Timeline of Jackson, Mississippi

19th century

1821

Mississippi capital relocated to Jackson from Natchez.

Graveyard established.

1822

January: State legislature in session.

Town laid out.

1838 - State Library established.

1839 - State House built.

1840

Vicksburg-Jackson railway begins operating.

Jackson chartered as a city.

Penitentiary built.

1842

James H. Boyd becomes mayor.

Governor's mansion built.

1845 - College opens in Eagle Hotel.

1846

City Hall built.

St. Peter's church dedicated.

1847 - Mississippi Institute for the Blind founded.

1858 - New Orleans, Jackson and Great Northern Railroad in operation.

1861

January 7: Secession Convention begins.

City becomes Confederate capital of Mississippi.

Confederate House (hotel) built.

1863

May 14: Battle of Jackson, Mississippi; Union Army takes city.

July 5–25: Siege of Jackson.

1864 - July 2–10: Occupation of Jackson by Union Army.

1866 - Daily Clarion newspaper begins publication.

1867

City charter revised.

Beth Israel Synagogue built.

1868

Black and Tan Convention held.

Colored Citizen’s Monthly begins publication.

1869

Mississippi State Fair begins.

Tougaloo College established near Jackson.

1870

People's Journal begins publication.

Mississippi Penitentiary Library established.

1882 - Natchez-Jackson railway begins operating.

1883 - Jackson College for Negroes in operation.

1885 - Yazoo City-Jackson railway begins operating.

1890

Constitutional Convention held.

Population: 5,920.

1891 - Confederate monument unveiled.

1892

Millsaps College opens.

Jackson Evening News begins publication.

1894 - Belhaven College for Young Ladies chartered.

1898 - Campbell College relocated to Jackson from Vicksburg.

20th century

1900

Cathedral of St. Peter the Apostle dedicated.

Population: 7,816.

1901 - Century Theatre opens.

1902

Mississippi Department of Archives and History and State Museum headquartered in city.

Art Study Club founded.

Population: 7,816.

1903 - Mississippi State Capitol building constructed.

1906 - Young Men's Christian Association incorporated.

1910 - Population: 21,262.

1911 - Mississippi Art Association formed.

1914 - Country Club of Jackson organized.

1919 - Jackson Zoo opens.

1920 - The Clarion-Ledger newspaper in publication.

1920s - NAACP Jackson branch established.

1923 - Edwards Hotel built.

1925 - Woodrow Wilson Bridge built.

1926

Mississippi Library Commission headquartered in Jackson.

Glendale Methodist Church established.

1927 - Municipal Clubhouse Art Gallery opens (approximate date).

1929 - WJDX (AM) begins broadcasting.

1930

Hinds County Courthouse built.

Population: 48,282.

1939

Jackson Advocate newspaper begins publication.

Pix Theatre built.

1940 - Population: 62,107.

1943 - Alamo Theater built.

1944 - Summers Hotel in business.

1945 - Jackson Photographic Society founded.

1947

Radio Service Company in business (approximate date).

Mississippi Progressive Voters' League headquartered in city (approximate date).

1949 - Allen C. Thompson becomes mayor.

1950

Trumpet Records in business.

Population: 98,271.

1955

University of Mississippi Medical Center opens.

Ace Records in business.

1960 - Population: 144,422.

1961 - Freedom Rides begin.

1962

Jackson Veterans Administration Hospital opens.

Council of Federated Organizations headquartered in city.

Mississippi Coliseum built.

1963

May 28: Woolworth sit-in.

June 12: Medgar Evers assassinated.

1966

June 26: March Against Fear arrives from Memphis.

Subway Lounge opens.

1967 - Malaco recording studio in business.

1970

May 14: Jackson State killings.

Public schools desegregated.

Hinds Community College campus opens.

Population: 153,968.

1970s - Queen of Hearts music club opens.

1975

Jackson Mets baseball team relocates to Jackson.

Smith–Wills Stadium opens.

Lemuria Books in business.

1976 - Jackson Camellia Society founded.

1977 - Roman Catholic Diocese of Jackson established.

1978 - Southern Coalition for Educational Equity headquartered in city.

1979 - April: Flood.

1980 - Population: 202,895.

1983 - Dons nightclub in business.

1984 - Methodist WellsFest begins.

1985 - City adopts mayor-council form of government.

1989 - J. Kane Ditto becomes mayor.

1990

100 Black Men of Jackson (nonprofit organization) founded.

Population: 196,637.

1991 - Garden Club of Jackson organized.

1997 - Harvey Johnson, Jr. becomes mayor.

1999 - City website online.

21st century

2000

Goldring / Woldenberg Institute of Southern Jewish Life founded.

Population: 184,256.

2002

Jackson Free Press begins publication.

Jackson Senators baseball team formed.

2005 - Frank Melton becomes mayor.

2006 - Eudora Welty House museum opens.

2008 - Mississippi Black Leadership Summit begins.

2009

Leslie B. McLemore becomes mayor, succeeded by Harvey Johnson, Jr.

Gregg Harper becomes U.S. representative for Mississippi's 3rd congressional district.

2010

The Help (movie) filmed in Jackson.

Population: 173,514.

2012

2012 Population Est.: 175,437

2013 - Chokwe Lumumba becomes mayor.

2014

Charles Tillman becomes interim mayor.

Tony Yarber elected mayor April 22.