1) On January 24, 1861, Mississippi became the second state to secede from the Union, declaring itself a part of the Confederacy.
2) Civil rights activist Medgar Evers was born on January 24, 1925, in Decatur, Mississippi. He was assassinated in his own driveway in 1963, becoming a martyr for the civil rights movement.
3) On January 24, 1949, the D'Iberville Air Force Base opened in Harrison County, Mississippi. It was closed in 1961 and is now a commercial airport.
4) The original Natchez Trace Parkway, a historic road that dates back to early Native American times, was established on January 24, 1934.
5) Mississippi blues legend Robert Johnson's "Cross Road Blues" was recorded on January 24, 1937, in a hotel room in San Antonio, Texas. The song became a classic and influenced many musicians, including Eric Clapton and Bob Dylan.