New Little Milton Explore & Learn
October, 2024
Delta Blues Museum Hours
The Delta Blues Museum is open Monday through Saturday from 10:00 AM to 5:00 PM, with the final admission of the day at 4:30 PM. Be sure to visit our events page to stay informed about holiday closures and special events.
Welcome to the land where blues began
Since its creation, the Delta Blues Museum has preserved, interpreted and encouraged a deep interest in the story of the blues. Established in 1979 by the Carnegie Library Board of Trustees and re-organized as a stand-alone museum in 1999, the Delta Blues Museum is the state's oldest music museum. A five-member board appointed by the Mayor and Board of Commissioners of Clarksdale governs the museum. Through funding by the City of Clarksdale, admissions, memberships, gift shop revenue, granting agencies and donations, the museum uses these public and private funds to carry out it's mission of preserving and teaching the Blues.
As the Delta Blues Museum celebrates it's 45th anniversary on January 30th and throughout 2024 you will discover the latest new exhibits and more exciting events to partake covering the Museum's 44 years of exploring the new and preserving the Blues of the past. We're excited to be here for you to visit us and explore the Blues!
NEW! Little Milton Explore & Learn
In the span of over 50 years, Milton Campbell Jr., born in Inverness, Mississippi, beat the odds to become a blues legend. Not a phantom like Robert Johnson, but a bluesman whose presence was as everday as sunlight to those whose lives moved to the rhythm of the blues.
Little Milton
This newer feature was made possible through a grant funded by the Mississippi Delta National Heritage Area (MDNHA).
Museum Holiday Observance
- December 24 - 26, 2024
The Museum will be Closed Wednesday, December 24th through Thursday, December 26th in observance of Christmas. Have a Happy & Safe Holiday!
New Permanent Exhibit
October 03, 2024
"Blue Portraits in Steel" featuring works by Scott Cawood, has now become a permanent exhibit at the Delta Blues Museum. An artist reception, book signing, and Q&A with Scott Cawood was held on Thursday, October 03, 2024 in the museum gallery. Live music was performed by Anthony "Big A" Sherrod. This event was sponsored by Visit Mississippi. Press Release
Experience - Virtual Field Trips
New World District
Take a virtual field trip to Clarksdale, Mississippi and learn how the city was known throughout the 1890's to the 1940's as the New World District. This field trip produced by Mississippi filmmaker Joe York, complements the Museum's Explore & Learn feature "Follow Robert Johnson".
View the Field Trip
View All Field Trips
Robert Johnson
Take a virtual field trip with blues legend Robert Johnson. Learn about his recordings, the crossroads and more. This field trip produced by Mississippi filmmaker Joe York, complements the Museum's Explore & Learn feature "Follow Robert Johnson".
View the Field Trip
View All Field Trips
Muddy Waters - The Blues Legend
Produced by Mississippi filmmaker Joe York, the video field trip draws upon the Museum's existing educational feature "Follow Muddy". This feature expands our visitors' experience through new visuals of Stovall Farms can be viewed plus much more, featured on display in the Delta Blues Museum Muddy Waters Addition.
View the Field Trip
View All Field Trips
Celebrate the Museum's 45th year!
There's always something new to see, do, and even to buy at the Museum! So be sure to come on in while you're visiting Clarksdale!
Museum Recognitions
The Delta Blues Museum has been recognized as a best place to visit in many publications throughout the years. TripAdvisor, USA Today's Readers' Choice Travel Awards, Budget Travel, River Travel Magazine, Five Innovative Museums, and 1,000 Places to See Before You Die. We continue to add to our exhibits, shopping experience and more for your pleasure when visiting the museum.
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"Keeping the Beat" the Delta Blues Museum's Newsletter
Receive news about the museum and Clarksdale, plus be among the first to receive e-vites for special events. Click Here to Join
To Read the Latest Newsletter
or catch-up on our previous newsletters click here
Muddy Waters Cabin from Stovall Farms
The remains of the cabin from Stovall Farms where Muddy Waters lived during his days as a sharecropper and tractor driver are displayed in the gallery. Read More
Delta Blues Museum Receives MAC Grant
July 25, 2024 - Delta Blues Museum is the recipient of a $23,400 grant from the Mississippi Arts Commission (MAC). This grant is a portion of the more than $1.7 million in grants MAC awarded in Fiscal Year 2025 and will be used to support Museum operations over the course of the two-year grant period. Press Release
Delta Blues Museum Receives "Building Fund for the Arts" Grant
March 14, 2024 - Delta Blues Museum's freight depot facility will see some upgrades this year, thanks to a $120,000 grant from the Mississippi Arts Commission (MAC). The funding opportunity provided through the BFA grant supports the much-needed repair, renovation, expansion, or construction of Mississippi facilities that serve as sites for year-round arts programming in their communities. Press Release
DELTA BLUES MUSEUM HIGHLIGHTS
Exhibits, Events and More!
