Dread and Dreams: The Mississippi River and the Journey of Prince Ibrahima

(Click on image to enlarge.)

I was honored to speak about Prince Ibrahima at the Pilgrimage Garden Club Symposium held Saturday, September 26, 2026, at The Carriage House in Natchez, Mississippi. The program was held in memory of James McHenry Wade, curator of Longwood. Its theme was “The People, River, and History that Shaped Natchez.”

My presentation examines the Mississippi River as both a passage into bondage and a pathway toward freedom in the remarkable life of Prince Ibrahima, the West African Muslim prince who spent 40 years enslaved on a plantation near Natchez. His story reveals the river’s complex and often contradictory role, as a force that carried enslaved people into captivity and later became part of his journey toward liberation.

See the full presentation at this link:

https://www.researchgate.net/publication/414916514_Dread_and_Dreams_The_Mississippi_River_and_the_Journey_of_Prince_Ibrahima

(Click on image to enlarge.)

Wonderful time at 2nd Annual Pilgrimage Garden Club Symposium in Natchez, Miss.

Pictured here, from left, are Roscoe Barnes III, cultural heritage tourism manager at Visit Natchez; Becky Anderson, educator and historian at the Grand Village of the Natchez Indians; Dr. Maurice Nutt; and Dr. Terrel Williams, president of the Pilgrimage Garden Club. Anderson also spoke at the symposium. (Click on image to enlarge.)

On Saturday, September 26, 2026, I had the privilege of speaking at the Pilgrimage Garden Club Symposium, held in memory of the late James McHenry Wade. The theme was “The People, River, and History that Shaped Natchez.”

I was especially honored to meet Rev. Dr. Maurice J. Nutt, a Catholic priest and the great-great-grandson of Haller and Julia Nutt of Longwood.

It was a wonderful afternoon of sharing stories about the people and history that have helped shape Natchez.

Civil War slave trade topic of Tuesday meeting

Top of the Morning column published in The Natchez Democrat (Sunday, September 20, 2026, page 4A) 

(Click on image to enlarge.)

Top of the Morning

Civil War slave trade topic of Tuesday meeting

By Roscoe Barnes III

As the Civil War drew to a close, the trafficking of enslaved people continued.

Despite the many twists and turns of the American economy and changing landscape of cotton and the political upheaval across the country during the Civil War, human trafficking through the domestic slave trade continued right up to the end of the war.

To better understand the impact of chattel slavery, and the people caught up in the system, including the enslaved and the enslavers, Dr. Robert K.D. Colby has written a book that sheds new light on the subject.

Titled, “An Unholy Traffic: Slave Trading in the Civil War South” (Oxford University Press, 2024), the book explores the survival of the domestic slave trade during the Civil War. Colby uses wartime slave commerce to examine the endurance of Confederate nationalism, economic and social life during the war, and the contested onset of African American freedom.

Colby will discuss these issues – and others -- at the Tuesday, September 22, meeting of the Natchez Historical Society. The meeting will begin with a social at 5:30 p.m. and Colby’s presentation at 6 p.m. at the Historic Natchez Foundation at 108 S. Commerce St.

The event, part of the Grace MacNeil Lecture Program, is free and open to the public.

“An Unholy Traffic” is Colby’s first book, and it is especially relevant to Natchez because of the city’s history with the Forks of the Road, which was the second largest slave market in the Deep South during the antebellum period, as well as the role that the Mississippi River played in the domestic slave trade.

Natchez’s antebellum wealth was closely tied to the system of chattel slavery, making the city an important place from which to consider the larger story Colby tells.

The remarkable story of Prince Abdul Rahman Ibrahima may also come to mind when discussing the slave trade in Natchez. Ibrahima, a Muslim prince from West Africa, spent 40 years enslaved by Thomas Foster Sr. in the Natchez area before gaining his freedom in 1828.

Colby is associate director of the Center for Civil War Research and assistant professor of history in the Department of History at the University of Mississippi. Before taking this position at Ole Miss, he was a postdoctoral fellow in the Center for American Studies at Christopher Newport University.

Colby is a native of Virginia. He earned his bachelor’s degree from the University of Virginia and his master’s and doctoral degrees from the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill.

Colby’s book has been recognized as a significant contribution to the study of American history during the Civil War. It won the John L. Nau Book Prize from the Nau Center for Civil War History at UVA and also received the Nonfiction Award from the Mississippi Institute of Arts and Letters.

“An Unholy Traffic” makes a powerful argument that suggests the slave trade provided a way for Confederates to keep their armies in the field.

Caroline E. Janney, author of “Ends of War: The Unfinished Fight of Lee's Army after Appomattox,” notes that Colby’s book presents a story that is centered on the persistence of the slave trade during the Civil War.

“Never believing that their cornerstone institution might be imperiled, both individual enslavers and the Confederate state continued to buy and sell the flesh of men and women up to and sometimes after the moment of defeat,” Janney writes. “This is essential reading for anyone wanting to understand both the grip slaveholding held on Confederacy and vice versa.”

For Natchez residents, Colby's work offers more than a study of the Civil War era. It provides a deeper understanding of how slavery continued to shape lives, economies and communities even as the Confederacy neared collapse, making his upcoming presentation particularly relevant to a city whose history is deeply intertwined with that story.

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ROSCOE BARNES III, Ph.D., is the cultural heritage tourism manager at Visit Natchez.

Jim Abbott, 'Paper Man,' and My Start in Journalism

A 1984 summer job at The Enterprise-Tocsin gave me my start as a news reporter and led to an unexpected mention in my former editor's memoir.

I'm pictured with David Rushing, center, and Jim Abbott. (Click on image to enlarge.)

I drove up to my hometown of Indianola on Wednesday, September 9, to see my friend Jim Abbott and celebrate the publication of his memoir, "Paper Man: Chasing the Truth in the Mississippi Delta" (2026, Nautilus Publishing), at the B.B. King Museum and Delta Interpretive Center. About 70 people attended the event, where Abbott was interviewed and reflected on his career in journalism in the Mississippi Delta.

