The Blues were born in the cotton fields of the Mississippi Delta where cotton choppers and pickers sang to help the work go easier. They were influenced by African tribal songs, work chants, and "hollers." On Saturday nights, Issaquena Avenue and 4th Street in downtown Clarksdale were packed as sharecroppers came to town to shop, socialize, and party to their music played in "juke joints." On Sunday, wonderful spiritual and gospel music echoed from the many churches scattered across the county.
Clarksdale and Coahoma
county were home to many famous bluesmen including W.C. Handy, Charlie Patton,
Robert Johnson, Son
House, Muddy Waters, Howlin' Wolf, John Lee Hooker, and many others whose music
continues to entertain and inspire millions of people around the world. From the
crossroads of Highways 61 and 49, and from the platform of the Clarksdale
Railway Station, the blues headed north to Beale Street in Memphis and then on
to Chicago.The blues have strongly influenced almost all popular music including
jazz, country, and rock and roll and continues to help shape music worldwide.
(Photo courtesy of Curtis Hewston,
TBH
In 1979, the Carnegie Public Library established the Delta Blues Museum under the direction of Sid Graves to collect and preserve information and artifacts relevant to the history and significance of the blues. Today the Museum houses thousands of books, recordings, tapes, CDs, videos, rare photographs and memorabilia tracing the roots of this unique American phenomenon. Writers, musicians, television, record and film producers from around the world find it a valuable center for research and authentic information.
Over a thousand visitors each month visit the Delta Blues Museum from around the world. Foreign guests from Europe, New Zealand, Australia, Russia, Japan, South America, and the Philippines have left their mark in the Museum's guest register.
Page 1The DBM Home PagePage 2Special Features at
the MuseumPage 3Continuing the
Legacy - The Delta Blues TodayPage 4Links to Other
Blues SitesPage 5Friends of the
Delta Blues Museum
Page 6The DBM Book Store| For More Information: | |
|
The Delta Blues Museum |
Ronald H. Gorsegner, Director |
| Become a FRIEND of the Delta Blues Museum | |
http://www.clarksdale.com/deltabluesmuseum/index.htm
-- Revised: 18 September 1996
Copyright 1996, Clarksdale Online, Inc.
121
Issaquena Avenue
P.O. Box 673
Clarksdale, MS 38614
601.627.5554
[email protected]
