1. On July 13, 1863, during the Civil War, the Battle of Jackson took place in Mississippi. Union forces under General William T. Sherman defeated Confederate troops led by General Joseph E. Johnston and captured the state capital.

2. July 13, 1964, marked a significant milestone in the civil rights movement in Mississippi. Three civil rights workers, Michael Schwerner, James Chaney, and Andrew Goodman, were murdered by members of the Ku Klux Klan in Neshoba County. The incident brought national attention to the violence and segregation that existed in the state.

3. Mississippi State University was officially chartered on July 13, 1878. The university was originally named the Agricultural and Mechanical College of the State of Mississippi and was the state's first public land-grant institution.

4. On July 13, 1999, NASA astronaut and Mississippi native Fred Haise was inducted into the U.S. Astronaut Hall of Fame. Haise is best known for his role as the lunar module pilot on the ill-fated Apollo 13 mission in 1970.

5. The Mississippi Braves, a minor league baseball team affiliated with the Atlanta Braves, played their first game at Trustmark Park in Pearl, Mississippi, on July 13, 2005. The team has since become a popular attraction in the state and has helped to promote baseball throughout the region.