Mississippi memories: discover glitzy casinos, historic homes, unusual museums, and quiet natural areas on a swing through the Deep South - State Of The Month

Travel America, March-April, 2003 by Alice Ross

TAKE A HIKE OR TAKE A chance, explore the Civil War or civil rights, immerse yourself in music or literature. Whatever your interest, you'll find plenty that's memorable in Mississippi. From the beaches in the south to the hills in the north, a wealth of wonders awaits in the Magnolia State.

A good way to sample Mississippi's diversity is to explore by region. Antebellum homes and historic monuments grace the landscape of the cool, rocky, northern Hills Region, which was settled by Chickasaw and Choctaw Indians. The Tennessee-Tombigbee Waterway along the region's eastern side, and lakes and state parks in the west make the area an outdoorsman's paradise. The historic Natchez Trace Parkway, an early Indian trail and now a 50-mile per hour scenic parkway, is a good road from which to make side trips. Beginning in Nashville and stretching to Natchez, it lazes through the Hills Region for about 75 unhurried miles.

Corinth offers several Civil War attractions and claims the state's oldest drug store, Borroum's. Well known to those who love a good book, Oxford wits home to famed author William Faulkner. On a wall in his house, Rowan Oak, visitors can see where he wrote an outline for A Fable. Tupelo is music to the ears of Elvis Presley fans, who flock to the two-room house where "The King" was born. The new Tupelo Automobile Museum, unveiled in December, displays more than 100 restored cars. In Grenada enjoy 36,000-acre Grenada Lake and visit the Confederate cemetery.

To the west lies the Delta Region, with everything from casinos to cotton to Casey Jones--and a croaker named Kermit. Thanks to the Delta's rich soil, cotton once reigned as king but has relinquished its throne to Lady Luck: 10 world-class casinos dazzle the senses in Tunica. If your taste in music means the blues, you've found heaven--the Delta is the birthplace of the blues, having given us such legends as B.B. King and Muddy Waters. Clarksdale's Delta Blues Museum recalls the greats, and fans swell the town during the annual summer music festival. Cleveland, home of Delta State University, packs them in for a variety of cultural treats at the school's Performing Arts Center. In Leland, visit the Birthplace of the Frog Museum, an exhibit dedicated to Kermit and Muppets creator Jim Henson, who hailed from nearby Greenville.

Victorian architecture and Civil War battlegrounds recall the past in Yazoo County. In 1863, one of the first underwater mines sank a Union ironclad in the Yazoo River, the Mississippi's second largest tributary. Yazoo City's Casey Jones Railroad Museum tracks the story of the train wreck that ended the railroader's life. Since train disasters were common in the early 1900s, Jones' fate might have gone unnoticed if a friend hadn't written a song about him and created a legend.

Head south to the Capital/River Region to watch steamboats plying the Mississippi River, absorb some arts and culture, or delve into history. The 47-day Siege of Vicksburg is recalled at the beautiful Vicksburg National Military Park. A 16-mile driving tour passes monuments honoring those who fought there. Many of Vicksburg's magnificent antebellum mansions are open to tour. A drive along the Natchez Trace Parkway is a must in the region, and a stop at the Mississippi Crafts Center in Ridgeland won't disappoint.

Mississippi was a center of activity for the civil fights movement. The capital, Jackson, has a Civil Rights Trail and the first permanent civil fights exhibit in the nation, honoring Medgar Evers. A "One Mile Downtown Walk" encompasses Jackson's municipal buildings--including the domed Capitol, several great museums, restaurants, and sidewalk vendors tempting visitors with a Southern favorite, hot boiled peanuts. The Jackson Zoological Park delights kids of all ages.

Mention of Natchez sends some folks swooning at the thought of all its breathtaking antebellum mansions. Many are open to the public year-round, others during seasonal pilgrimages. Monmouth Plantation, a small luxury hotel on 26 acres, has been rated one of the top 10 most romantic places to stay. Haunting tales circulate about Longwood, the nation's largest remaining octagonal house. Begun at the start of the Civil War, the five-story, Moorish-style house was never finished.

Golf addicts have discovered Mississippi's many fine courses, including two in the Pines Region--Old Waverly in West Point and Philadelphia's Dancing Rabbit Golf Club at Silverstar Resort and Casino. Philadelphia also hosts the Neshoba County Fair, known as "Mississippi's Giant House Party," and the Choctaw Indian Fair, which includes demonstrations of the Choctaws' favorite sport, stickball.

Columbus is the birthplace of Tennessee Williams, whose house is a visitors center displaying the playwright's memorabilia. Guided carriage rides are a popular way to tour Columbus' historic district and springtime cruises a pleasant way to enjoy the Tenn-Tom Waterway. One of Starkville's attractions is the John Grisham Room at the MSU Campus, with a complete collection of the author's writings. Several of the Mississippi resident's novels became movies, which were filmed in the state.