WESSON — Founders Day is an annual tradition which returns to Copiah County this summer. Wesson, which was founded in 1864, will celebrate its 159th birthday. Downtown will be teeming with people celebrating the history of a town started by James Madison Wesson.

James Wesson brought a cotton mill to the town and sold it in 1871 to William Oliver and John T. Hardy. Oliver and Hardy renamed the mill Mississippi Mills and used Thomas Edison’s new lightbulb a year after he perfected them. Wesson continues to live on 159 years later.

Wesson’s Chamber of Commerce announced the weekend of May 6-7, 2023 as the date for Founders Day. The celebrations technically start on the Friday of May 5.

Wesson’s Chamber of Commerce will host a Founder’s Day color fun run and walk 5K. Race day registration begins at 5:30 p.m. outside of Copiah Bank. The race will stat at 6 p.m. in front of Copiah Bank. Registration is $50 for adults, students or children under 18 years old are $20. Participants are asked to wear white shirts the day of the race.

Saturday’s festivities will start with a car show from 8:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. A bicentennial celebration will take place on state at 10 a.m. followed by the crowning of the queen at 11 a.m.

American Legion awards will be presented at 11:15 a.m. on stage. The founders day parade will start at 3 p.m. with the line up at the old Sunflower location. Local musician Montana Beeson will perform from 5 p.m. to 5:45 p.m.

Musical headliner Keys vs Strings will play from 6:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. A street dance with a live DJ will follow from 8:30 p.m. to 10 p.m. Fireworks will light up the sky after 10 p.m.

Anyone interested in being a vendor at the event can contact 601-643-8403 to apply to be a vendor at the event. Applications must be completed by April 28.

Wesson is located about 10 minutes north of Brookhaven on US 51 or I-55. It is home to Copiah-Lincoln Community College. Another travel destination in Wesson is Lake Lincoln State Park just east of town.