09/22/2026
The Carrollton Pilgrimage Board invites you to the 2026 pre-Pilgrimage event at Cotesworth on Saturday, September 26, at 2 pm, featuring Dr. Tim Smith, author of James Z. George: Mississippi’s Great Commoner. In describing his discussion, Smith says, “Although he’s pretty much unknown today, outside of Carrollton and Mississippi, J. Z. George was a fascinating historical player who had a huge impact on not only Mississippi, but also Washington. We will be exploring that impact as we talk about him and his role on the national level.”
George practiced law in Carrollton while he and his wife Bettye raised their children at Cotesworth. He served as the chief justice of the Mississippi Supreme Court and was Mississippi’s longest-serving U. S. Senator to that time. Mississippians of the early 20th century recognized his work and placed honored it with a statue in the U. S. Capitol.
A lecturer of history at the University of Tennessee at Martin and a former National Park Service interpreter, “I consider Carrollton my hometown,” Smith said, “so to be able to come back there and talk about history will be a lot of fun."
The event is free to the public, thanks to an America 250 grant.
