9 Playfully Peculiar Towns In Mississippi

What do Teddy Bears, Catfish farming, and Barq’s Root Beer all have in common? From what we know about these three items, nothing. But from the history of one state, we know they all originated, or are superior, in the state of Mississippi. Within the state, Catfish farming leads the rest of the U.S., and the root beer with bite and favorite pastime stuffed animal were created. Mississippi offers other unique fun facts and attractions, and you can find them all in these nine playfully peculiar towns.

Leland

Few things from one’s childhood are more nostalgic than the shows they watched and the characters they grew up with. One of those famed characters is a big green frog who was in love with a pig. Leland is the Birthplace of Kermit the Frog. Creator Jim Henson grew up in a small town, and his legacy is honored with a museum dedicated to him. Three original Muppets, Dr. Teeth, The Swedish Chef, and Chester the Rat, were temporarily on display at the museum, but had to be returned to the Jim Henson Company. Now, an original Kermit puppet, donated by Henson’s wife, is featured along with merchandise, dolls, and memorabilia. Another museum that pays homage to the state’s founding history is the Highway 61 Blues Museum. The museum might be small, but it strives to educate the public on the contributions to the world of music by the Mid-Mississippi Delta bluesman. As a final museum honoring Leland and Mississippi’s past, visit the Mississippi Wildlife Heritage Museum. Exclusive exhibits feature the world’s largest collection of Mississippi-made turkey and duck calls, vintage hunting and fishing memorabilia, the state's #1 bowhunting deer collection, and the Mississippi Outdoor Hall of Fame.

Tupelo

For a fun and exciting trip to get all shook up, visit Tupelo, the Birthplace of Elvis Presley. Tour the sites that pay homage to the King of Rock & Roll at the Elvis Presley Birthplace. The walking tour features monumental places and events from the King’s childhood, including his home, church, and a statue of him walking as just a young child. There is also a museum commemorating his accolades throughout his life and career. Tupelo is full of history, and another place to learn more about the town’s past is at the Oren Dunn City Museum. The museum exhibits prominent displays and also hosts community events for all to attend. At the venue, monthly themes will focus on important topics that tell Tupelo’s story. Exhibits have included: Quilting in Mississippi, Snakes of Tupelo, Elvis' 90th Birthday Exhibition, Daughters of the American Revolution, and more. For a more specific look into a single significant event in the town’s history, history buffs will want to check out Tupelo National Battlefield. The one-acre battlefield held more than 20,000 American soldiers during their siege, resulting in over 2,000 casualties. The opportunity to preserve the battlefield in Tupelo has passed, but today a monument stands where the combat took place. Along the street the monument stands on, multiple landmarks are present to represent the soldiers who made the ultimate sacrifice.

Natchez

Originally inhabited by Natchez native people, this small town is the oldest continuous settlement on the Mississippi River. Between 1682 and 1730, the tribe’s main ceremonial center was the Grand Village. A living village created by and dedicated to the Natchez native people, the 128-acre park features three prehistoric Native American mounds and a nature trail for visitors to enjoy. The Great Sun’s Mound and the Temple Mound have been excavated and rebuilt to their original sizes and shapes. For another museum dedicated to the citizens of the town’s past, schedule a tour at Stanton Hall. The Greek Revival-style mansion was previously a home to a family physician, and for a short period, it was Stanton College for young ladies. Today, guests can view the marble mantles, large pier mirrors, and double parlors on guided tours. For a unique, monumental attraction in Natchez, learn the story of the Turning Angel Statue. A gas explosion in a business killed all five employees on duty in 1908, and the statue stands as a memorial to those employees. The stone angel stands over the five tombstones of the employees, but the fascinating aspect of the angel is that passersby have mentioned the statue turns to watch them as they pass by. Meander by it, in the dark, if you dare, and see for yourself if you’re being watched.

Vicksburg

The town of Vicksburg is known for its military history, which involved the Battle of Vicksburg during the Civil War. The Union victory gave control of the Mississippi River to the Union and was part of their successful plan to cut off all trade to the Confederacy. Learn more about the town’s war-torn times at the Vicksburg National Military Park. Over 1,400 markers and monuments in the park represent moments and individuals from the battle. Take in the bronze statues marking regimental monuments, relief portraits, and iron posts, trench lines, battery, and infantry positions, and describing battle events. Another unique and interesting, possibly controversial memorial from the Civil War is the Grave of Douglas, the Confederate Camel. Douglas, the one humped camel, carried the instruments and knapsacks for the regimental band. He was beloved by the soldiers, and after his death, a memorial marker was placed in his final resting spot. Enjoy history and arts with a walk along the water and partake in the Vicksburg Riverfront Murals. The murals showcase Vicksburg's past, present, and future roles in U.S. history, commerce, culture, religion, and technology. The murals, unveiled over 20 years ago, were created by artist Robert Dafford.

Hattiesburg

The town of Hattiesburg has multiple unique, niche attractions sure to entice any visitor’s interests. For an outdoor botanical experience, visit The All-American Rose Garden. Located at the University of Southern Mississippi, the garden features roughly three dozen flower beds, each containing its own unique hybrid roses. Take a stroll through the nearly 800 rose bushes that have been featured in American Rose magazine. For another diverse attraction, don’t miss an opportunity to see the Hattiesburg Pocket Museum. The museum features ordinary items, so it might not seem too enticing, but those ordinary items are all miniature versions, hence the lure. The unique museum is a removed newspaper stand and invites visitors to add a piece or take a piece and then scan a QR code so the museum can follow the movement of the pieces! For one final stop in town, one that has historical significance, shop around at Smith Drug Co. Opened in 1925 by Edwin Hammond Smith, this drug store was located in the heart of the Mobile Street commercial district. An important source for medicines and everyday products, the business also sold gum, candy, and a soda fountain that was popular among Eureka High School students. Today, the historical building is a turned museum and milkshake shop.