 
Abbott is the former editor and publisher of The Enterprise-Tocsin. When he hired me as a reporter in 1984, he gave me my first job in journalism. I last saw him in the 1990s, so I was absolutely excited to see him again Wednesday. He is now 82.
 
I was also happy to see David Rushing, who was managing editor at the E-T. He and Jim took me under their wings and showed me the ropes of community journalism in general and investigative reporting in particular. I will always be grateful to these two men who gave me my start in journalism.
 
I was especially surprised — and honored — to discover that Jim mentions me in his book. He writes about the investigative stories I reported for the E-T during the summer of 1984, including the stories that earned a first-place award in investigative journalism from the Mississippi Press Association’s Better Newspaper Contest.
 
Jim’s account brought back some wonderful memories of my first summer as a newspaper reporter.

The page from "Paper Man" in which Jim writes about my first summer at The Enterprise-Tocsin. (Click on image to enlarge.)

Katherine Parker finds beauty from above

ArtsNatchez's September Artist of the Month to exhibit her aerial photography

by Mississippi Monitor | Sep 8, 2026 | Capital/River
By Roscoe Barnes III, Ph.D., Visit Natchez 

Photographer Katherine De'Na Parker, ArtsNatchez's Artist of the Month for September, poses with her aerial photograph of Longwood, one of her favorite pieces in the September 12 exhibit. (Click on image to enlarge.)

NATCHEZ, Miss. -- Katherine De’Na Parker has had a camera in her hands for as long as she can remember.
Born in New Orleans, she grew up in Slidell, Louisiana, and later Ellisville, Mississippi.
 
"My first camera was one of those little film point-and-shoot cameras we had in the 1980s," she recalls. "My mother was constantly telling me, 'Don't open that! You're going to expose the film!' Of course, I had absolutely no idea what she was talking about. I just wanted to know what was inside."
 
Since then, Parker has become a professional photographer known throughout Natchez for her bright smile, creative flair, and keen eye. She moves strategically from place to place at special events, photographing scenes and capturing portraits of individuals, families and groups.
 
When she's not taking photographs professionally, she uses her camera to create art.
 
Parker is ArtsNatchez Gallery's Artist of the Month for September. Her photography will be on display Saturday, September 12, at the gallery at 425 Main St. She will greet visitors during a free reception from 5 to 7 p.m. Refreshments will be served, and the event is open to the public.
 
‘Still in awe’
 
Parker says she was honored to be recognized for her photography, and she is still in awe. "There are so many extraordinarily talented artists associated with ArtsNatchez, and I am still very new to seeing myself as this kind of artist," she says.
 
Photography came naturally to her before she realized it could also become her art.
 
"To have ArtsNatchez recognize me as its September Artist of the Month, especially at this stage of that journey, is incredibly meaningful,” she says. "I am thankful to ArtsNatchez for giving me the opportunity to share work that, until now, largely existed inside my camera and my archives."
 
Although known for her work in public relations and studio photography, Parker says her specialty is aerial photography and capturing people, places and things in their most natural environments. She enjoys shooting images that depict movement while presenting candid storytelling about her subjects.
 
Most of the work represented in the ArtsNatchez exhibit comes from moments when she was either in a hot air balloon, an aircraft or on the river. “I love being in hot air balloons, helicopters, boats or aircraft and photographing the world while I am moving through it” she says. “There is nothing quite like it. People have actually asked whether some of my aerial photographs were taken with a drone. I tell them, ‘No. That was me trying not to drop my Canon out of a hot air balloon.’”

Her exhibit
 
Parker’s upcoming exhibit is titled “Reflections and Movement,” which aptly describes her body of work, some of which is already on display at ArtsNatchez. 
Much of the collection consists of aerial photography featuring architecture, wildlife, the Mississippi River and iconic Natchez landmarks. Among the featured works is an aerial view of Longwood, along with images of hot air balloons and their reflections.
 
Two of these pieces are titled "Reflection From My Balloon." They are different sizes, but they come from the same extraordinary experience, Parker says.
 
“My pilot was able to steady our balloon over a body of water long enough for me to photograph the reflection of our own hot air balloon below us,” she recalls. “You can see the balloon reflected in the water, but you can also see what appears to be the grass beneath the water. It gives the photograph an almost three-dimensional quality.”
 
Other photographs on display include inverted balloons. One of her favorites is the aerial photograph of Longwood, which allows one to see the top and sides of the structure and parts of the surrounding property.
 
“You can also see areas associated with the people who were enslaved there, and that part is difficult for me emotionally,” Parker says. “Longwood is beautiful architecture, but it is also history. History is not always comfortable. That property has stories within it that are beautiful, painful, complicated and important.”
 
Her inspiration
 
Parker was inspired by her mother to become a photographer. She says her mother pursued many creative endeavors over the years, including photography and modeling.
Parker began shooting professionally more than a decade ago while attending college. Her credentials include an associate degree in journalism from Jones County Junior College and a bachelor’s degree in journalism from the University of Southern Mississippi. She also completed graduate courses in corporate communications at Mississippi College.
 
In Parker’s view, a photograph is a tiny piece of history, and that’s one of the things she likes about her work – and her art. As a photographer, you capture a moment that will never happen exactly that way again, she says.
 
When it comes to cameras, Parker describes herself as a “Canon girl.” Her primary camera is a Canon EOS R mirrorless camera. Thanks to this camera, and the talent behind it, her work continues to grab attention while generating compliments.
 
“I am still getting used to people's reactions,” she says. “I have heard people describe my work as phenomenal and beautiful. I have found myself thinking, 'They're talking about my photograph. Mine? Wow, God. Just, wow!' That still blows me away.”
 
ArtsNatchez Gallery is open daily at 10 a.m. For more information, call 601-442-0043.

Natchez honors civil rights leader George Metcalfe

This historic event was held on the 61st anniversary of the bombing of George Metcalfe’s car by the Ku Klux Klan at the very site where the bombing occurred.

By Roscoe Barnes III, Ph.D., Visit Natchez

by Mississippi Monitor | Sep 3, 2026 | Capital/River

This marker, approved by the Mississippi Department of Archives and History, was dedicated by the City of Natchez on August 27, 2026, the 61st anniversary of the Ku Klux Klan bombing of George Metcalfe's car. (Click on image to enlarge.)

