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The life and work of Pascagoula native and historian Jay Higginbotham will be celebrated by the Jackson County Historical and Genealogical Society and the Local Genealogy and History Department of Pascagoula Public Library on Tuesday (May 25) at 6 p.m. at the library.

Higginbotham, former director of the Mobile Municipal Archives and head of the Mobile Public Library Department of Local History, has devoted his career to Colonial research and world travel, writing in many different genres, including history, editorials, fiction, poetry, travel, essays and drama.

"Jay's contributions to our history are immeasurable," said JCHGS President Barry McIlwain. "He is truly a historian's historian and we are proud to have this opportunity to honor his literary and humanitarian work on behalf of world peace."

Speakers who will pay tribute to Higginbotham include Tommy Wixon, past JCHGS president.

The son of the late Prieur Jay Higginbotham and Vivian Inez Perez Higginbotham of Pascagoula, he is a descendant of Joseph Simon Sieur de la Pointe, who helped erect Fort Maurepas in 1699. He was educated in Pascagoula city schools and earned a BA degree in Arts from the University of Mississippi.

The first of his 23 books focused on French and Spanish colonization, one of which, "Old Mobile," won five literary awards in 1966 and became a classic in early American history. Five of his books deal with the French Colonial Period. Later, he wrote a description of his journey across Siberia, which was published first in the USSR in 1981, and by Dodd, Mead in New York in 1983.

His latest book, "Selected Writings of Jay Higginbotham," will be featured in a book signing segment of the celebration event. It presents a selection from the best of his writings in all fields during the past 40 years. Other of his books will be on display and some available for purchase and signing.

Refreshments will be served. The program is open to the public. For more information, contact Renee Hague or Sherry Owens at 228-769-3078.

Pascagoula’s Front Street District makes

‘top 10’ endangered historical places list

The Mississippi Heritage Trust (MHT), one of the leaders in the statewide preservation movement, unveiled its 2009 list of Mississippi’s 10 Most Endangered Places in September. One of those selected is Pascagoula’s Front Beach Historic District (circa 1840 and 1890-1910).

Located just south of the former pet food cannery property, the district encompasses the 2800 and 2900 blocks of Front Street. Originally the district had five houses. Now only two, the homes of John B. Delmas and Charles Delmas, remain and they are vacant and deteriorating.

A photographic exhibit of the “10 Most” sites for 2009, co-sponsored by the City of Pascagoula and Pascagoula Public Library, will be on display at the library’s Local Genealogy and History Department throughout the month of April. Hours are 9 a.m. to 8 p.m., Monday through Thursday, and 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., Friday and Saturday. MHT’s free exhibit’s itinerary includes other cities and towns on the list and the Old Capitol Museum in Jackson.

The MHT has published a companion booklet available at the exhibit giving a history and assessment of the threat level of the 10 sites. Liz Ford, chairman of the Pascagoula Historic Preservation Commission, said the Front Street district was nominated for the MHT listing by the Jackson County Historical and Genealogical Society.

According to MHT’s research, the John B. Delmas house was built circa 1840 by its namesake and is one of the four oldest surviving buildings in Pascagoula. The house is a two-story wood vernacular frame structure. What looks like an addition to the rear is actually what remains of the original c. 1840 structure. The addition is actually the two-story portion built c. 1872. The primary façade features a full-width two-story gallery that has simple square columns with molded capitals, and a central entrance.

Directly to the south of his house is the home John B. Delmas built for his son, Charles, c. 1890-1910. It is also a two-story vernacular wood frame structure that features a full-width, two-story gallery on the primary façade. Most elements of the gallery, including the second story floor, were lost during Hurricane Katrina. Currently holding the porch roof in place are simple square posts which replaced the original turned and bracketed posts. Two entrances open onto the porches at both levels. In the 1940’s, the house was converted into a duplex, the south entrance at the ground floor was added, and the back gallery was enclosed.

Both houses are now vacant and in disrepair. MDH describes their location in a waterfront revitalization zone as another concern as developers could demolish the houses. In addition to the Front Street district’s architectural significance, MHT reports archaeologists have found evidence of prehistoric environments and subsistence practices throughout the district and have named the site “Singing River.”

According to Tommy Wixon’s “Photographs from the Past,” John Baptiste Delmas was the son of Valentine Delmas, an early settler in Pascagoula. John B. married Mary Elizabeth Grant, the daughter of Capt. John Grant.

“Losing the last two houses of the Front Street Historic District, and an important part of Pascagoula’s history, would be a terrible loss for the community,” MDH concluded in its booklet.

