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Naval History and Heritage Command

Naval History and Heritage Command

The Navy Department Library

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Topic
Document Type
Wars & Conflicts
File Formats
Location of Archival Materials

Mississippi Department of Archives and History

Jackson, MS

Mississippi Department of Archives and History 
P.O. Box 571
Jackson, MS 39205-0571

 

Barksdale Family
Papers, 1861-1965

Lieutenant Henry Edward Barksdale's correspondence chronicles his service in the United States Navy in China during World War II. Colonel Battle Malone Barksdale's correspondence chronicles his years as a cadet at the United States Military Academy, West Point, New York, in the 1930s and as an army officer during World War II. A memoir also recounts his service in the United States Army.

The Barksdale Family Papers also contain scattered papers and records of the Hawkins and Humphrey families. Included are letters of Confederate soldier Rhesa Read Hawkins of Vaiden, Mississippi, which document his service in Company K, Eleventh Regiment, Mississippi Infantry, and an 1883 pocket diary of Minnie Louisa Humphrey of South New Berlin, Chenango County, New York.

 

Bass, Ivan E.
Collection, 1897-1967

Ivan Ernest Bass was born in 1877 in Marion County. He entered the U.S. Naval Academy at Annapolis in 1897 and retired from the U.S. Navy as Rear Admiral in 1947. His wide ranging genealogical researches resulted in the publication of books on Bass and Wilkes family history. He died in 1967.

The bulk of this collection consists of Bass's genealogical research files, divided into two series: Subject Files and Miscellaneous Materials. Both contain correspondence, notes and scattered photographs. A copy of Bass's work on the Wilkes Family will be found in Series Two. Series Four has papers relating to Bass's naval career, and Series Five a scrapbook of Bass news clippings. Various genealogical charts are in Series Six.

 

Chalmers, Joseph W.
Papers, 1846

Joseph W. Chalmers, born Halifax County, Virginia, 1807, was a U. S. Senator from Mississippi from March 4, 1845 to March 3, 1847. He was appointed and subsequently elected to fill the vacancy created by the resignation of Robert J. Walker. One letter, February 7, 1846, is to George Bancroft, Secretary of the Navy. The other letter, March 7, 1846, Chalmers sends his autograph to a constituent.

 

Clairborne, John F. H.
Papers, 1836-1878

Letters written by John Francis Hamtramck Claiborne, a representative from Mississippi and a newspaper editor and historian. Three of the letters are to the Secretary of the Navy, one is to John Van Buren, one is to Benjamin J. Lossing, and one is to Rutherford B. Hayes.

 

Disharoon, Ben M.
Papers, 1951-1952

Ben MaGruder Disharoon, Port Gibson, was born May 13, 1927, the son of George Lindsay Disharoon and May Florine Levy. He attended Port Gibson public schools, graduating in May 1944. After attending the University of Mississippi in 1944-1945, Disharoon served in the U.S. Navy from 1945 until 1946. After his discharge, he enrolled in Louisiana State University, receiving a B.A. degree in Fine Arts in 1949 and an M.A. degree in Fine Arts, Painting and Sculpture in 1951. He traveled extensively in Europe in 1951-1952, and, upon returning home, continued his artwork. From 1952 to 1958 he farmed, and, in 1958, he became the County Director of Public Welfare. In 1963, he received a Master's degree in social work, and in that same year accepted work as Regional S upervisor, State Welfare Department.

 

Doolittle Family
Papers, 1826-1960

The military careers of Claude Woodson Wall, Jr., William Joseph Doolittle, Jr., and General James H. Doolittle are detailed in six boxes. In box 13, there is a letter of introduction for Maude Ethel Doolittle Thompson written by Governor Theodore G. Bilbo and dated June 30, 1917. There are several tintypes and daguerreotypes of Doolittle family members. Maude Thompson's papers as Assistant to the Dean of Gulf Park College from 1921 to 1945 are included in box 12.

 

Hiatt, George L.
Papers, 1863-1867

Xerox copy of the diary of First Sergeant George L. Hiatt, Mississippi Marine Brigade, United States Marine Corps, who served on board the United States Steamer Baltic in 1863-1864. The diary begins on March 4, 1863, in Louisville, Kentucky, and the first few pages are in narrative form telling of his enlistment in the Marines and other events. The day-to-day accounts begin in May l863 and tell the story of life on board Baltic. The surrender of Vicksburg, landings on the Mississippi, Yazoo, and White rivers where Baltic tied up, raiding parties for supplies and provisions, and various battles are all mentioned. The last few pages of the volume are bookkeeping entries of Davidson, Hiatt and Davidson.

 

Holmes, David
Papers, 1796-1825

Letters, certificates, and commissions of David Holmes, Governor of the Mississippi Territory and the  State of Mississippi and United States Senator from Mississippi.

 

Howorth, Joseph M.
Collection, 1918-1935

Photographs of military camps in the United States, picture post cards of battle scenes, and other memorabilia relating to World War I. Mr. Howorth, attorney, enlisted in the United States Marines on June 6, 1918, and served with the American Expeditionary Force in France under General Smedley Butler until September 13, 1919.