 
NATCHEZ, Miss. -- The City of Natchez recently unveiled a historical marker honoring the life and legacy of civil rights leader George Metcalfe (1911-1989), whose car was bombed by the Ku Klux Klan on August 27, 1965. Metcalfe survived the attack but suffered severe injuries. No one was ever charged in connection with the bombing.

Metcalfe was president of the Natchez NAACP and a leading advocate for civil rights and economic opportunity. He led a voter registration drive that added over 8,000 Black residents to the local rolls. His activism made him a target of white supremacist violence during one of the most turbulent periods in Mississippi's civil rights struggle.
 
"Mr. George Metcalfe and many others sacrificed so much for our freedom," said Mayor Dan Gibson. "The best way we can honor them is by moving forward together, setting aside old divisions, and making sure our community is built on kindness and understanding."
 
About 60 people attended the ceremony on Thursday, August 27, 2026 – the 61st anniversary of the bombing. They gathered at the site of the bombing at the intersection of Kelly Avenue, Brenham Avenue, and South Concord Avenue, on the west side of the former Armstrong Tire and Rubber Company.

Metcalfe was employed at the Armstrong plant and had just gotten off work when he sat in his 1955 Chevrolet sedan. When he turned the ignition, a bomb planted inside the vehicle by members of the Klan exploded.

Community members pose beside a Mississippi historical marker honoring civil rights leader George Metcalfe at the site of the August 27, 1965, bombing that nearly claimed his life. The marker, approved by the Mississippi Department of Archives and History, stands near the former Armstrong Tire and Rubber Company in Natchez. Photo by Albert L. Jones (Click on image to enlarge.)

The marker, approved by the Mississippi Department of Archives and History, is posted in the triangle near the location where Metcalfe’s car was parked when the explosion occurred.
 
The ceremony drew people from across the Natchez community, including elected officials, educators, military veterans, and church leaders. Speakers included Alderman Billy Joe Frazier and Mississippi State Rep. Robert L. Johnson III. The Rev. Neddie Winters, former president of Mission Mississippi, served as the keynote speaker.
 
Stories and reflections
 
The audience heard stories and reflections from those who knew Metcalfe personally, as well as from individuals who recognize the significance of his contributions to the Civil Rights Movement in Natchez and beyond.
 
Gibson and Winters discussed Metcalfe’s legacy and emphasized the power of love when facing hate.

“My prayer today is that this will be a day of healing and a day of reconciliation,” said Gibson. “Becoming reconciled not only to the challenges we face in today’s world, but also to those things from the past that happened beyond any of our own ability to control.”
 

The Rev. Neddie Winters delivers the keynote address during a ceremony honoring civil rights leader George Metcalfe. Photo by Albert L. Jones (Click on image to enlarge.)

Winters expressed his admiration for Metcalfe and the courage he demonstrated in his civil rights activities. “George recognized the moment and the opportunity he had to do something, and he had the courage in that moment to do what he could do with what he had,” Winters said. “He looked at his circumstances. He looked around, and in that moment he seized it.”

 
Frazier said it was a shame that Metcalfe, a World War II veteran, had served his country and came home where he was nearly killed. “He was in the war and didn’t get so much as a scratch on him,” he said. But he came home to fight for freedom that was denied because of the color of his skin, he added.
 
In Johnson’s view, the Klansmen did not plant the bomb in Metcalfe’s car merely because he was Black. “They stuck a bomb under it because Metcalfe and Wharlest Jackson Sr. took positions and money that they thought that an African American person should not have.”
 
Array of speakers
 
The program, which lasted just over an hour, featured an array of speakers that included Frances Bailey and Paul Bacon, eyewitnesses to the bombing; Jeremy Houston, author and local historian; Denise Jackson Ford, daughter of slain civil rights leader Wharlest Jackson Sr., and Wharlest Jackson Jr., his son; Joyce Arceneaux-Mathis, president of the Natchez NAACP; and Bobby Dennis, director of the Natchez Museum of African American History and Culture.
 
Houston was in the Marines when he read Jack E. Davis’ book, “Race Against Time,” and saw the stories about Metcalfe and other leaders in the Natchez movement. When he completed his military service and returned home, he began meeting with the leaders who were still around to learn more about Metcalfe and the civil rights history.
 
“I really appreciate George Metcalfe,” Houston said. “I wouldn’t be who I am, and I wouldn’t be able to stand up before a lot of people who I stood up before without him and Wharlest Jackson.”
 
Arceneaux-Mathis acknowledged the contributions of Metcalfe and others in the movement and urged the audience to keep fighting and voting. She said the NAACP is striving to add 16,000 people to the voting rolls.
 
Bailey and Bacon, who were teenagers at the time of the attack, described in detail Metcalfe’s suffering after the explosion. Both said he was conscious and calling for help.
 
‘Plea for help’
 
“This day will forever be with me,” said Bailey. “The memories of the pain of this man and his plea for help.”
 
Denise Jackson Ford said she was grateful that her father became an instrument in helping Metcalfe form the NAACP here along with others, including her mother, the late Exerlena Jackson. “My dad did not sacrifice his life for 17 cents raise here at Armstrong Tire and Rubber Company,” she said. “He sacrificed his life because he had a family with five children and didn’t want my mother to work because of her illness.”
 
Her brother, Wharlest Jackson Jr., expressed fond memories of Metcalfe. “George Metcalfe was like a dad to me,” he said.
 
Dennis grew up during the time of the bombing. “Now I can recognize some of the lessons that have driven me in my life in growing up through the sacrifices that this man made,” he said.

Natchez Mayor Dan Gibson delivers opening remarks during a ceremony honoring civil rights leader George Metcalfe. Photo by Albert L. Jones (Click on image to enlarge.)

Other participants in the ceremony included the Rev. Dr. Chad Caldwell, associate pastor of First Presbyterian Church Natchez, who delivered the invocation, and the Rev. Clifton Marvel Sr., pastor of Greater Macedonia Baptist Church, who gave the benediction. Tony Fields, minister of music at Zion Chapel A.M.E. Church, sang the national anthem. Dr. Roscoe Barnes III, cultural heritage tourism manager at Visit Natchez and immediate past president of the Mississippi Historical Society, served as the master of ceremonies.

