Presidential Spotlight - Presidential Piece of History

Two men discussing vintage flag showing wear and tear

Presidential Piece of History

In October, MSU President Mark E. Keenum and the university’s U.S. Grant Presidential Library received a piece of history—a U.S. flag believed to have been part of the 18th president’s funeral procession on Aug. 8, 1885, in New York City. Starkville’s Renasant Bank and its President of Wealth Management Rocky Miskelly, right, gifted Keenum the relic, which supposedly made its way to Mississippi through a Union officer’s family and was displayed for decades in the historic Eola Hotel in Natchez.

Photo by Beth Wynn

October 16, 2024