Mississippi Civil Rights Museum | Mississippi Civil Rights Museum

MISSISSIPPI CIVIL RIGHTS MUSEUM
222 NORTH STREET
JACKSON, MISSISSIPPI

HOURS
TUESDAY–SATURDAY 9AM–5PM
SUNDAY 11AM–5PM

Explore the Galleries

Explore the movement that changed the nation. Discover stories of Mississippians like Medgar Evers, Fannie Lou Hamer, and Vernon Dahmer, as well as those who traveled many miles to stand beside them, come what may, in the name of equal rights for all.

Explore the Galleries at the Mississippi Civil Rights Museum

Points of Light

The Civil Rights Movement in Mississippi is full of ordinary men and women who refused to sit silently while their brothers and sisters were denied their basic freedoms. A number of these heroes are featured throughout the museum as Points of Light, shining exemplars of dignity, strength, and perseverance in the face of oppression.

Reverend James D. Lynch

A native of Baltimore, Rev. James D. Lynch served as a missionary for the A.M.E. Church in South Carolina and Georgia during the war, helping to establish Black schools and churches. In 1868, he brought his missionary work to Mississippi, but soon realized that political rights were also critical to Black freedmen. Lynch became one of the founders of Mississippi’s Republican Party and served as its first vice president. In 1869, he won election as Mississippi Secretary of State, the first African American to hold that office. After leaving office in 1870, Lynch helped to establish Shaw University, now Rust College, in Holly Springs.

Florence Mars

Philadelphia resident Florence Mars was shunned for seeking justice. The daughter of a local judge, Mars had long questioned Mississippi customs governing race. At the University of Mississippi in the 1940s, she and classmate Betty Pearson had spoken out for Black laundry workers. In 1955, they were shocked by the Emmett Till trial, where Mars took numerous photographs. Mars ran a Neshoba County stockyard and taught Sunday school. In 1964, she initially found it hard to believe that local Klansmen had killed Chaney, Goodman, and Schwerner. She described rumors about a COFO hoax, designed to make Mississippi look bad. But when her questions led Mars to the truth, she contacted FBI investigators. For her role, neighbors boycotted her business, and Mars was forced to sell.

Explore Mississippi

Many of the homes, colleges, and historic sites discussed in this gallery still exist today. Journey beyond the museum walls and explore the places where history happened.