 
 

George Metcalfe: May he never be forgotten.

 

(Click on image to enlarge.)

KNOE 8 News coverage of ceremony honoring George Metcalfe

Reporter Shahid Evans, left, and Dr. Roscoe Barnes III
(Click on image to enlarge.)

Reporter Shahid Evans of KNOE 8 News provided excellent coverage of our ceremony honoring civil rights leader George Metcalfe on August 27, 2026. The ceremony was held at the site where Metcalfe’s car was bombed by the Ku Klux Klan on August 27, 1965, outside the former Armstrong Tire and Rubber Company in Natchez.

Click here to see Evans' reel on Facebook: 

https://www.facebook.com/share/v/1DbgD2jQ6G/

Civil rights leader George Metcalfe honored

 

(Click on image to enlarge.)

On Thursday, August 27, 2026, we honored George Metcalfe at the site where his car was bombed by the Ku Klux Klan on August 27, 1965. He survived the attack but suffered severe injuries. No one was ever charged with the crime. This marker is posted on the west side of the old Armstrong Tire and Rubber Company in the triangle at the intersection of Kelly Avenue, Brenham Avenue, and South Concord Avenue, in Natchez, Mississippi.

Pilgrimage Garden Club to host symposium on Pre-Civil War Natchez history

Presentations will explore cotton and the Mississippi River, followed by dedication of new Enslaved Quarters Exhibit at Longwood

By Roscoe Barnes III
Natchez, MS, USA / ListenUpYall.com
Aug 24, 2026 | 12:11 PM

Terrel Williams, M.D., president of the Pilgrimage Garden Club, announces plans for the James Wade Memorial Symposium slated for September 26 at the Carriage House. (Click on image to enlarge.)

 

NATCHEZ, Miss. -- The Pilgrimage Garden Club will host an afternoon symposium Saturday, September 26, examining the impact of the Mississippi River, cotton, and key events that shaped Natchez before the Civil War.

Held in memory of the late James McHenry Wade, former curator of Longwood, the program is titled “The People, River, and History that Shaped Natchez.” It runs from 2 to 5 p.m. at The Carriage House on the grounds of Historic Stanton Hall at 410 N. Commerce St. Admission is $25.
 
Following the symposium, a dedication ceremony will be held at Longwood at 140 Lower Woodville Road for the new Enslaved Quarters exhibit, located in the property’s historic dependency building. Admission is free.
 
Dr. Terrel Williams, president of the Pilgrimage Garden Club, said the exhibit will highlight the history of the enslaved families who lived and worked at Longwood and explore how dependency buildings – historically known as slave quarters – can provide invaluable insight into their daily experiences.
 
The symposium will focus on the explorations of La Salle, the transformation of the cotton industry following Eli Whitney’s invention of the cotton gin, and the importance of preserving these stories and historic resources for future generations.
 
The symposium brochure highlights the significance of the Mississippi River, stating it has long shaped the history of Natchez, serving as a vital source of settlement, commerce, and conflict.
 
 “This program explores how the river fueled the cotton economy and plantation system while profoundly influencing the lives of the enslaved people whose labor sustained it,” the brochure notes.
 
The publication states that through these interconnected stories, attendees will gain a deeper understanding of the region’s complex history and the ongoing efforts to preserve and interpret these narratives.
 
“Together, these topics offer a deeper understanding of the history, culture, and legacy of Natchez and the lower Mississippi River Valley,” said Williams.
 
In addition to Williams, who will serve as emcee, the symposium will feature presentations by six speakers:
 
* Stephen Perkins, author and co-founder of ForrestPerkins in Washington, D.C., will discuss “The Discovery of the Mississippi River by Rene’-Robert Cavelier, Sieur de La Salle.”
 
* Becky Anderson, educator and historian at the Grand Village of the Natchez Indians, will discuss “Natchez Indians on the Bluff of the Mississippi River.”
 
* Roscoe Barnes III, Ph.D., cultural heritage tourism manager at Visit Natchez, will discuss “Dread and Dreams: The Mississippi River and the Journey of Prince Ibrahima.”
 
* Lynette Tanner, owner of Frogmore Plantation, will discuss “Cotton: White Gold on the River.”
 
* Carter Burns, executive director of the Historic Natchez Foundation, will discuss “Plantation Dependencies and Longwood.”
 
* Douglas Lanfear, Longwood docent and former staff member at Rosalie, will discuss “Longwood Dependency: From History to Interpretation.”
 
Williams will deliver the symposium's welcome, opening remarks, and closing remarks.
 
Tickets to the symposium can be purchased at NatchezPilgrimage.com or by calling Natchez Pilgrimage Tours at 601-653-0919.
 
In 2025, the Pilgrimage Garden Club held its first James Wade Memorial Symposium, which focused on Longwood and the donated ostrich eggs that Dr. Rush Nutt and his eldest son, Rittenhouse Nutt, used to smuggle Egyptian cotton seeds out of Egypt.

ArtsNatchez donates $500 in art supplies to local classrooms

By Roscoe Barnes III
Natchez, MS, USA / ListenUpYall.com
Aug 21, 2026 | 1:01 PM

ArtsNatchez Gallery recently donated $500 worth of art supplies to two classrooms in the Miss-Lou area. Posing with the donated supplies, from left, are Judy Uzzetta, Armand Saiia, Katherine Parker, Connie Burns, art teacher Wilshonda Johnson, Joe Johnson, art teacher Amanda Coley, Sheri Perry-Brown, Michelle Bryant, and Carolyn Weir. (Click on image to enlarge.)

NATCHEZ, Miss. -- ArtsNatchez Gallery recently donated $500 worth of art supplies to two first-year art teachers and their classrooms in Natchez and Vidalia.

The supplies were presented at the gallery to Amanda Coley, an art teacher at Vidalia High School, and Wilshonda Johnson, an art teacher at Natchez Middle School.
 
Both teachers said they were grateful to ArtsNatchez and look forward to sharing the supplies with their students.

