There must be old magic buried deep in Mississippi soil, because the state has spawned more legends than can be counted; it has changed the way we think, sing and write, from the powerful civil rights heritage in Jackson to the blues music of Greenville and Clarksdale. Throw in the maritime culture of the Gulf Coast, Tupelo’s own “King” of Rock ’n’ Roll, historic sites celebrating literary giants like Eudora Welty and William Faulkner, plus scores of antebellum homes in Vicksburg, Natchez and Columbus, and Mississippi reveals itself as an American treasure, and there are myriad ways for groups to experience it.
While Mississippi’s culture is irresistible, it can be wiped away by Mother Nature. Fortunately, at press time, the CVBs along the Mississippi Gulf Coast were reporting that damage from Hurricane Gustav was minimal, and all attractions, casinos, lodging and entertainment venues were open for business.
Gulf Coast Region
Along the Mississippi Gulf Coast, centuries of maritime history, architecture and art give the area a rich, vibrant culture that resonates with groups. Several sites along the coast are also important threads in the larger American tapestry, from Beauvoir in Biloxi, the last home of Confederate President Jefferson Davis, to the Freedom Summer Trail in Hattiesburg, a string of historic places vital to the civil rights movement.
“People have inhabited this place since 1699,” says Richard Forrester, executive director of the Mississippi Gulf Coast CVB. “We have so much history and art for groups to experience.”
If groups time their visit just right, they can participate in one of the oldest traditions along the coast: Mardi Gras, the celebration of Fat Tuesday before Lent, which falls in late February next year. Planners can receive help from the CVB in planning events, ordering the customary King Cakes and learning the history and tradition behind the festivities, including the fact that gold beads are best for party favors, since the color represents good luck.
During the rest of the year, there’s still plenty of local culture to explore, from enjoying a candlelight tour of Beauvoir to fun group art activities at the Ohr-O’Keefe Museum of Art, which celebrates the creative achievements of George Ohr, the eccentric artist known as the Mad Potter of Biloxi.
There are also numerous tours, cruises and charters available to groups, but for an unforgettable, authentic experience, reserve a day aboard the Biloxi Schooners, two replica oyster schooners that feature billowing white sails and give groups a hearty taste of the late-1800s sailing life.
While most of the cultural activities along the coast relate to history, one essential experience comes from recent hardship; the bite of Hurricane Katrina is still felt in coastal towns, and there are still plenty of opportunities for groups to pitch in, help rebuild communities and become part of history themselves.
“We call it ‘voluntourism,’” Forrester says. “We’re well along the road to recovery, but there’s still more to be done.”
In nearby Hattiesburg, history is rich with diversity. Attendees can enjoy the late 1800s architecture of the city’s downtown historic area, or step back in time at the Mississippi Armed Forces Museum, a must-stop for groups because of its immersion exhibits. One allows attendees to step inside a World War II trench and experience a few minutes of war, complete with the sounds of gunfire, shaking walls and moving floors.
For attendees with limited time, the Freedom Summer Trail driving tour is a perfect fit. The tour includes 15 sites important to the civil rights movement during the Freedom Summer of 1964, when volunteers traveled to Mississippi to register black voters.
Capital/River Region
From the blues and art of Jackson to the antebellum charm and ghostly thrills of Vicksburg and Natchez, there’s a side of Mississippi life to please any delegate.
“There’s something to do every night you’re here,” says Gina Aswell, communications manager for the Jackson CVB. “We have a four-hour civil rights tour, numerous blues venues and the African-American heritage tour, where a local guide takes you through the city and shares the significant history of Jackson.”
The heritage tour winds up at the Medgar Evers home, where the civil rights hero lived and died. Another site, the National Civil Rights Museum, is in the planning stages, and will become an important stop on the tour in the future, Aswell says.
Jackson also has four markers on the Mississippi Blues Trail, including the historic Alamo Theater, where local blues legend Dorothy Moore got her start. There are also several blues venues, like Schimmel’s, which re-creates the heyday of the Subway Lounge with live music, cheap beer and hot dogs. But for an even-closer look at this American art form, ask the Jackson CVB to set up the How to Write a Blues Song workshop with musician Virgil Brawley. This local blues sage takes attendees to a soul food restaurant, then shares the secrets of the formula behind every blues song ever written.
For fans of the written word, the Eudora Welty House Museum will celebrate what would have been the noted author’s centennial birthday next year with readings and special events. Welty was born in Jackson.
Vicksburg is the postcard-perfect image of Southern charm, a graceful town perched on a bluff overlooking the Mississippi River. Attendees can step into the picture at one of the town’s elegant antebellum homes, from a reception in the courtyards of Anchuca Mansion to a themed sit-down dinner at Cedar Grove Mansion Inn. Groups should plan a few hours for Linden Plantation Gardens, an 1820s plantation that still has original antiques and historic documents on display. In addition to the house and garden tour, attendees can also see a plantation cabin and an old cemetery on the grounds.
For spouse or family activities, check with the Southern Cultural Heritage Foundation in Vicksburg, which offers more than 70 themed events every year, from Southern cuisine cooking classes to jewelry-making and readings by local authors from the works of historic Mississippi writers like Welty and Faulkner.
Farther down the Mississippi River is Natchez, also awash in antebellum beauty and history. The famed Monmouth Plantation is the perfect backdrop for an event or meeting, and attendees can even relax in the study or explore the storybook-ready acreage surrounding the main house. For a taste of authentic Mississippi flavor, head over to the Magnolia Grill, the oldest continually operating restaurant in the area. The eatery specializes in regional cuisine and locally grown food, and is a favorite for locals. Attendees can top off the day with an experience of the town’s darker side on the Natchez Ghost Tour, a colorful and spine-chilling exploration of another Southern tradition: the ghost story. The tour even includes a walk-through of a haunted building, where spooky recordings have been captured.
