Regional state park now bears late Sen. Bob Dearing's name

NATCHEZ — The name of former Mississippi District 37 Sen. Robert Montgomery “Bob” Dearing — who represented Franklin County and portions of Southwest Mississippi in the Legislature’s upper house for better than three decades — will now forever be associated with a local state park.

An unveiling of “Bob M. Dearing Natchez State Park” was held Wednesday, April 26 with family, friends, former legislative colleagues and state officials attending.

During its 2021 regular session, the Mississippi Legislature enacted and Gov. Tate Reeves signed into law Senate Bill 2075, which legally named the facility in Dearing’s memory.
Two years after the fact, the long-awaited public renaming celebration was held in front of a new sign that was uncovered near the entrance to the park, which is about 10 miles north of Natchez off U.S. Highway 61.

“We’re here to honor Sen. Dearing for his work that was instrumental in making this park become a reality,” Lynn Posey, who serves as executive director of the Mississippi Department of Wildlife, Fisheries and Parks, said.

“He had a passion for wanting this park and others across Mississippi to be destinations for people from all walks to life to enjoy and take advantage of throughout the year.”

Over the course of 36 years, Dearing served eight terms in the Legislature after initially being elected in 1979 as a Democrat.

He would be defeated by Republican Melanie Sojourner in 2011, but, four years later, was returned to office by voters before retiring at the end of that four-year term.

Dearing served in a number of capacities in the Mississippi Senate, including, most notably, a tenure on the State Parks sub-committee of the MDWFP, and, as a result, was instrumental in the creation of Natchez State Park.

“I know my Daddy would be very happy and humbled by this,” Daye Dearing, the late senator’s daughter, said while fighting back tears in thanking state officials for this effort to honor the man who worked to be the voice of Southwest Mississippi in Jackson.

“The reason this is so significant to me and my family is that Daddy and other members of that sub-committee toured the state parks in the mid- to late-1990s to see what kind of needs they had and go back to get funding for them.

“In the course of doing that, he really fell in love with the parks system and saw their individual beauty as well as the potential these parks had for the areas of the state where they were located — not just for local residents, but for tourists to Mississippi. He felt it would be great for Southwest Mississippi if there was a park in Natchez.”

Dearing said the park’s renaming was truly an undescribable honor because of the effort the late senator put forth in trying to make it a reality in hoping that it would happen, but thinking it might not.

“He was really happy when the park was built and would be thrilled that the Legislature had renamed this special place for him,” she continued.

Mississippi District 30 Sen. Dean Kirby, R-Pearl and who presently serves as president pro tempore of the Legislature’s upper chamber, characterized the unveiling as the testament to a lawmaker that saw needs and worked to fill them.

“Sen. Dearing was not only my good friend and your good friend, but he was a special friend who did so many things for so many of us,” Kirby noted.

“Not one time do I ever remember him asking of any of the committees I’ve chaired to do things for himself ... only for others and those he represented. He was a man of conviction and integrity that wanted District 37 and all of Mississippi to be the very best.”

Posey said the park is presently undergoing a highly anticipated facelift with its cabins being renovated with additional plans on tap to drain down the on-site lake to place an improved boat ramp there along with new bream beds to boost fishing opportunities.

“We’re also going to try to make it a priority here to put in some nature trails,” Posey continued.

“This is really a quiet park and people come out here for the serenity of it.

“By adding some nature trails, we hope to attract a lot more visitors to Southwest Mississippi, and to this park in particular.”

Prior to serving in elected office, Dearing was an educator and coach, and also served in Mississippi’s U.S. Army National Guard.

He passed away on July 30, 2020, in Natchez at the age of 85, and was interred in the Natchez City Cemetery.