Clarksdale

Regarded as the "Birthplace of the Blues" and considered one of the most historically significant blues towns in the world, Clarksdale is the epicenter of the Delta Blues. Learn about the Delta Blues and its impact on the musical world at the Delta Blues Museum. One of the most prominent features on display at the museum is the remains of Muddy Waters’ cabin. A pioneer of Blues music, Muddy Waters influenced many artists to come. Exhibits in the museum also include 1967 Mississippi Hill Country Blues: Photographs by George Mitchell, Rhythm & Roots, Under the Roof of a Tin Top Shack, and more. After learning about the phenomenon that is Delta Blues, enjoy the musical creations of the genre at Ground Zero Blues Club. Experience the Blues the way the artists intended you to, up close and personal. The club has live singers four nights a week, and also features a jam night, where aspiring musicians can bring their own instruments and try their hand at performing. If, after you learn about the Blues, listen to the Blues, and fall in love with the Blues, make a final stop at Cat Head Delta Blues & Folk Art. This iconic record store has all the up-to-date information on the happenings in town. But it's not just a record store, this local meetup is also a folk-art museum, souvenir shop, and cultural hub. The inside of the shop is lined top to bottom with Blues paraphernalia. And portraits, and paintings, line the old brick and plaster walls, while bins of CDs crowd the already cramped aisles.

Port Gibson

One of the most enticing sites in Port Gibson is a dilapidated mansion. One that was so badly burned, it is barely in existence anymore. But what was left behind is the alluring attraction. Windsor Ruins was once a grand mansion on a plantation of 2,600 acres, until a fire, rumored by a cigar mishap during a party, destroyed the grand home. What remains of the once four-story home is now just 23 columns, the grand staircase, and other wrought-iron adornments. The staircase has been relocated to Oakland Memorial Chapel, and the towering columns have been used in several films, including 1957’s Raintree County, starring Elizabeth Taylor and Montgomery Clift. Hauntingly beautiful, take a gander through the grounds and picture for yourself the house that once stood there. For another ancient attraction, be sure to check out Grand Gulf Military Monument Park. The 450-acre park is dedicated to preserving the memory of the town as well as the transpiring battle, and honors it through sites as Fort Cobun and Fort Wade, the Grand Gulf Cemetery, a museum, campgrounds, picnic areas, hiking trails, an observation tower, and multiple restored buildings that date back to Grand Gulf's peak. If you haven’t yet reached your quota of historically tantalizing buildings, head over to A.K. Shaifer House. A crucial landmark during the Battle of Port Gibson, the house was eventually converted into a hospital to aid the soldiers. Although the house survived the war and still stands, it has scars, both figuratively and literally, from the battle, including spots where missiles were fired.

Oxford

Fans of literature will be quite entranced with a visit to Rowan Oak. The Greek Revival home that sits on 33 acres of land was the long-time residence of writer William Faulkner. Take a guided tour of the house and the grounds that inspired Faulkner’s works for over 40 years. Another home in Oxford that portrays the town’s history is the L.Q.C. Lamar House Museum. The idea behind the house is to make visitors aware of the life and contributions of L.Q.C. Lamar. Another home of Greek Revival architecture, this structure invites visitors to enjoy the house in its original glory, including appearance and furnishings. The previously mentioned Rowan Oak home is part of a larger-scale, diverse museum that is part of the collection from the University of Mississippi Museum and Historic Houses. The fine arts gallery includes pieces from the David M. Robinson Collection of Greek and Roman Antiquities, the Millington-Barnard Collection of Scientific Instruments, and the Hattie Mae Edmonds Collection of Southern Folk Art, while the historical houses are Rowan Oak and Walton-Young Historic House.

Greenville

A former slave, turned hunter, turned semi-professional hunting guide, took Theodore Roosevelt on a hunting trip, and little did he know that day would be one of the most monumental days in American history. Because that hunting trip inspired the creation of the teddy bear. Credited with killing over 3,000 bears and providing meat for the plantation on which he was enslaved, Holt Collier was a highly successful sportsman. He trapped a bear for Teddy Roosevelt to shoot, but Teddy had deemed it unsportsmanlike and refused to do so, which led to an editorial piece that was seen by a store owner who created a stuffed toy called Teddy’s Bear. The Holt Collier Gravestone might not look like much, but the story behind the man changed the course of children’s toys. For a more nature-based activity, soak up the sun at Greenville Cypress Preserve. Take a self-guided tour and enjoy all 22 picturesque stops on the trails. Each marker along the trail features a key to read or listen to the unique facts about each stop. For example, marker five, Wonders of the Wetland, lets visitors know that conical projections in the swamp are, in fact, not baby cypress trees, but are growths off the roots of the tree. Enjoy your break in your hike with fun facts along the way. Greenville is another Mississippi town that still contains Native American mound sites. Winterville Mounds is one of the largest sites in the U.S. Hand-built by the natives between 1000 and 1440 AD, this communal and ceremonial space still holds 12 of the original 23 mounds. Visitors can visit the grounds but are restricted from climbing on the mounds themselves.

Come for the blues, stay for the teddy bears. Each unique and unusual attraction or fact about these small towns in Mississippi leaves much to be desired about the history and past of what happened here. Visit a historical battlefield, come face to face with a famous green frog, or visit a tiny museum with art installations you can actually take items from! No matter where you venture or what stops you make, you’re sure to find something amusing in these nine playfully peculiar towns in Mississippi.