But First, Country

In 1917, Mississippi’s Centennial Expo was pushed aside for World War I.

- Forrest Lamar Cooper

On October 12, 1916, in the progressive, 29-year-old city of Gulfport, 5,000 people gathered to witness the ground-breaking ceremony for the Mississippi Centennial Exposition. Governor Theodore G. Bilbo presided over the event, held on the front porch of longtime Harrison County chancery clerk F.S. Hewes’ home. Immediately following the governor’s speech, the home was razed to make way for the construction of the centennial administration building. It would be the first of seven permanent majestic structures, all of which were built in the modern Spanish mission style of architecture. Each building was constructed of concrete, steel, and hollow tile, all designed to preserve Mississippi’s story for generations to come. On January 15, 1917, after only four months, exposition officials excitedly moved into the completed administration building. Other buildings quickly followed. The Expo was scheduled to open on December 10, 1917, and run through June 10, 1918.

By February 10, 1917, the Centennial Commission had adopted an Expo icon featuring the same eagle clutching both arrows and palm branches in its talons as appears on our state’s coat of arms surrounded by a circle of wording which read “Mississippi Centennial Exposition Gulfport 1817-1917.”