1. On May 8, 1863, Confederate General James B. Gordon surrendered Vicksburg, a key strategic point on the Mississippi River, to Union forces after a 47-day siege. The surrender marked a turning point in the Civil War and gave the Union control of the Mississippi River.

2. On May 8, 1945, Germany surrendered, ending World War II in Europe, which had been raging for six years. Celebrations erupted across the country, with people taking to the streets to mark the end of the war.

3. May 8, 1973, marks the date of the first Mississippi gubernatorial inauguration held inside the state capitol building. The previous inaugurations had been held in front of the old state capitol building.

4. On May 8, 1956, James Meredith, an African American, won a landmark case against the University of Mississippi. The ruling, which took effect on September 13 of the same year, allowed Meredith to enroll as the first black student at the segregated university.

5. On May 8, 1964, Mississippi civil rights activist James Chaney was arrested along with two other young activists, Michael Schwerner and Andrew Goodman, in Philadelphia, Mississippi. The three men were later brutally murdered by members of the Ku Klux Klan, sparking national outrage and leading to the passage of the Civil Rights Act of 1964.