 

Humphrey Family
Papers

William Guy Humphrey was born in New Berlin, New York, on April 6, 1898. At the age of two, his family relocated to Greenwood, Mississippi, where Humphrey would spend the remainder of his life. He served in the Marine Corps during World War I. The bulk of this collection is composed of family papers and records of William Guy Humphrey.

 

Jones, Archibald K.
Papers, 1860-1910

Papers of Archibald K. Jones and members of his immediate family of Port Gibson, Claiborne County. A. K. Jones graduated from the University of Mississippi in the spring of 1860. At the outbreak of the Civil War, Jones became an officer with the Claiborne Guards, Company K, Twelfth Regiment of Mississippi Infantry, CSA. Also contained in the collection is the correspondence of Meredith D. Jones, brother of A. K. Jones, who was a doctor in the U. S. Navy.

 

Leigh, Richard H.
Papers, 1887-1942

Memoirs and personal items of Richard Henry Leigh (1870-1946), of Batesville, Admiral of the U.S. Navy and Commander in Chief of the U.S. Fleet from 1932-1934. Admiral Leigh served as Chief of Staff to Admiral Sims during World War I, Chief of Staff of the U.S. Fleet, Chief of the Bureau of Navigation of the Navy Department, Commander of Battle Force, U.S. Fleet, and Commander in Chief until his retirement for physical disability in 1934. He served as a delegate to the Disarmament Conference at Geneva in 1933 and at London in 1934.

 

McAlpin-Mosley Family
Papers, 1842-1962

The collection deals primarily with Lonzo B. Moseley, Jr., and his son, Niles. Lonzo, Jr., a native of Jackson, attended the Jackson public schools and held degrees from the Universities of Mississippi and Virginia. He was associated with the Jackson Infirmary, and at the outbreak of World War II was commissioned a lieutenant commander in the U.S. Navy. His son Niles was a graduate of Murrah High School and attended Mississippi State University were he was elected vice-president of the Engineering School.

 

Morgan, Madel J.
Papers, 1897-1946

This collection is composed principally of letters written to Madel Jacobs Morgan (Mrs. Adlia), Jackson, by her brothers, Captain Charles Clark Jacobs and Private First Class Fred Clark Jacobs, who served during World War II in the Marine Corps and were in the combat zones in the Pacific. The letter dated December 13, 1897, is from Mrs. Morgan's father, Charles Clark Jacobs, and was written from British Columbia.

 

Navy Mother's Club
Records, 1941-1945

The first Navy Mothers' Club in Mississippi was organized on November 18, 1941, at the Robert E. Lee Hotel in Jackson by Mrs. Mary Turner. The volume contains the minutes of the subsequent meetings that were held in Jackson from 1941 to 1945. Also included are lists of club officers.

 

Read, Charles
Papers

A ten page typewritten manuscript entitled "The Confederate Ram Arkansas, by Charles Read." The title and byline are presumably in Read's handwriting. Read, a native of Yazoo County, graduated from the U.S. Naval Academy in 1860. He resigned his commission in the U.S. Navy in 1861 and was commissioned a lieutenant in the C.S.A. Navy. He was in command of the stern gun division of Arkansas.

 

Robinson, Thomas M.
Papers, 1917-1975

Thomas Mitchell Robinson was born on October 19, 1894, at Jackson, Mississippi. He was the son of John W. Robinson, Sr., and Ida Mitchell Robinson. Thomas attended Augusta Military Academy, Fort Defiance, Virginia, 1909-1912, Millsaps College, 1913; and Mississippi State College, 1913-1916, where he received his B. S. degree. On November 1, 1928, Mr. Robinson married Amalie Nance Fair, daughter of William Young and Amalie Sykes Fair. In 1921, he became a partner in the firm of Robinson and Julienne, General Insurance. Mr. Robinson served as the Secretary-Business Manager, Mississippi State College (1932-1937); and State Senator, 12th District, Hinds County (1940-1944). He also served in the Mississippi National Guard, was a member of the Exchange Club and Executive Club of Jackson.

 

Screws, Thaddie K.
Papers, 1857, 1940, 1960

One of the granddaughters of John and Catherine Tucker Kirk, Thaddie Kirk, was born in July of 1894. She later married Clark Screws, a railroad depot agent from Mississippi. The Screwses lived at Flora in Madison County and at Bentonia and Yazoo City, both in Yazoo County, Mississippi. Three of their sons served in World War II: Buford J. Screws in the Navy, Carroll S. Screws in the Marine Corps, and John T. Screws in the Army. The latter two sons remained in the military. In the late 1950s, Carroll S. Screws held the rank of sergeant first class, at Oahu, Hawaii, and John T. Screws held the rank of sergeant at Fort Bragg, North Carolina. This collection contains two letters, one postcard, and a three-page handwritten genealogy.

 

Shields, William F.
Papers, 1821-1870

Personal and official papers of William F. Shields who was appointed a midshipman in the United States Navy on February 2, 1814, and who was placed on the reserve list as a Commander on Sept. 13, 1855. He died on May 30, 1856. The papers and correspondence pertain principally to Shields' service in the Navy. Seventy-three items are originals or copies signed by Shields, including his will of July 1842.


Published: Thu Jun 26 13:25:36 EDT 2014