Mississippi Museum Musts

It's International Museum Day! This day celebrates the fact that "museums are an important means of cultural exchange, enrichment of cultures and development of mutual understanding, cooperation and peace among peoples." What better day to mark off the Visit a Museum square on your Bicentennial Bingo card?

With its unique melting pot of peoples, cultures, and heritage, Mississippi has a number of fascinating and fun museum experiences to offer. Here are just a few tantalizing museum visits waiting for you:

• Winterville Mounds is a prehistoric ceremonial center of over twenty mounds located near Greenville. This site and museum is a must-see for those interested in the indigenous peoples of Mississippi.
• The Eudora Welty House in Jackson is where the famed author lived the majority of her life. The garden, created by Welty's mother Chestina and tended to by both women, is also available for viewing.
• The Walter Anderson Museum in Ocean Springs holds not only Walter Inglis Anderson's art, but also work by his two brothers Peter Anderson and James McConnell Anderson. There's even a portion of Anderson's cottage on the Mississippi coast, where he went to get away when he couldn't make the trip to Horn Island.
• The Smith Robertson Museum and Cultural Center is located in Jackson's first school for African American children. Renowned author Richard Wright's first short story was published while he was a student here in the 1920s. Visit the museum for exhibits on the African American experience, especially as relates to Mississippi.
• The African American Military History Museum in Hattiesburg is housed in the only remaining USO building built for African American soldiers. African Americans have fought in every war since our country's beginning and the AAMHM honors them all.
• The Mississippi Museum of Art in Jackson is Mississippi's largest museum. In 2010, it received the IMLS National Medal for Museum and Library Services, the nation’s highest honor for museum and library service to the community. Housing pieces from a multitude of artists, the museum also hosts traveling exhibits across Mississippi for the benefit of those who cannot travel to Jackson. An Art Across Mississippi exhibit is currently showing at the McComb Public Library.
• The Delta Blues Museum in Clarksdale is Mississippi's oldest music museum and a 2013 recipient of the IMLS National Medal for Museum and Library Services. On your visit, check out items like Muddy Waters and John Lee Hooker's guitars, among many, many more blues memorabilia items.
• The Mississippi Children's Museum in Jackson is an innovative discovery and exploration museum for kids. Exhibits focus on literacy, health and nutrition, culture and history, and STEM topics. It is a finalist for 2017's IMLS National Medal for Museum and Library Services.
• The Lynn Meadows Discovery Center in Gulfport received the IMLS National Medal for Museum and Library Services in 2016. Visit the center for interactive, hands-on fun with your children.
• In December, the Museum of Mississippi History and the Mississippi Civil Rights Museum will open to the public in Jackson. We can't wait to see all the fine artifacts, memorabilia, and exhibits these museums will offer.

There are many, many more museums located across our beautiful state. Visit one today for an life-changing experience and don't forget to check off your Bicentennial Bingo card. Until next time, happy reading!