“This donation means the difference between actually teaching students to create art like artists and just teaching art theory with no hands-on experience,” said Coley. “This donation means that students can immerse themselves in the creative process while learning to utilize different mediums.” 

Johnson expressed her gratitude for the gift and the impact it would have on her classroom. She said the supplies will provide her students with opportunities and creative ways to express themselves.
 
“Your generosity gives my students the tools to explore, experiment, and express their artistic voices with confidence and joy,” Johnson said. “I’m truly grateful — your support doesn’t just supply our classroom, it fuels every bold, brilliant masterpiece they’re ready to create.”
 
The donated items include drawing paper, mixed media paper, and watercolor paper, along with chalk pastels, drawing pencils, colored pencils, canvases, and acrylic paint. The teachers also received pens, erasers, sharpeners, and watercolor for the middle school classroom.
 
“The students are going to love it,” said Johnson, flashing a big smile. “They ask every day, ‘When are we going to paint?’”
 
ArtsNatchez member Carolyn Weir said the donation reflects how the generosity of local artists can become something tangible for two area classrooms to help the students prepare for the new school year.
 
“Both teachers had recently reached out to the community through Facebook, asking for help stocking their new art classrooms,” Weir said. “Like many public-school art teachers, they face the challenge of creating meaningful art experiences for their students with very limited classroom supplies and often must purchase materials themselves or rely on donations.”
 
Thankfully, said Weir, ArtsNatchez was in a position to help because of a fundraiser that began two years earlier. She noted the nonprofit organization hosted a special event in 2024 during which proceeds from donated artwork sold at the event were earmarked specifically for providing art supplies to local students.
 
The gallery held those funds until it found the right opportunity to put them to use, she said.
 
According to Weir, school art programs, elementary through high school, are an important focus for ArtsNatchez.
 
“Supporting artists has always been central to the mission of ArtsNatchez Gallery, but that mission extends beyond the professional artists whose work hangs in the gallery,” she said. “We believe in supporting the next generation of artists begins in local classrooms. By helping teachers provide students with access to art materials and creative opportunities, ArtsNatchez hopes to encourage young people to explore their creativity and discover the value of making art.”
 
ArtsNatchez Gallery is located at 425 Main St. It is open daily at 10 a.m. For more information, call 601-442-0043.

Neddie Winters to keynote event honoring George Metcalfe in Natchez

The Rev. Neddie Winters will keynote an Aug. 27 Natchez ceremony dedicating a historical marker to civil rights leader George Metcalfe.
 
Roscoe Barnes III
The Natchez Democrat
August 19, 2026

Neddie Winters, former president of Mission Mississippi, will serve as keynote speaker at the marker dedication ceremony honoring George Metcalfe on Thursday, August 27, in Natchez. (Click on image to enlarge.)

NATCHEZ — The Rev. Neddie Winters, former president of Mission Mississippi, Jackson, will serve as the keynote speaker for the dedication of a state historical marker honoring the late George Metcalfe. The ceremony will be held at 10 a.m. Thursday, Aug. 27, at the intersection of Kelly Avenue, Brenham Avenue, and South Concord Avenue, on the west side of the former Armstrong Tire & Rubber Company.

The event is hosted by the City of Natchez and Visit Natchez. It is free and open to the public.

Metcalfe was the president of the Natchez NAACP when his car was bombed by the Ku Klux Klan on Aug. 27, 1965, in the triangle area near the plant. That single act of violence became a pivotal moment in the Civil Rights Movement in Natchez, galvanizing the Black community and helping spur a sustained campaign for voting rights and desegregation.

Metcalfe was targeted by the Klan because of his leadership in the Black community and his courageous civil rights activities. He successfully led a voter-registration drive that resulted in more than 8,000 African Americans registering to vote.

He and the NAACP called on the Natchez city administration to denounce white supremacist groups like the Klan and to end police brutality. They also urged the city to hire Black employees and to desegregate swimming pools, parks, and other public facilities. Metcalfe also led a delegation which confronted the school board with a signed petition calling for the desegregation of the public school system.

Winters said he is honored to participate in the Aug. 27 program and to speak about the legacy of Metcalfe.

A native of Tunica, Winters is a nationally recognized leader in racial reconciliation and healing.

“He is known for his passionate advocacy for building beloved communities through dialogue, understanding, and shared action,” said Dr. Felicia M. Bowens, executive assistant to the president of Mission Mississippi. “Under his leadership, Mission Mississippi became a statewide catalyst for conversations and collaborations that bridge racial divides.”

She noted Winters has dedicated his life to fostering oneness across racial, cultural, political, and denominational lines.

Winters served for many years as president of Mission Mississippi, a pioneering organization committed to racial reconciliation through Christian relationships and community engagement.

In addition to his public speaking and leadership, Winters serves as an adjunct professor at Belhaven University, where he teaches “The History, Theology, and Practice of Christian Reconciliation.”

Winters is a graduate of Alcorn State University, where he earned his Bachelor of Science in Agriculture. He holds a master’s degree in public finance management from American University’s Kogod School of Business.

In addition to Winters, the ceremony will feature remarks by Mayor Dan Gibson and Joyce Arceneaux-Mathis, president of the Natchez NAACP.

Other participants will include Dr. Roscoe Barnes III, cultural heritage tourism manager for Visit Natchez, who will serve as master of ceremonies and introduce the keynote speaker.

The invocation will be given by the Rev. Dr. Chase Caldwell, associate pastor of First Presbyterian Natchez, and the benediction will be given by the Rev. Clifton Marvel Sr., pastor of Greater Macedonia Baptist Church

Historical reflections will be shared by Alderman Billy Joe Frazier; local historian Jeremy Houston; Frances Bailey and Paul Bacon, eyewitnesses to bombing; Denise Jackson Ford, daughter of Wharlest Jackson Sr., and Wharlest Jackson Jr., his son.

Thelma Newsome, representative of the Dr. John Bowman Banks Museum, will read a letter presented by Alderwoman Felicia Bridgewater-Irving. Bobby Dennis, director of Natchez Museum of African American History and Culture, will give the closing remarks.

For more information, call 601-492-3004.

