The Miss-Lou Memorial Day Parade: A Historic View of a Living Tradition

Photo courtesy of Historic Natchez Foundation (Click on image to enlarge.)

NATCHEZ, Miss. -- The Miss-Lou Memorial Day Parade is one of the oldest continuous Memorial Day traditions in the United States, dating to the late 1800s. The parade, which has roots in the African American community, was previously known as “The 30th of May Parade,” reflecting its origins in early Decoration Day observances.

This historic postcard image offers a glimpse of the landscape that shaped the parade’s route. It gives an idea of where the participants marched from Vidalia, across the Natchez-Vidalia Bridge, to the toll plaza in Natchez, where they stopped before continuing to the Natchez National Cemetery. The scene predates the construction of John R. Junkin Drive, which today carries both U.S. Route 84 and U.S. Route 425. The image also shows the toll plaza (at the bottom) at the site that is now the Natchez Visitor Center on Canal Street.

The parade’s beginning
 
Historian Cheryl Wilkinson noted the earliest days of the parade can be documented to at least 1884, though the tradition may be even older. “Newspaper accounts of the earliest events emphasize that it is the Black community holding the observance,” she said.
 
Before the bridge was built, members of the Parson Brownlow Grand Army of the Republic (GAR) Post No. 23 and other participants began their journey in Old Town Vidalia, according to Wilkinson. “At some point after the Great Mississippi Flood of 1927, the post's headquarters was moved to its current location on Magnolia Street,” she said.
 
Participants crossed the Mississippi River by ferry to Silver Street, where they joined members of the General John A. Logan Post No. 24 of Natchez. Together, they marched to the Natchez National Cemetery, where a ceremony was held to honor the deceased military service members.
 
After the bridge was built in 1940, participants began their trek at the Vidalia GAR Post No. 23's headquarters on Magnolia Street and marched to the Louisiana side of the bridge, where they crossed over to Natchez. They met up with the Natchez GAR members at the toll plaza and proceeded to the cemetery.
 
The tradition now includes a stop at the Natchez Visitor Center at 640 S. Canal St. -- near the site of the historic toll plaza -- before proceeding to the cemetery. The full route spans about four miles.
 
This year’s parade
 
This year’s Miss-Lou Memorial Day Parade is set for Monday, May 25, and will feature an unveiling ceremony for a Mississippi state historical marker commemorating the parade. Sgt. Anita R. Washington Jackson will serve as the Vidalia grand marshal, while Mayor Dan M. Gibson will serve as the Natchez grand marshal.
 
The unveiling ceremony will be held at 9:30 a.m. at 639 S. Canal St., in front of the Holiday Inn Express. It will be followed by an 11 a.m. ceremony at Natchez National Cemetery. The guest speaker will be Glenn R. Powers, deputy under secretary for Field Programs and Cemetery Operations at the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs National Cemetery Administration.