Delta Region
The heart of Delta culture beats around two things: the Mississippi River and music.
In Tunica, history begins with the river. Groups can enjoy dinner aboard the 400-seat Tunica Queen as the scenery slips quietly past, or discover a different side of the Mississippi River with an event at Tunica RiverPark, which documents the history and power of this American waterway. Included in the exhibits is a full-scale tenant house, destroyed by floodwaters, a vivid example of how the river can support life or destroy it. Tunica also boasts four markers along the Mississippi Blues Trail, including the famed Highway 61 leading from New Orleans to Memphis. Dozens of blues legends lived near the roadway, including Muddy Waters, Robert Johnson, B.B. King and Howlin’ Wolf.
“Highway 61 can take you to so many sites,” says Lisa Winters, interim director for the Greenville/Washington County CVB. “You can spend a whole day just touring the markers that helped build our cultural heritage.”
The road and its contribution to blues is also celebrated at the Highway 61 Blues Museum in Leland, near Greenville. The museum is available for group events, and the owner will even arrange live music from local blues musicians upon request.
Southern writers get their due, too, with the Greenville Writers Exhibit in the Percy Memorial Library. Scribes such as William Alexander Percy, Shelby Foote and Ellen Douglas are remembered here through historic documents and original manuscripts. Attendees will soon be able to tap their own inner authors; the Greenville CVB is developing writing workshops as cultural programming for groups.
In Clarksdale, cultural blues experiences are rich and satisfying. Groups can head out for a night on the town at the Ground Zero Blues Club or schedule an event at the Delta Blues Museum and ask about educational programs or workshops. Depending on season and availability, attendees could hear blues history straight from legends like Honeyboy Edwards or Charlie Musselwhite, or enjoy musical workshops with local talent.
Hills Region
In Tupelo, the focus shifts from the blues to the birth of rock. The town is known internationally as the birthplace of Elvis Presley, and an intensive tour hits all the right notes, from the two-room house where he was born to Tupelo Hardware, virtually unchanged since Elvis’ mother bought his first guitar. The Elvis Presley Museum Complex is a perfect place for an outdoor reception after spending the day with the “King.”
From classic sounds to classic cars, the Tupelo Automobile Museum is a top pick for group receptions and events, with 120,000 square feet of auto displays and engineering power, including an 1886 Benz, a rare Tucker and of course, one of Presley’s many cars: a 1976 Lincoln, displayed along with his personal check.
Oxford has an intriguing mix of Civil War history and literary legacy; both the University of Mississippi and Rowan Oak, former home of Faulkner, are here, and tours of antebellum homes and Confederate cemeteries are offered. Attendees can view Faulkner’s Nobel Prize on campus at the J.D. Williams library, then take a guided tour through the great writer’s home and see where he wrote many novels. For a special treat, call ahead and ask about setting up a reading of Faulkner’s work for an outdoor event.
Pines Region
The literary and musical tradition continues in the Pines region, from the childhood home of Columbus’ native son Tennessee Williams to the legacy of Jimmie Rodgers, the father of country music, in Meridian, as well as a host of graceful historic homes and unique cemetery tours.
“Our homes set us apart,” says James Tsismanakis, executive director of the Columbus CVB. “We have the first home of Tennessee Williams, and our antebellum homes aren’t museum pieces; they’re well cared for and lived in.”
The Williams home, a National Literary Landmark, is also the area’s visitors center and interpretive center; the blue and yellow gingerbread house is perfect for group events. Also, six antebellum homes are open daily for tours, and several welcome group events, including the 1847 Lee Home and Museum.
In Meridian, attendees can experience the music of Rodgers, a pioneer in country music. The Jimmie Rodgers Museum is open for tours through mid-week, but always will open for groups by special arrangement. Check with the Lauderdale County tourism bureau for unique cemetery tours, including the Rodgers gravesite, the final resting place of the King and Queen of the Gypsies, and the gravesite of James Chaney, a civil rights worker during 1964’s Freedom Summer. For an unforgettable afternoon in nature, groups can plan a picnic at Dunn’s Falls, a park with a 65-foot waterfall, historic grist mill, and hiking and swimming areas.
For More Info
Coahoma County Tourism Commission (Clarksdale) 662.627.7337 www.clarksdaletourism.com
Columbus CVB 662.329.1191 www.columbus-ms.org
Corinth Area CVB 662.287.8300 www.corinth.net
Greenville/Washington County CVB 662.334.2711 www.visitgreenville.org
Greenwood CVB 662.453.9197 www.gcvb.com
Hattiesburg CVB 601.268.3220 www.hattiesburg.org
Jackson CVB 601.960.1891 www.visitjackson.com
Meridian/Lauderdale County Tourism Bureau 601.482.8001 www.visitmeridian.com
Mississippi Gulf Coast CVB 228.896.6699 www.gulfcoast.org
Mississippi West Coast/Hancock County Tourism Development Bureau 228.463.9222 www.mswestcoast.org
Natchez CVB 601.446.6345 www.visitnatchez.com
Oxford CVB 662.232.2467 www.oxfordcvb.com
Starkville CVB 662.323.3322 www.starkville.org
Tunica CVB 662.363.3800 www.tunicamiss.com
Tupelo CVB 662.841.6521 www.tupelo.net
Vicksburg CVB 601.636.9421 www.visitvicksburg.com
Yazoo County CVB 662.746.1815 www.yazoo.org
