The Natchez Museum of African American History and Culture is the first museum to tell the full story of African Americans in Natchez, Miss., a city on the Mississippi River that is located in the southwest part of the state. Since its... more
The Natchez Museum of African American History and Culture is the first museum to tell the full story of African Americans in Natchez, Miss., a city on the Mississippi River that is located in the southwest part of the state. Since its founding in 1990 by the Natchez Association for the Preservation of African American Culture, the Museum has become an essential resource for the study of local history. This article gives an overview of the Museum's history. Additionally, it provides a description of its exhibits, tours, programs, and community support.
This article follows the migration of the Calvit family from North Carolina to Tennessee and then Joseph Calvit’s service with George Rogers Clarke in the Northwest during the American Revolution. Joseph Calvit then moved to Mississippi,... more
This article follows the migration of the Calvit family from North Carolina to Tennessee and then Joseph Calvit’s service with George Rogers Clarke in the Northwest during the American Revolution. Joseph Calvit then moved to Mississippi, where he and his brothers established themselves on plantations and became important and politically active citizens. The story moves through his marital affairs and closes with a decades-long effort to secure his Revolutionary War pension. The Appendices that follow provide the primary source materials for the story of the Calvit family.
The story of my middle name, Calvitt, traces back to Pierre Calvet, born in France about 1630. He was a merchant in the little town of Lacaune, in the “Huguenot Valley,” some miles east of Toulouse in the district of Tarn in southern... more
The story of my middle name, Calvitt, traces back to Pierre Calvet, born in France about 1630. He was a merchant in the little town of Lacaune, in the “Huguenot Valley,” some miles east of Toulouse in the district of Tarn in southern France. Fleeing Catholic repression, Pierre’s sons were among the Huguenots, who fled France and landed in England. From there some in the family moved successively to the frontiers in Virginia, North Carolina, and Tennessee. After service in the Revolutionary War, Joseph Calvit ended up in Natchez, where his family became an important part of Mississippi’s early history.
Archaeological analyses of European lithic technologies in North America are often discussed anecdotally within the context of other material evidence of European occupations. In North America, the presence of gunflints manufactured in... more
Archaeological analyses of European lithic technologies in North America are often discussed anecdotally within the context of other material evidence of European occupations. In North America, the presence of gunflints manufactured in Europe, generally England (which became part of Great Britain in 1707) or France, is used as a marker for the influence of these European powers and as a reflection of from whom residents obtained their material culture. Gunflints were made in Europe and in North America (north of the Rio Grande) from the early 1600s to the late 1800s. Thus, gunflints from sites such as the Natchez Fort, Louisiana (AD 1729–1731) provide a unique avenue of analysis for understanding both continuity in lithic technologies and the interactions between indigenous and introduced technologies. We address methodological concerns in typifying historic lithic collections, specifically eighteenth-century gunflints, particularly as these concern sourcing and the implications of sourcing for eighteenth-century colonial interactions in the southeastern United States.
Le 28 novembre 1729, les Indiens Natchez de Louisiane attaquent les colons et les soldats français qui demeurent à proximité. En quelques heures, ils massacrent plus de 200 personnes. À cette date, on observe une véritable rupture dans... more
Le 28 novembre 1729, les Indiens Natchez de Louisiane attaquent les colons et les soldats français qui demeurent à proximité. En quelques heures, ils massacrent plus de 200 personnes. À cette date, on observe une véritable rupture dans l'histoire des relations franco-autochtones. Si Chateaubriand a fait de cet événement une fresque romantique, Arnaud Balvay enquête pour savoir s'il y avait véritablement un complot général visant à détruire la colonie louisianaise.
On the 200th anniversary of the founding of the Grand Lodge of Mississippi in Natchez, Mississippi, amid the swell of Masonic pride, proclamations and festivities, members participated in a dramatic public reenactment of the organizing... more
On the 200th anniversary of the founding of the Grand Lodge of Mississippi in Natchez, Mississippi, amid the swell of Masonic pride, proclamations and festivities, members participated in a dramatic public reenactment of the organizing convention under the aegis of the Mississippi Lodge of Research. To have a clear understanding of the historic significance of this event, one must remember that when today's Mason refers to a "Grand Lodge," he calls upon an idea far removed from that of our founders—when the country was still young and blooming with only two holidays: the “Fourth” and “Eighth.”
The Dr. John Banks House, which once served as the headquarters for the Natchez NAACP, will be the first site of a Mississippi Freedom Trail marker in Natchez. Approval of the designation by the Mississippi Humanities Council and Visit... more
The Dr. John Banks House, which once served as the headquarters for the Natchez NAACP, will be the first site of a Mississippi Freedom Trail marker in Natchez. Approval of the designation by the Mississippi Humanities Council and Visit Mississippi, means the city will now be listed on the state’s Freedom Trail and the U.S. Civil Rights Trail.
This is a news report about the use of the TimeLooper application, Xplore-AR, at the Proud to Take a Stand monument in Natchez, Miss. The technology, which is accessed by a QR code, allows visitors to have a virtual reality experience of... more
This is a news report about the use of the TimeLooper application, Xplore-AR, at the Proud to Take a Stand monument in Natchez, Miss. The technology, which is accessed by a QR code, allows visitors to have a virtual reality experience of the civil rights history featured at the site.
Lorsqu'on évoque Antoine-Denis Raudot (1679-1737), c'est généralement pour mettre en évidence sa brillante carrière dans l'administration coloniale. Mais celui qui fut commissaire et inspecteur général de la Marine, conseiller de la cour... more
Lorsqu'on évoque Antoine-Denis Raudot (1679-1737), c'est généralement pour mettre en évidence sa brillante carrière dans l'administration coloniale. Mais celui qui fut commissaire et inspecteur général de la Marine, conseiller de la cour sur les affaires coloniales ou encore intendant de la Nouvelle-France de 1705 à 1710, était aussi un collectionneur opiniâtre, accumulant au sein de son cabinet des curiosités humaines et naturelles d'Amérique, d'Asie ou du Moyen-Orient. Sans doute n'aurait-il pu imaginer que ce goût de l'exotique le mettrait quelque deux cent quatre-vingts ans plus tard au coeur d'une étonnante histoire. Cette communication relate les méandres de l'enquête menée par ses trois auteurs pour découvrir comment une pipe à fourneau en pierre prise aux Natchez au coeur du xviiie siècle est entrée dans les collections du musée de l'Homme en 1950 pour être aujourd'hui conservée au musée du quai Branly. Autour de cet objet rituel, se croiseront ainsi, des prêtres amérindiens, un garde-magasin pilleur, un intendant collectionneur, un mystérieux inconnu, un dessinateur érudit ou encore un marchand d'art avisé.
This is an essay about my first hot air balloon ride. It occurred on Wednesday, Oct. 13, 2021, in Vidalia, La., couple of days before the start of the annual Natchez Balloon Festival in Natchez, Miss.
