2 sisters, a farmer and a dentist are among those honored with Freedom Trail markers

The Mississippi Humanities Council and VisitMississippi have been busy this month installing five new Freedom Trail markers to celebrate the contributions of the state's civil rights activists and commemorate historic locations that played a role in the civil rights movement.

Already installed are markers dedicated to Henry Reaves, a civil rights leader and Black farmer, at the intersection of Mississippi 4 and Reaves Road in Benton County; the Winona Jail beating incident in Winona; and the Neshoba County Jail in Philadelphia, where three civil rights workers were held before they were killed by members of the Ku Klux Klan.

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The remaining two markers will be installed during events Friday and Saturday at locations in the Pine Belt.

On Friday, the legacy of sisters Dorie Ladner and Joyce Ladner will be commemorated with a marker in Hattiesburg, and on Saturday, a marker will be installed in Laurel to honor Dr. Benjamin Murph.

Henry Reaves

Henry Reaves was born in 1900 to Levi Reaves and Jane MacDonald Reaves. He was a central figure inthe Civil Rights Movement in Benton County. Decades before the arrival of civil rights volunteers in1964, Reaves organized residents, founded the local NAACP chapter and spearheaded efforts forvoting rights and school desegregation in Mississippi.

Neshoba County Jail

White civil rights workers from New York Andrew Goodman and Michael Schwerner, along with James Chaney, a Black civil rights activist from Meridian, were arrested in Neshoba County, where they went to examine what was left of a burned church. The men were taken to the Neshoba County Jail where they were held until later that evening. When they were released, their vehicle was ambushed by members of the Ku Klux Klan, who killed the men and hid their bodies.

Winona Jail

Ten civil rights workers were on their way home from a conference in South Carolina, when five of them got out and sat at a lunch counter at a rest stop near Winona. Fannie Lou Hamer, who was on the bus, watched as the five were kicked, shoved and eventually arrested. Hamer got off the bus to help her colleagues and she too was taken into custody. At the jail, the activists were severely beaten and held for four days before they were released on bond.

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Joyce and Dorie Ladner

Hattiesburg sisters Joyce Ladner and Dorie Ladner became activists at a young age. Some of their passion was fueled by the unjust world in which they lived, but they also were impacted by the death of 14-year-old Emmett Till, who was brutally tortured and murdered for allegedly whistling at a white woman in 1955. They worked closely with other key Mississippi civil rights figures, including Medgar Evers, Clyde Kennard and Vernon Dahmer. Dorie Ladner was arrested for attempting to desegregate a Woolworth's lunch counter in Jackson. Joyce Ladner was arrested for trying to attend the all-white Galloway Church. Both women participated in the March on Washington and spent the greater part of their lives advocating for freedom, justice and equal rights for Black citizens.

Dr. Benjamin Murph

Dr. Benjamin Murph was president of the Laurel-Jones County chapter of the NAACP for more than 20 years, beginning in 1951. He earned a medical degree from the Meharry Medical College in Nashville, the only medical school in the South where Black people could attend. He opened a dental practice in Laurel and continued advocating for the rights of Black citizens until his death in 1972. His civil rights advocacy was noticed by the Ku Klux Klan, who unsuccessfully attempted to silence Murph by shooting up his home on multiple occasions.

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The Mississippi Freedom Trail was established in 2011 to commemorate the people and places in the state that played a pivotal role in the American Civil Rights Movement, according to the trail website. That year marked the 50th anniversary of the 1961 Freedom Rides.

More than 30 trail markers have been placed throughout the state since the trail's inception including those honoring Medgar Evers, Fannie Lou Hamer and Vernon Dahmer.

For more information, visit mshumanities.org/program/mississippifreedomtrail.

If you go

A ceremony honoring sisters Joyce Ladner and Dorie Ladner's Freedom Trail marker will be at 10 a.m. Friday, June 28, at 507 Mobile St. in Hattiesburg.

The ceremony honoring Dr. Benjamin Murph and the installation of his Freedom Trail marker will be at 4 p.m. Saturday, June 29, at 118 Oak Park Blvd. in Laurel.

Do you have a story to share? Contact Lici Beveridge at lbeveridge@gannett.com. Follow her on X @licibev or Facebook at facebook.com/licibeveridge.

This article originally appeared on Hattiesburg American: Mississippi installs 5 new Freedom Trail markers