The endangered sites accompanying Pascagoula’s Front Street district for 2009 are: Alcazar Hotel, 1915, in Clarksdale; Arlington House, c. 1818, Natchez; Church Street, c. 1820-1950, Port Gibson; Ebenezer A.M.E. Church, 1885, 1939, Raymond; Hinds County Armory, 1927, Jackson; Oakes African American Cultural Center, c. 1866, 1930, Yazoo City; Teco Community, c. 1850-1900, Carroll County; Threefoot Building, 1930, Meridian, and Wood College, 1914-1955, Mathiston. All of these are featured along with Pascagoula’s in the free to the public Pascagoula library exhibit.

Since 1999, 12 places on MHT’s previous lists have been saved, 35 are in progress of being saved, 10 have had no progress, and three have been lost. MHT has joined the ranks of the Mississippi Department of Archives and History and the Mississippi Main Street Association as leaders in historic preservation efforts.

The MHT is a statewide non-profit organization dedicated to the preservation of the prehistoric and historic cultural resources of Mississippi. More information on its work may be found on the web at www.mississippiheritage.com or by calling the MHT office, 601-354-00200. Membership is $25 a year for individuals and $35 for families for those who would like to support the organization’s work.

Gulf Islands National Seashore Announces Call

for Fort Massachusetts Volunteer-In-Park Applicants

   “Gulf Islands National Seashore is recruiting volunteers to help park
staff in the field of visitor services on West Ship Island. This is a
wonderful opportunity to work with other people interested in the park’s
military history and to provide information about Fort Massachusetts to the
visiting public,” says Gulf Islands National Seashore Acting Superintendent
Nina Kelson. Individuals selected for volunteer work receive training and
volunteer uniforms.

   Park volunteers serve as a point of contact for providing information to
visitors and are responsible for answering basic questions, giving
directions, and assisting with other park duties as assigned. Applicants
should possess good communication skills, interest in learning about Ship
Island’s history, and ability to work with the public. Most visitor
services work takes place outdoors at Fort Massachusetts on West Ship
Island. Summer temperatures can be extreme, but the rewards are
immeasurable. Shifts will be either eight or ten hours on a regular or
occasional basis.

   Individuals interested in applying for a volunteer position may call
(228) 875-9057 extension 4106 for more information and an application. A
training session for selected applicants is scheduled for Wednesday, March
4, 2009 from 8:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. at Davis Bayou in Ocean Springs. The
William M. Colmer Visitor Center is located two miles south of U.S. Highway
90 East on Park Road in Ocean Springs and is open daily from 8:30 a.m. –
4:30 p.m. For more information about Gulf Islands National Seashore call
228-875-9057 or visit the park’s website at www.nps.gov/guis.

Stacy Speas
Interpretive Park Ranger
Gulf Islands NS

Society joins with USM, Chevron, CEI

to explore Greenwood Island gravesites

Members of our Society participated in an anthropology expedition Dec. 28 on Greenwood Island in East Pascagoula, which was the site of Camp Jefferson Davis at the end of the Mexican-American War in 1848.

Twice in the last 30 years, local fisherman have discovered wooden coffins containing the remains of U.S. veterans exposed by ongoing beach erosion. After years of wondering, “what else is out there,” the Jackson County Historical and Genealogical Society (JCHGS), Coastal Environments, Inc. (CEI) and the Mississippi Department of Archives and History teamed up with Southern Miss for a final comprehensive search of the beach.

“We learned from Post Records that 105 soldiers, many of whom had arrived sick or wounded, died in East Pascagoula, and a few on Greenwood Island,” said Dr. Marie Danforth, Professor of Anthropology at Southern Miss. “When we arrived on the beach, another coffin had been exposed by the sand being churned up from wave action. The work on Greenwood Island has allowed Southern Miss students the unique opportunity to learn about the lives of these soldiers by analyzing their remains and interpreting their findings within the rich historical context that has become available through the dedicated efforts of many JCHGS members.”

With a little help from Chevron’s HumanKind program, which reimburses employee volunteer time; the team rented a high-tech Ground Penetrating Radar (GPR) system to scan the beach.

“We had plans to re-inter the previously found remains at Biloxi National Cemetery, but before we did so, we needed to ensure we didn’t leave any others behind,” said Roger Hansen, Chevron Pascagoula Refinery employee, Veterans of Foreign Wars member and JCHGS military committee member.

When tides were at a optimum low, anthropologist Kelsey Lowe of CEI conducted the analysis while Southern Miss faculty and students, JCHGS volunteers and additional CEI professionals mobilized to assist with the work. Subsequently, the entire stretch of beach where the graves were found was searched using GPR technology. Although the findings have yet to be fully analyzed, it does not indicate that more coffins are present.

Coordinated by Hansen, the JCHGS plans to re-inter the newly found remains and those of three other previously discovered soldiers into Biloxi National Cemetery on Memorial Day 2010. This will make a total of six soldiers interred at the cemetery from Greenwood Island in 20 years.

“We eventually hope to uncover the names of all 105 soldiers who died at the camp,” said JCHGS President Barry Mclllwain. “We have confirmed 40 of the names and there are plans to erect some type of memorial to the history of the camp.”