![\"Making](\"https:\/\/much-ado.net\/legislators\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/Making-their-Mark_0326-1024x467.png\")
<\/h1>\n<\/h1>\nThe “Making Their Mark” project, funded by a grant from Monument Lab’s Re:Generation initiative in 2026, will facilitate the installation of historical markers in counties across Mississippi to recognize the 162 Black men who served in the state or national legislature between 1870-1894. There will be 22 markers in total, with some adjacent counties being combined.\u00a0 Each marker’s unveiling will be accompanied by community programming featuring creative performances by local students.<\/p>\n
This page will eventually include event info, photos, and more. To keep up to date, follow us on Facebook<\/a><\/strong>.<\/p>\n First Set<\/b> – sent to manufacturer for delivery in summer 2026; installations and community programming will begin in the fall Second Set<\/strong> – applications sent for approval by Dept. of Archives & History’s directors at their summer meeting PRESS<\/strong> THE TEAM<\/strong> Please contact DeeDee Baldwin (dbaldwin@library.msstate.edu<\/a>) for more information about the project.<\/p>\n Teachers who are interested in working with us on the program for your community in late 2026-early 2027, please contact Chuck Yarborough (cyarborough@themsms.org<\/a>).<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Honoring Mississippi’s First Black Legislators on the Landscape and in Public Memory The “Making Their Mark” project, funded by a grant from Monument Lab’s Re:Generation initiative in 2026, will facilitate the installation of historical markers in counties across Mississippi to recognize the 162 Black men who served in the state or national legislature between 1870-1894. … <\/p>\n
\nAdams – Natchez<\/a>
\nClaiborne\/Jefferson – Port Gibson<\/a>
\nHolmes – Lexington<\/a>
\nLauderdale\/Clarke – Meridian<\/a>
\nLowndes – Columbus<\/a>
\nMarshall\/DeSoto – Holly Springs<\/a>
\nNoxubee – Macon<\/a>
\nOktibbeha\/Clay – Starkville<\/a>
\nWarren – Vicksburg<\/a>
\nWashington – Greenville<\/a>
\nWilkinson\/Amite – Woodville<\/a><\/p>\n
\nNational Figures – Jackson State University<\/a>
\nBolivar\/Sunflower – Cleveland<\/a>
\nCoahoma\/Tunica – Clarksdale<\/a>
\nCopiah\/Lawrence\/Marion – Hazlehurst<\/a>
\nHinds\/Rankin – Jackson<\/a>
\nLeflore\/Carroll\/Grenada – Greenwood<\/a>
\nMadison – Canton<\/a>
\nMonroe\/Chickasaw – Aberdeen<\/a>
\nPanola – Batesville<\/a>
\nSharkey\/Issaquena – Rolling Fork<\/a>
\nYazoo – Yazoo City<\/a><\/p>\n
\nNatchez Democrat, December 18, 2025<\/a>
\nMacon Beacon, December 11, 2025<\/a>
\nThe Southern Reveille, December 5, 2025<\/a>
\nColumbus\u00a0Commercial Dispatch<\/em>, December 5, 2025<\/a><\/p>\n
\nDeeDee Baldwin (Mississippi State University)
\nChuck Yarborough (Mississippi School for Mathematics and Science)
\nBrother Rogers (ret., Mississippi Department of Archives and History)
\nRoscoe Barnes (Visit Natchez)
\nVickie Roberts Ratliff (Land, Literacy, Legacy LLC)
\nRobby Luckett (Jackson State University)
\nHeather Denne (Jackson State University)<\/p>\n