The Rev. Derrick Fields
Vanessa Charlot photographs the state’s oldest religious centers for Black communities
University of Mississippi professor Vanessa Charlot walks into Mississippi’s oldest Black churches with a camera and questions that go far deeper than inquiring about the historic architecture.
The assistant professor of media and communication has spent several months visiting many of the state’s most historically significant Black churches as a 2025 Crossroads Arts fellow. Her project, “Sanctuaries of the Spirit: Black Churches in Mississippi,” is a photographic and oral history exploration of sacred spaces that have long served as pillars of faith, resilience and activism.
“Black churches have always been significant to the community for upward social mobility, equality and spiritual development,” Charlot said. “As our society continues to evolve and our understanding of spiritual institutions expands and constricts, I thought it was important to visually explore Black religiosity and preserve this history.”
The Crossroads Project, supported by the Henry Luce Foundation and based at Princeton University, funds innovative work examining the diversity of Black religious history and culture in the Americas. Charlot’s photographs, portraits and oral history recordings will be archived on Spirit House, Princeton’s public digital platform for Black religious history, where they will be accessible to students, scholars and communities worldwide.
The state has a vibrant religious community, so Charlot decided each selected church had to be at least 120 years old, architecturally distinct and connected to either the Civil Rights Movement or the post-Reconstruction era. Her work has taken her across the state, including to Columbus, Meridian, Philadelphia, Jackson, Indianola, Ruleville, Itta Bena, and Greenwood.
She has photographed wooden chapels on former plantations and brick sanctuaries with ties to the voting rights movement. She’s stood in spaces built by formerly enslaved hands and listened to their descendants describe what happened inside those walls across generations.
“Mississippi is so spiritually rich,” she said. “Oftentimes we pigeonhole the church into just being one thing, when actually the rhythm of the church has existed since the shores of Africa.
“The church is more than an institution. It’s a place where people learn to read and write, to be in community and to solve problems in the community. It has been deeply moving.”
Four churches, including Missionary Union Baptist Church in Columbus, serve as the anchoring faces of the project. Founded in 1833, Missionary Union is believed to be the oldest Black church in northeast Mississippi and possibly the second oldest in the state.
The Rev. Derrick Fields, who became its pastor five months ago, said Charlot’s arrival felt like an answer to something already on his heart. Preserving the church’s history had been a priority from his first day, he said.
“When you don’t know where you come from, you really don’t know where you’re going,” Fields said. “Within that church body, there are a lot of firsts. That is a legacy and a history that needs to be preserved and told, particularly in this time of erasure.”
At Missionary Union, Charlot interviewed and photographed 93-year-old church member Mary Wicks, who shared memories of being barred from attending some colleges during the segregation era. Conversations with Wicks and others revealed how each longtime church has also served as a place for education, emergency aid, local recommendations and a meeting ground to discuss change.
Missionary Union’s congregation continues writing its legacy.
Scott Colom, U.S. Senate candidate and Lowndes County district attorney, grew up in the church. His mother, Dorothy Colom, a retired judge, and his aunt Jackie Exum, a community organizer and civil rights advocate, remain active members.
Denise Jones-Gregory, interim president of Jackson State University, maintains her connection to the congregation through her mother, Linda Jones, and her uncle, George Irby, both active members. And councilwoman Lavonne Latham Harris, who also is president of the local NAACP chapter, is an active member.
For Fields, the list is not incidental; it underscores the importance of Charlot’s work.
“Professor Charlot is not just telling Missionary Union’s story, but the story of the churches and what they have done to strengthen and sustain our community and our society,” he said.
The oral histories Charlot is collecting are among the most powerful of her career, she said. Whether talking with new members or elders in their 80s and 90s, she has felt welcomed.
“They have really opened up themselves to have these conversations,” she said. “I don’t take this lightly. Even oral history, where you’re able to hear the voice of someone like Mrs. Wicks, who is 93 years old. There may be some kids 30 years from now that will hear her voice. I expect for that to be something powerful.”
Charlot is working against time.
Spring Hill Baptist Church in Tupelo, a church with strong ties to the civil rights era, is structurally at risk and its congregation is racing to raise rehabilitation funds. For Charlot, every visit is a reminder that preservation cannot wait.
“If we lose the history of the Black church, I think we are going to be doing a huge disservice to ourselves,” she said. “If we don’t have it, our children’s children won’t understand a lot of our culture and why we do the things we do.”
By Marvis Herring
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