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Your Natchez History Minute is brought to you by Natchez National Historical Park.
Two hundred years ago today, March 12, 1816, a group of women called a meeting at the home of Mrs. Samuel Davis
for the purpose of organizing and sponsoring a charity school for the benefit
of the less privileged children in Natchez. The War of 1812 and its associated
Indian battles, coupled with recurring yellow fever epidemics, had left many widows and
orphans in Natchez and the area. The women who called the new association “The
Female Charitable Society" quickly moved to provide residential care as well as education. Today, that organization is the Natchez Children’s Home
Services, recognized as the oldest nonprofit agency in Mississippi and among
the oldest continuously operated agencies of its kind in the United States.
For two hundred years, Natchez Children's Home Services has been supported almost entirely
by the generosity of families, businesses, and individuals in the Natchez community.
Today, the need for programs and services for neglected, displaced,
and at risk children is as great today as it was in 1816. The long ago founders of the
Natchez Children’s Home Services were convinced that God’s work was in their hands. That
same conviction drives the efforts of our organization today.
I’m Nancy Hungerford, Executive Director of Natchez Children’s Home Services, and
this has been your Natchez History Minute.