 

New panels at Natchez National Historical Park preserve stories of the enslaved

I enjoyed my visit with KNOE 8 News reporter Shahid Evans!

See video at this link: https://www.facebook.com/share/r/1BfiAfsapn/

New marker will honor Civil Rights leader George Metcalfe

Natchez will dedicate a historical marker Aug. 27, 2026, honoring NAACP leader George Metcalfe at the site of the 1965 Ku Klux Klan bombing that seriously injured him.

Staff Reports
The Natchez Democrat

George Metcalfe. Photo courtesy of Ed Pincus Film Collection Amistad Research Center, New Orleans, LA (Click on image to enlarge.)

NATCHEZ – Natchez will unveil a Mississippi Department of Archives and History (MDAH) historical marker honoring George Metcalfe, a World War II veteran and former president of the Natchez branch of the NAACP whose leadership helped advance the local civil rights movement.

The marker will be dedicated on Aug. 27, 2026, during a public ceremony tentatively scheduled for 10 a.m. near the triangular area formed by Kelly Avenue, Brenham Avenue and South Concord Avenue near the former Armstrong Tire & Rubber Company, where Metcalfe was seriously injured in a Ku Klux Klan bombing in 1965. Dr. Robert James, president of the Mississippi State Conference NAACP, will serve as keynote speaker, with remarks from Joyce Arceneaux-Mathis, president of the Natchez NAACP. The event is free and open to the public.

“For too long, essential chapters of our city's history have gone unrecognized in the public eye,” said Mayor Dan Gibson. “By dedicating this marker to George Metcalfe and his courage in the fight for civil rights, we take another vital step forward in telling our city's complete and honest story. His unwavering determination in the face of profound personal danger paved the way for progress in Natchez and for citizens formally ill-treated to be treated with respect. Facing our past with clarity ensures we build a stronger, more united future together.”

During his tenure as president of the Natchez NAACP, Metcalfe led voter registration efforts that added more than 8,000 Black residents to the local voter rolls. He also worked alongside other civil rights leaders to advocate for desegregation, equal employment opportunities, ending police brutality and greater political representation for Black residents.

The marker’s location was intentionally selected as it recognizes the site of the Aug. 27, 1965, bombing, where a bomb hidden inside Metcalfe's car exploded after he finished his shift at Armstrong Tire & Rubber Company. Although he survived the attack, he sustained serious injuries, and no one was ever charged in connection with the bombing.

The bombing prompted protest rallies, marches and boycotts throughout the community. In the weeks that followed, the Natchez chapter of the Deacons for Defense and Justice was established to help protect Black residents and civil rights workers, and by the end of 1965, the City of Natchez had agreed to demands presented by the NAACP.

“George Metcalfe's courage and leadership helped shape the Civil Rights Movement in Natchez,” says Dr. Roscoe Barnes III, cultural heritage tourism manager at Visit Natchez and immediate past president of the Mississippi Historical Society. “By placing this marker at the site of the bombing, we are preserving an important chapter of our history and ensuring future generations understand the sacrifices made in the pursuit of equality.”

The new marker builds on ongoing efforts to preserve and interpret Natchez's African American and Civil Rights history through public markers, educational initiatives and community-led storytelling.

Additional details about the dedication ceremony and related programming will be announced closer to the event.

Ser Seshsh Ab Heter-C. M. Boxley: Defender and Pioneer of Black History Programs in Natchez, Mississippi

He is now featured in Mississippi History Now
 
by Roscoe Barnes III
Mississippi History Now
August 2026
 

Ser Seshsh Ab Heter-Clifford M. Boxley is pictured in this 2014 tintype photo wearing a 6th U.S. Colored Heavy Artillery uniform at the 150th anniversary of the Fort Pillow Massacre in Tennessee, which occurred on April 12, 1864. Photo courtesy of Ser Boxley (Click on image to enlarge.)

 

More than anyone else, Ser Seshsh Ab Heter-C. M. Boxley has consistently and vigorously fought for the recognition of Natchez’s African American history, and his impact, according to writers and historians, is unmistakable.

Boxley has been a warrior for justice and human rights for most of his life. He has established himself as an author, civil rights activist, and historian of the African American history of Natchez.

In the book, The Deepest South of All (Simon & Schuster, 2020), Richard Grant describes him as having “the air of a warrior… and his battlefield was the intersection of his history, memory, and tourism.”

During the 1960s, after spending many years working for justice and other causes in California, Boxley joined the Natchez Deacons for Defense and Justice, an organization that provided armed protection for the Black community and civil rights workers against the Ku Klux Klan. Among his various activities, Boxley assisted the Deacons with a fundraising campaign in California that allowed them to purchase firearms and acquire other resources for the struggle in Natchez.

See the full article at this link: https://mshistorynow.mdah.ms.gov/issue/ser-seshsh-ab-heter-c-m-boxley-defender-and-pioneer-black-history-programs-natchez

Forks of the Road features new history exhibits

Natchez National Historical Park has added new panels at the Forks of the Road slave market site, using U.S. Colored Troops pension records to share stories of enslaved people and the market’s destruction.

By Roscoe Barnes III 

The Natchez Democrat

August 7, 2026

Jeff Mansell, lead historian at Natchez National Historical Park, stands next to the new location sign at the Forks of the Road site. (Click on image to enlarge.)

NATCHEZ, Miss. -- Natchez National Historical Park has installed new interpretive wayside panels at the Forks of the Road slave market site. Drawing on U.S. Colored Troops pension records, the panels share the stories of formerly enslaved people recruited there between 1863 and 1865 and recount how African American soldiers helped dismantle the slave market structures to construct army barracks.

 
The panels replace earlier displays that had deteriorated. The new panels were installed in July 2026, shortly before the Julyteenth celebration.
 
A new, larger, identity sign featuring the National Park Service arrowhead now stands on the south side of the site.
 
Jeff Mansell, historian for the Natchez National Historical Park, said the new content was drawn directly from the pension applications filed by former U.S. Colored Troops veterans, their widows, and their children.
 
