississippi Snaps, The Pittsburgh Courier, May… Read More ›
MissPres News Roundup 10-17-2016
It’s been a long time since our last news roundup, and even longer since I undertook one. I’ve been out of town a lot the last couple of months, so I fear this roundup won’t approach comprehensiveness and will be… Read More ›
Two Architects Nominated for Mississippi Hall of Fame
From the MDAH website this week. Two of our favorite architects, William Nichols (1780-1853) and N.W. Overstreet, are among the 47 nominees for consideration by the Mississippi Department of Archives and History to the Mississippi Hall of Fame. William Nichols came… Read More ›
HABS in Mississippi: Dr. C.M. Vaiden House, Vaiden
The MDAH Historic Resources Database says about the Dr. C.M. Vaiden House, which it also calls Prairie Mount: “Like nearby Malmaison and Indian Mound, this was a large, elegant two-story porticoed mansion in the “Bracketed Greek Revival” style. Having been… Read More ›
Fredrick Law Olmsted Records Now Available.
A friend recently sent me a link to the Frederick Law Olmsted National Historic Site, National Park Service Digital Archives Flickr page. If you are unfamiliar with his name, you’re likely familiar with his work such as NYC Central Park, Niagara Falls… Read More ›
“When did the focus change from the Farish Street Historic District?”
Rosalind McCoy Sibley asked that question, and it needs an answer (Farish Street-A Slightly Different Perspective, Jackson Advocate, 2015). I do not have it, and apparently, neither does any one else who has followed the “miscalculated missteps” of the project,… Read More ›
Preservation in Mississippi 