1. On December 8, 1863, Union General William Tecumseh Sherman captured Meridian, Mississippi, as part of the Vicksburg Campaign during the American Civil War. Sherman's troops destroyed railways, factories, and other Confederate infrastructure, crippling the state's economy.

2. In 1902, Mississippi became the first state to hold a state-supported junior college, with the establishment of East Mississippi Community College in Scooba. Today, Mississippi has 15 public community colleges, serving over 100,000 students.

3. On December 8, 1941, one day after the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor, Mississippi Governor Paul B. Johnson Jr. called for a state of emergency and ordered the National Guard to be put on standby. Mississippi's economy and military installations played a significant role in the war effort.

4. Mississippi native Robert Johnson, an influential blues musician of the 1930s, recorded his last known songs on December 8, 1938, in San Antonio, Texas. Johnson's music inspired future generations of rock and roll artists and helped popularize the blues genre.

5. On December 8, 1955, the Mississippi State Sovereignty Commission was created by state legislators to maintain segregation and suppress civil rights activism. The commission operated until 1977 and collected extensive surveillance on civil rights workers and organizations. Its archives were made public in 1998, shedding light on the state's dark history of racial oppression.