Mississippi

Mississippi

Capital	Jackson
Nickname	The Magnolia State
Official Language	English
Governor	Haley Barbour, R
Senator	Thad Cochran, R (202) 224-5054 Contact
Senator	Roger Wicker, R (202) 224-6253 Contact
Ratification of Constitution/or statehood	December 10, 1817 (20th)
Flag of Mississippi	Motto: "Virtute et armis" (By valor and arms)

Mississippi is located in the Southern region of the United States and on December 10th, 1817 became the twentieth state to enter into the union. Mississippi was once a member of the Confederate States of America. The capital of Mississippi is Jackson which is also its largest city. The current governor of Mississippi is Haley Barbour, a Republican.

Economy

Although Mississippi's economy has traditionally been more agriculturally based than those of many states, the state has experienced industrial growth in recent years. The economy in the southern part of the state near the coastline was severely disrupted by Hurricane Katrina in 2005, but has begun to rebound.

Out of wedlock births

Mississippi has the highest the rate in the nation of babies born to unwed mothers at 53%. The lowest is Utah at 18%.

Notable people from Mississippi

• Green Bay Packers quarterback Brett Favre is from Kiln.
• Confederate general Nathan Bedford Forrest was from Mississippi.
• Actor James Earl Jones was born in Arkabutla.
• Former United States Senate Majority Leader Trent Lott represented Mississippi in the Senate from 1989 to 2007.
• James Meredith made headlines as the first African-American student at the University of Mississippi in 1962.
• Oprah Winfrey was born in Kosciusko.
• Elvis Presley was born in Tupelo.