Dr. Ben Earl Kitchens, MD, as Governor John Marshall Stone, will be in Tupelo from 2:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m. on Thursday, October 30, 2014 at the Mississippi Hills National Heritage Area (MHNHA) Exhibit Center located at 398 E. Main Street. As Governor Stone, he will announce his 1889 plea for re-election to his third term as governor.
John Marshall Stone served the State of Mississippi during one of its most critical and tumultuous times following the Reconstruction era and utilized his leadership skills and business acumen to help pull Mississippi out of the depths of social and financial mire. Stone was inaugurated as governor on three separate occasions, and served as governor longer than any other man in Mississippi history. After he left office in 1896, Governor Stone was named president of the Mississippi Agricultural and Mechanical College at Starkville which had been established during his first administration in 1878. He served until his death on March 26, 1900. Stone County, Mississippi is named in honor of Governor Stone.
Kitchens, a local historian, chronicles Stone from his early life to his death in his new Mississippi history book, Governor John Marshall Stone – Mississippi’s Honorable and Longest Serving Governor. “Governor Stone is not a man of many words, what he says are full of meaning, directly to the point and emphasized, simplicity and sincerity.” The Iuka Reporter, October 24, 1889.
Following his announcement for re-election, Kitchens will sign his book which depicts Stone’s life as a businessman, Civil War Colonel, Mayor, Senator, and the longest serving Governor of Mississippi. The public is invited to attend.
