Collection Title: Delta Council Collection
Collection Number: M050
Inclusive Dates: 1938-1985
Bulk Dates: 1943-1975
Volume: .5 cu. ft.
The Delta Council Collection:
The Delta Council is an area economic development representing the eighteen Delta and part
Delta counties in Northwest Mississippi. In 1935, the Delta Council was organized on the
campus of Delta State University where they still hold their annual meetings. It was organized by
a group of farsighted citizens to provide a medium through which the agricultural, businesses
and professional leadership of the area could work to solve common problems and promote the
development of the economy of the area. With the headquarters at Stoneville, Mississippi, Delta
Council is supported and financed by dues-paying members and by the counties that it
represents. Its board of directors is elected by a referendum vote of the members representing the
counties and municipalities of the area.
When the Delta Council was organized in 1935, members focused on three main areas of activity.
These areas were: 1. The promotion of agriculture, including agricultural research and legislation related to agricultural programs of
special significance to area farmers
2. Flood control and drainage, which are imperative to the
area’s welfare
3. The promotion and development of transportation facilities and services with
special attention to the development of a modern highway system throughout the entire Delta.
Scope and Content:
The collection contains various materials collected since the Delta Council’s beginning. These
materials are Delta Council directories, newspapers, booklets, pamphlets, brochures, annual
reports, progress reports, and photographs.
Box Inventory:
Box 1:
Folder 1- Programs from the annual Delta Council meeting. Years ranging from 1949-1975.
Folder 2- Two booklets about flood control in the Mississippi valley from the Delta Council, two
economic progress reports from the Delta Council (1985), One mainstream Mississippi booklet
from 1982-1983.
Folder 3- Five Delta Council annual reports. Years ranging from 1943-1950.
Folder 4- Five Delta Council annual reports. Years ranging from 1951-1956.
Folder 5- Three Delta Council directory booklets ranging from years 1949-1952.
Folder 6- Three Delta Council directory booklets ranging from years 1953-1956.
Box 2:
Folder 7- One brochure about the Delta Council (1985), one brochure about Mississippi’s basic
resources, one brochure titled New Resources of Wealth from Our Forests from the Delta Council
Forestry Committee (1943).
Folder 8- One booklet titled A prospectus of the Yazoo-Mississippi Delta from the Delta
Council, one pamphlet about the development of primary roads during the next quarter century,
one Delta Council booklet from May 3, 1944, one booklet of the Delta Council’s history from
1938-1943.
Folder 9- Two Delta Council Newspapers from October 1972, one MFC newspaper from May
1980, one Delta Council newspaper from April 1985.
Folder 10- Various papers, letters, and maps dealing with the Delta Council.
Folder 11- One photo of cottonwood plantation in Greenville, MS, one photo of Greenville’s
lake front.
END OF DOCUMENT