“Most of them specifically reference the Forks of the Road - either being trafficked there, or visiting their husband, son or veteran there in the regimental barracks or the hospital which were located there on the site,” Mansell said. “We intentionally looked for records that specifically mentioned the Forks of the Road. We wanted to highlight experiences that took place on the site itself.”
 
Mansell drafted the text on all the panels. Stephanie Metzler, graphic designer with the Southeast Region of the National Park Service, created the background images for the wayside panels.
 
Wayside panels
 
One panel, “Pressing Their Claim,” uses pension records to tell the heart-felt story of Elzira Bright:
 
“I was born in Richmond, Madison County, Kentucky and I belonged to a man named Allen Anderson. My father was Hickman Hickenbottem and my mother was Minerva and we all belonged to the same man. I was sold to a negro trader when I was 19 years old and he brought me to Natchez with a gang of a hundred head and I was sold at the forks of the road to Faultneroy of Jefferson County and lived on his place until the war came.
 
“His place was counted 16 miles from Natchez, Mississippi. Allen Lewis came from Boyle County, Ky. And the same trader, Dick White, brought us down in the same gang. I was taken from Richmond to Lexington, Ky. And there I met up with Allen Lewis and we were brought to Natchez together and sold to Frank Faultneroy and taken to his place in the Church Hill community.”
 
Mansell noted: “Elzira Bright’s account is similar to many who were trafficked in the domestic slave trade. A trader transported her from Kentucky to Natchez alongside a group of one hundred people, including her future husband. Though her story represents countless others sold at the Forks of the Road market, Elzira Bright stands apart because we know her name and fate.”
 
Bright was approved to receive her husband’s pension in 1903.
 
The earlier panels were created by Ser Seshsh Ab Heter-C. M. Boxley and the Friends of the Forks of the Road. Mansell said the National Park Service initially funded the site’s large four-panel kiosk in 2005, which it has now refurbished.
 
Mansell said the new wayside panels were funded by the park with “generous assistance” from its philanthropic partners: the National Park Foundation and the Trust for Public Land.
 
These partners also helped the park acquire Freedom Hall, formerly the Kingdom Hall of Jehovah’s Witnesses, at 105 Devereaux Drive on the east side of the Forks of the Road site. On July 12, 2026, the park held its first program at the site that featured a presentation by Mansell titled, “Julyteenth: When Freedom Came to Natchez.”
 
“Freedom Hall will eventually serve as the visitor contact station at the site, where a ranger or guide will be there,” Mansell said. “We hope to have a film, and there will be more extensive exhibits on site for visitors to experience.”

Lead Historian Jeff Mansell points to a historic photograph featured on a new interpretive panel in the free-standing kiosk at the Forks of the Road site. (Click on image to enlarge.)

 

Free-standing kiosk
 
Other new features include history panels displayed in the free-standing kiosk. One section, titled, “Leveled to the Ground,” describes how the slave market site came to an end.
 
The panel notes:
 
“The last sales at the Forks happened in early 1863, just months before the U.S. Army occupied Natchez that July. The arrival of Federal troops brought freedom to the tens of thousands of enslaved people in the Natchez District. Freedpeople (persons recently released from slavery) flocked into town from the surrounding countryside. Many settled here at the Forks near an encampment of African American soldiers, known as the U.S. Colored Troops (USCT).
 
“In the fall, soldiers stationed in Natchez were given orders to tear down the slave pens at Forks of the Road. Men of the newly created 58th U.S. Colored Infantry Regiment willingly joined the efforts. With some poetic justice, African American soldiers who had previously been enslaved and sold as property at Forks of the Road carried out the physical destruction of the slave market.”
 
The panel includes the image of a letter published in the Milwaukee Sentinel describing the event.
 
The Forks of the Road was the second largest slave market in the Deep South during the antebellum period. The first part of the 18-acre site was donated to the National Park Service in 2021. Mansell said plans for the site’s long-term development are underway, though no final decisions have been made. He said land acquisition is continuing.
 

Armand Saiia featured in Mississippi Business Journal

(Click on image to enlarge.)

I'm happy to congratulate my friend, Armand, on being featured in the August 2026 issue of the Mississippi Business Journal! He has an impressive two-page spread. Well deserved! 

VIDEO: Dr. Robert Field Jr., veterinarian-turned wildlife photographer, is ArtsNatchez’s Artist of the Month for August!

Join us this Saturday, August 8, from 5 to 7 p.m. at the ArtsNatchez Gallery, 425 Main Street, to meet Robert in person and view his stunning wildlife photography.

In this short video, Robert talks about his 25-year hobby behind the camera.

Enjoy the video, then come see the photographs for yourself!

Veterinarian-turned wildlife photographer named ArtsNatchez Artist of the Month

By Roscoe Barnes III
Natchez, MS, USA / ListenUpYall.com
Aug 5, 2026 | 12:49 PM

Dr. Robert Field Jr., ArtsNatchez's Artist of the Month for August, displays one of his featured wildlife photographs depicting a great egret returning to the nest as her chicks await. The image is among several of Field's photographs on display at the ArtsNatchez Gallery in downtown Natchez. (Click on image to enlarge.)

NATCHEZ, Miss. – Dr. Robert Field Jr. is a veterinarian-turned-wildlife photographer whose love of nature and photography has landed him in some dangerous places.

One late afternoon during the early fall of 2017, Field was near his home in Jonesville, Louisiana, and walking through thick brush with his focus on a horned owl.
“I had him in my sights,” he recalled.

Then he took a step and felt something beneath his foot. He looked down and saw a copperhead. He jumped. “I tried to get as much air as I could,” he said, grinning.

The snake crawled away without striking.

Field said he’s found himself too close for comfort with snakes about 10 times.

“I’ve been lucky,” he said, noting he wears snake boots for protection. “This happens a lot when I’m trying to shoot birds because I’m looking up in trees, and I tend to not look at the ground as much as I need to. Copperheads are the hardest (to see) because they’re camouflaged.”

Field is ArtsNatchez Gallery’s Artist of the Month for August. His photography will be on display Saturday, August 8, at the gallery at 425 Main St. He will greet visitors during a free reception from 5 to 7 p.m. Refreshments will be served.

