1. On June 18, 1964, civil rights activists James Chaney, Andrew Goodman, and Michael Schwerner were brutally murdered in Neshoba County, Mississippi by members of the Ku Klux Klan. The deaths of these young men brought national attention to the ongoing struggle for civil rights in Mississippi.

2. June 18, 1934, marked the opening of the Great Mississippi Flood, one of the most devastating natural disasters in American history. The flood affected over 27,000 square miles of land and displaced hundreds of thousands of people. It also led to significant changes in flood control and management policies in the United States.

3. The Vicksburg Campaign during the Civil War reached a critical turning point on June 18, 1863, with the start of the siege of Vicksburg. The Union army, under the command of General Ulysses S. Grant, surrounded the Confederate stronghold at Vicksburg, eventually leading to its surrender on July 4, 1863.

4. June 18, 1898, saw the start of the Spanish-American War in Mississippi, with the departure of the 2nd Mississippi Volunteers to Cuba. The regiment played a significant role in the war, and its soldiers were praised for their bravery and heroism.

5. The Mississippi River Bridge, which connects Natchez, Mississippi, with Vidalia, Louisiana, opened to traffic on June 18, 1940. The bridge, which spans over 8,000 feet, was the longest bridge on the Mississippi River at the time of its construction and remains an important transportation link in the region today.