The Mississippi Freedom Trail

On September 4, 1875, a political rally and debate turned violent, leaving seven dead and dozens injured near downtown Clinton. In the days that followed, white militias and outlaws terrorized area African Americans, killing as many as fifty men and […]

Hopewell Missionary Baptist Church, under the leadership of Rev. G.W. Hollins, was the location for civil rights meetings organized by local SNCC voting rights activist William H. “Bud” McGee. […]

The home of George Metcalfe, Natchez Branch President of the NAACP, served as headquarters for the organization and a meeting spot for civil rights activists. In January 1965, “night riders” fired shots through a window of the home in an […]

The M.W. Stringer Grand Lodge served as an important meeting place for civil rights activities, including nonviolent training workshops and the 1964 Mississippi Freedom Democratic Party Convention. On June 15, 1963, an overflow crowd of mourners gathered here for the […]

Forrest County native, Clyde Kennard, was a pioneer in the quest to desegregate higher education in Mississippi. His efforts to enroll at Mississippi Southern College (now USM) in 1955-1959 were obstructed by college president, William D. McCain, and state officials. […]

Pass Christian native, Lawrence Guyot, Jr., became a field secretary of the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee in Mississippi while attending Tougaloo College. In 1964, he was elected chairman of the Mississippi Freedom Democratic Party but was unable to attend the […]