French explorers landed at Biloxi in 1699; it was incorporated in 1838. The lighthouse dates to 1848. Biloxi has 34 National Register of Historic Places listings.
Last checked Oct. 12, 2026. History comes from the City of Biloxi’s history page, by local historian Edmond Boudreaux Jr., and its museums and historical places pages. National Register listings come from the National Park Service’s NRHP listed properties spreadsheet, current to May 22, 2026.
Biloxi is one of the oldest places on the Gulf Coast. Eight flags have flown over it, the city’s history says: those of France, England, Spain, the Republic of West Florida, the Confederacy and the United States, plus two Mississippi state flags.
Who to call
- City museums and historic property rentals: 228-435-6244
- Biloxi Visitors Center and lighthouse tours: 228-374-3105
- Mississippi Coast Historical and Genealogical Society: 228-324-3418, mscoasthistory1699@gmail.com
- Official page: Biloxi history
A timeline
- As early as 8,000 B.C. to the 1700s: Native Americans live on the Biloxi peninsula. The Biloxi people spoke a Siouan language.
- Feb. 13, 1699: Pierre Le Moyne, Sieur d’Iberville, and 14 men land on the mainland at present-day Biloxi, three days after reaching Ship Island.
- 1720 to 1723: Biloxi is the capital of the French colony, before it moves to New Orleans.
- 1763: France cedes the land east of the Mississippi to England; 1779, the coast passes to Spain; 1810, Biloxi joins the short-lived Republic of West Florida.
- 1817: Mississippi becomes a state. Biloxi grows into a summer resort.
- 1838: Biloxi is incorporated as a township.
- 1848: the Biloxi Lighthouse is completed.
- Dec. 31, 1861: Biloxi surrenders to Union naval forces operating from Ship Island.
- 1881: Lopez, Elmer and Co. opens Biloxi’s first seafood cannery. By 1900 Biloxi is called the Seafood Capital of the World; by the 1920s more than 40 seafood factories fill two cannery districts.
- 1908: Biloxi’s first Mardi Gras parade. 1927: the seawall is built. 1929: the first Blessing of the Shrimp Fleet.
- 1941: the Army Air Corps opens Keesler Field, today Keesler Air Force Base.
- Aug. 17, 1969: Hurricane Camille strikes.
- 1992: Mississippi allows dockside casino gaming.
- Aug. 29, 2005: Hurricane Katrina.
The Biloxi Lighthouse
The lighthouse in the median of U.S. 90 at Porter Avenue is the city’s signature landmark. Congress authorized it in 1847, and the cast-iron tower, lined with brick, was finished in the spring of 1848, one of the first cast-iron lighthouses in the South. Maria Younghans, one of several women who kept the light, tended it for 53 years. The Coast Guard took over in 1939; the city received the tower in 1968. Katrina’s surge covered a third of the 64-foot tower, and a $400,000 restoration reopened it for tours in March 2010. Tours run from 9 to 10 a.m. daily, weather permitting, from the Visitors Center; the city says trips to the top are temporarily unavailable during upper-deck repairs.
Museums and historic places to visit
| Place | Address | Hours as published |
|---|---|---|
| Biloxi Visitors Center (city history exhibits, film “We Are Biloxi”) | 1050 Beach Blvd. | Daily, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. |
| Beauvoir, the Jefferson Davis Home and Presidential Library | 2244 Beach Blvd. | Daily, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. |
| Maritime and Seafood Industry Museum | 115 First St. | 9 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Monday to Saturday; noon to 4 p.m. Sunday |
| Ohr-O’Keefe Museum of Art and the Pleasant Reed House | 386 Beach Blvd. | See georgeohr.org |
| Coastal Mississippi Mardi Gras Museum | 792 Howard Ave. | 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Tuesday to Friday |
| West End Hose Co. No. 3 Fire Museum (1937 firehouse) | 1046 Howard Ave. | Saturdays, 9 a.m. to 2 p.m., or by appointment |
| Bond-Grant House (Biloxi Main Street) | 932 Howard Ave. | 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. weekdays |
| Old Biloxi Cemetery | 1166 Irish Hill Drive | Annual costumed tour each October |
Hours for the Maritime museum, Mardi Gras museum and fire museum are from the city’s October 2026 community calendar (PDF). Beauvoir is a National Historic Landmark on 51 acres facing the Gulf, with the restored antebellum home, the presidential library, a Confederate museum and a veterans cemetery. The Pleasant Reed House is a shotgun house built in 1887 by Pleasant Reed, who was born enslaved in 1854. The Bond-Grant House, built from 1904 to 1907, was moved across Howard Avenue and restored after Katrina.
