Mississippi Church Records

Before 1900 the largest religious groups in Mississippi were the Baptist and the Methodist Episcopal (now United Methodist) churches. The Family History Library has a few original church records for Mississippi, including some Baptist and Presbyterian documents. However, the records of these major denominations seldom include birth, marriage, and death dates.

Some denominations have collected their records into central repositories. You can write to the following addresses to learn where their records are located:

Baptist
Mississippi Baptist Historical Collection Mississippi College Library 200 S. Capitol Street Clinton, MS 39060 Phone: (601) 925-3000

The Southern Baptist Historical Library and Archives 901 Commerce Street #400 Nashville, TN 37203-3630 Phone (615) 244-0344 Fax (615) 782-4821

Histories of the Baptists include:


 * Benjamin, Griffin. History of the Primitive Baptists of Mississippi. Jackson, Miss.: Barksdale and Jones, 1853. Digital version at Internet Archive; 1958 reprint:.
 * Schilling, T.C. Abstract History of the Mississippi Baptist Association, 1806-1906. New Orleans, La.: n.p., 1908. ; digital version and index at Baptist History Homepage

An 1899 directory of Baptist ministers lists biographical details about many ministers born or serving in the state:


 * The Ministerial Directory of the Baptist Churches in the United States of America. Oxford, Ohio: Ministerial Directory Co., 1899. Digital version at Google Books.

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (Mormons)
Early church records, for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, for Mississippi Wards and Branches can be found on film and are located at the Family History Library in Salt Lake City. The film numbers, for each ward, can be locate through the FamilySearch Catalog. Or by refering to Jaussi, Laureen R., and Gloria D. Chaston. Register of Genealogical Society Call Numbers. 2 vols. Provo, Utah: Genealogy Tree, 1982. (FHL book 979.2258 A3j; fiche 6031507). These volumes contain the film numbers for many (but not all) membership and temple record films.

Additional information about the history of the Latter-day Saints in Mississippi can be found in this article called "The Mississippi Saints."

Methodist
J.B. Cain Archives of Mississippi Methodism Millsaps-Wilson Library Millsaps College 1701 North State Street Jackson, MS 39210 Phone: (601) 974-1073 Fax: (601) 974-1082

Commission on Archives and History of the United Methodist Church 36 Madison Avenue P.O. Box 127 Madison, NJ 07940 Phone: (201) 408-3590 Fax: (201) 408-3909

A helpful history is:


 * Lindsey, J. Allen. Methodism in the Mississippi Conference. Jackson, Miss.: Hawkins Foundation, Mississippi Conference Historical Society, 1964..

Roman Catholic
Diocese of Biloxi 1790 Popps Ferry Road Biloxi, MS 39532 Phone: (228) 702-2100

The diocese includes the counties of: Covington, Forrest, George, Greene, Hancock, Harrison, Jackson, Jefferson Davis, Lamar, Lawrence, Marion, Pearl River, Perry, Stone, Walthall and Wayne.

Diocese of Jackson 237 East Amite P.O. Box 2248 Jackson, MS 39225 Phone: (601) 969-1880

The diocese includes the counties of: Adams, Alcorn, Amite, Attala, Bolivar, Benton, Calhoun, Carroll, Chickasaw, Choctaw, Claiborne, Clarke, Clay, Coahoma, Copiah, DeSoto, Franklin, Grenada, Hinds, Holmes, Humphreys, Issaquena, Itawamba, Jasper, Jefferson, Kemper, Lafayette, Lauderdale, Leake, Lee, Leflore, Lincoln, Lowndes, Madison, Marshall, Monroe, Montgomery, Neshoba, Newton, Noxubee, Oktibbeha, Panola, Pike, Pontotoc, Prentiss, Quitman, Rankin, Scott, Sharkey, Simpson, Smith, Sunflower, Tallahatchie, Tate, Tippah, Tishomingo, Tunica, Union, Warren, Washington, Webster, Wilkinson, Winston, Yalobusha and Yazoo.