Field is a resident of Jonesville, Louisiana. Before retiring, he practiced veterinary medicine for 35 years. Photography has been his hobby for 25 years.

A graduate of Delta State University, where he earned a bachelor’s degree in biology, Field completed his doctorate at Louisiana State University School of Veterinary Medicine.

Love of nature

Field said his photography is “absolutely” informed by his training as a veterinarian.

Over the years, he kept a log on the migration of birds. “In this context, behavioral knowledge is more important than anatomical knowledge,” he said. “You get into a rhythm with them, and you learn what they tolerate in terms of noise and space when you’re in their habitat.”

Field’s interest in the camera began with his two children. He would take them out into nature and different wildlife reserves. He used his camera to document their experiences, and it eventually turned into a hobby. His cameras of choice are the Nikon D850 and D500.

Field’s exhibition will feature wildlife photographs from across the region, including scenes from Gilliard Lake in St. Catherine Creek, an alligator resting on a log, birds in several rookeries, a silhouette at Catahoula Lake in Louisiana, and a pileated woodpecker feeding its young.

Field said some of the photos were taken near his home in Jonesville, Louisiana, such as the alligator and butterflies. Included in the exhibit is a dramatic photograph of young ospreys leaving the nest in Breaux Bridge, Louisiana.

“I travel to different places at different times of the year when the animals are more prevalent to photograph,” Field said. “What I enjoy most is that I get to see and experience much more than what I photograph. Just the peace and serenity from just getting out in nature. Photography is the second-hand perk from the process. I grew up in nature, out in the woods.”

Half million ducks

One of Field’s favorite places to photograph is Catahoula National Wildlife Refuge during the winter, when roughly half a million ducks gather there. The bald eagles migrate down with the ducks and hunt them, he said.

“When you see a large group of the ducks flying, they just explode, and you look above them, there are bald eagles, and they’re hunting,” he said.

Field said the main photo in his display will be of the ducks flying.

Still, Field noted, wildlife photography can be both dangerous and challenging.

“As a photographer, you tend to look up or out. I had a few close calls with snakes. The alligators are not as aggressive as people think, if you keep a decent distance. I keep my eye on the big ones. Don’t let them get too close.”

As for challenges, weather is an issue. “You just never know what to expect when you go out in nature. I grew up hunting, but this is a lot harder than hunting. You can get the perfect shot of something, but you still have to get the lighting right and the angle right,” Field said.

Bald eagles

When Field thinks about the early days of his photography, he’s reminded of an incident with his children when he urged them to look up at some bald eagles nearby.

“We were out at the Catahoula National Wildlife Refuge, and there were some bald eagles. They locked talons and were falling through the sky until they almost hit the ground. That’s one of their mating rituals.

Field’s children were eight and six, and they were sword fighting with sticks. Field yelled, “Look, look, you will probably never see this again!”

But instead of looking up at the eagles, his daughter, Bona, cried, “Daddy, Ben just hit me with a stick!”Interestingly, children are drawn to Field’s work. “Most of the children run to the alligator picture,” he said. “They are fascinated with it. People from other countries are fascinated with American alligators.”

Field said he has always tried to encourage young people to go out into nature and get away from their mobile devices.

ArtsNatchez Gallery is open daily at 10 a.m. For more information, call 601-442-0043.

 

Natchez’s Greg Iles and Ser Boxley featured in Mississippi Encyclopedia

By Roscoe Barnes III
Natchez, MS, USA / ListenUpYall.com
Jul 31, 2026 | 1:28 PM

Author Greg Iles, left, and historian and preservationist Ser Seshsh Ab Heter-C.M. Boxley, both of Natchez, are featured in the Mississippi Encyclopedia. Photos courtesy of Mississippi Encyclopedia. (Click on image to enlarge.)

NATCHEZ, Miss. — Greg Iles and Ser Seshsh Ab Heter-C. M. Boxley, both of Natchez, are featured in the Mississippi Encyclopedia, and their entries are spotlighted on the publication’s homepage.

Iles was a New York Times bestselling author whose acclaimed thrillers and mysteries were often set in and around Natchez. His works include “The Quiet Game,” “Turning Angel,” “The Devil’s Punchbowl,” “Natchez Burning,” and “Southern Man,” among others.

Iles was a friend and admirer of Stanley Nelson, the longtime editor of the Concordia Sentinel and author of “Devils Walking,” a book chronicling Ku Klux Klan violence in Southwest Mississippi during the 1960s. Iles drew inspiration from Nelson’s career in journalism.

Following Nelson’s death on June 5, 2025, at age 69, Iles published a moving tribute describing him as a “genuine hero” who always did the right thing regardless of fear or favor. Iles wrote that Nelson’s “brave and tireless work” inspired him to model Henry Sexton, the heroic journalist in his Natchez trilogy, after Nelson.

Iles won the 2015 Barry Award for Best Novel for “Natchez Burning” and received the Mississippi Author Award for Fiction for his 1995 thriller “Black Cross.”

Iles died of cancer on August 15, 2025. He was 65. His Mississippi Encyclopedia entry was written by Riley Moran of Tampa, Florida.

Boxley is a local historian, preservationist, and civil rights activist who worked with the Natchez Deacons for Defense and Justice during the Civil Rights Movement of the 1960s.

He serves as coordinator of the Friends of the Forks of the Road Society and is known for his decades-long efforts to promote and preserve the history of the Forks of the Road slave market at 105 Liberty Road. The site, now managed by the National Park Service, was once the second-largest slave market in the Deep South.

In March 2026, Boxley donated his Forks of the Road exhibition to the Southwest Mississippi Center for Culture & Learning at Alcorn State University, Lorman Campus.

That same month, the Natchez Historical Society honored him with its Historic Preservation Award, which recognizes individuals or organizations that have made significant contributions to historic preservation or the study of history in the Natchez area.

Boxley’s Mississippi Encyclopedia entry was written by Roscoe Barnes III, cultural heritage tourism manager for Visit Natchez.

The Mississippi Encyclopedia is published by the Center for the Study of Southern Culture at the University of Mississippi and has been funded by the Mississippi Humanities Council.

The entries on Iles and Boxley may be viewed at https://mississippiencyclopedia.org/