Downtown historic districts
Downtown Biloxi is covered by several National Register districts: the Biloxi Downtown Historic District along Howard Avenue from Reynoir to Lameuse streets (1998, enlarged in 2015), plus the Reynoir Street and Lameuse Street districts (2015). Work on buildings in historic districts goes through the city’s Architectural and Historical Review Commission; see our building permits guide. The city also posts a map of downtown murals (PDF).
National Register of Historic Places listings in Biloxi
The National Park Service lists these 34 entries for Biloxi, with the year each was listed. The list records when each property was listed, not its current condition.
| Property | Location | Listed |
|---|---|---|
| Beauvoir (National Historic Landmark, 1973) | 200 W. Beach Blvd. | 1971 |
| Biloxi Garden Center | 410 E. Bayview Ave. | 1973 |
| Magnolia Hotel | 137 Magnolia St. | 1973 |
| Biloxi Lighthouse | U.S. 90 at Porter Avenue | 1973 |
| U.S. Post Office, Courthouse and Customhouse | 216 Lameuse St. | 1978 |
| E. Barq Pop Factory | 224 Keller Ave. | 1984 |
| Bond House | 925 W. Howard Ave. | 1984 |
| Brunet-Fourchy House | 138 Magnolia St. Mall | 1984 |
| Clemens House | 120 W. Water St. | 1984 |
| Gulf Coast Center for the Arts | 138 Lameuse St. | 1984 |
| Nativity BVM Cathedral | West Howard Avenue and Fayard Street | 1984 |
| Peoples Bank of Biloxi | 318 Lameuse St. | 1984 |
| Redding House | 126 W. Jackson St. | 1984 |
| Saenger Theater | 416 Reynoir St. | 1984 |
| Scherer House | 206 W. Water St. | 1984 |
| Seashore Campground School | Leggett Drive and Chalmers Street | 1984 |
| Suter House | 165 Suter Place | 1984 |
| Glenn Swetman House | 2770 Wilkes Ave. | 1984 |
| West Beach Historic District | U.S. 90 between Rosell and Chalmers avenues | 1984 |
| West Central Historic District | U.S. 90, Hopkins Boulevard, Howard and Benachi avenues | 1984 |
| House at 638 East Howard Avenue | 638 E. Howard Ave. | 1986 |
| Raymond Bass Site (archaeological) | Address restricted | 1987 |
| Biloxi Downtown Historic District | Howard Avenue, Reynoir to Lameuse streets | 1998 |
| Josephine (shipwreck) | Address restricted | 2000 |
| Biloxi Veterans Administration Medical Center | 400 Veterans Ave. | 2002 |
| Gunston Hall | 1694 Beach Blvd. | 2014 |
| Biloxi Downtown Historic District (boundary increase) | Rue Magnolia, Howard Avenue, Main and Water streets | 2015 |
| Reynoir Street Historic District | 200 block of Reynoir Street | 2015 |
| East Howard Avenue Historic District | Dukate, Nixon, Jefferson and Holley streets, Peyton Drive and Comfort Place | 2015 |
| Upper West Central Historic District | Hopkins Boulevard, CSX railroad, Iroquois, Esposito and Division streets | 2015 |
| Lameuse Street Historic District | 200-300 blocks of Lameuse Street, Haise and Main streets | 2015 |
| West Central Historic District (boundary change) | CSX railroad, Hopkins Boulevard and Benachi Avenue | 2015 |
| Dr. Gilbert R. Mason Sr. Medical Office | 670 Division St. | 2017 |
| Greater Biloxi Subdivision | Greater Avenue, Althea Street, Southern Avenue and Orchid Street | 2025 |
What this means for you
- Start at the Biloxi Visitors Center, then walk to the lighthouse for the morning tour.
- Downtown’s historic districts are a short walk along Howard Avenue.
- The Old Biloxi Cemetery Tour each October brings local history to life.
More guides: Biloxi population, things to do this month and getting around Biloxi.
Frequently asked questions
When was Biloxi founded?
Pierre Le Moyne, Sieur d’Iberville, and 14 men landed at present-day Biloxi on Feb. 13, 1699. Biloxi was incorporated as a township in 1838, according to the city’s history.
How old is the Biloxi Lighthouse?
The cast-iron tower was completed in the spring of 1848, one of the first cast-iron lighthouses in the South. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1973.
Was Biloxi ever the capital?
Yes. The capital of the French colony was moved to Biloxi in 1720 and stayed until 1723, when it moved to New Orleans, the city’s history says.
How many National Register listings does Biloxi have?
The National Park Service’s list, current to May 22, 2026, has 34 Biloxi entries, including historic districts and boundary changes. The newest is the Greater Biloxi Subdivision, listed in 2025.
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