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State Flower of Mississippi

Flower: Magnolia (Magnolia Grandiflora)

Mississippi school children were allowed to vote for their state flower on November 28, 1900. The magnolia, cape jasmine, and yellow jasmine were favorites. Cotton was also mentioned. It was beautiful and was also important to Mississippi’s economy.

In all, children voted for forty-two flowers. Out of 23,278 votes, the magnolia received 12,745. The cotton blossom took second place. But the magnolia still wasn’t really the state flower, because the legislature didn’t make it official. In 1935, Mississippi’s Director of Forestry started a state tree movement, again allowing school children to vote. The magnolia again won by a landslide. It was adopted on April 1, 1938. On February 26, 1952, the magnolia was finally officially adopted as Mississippi’s state flower.