NATCHEZ — Standing near the Natchez bluff with the smell of magnolias in the air, Alcorn State University’s new president, M. Christopher Brown, said Sunday being in Natchez was a little like coming home.

Speeches at the gazebo and a reception at the historic house Bontura were the last of a long list of weekend activities in Vicksburg, Lorman and Natchez commemorating Brown’s inauguration and 140 years of Alcorn.

Celebrating in Natchez, the hometown of Alcorn’s first president Hiram Revels, brought the inauguration festivities full circle, Brown said.

In addition to the historical significance of formally joining a line of 17 past presidents in Revels’ hometown, Natchez carries a personal nostalgia for Brown.

“This reminds me of The Battery (Park in Charleston, S.C.) — the smells of the ligustrums and magnolias, standing on the veranda,” said Brown, a Charleston native. “So being in Mississippi is like being home.”

Brown was joined by more than a hundred friends, family and colleagues, as well as his new Alcorn colleagues and representatives from The City of Natchez and Adams County.

Mayor Jake Middleton read a proclamation at the gazebo welcoming Brown as Alcorn’s president and listing Brown’s career accomplishments.

Joined by Ward 1 Alderwoman Joyce-Arceneaux Mathis and Ward 2 Alderman James “Ricky” Gray, the mayor then presented Brown with the framed proclamation.

Adams County Board of Supervisors President Darryl Grennell recited lyrics by Nina Simone and poetry by Robert Frost to express his excitement for Brown’s arrival to Alcorn and his appreciation for Brown’s vision.

“We’re feeling good about ASU’s new president, Dr. M. Christopher Brown,” Grennell said, using lyric’s from Simone’s song “Feeling Good.”

Joined by county offcials Sheriff Chuck Mayfield, Chancery Clerk Tommy O’Beirne, Circuit Clerk Eddie Walker, Judge John Hudson and Judge Lillie Blackmon Sanders, Grennell also presented Brown with a proclamation of support.

Rep. Robert Johnson spoke about how impressed he was to read an interview with Brown in which Brown said he could see Alcorn as a national prototype for other universities.

“(Alcorn) is bigger than Mississippi; it’s bigger than the South, and that’s the kind of leader (Alcorn) needs,” Johnson said.

Sen. Bob Dearing addressed Brown from the podium and said a picture of he and Brown is proudly displayed on his refrigerator.

“Dr. Brown, we’re blessed to have you,” Dearing said.

Johnson and Dearing both presented Brown with proclamations of support.

Grennell said he looks forward to Brown’s efforts in healing the “Alcorn family” by bringing together Alcorn parents, students and alumni and harnessing that power to reinvest in the University.

“(Brown) is reopening doors,” Grennell said.

Bontura owner Jim Coy spoke of the significance hosting the reception for the new president of the first historically black land grant university at Bontura, which was built in 1851 by freed black businessman, Robert Smith.

Brown’s mother, Jannie Brown, enjoyed the reception from the porch of Bontura surrounded by several of Brown’s aunts and friends.

“I think it’s his time,” Jannie said of Brown’s inauguration as Alcorn’s president.

“And it’s the time for Alcorn.”