Experience - Virtual Tours
John Lee Hooker - Artist
Learn what Clarksdale's local blues musicians have to say regarding their experiences and influences involving John Lee Hooker.
View John Lee Hooker's Tours
James "Super Chikan" Johnson - Tour Guide
Mississippi native and blues musician, James "Super Chikan" Johnson joins the Delta Blues Museum virtual tours with entertaining stories about his experiences with various blues musicians.
View Super Chikan's Tours
Shopping at the Museum
- December, 2024
Gift the Blues for Christmas
Pick up our special Limited Edition Christmas 2024 Gift Pack, which includes
a Limited Edition 45th Anniversary DBM tote, new DBM Band CD, and more,
for your favorite blues enthusiast (or even for yourself!) this holiday season. Unable to get to the museum for your holiday shopping? No problem -
check out our online store for Mississippi Delta souvenirs,
from books and CDs to posters and tees.
See All 25 Virtual Tours
Our Virtual Tours are informative and educational videos with local artists about the blues, their experiences with blues artists, and exhibits on view at the Delta Blues Museum. Some of our local tour guides include Terry "Big T" Williams, Libby Rae Watson, about blues artists such as Muddy Waters. Click Here to view all of our Virtual Tours.
60 Minutes - Blues revival in Mississippi Delta brings "Kingfish" to music scene
60 MINUTES visits the blues mecca of Clarksdale, Mississippi, during Juke Joint Festival plus spends some quality time with hometown blues hero Christone "Kingfish" Ingram. Watch Here
DELTA BLUES MUSEUM PROGRAMS:
EXPLORE AND LEARN Follow the Blues masters and their travels.
EXPLORE AND LEARN Follow the Blues masters and their travels.
The Country Blues of John Lee Hooker
"John Lee Hooker's debut on Riverside Records is perhaps the truest to his Mississippi roots. Unaccompanied and playing acoustically instead of his usual amplified guitar, he turned in a wonderfully varied set of deep Delta blues, moans, boogies, one field holler, and even a bit of hokum. Some songs are autobiographical, others reworkings of blues standards-all stamped with the hauntingly personal Hooker touch. The audio for this 60th anniversary release is sourced from the original stereo tapes that were mastered on all analog by Kevin Gray at Coherent Audio. It was pressed on 180-gram vinyl at Memphis Record Pressing." - John Lee Hooker Estate Available in the Gift Shop
DBM's 78s Record Collection
Since our founding in 1979, the Delta Blues Museum has generously been given donations of thousands of 78s in every conceivable genre. Thanks to a Preservation Grant from the Grammy Foundation, the Museum has been able to catalog and archive the 78s that belong in our Collection. We hope you enjoy our 78s Record Collection
Buy a brick and help the museum!
Becoming a part of blues history is as easy as purchasing a custom engraved blues brick for youself, your business or someone you admire. Your blues brick will be incorporated into the landscape of the Delta Blues Museum and on display for all to see throughout the years. Order Your Brick Today
DBM Band CD
Our Arts & Education students completed their new CD "Deep Down in Blues Alley" just as COVID hit the country. As restrictions continue to lift, we are excited to be able to continue with our work to final completion and release. Currently, the cd has now been pressed and we are anticipating a release date soon.
This CD is made possible thanks to a grant from the National Endowment for the Arts.
DBM Artist Spotlights
DBM Artist Spotlight - Sam Cooke
Born in 1931 in Clarksdale to Annie Mae and Rev. Charles Cook. At the height of his fame, Sam was shot and killed in a tragic and still-controversial series of events on the night of December 11, 1964. Sam Cooke Spotlight
DBM Artist Spotlight - John Lee Hooker
The month of August is dedicated to John Lee Hooker at the Delta Blues Museum. John Lee Hooker Spotlight
DBM Artist Spotlight - Johnny Winter
The Delta Blues Museum remembers Blues Foundation Hall of Fame member Johnny Winter. Johnny Winter Spotlight
DBM Artist Spotlight - Bonnie Raitt
Unexpectedly and forever connected to Coahoma County, Mississippi, and to the Delta Blues: Raitt began opening shows in her early 20s for surviving Blues legends like John Lee Hooker, Son House and Muddy Waters. Bonnie Raitt Spotlight
Read ALL the DBM Artist Spotlights
Our Artist Spotlights are informative articles that specifically target various Blues Artists and their careers. Click Here to read all of our Artist Spotlights.
Check out the Museum's YouTube Channel
This site made possible through the support of Mississippi Arts Commission, National Endowment for the Humanities and the Rock River Foundation.
Welcome to the land where blues began
All About the Blues
All through the Delta Blues Museum and it's website, there is plenty of room to explore and learn about the Blues. From Artist Spotlights, Blues Music Festivals, and Museum Events to our Blues Education Programs, our many Exhibits, and Newsletters - there is always something new to expand your knowledge and participate in with the Blues.
Not sure when to schedule a visit? Check our Music & Festivals page or Events page to see what's playing at the Museum or locally in and around Clarksdale. We proudly participate in the Blue Star Museum program dedicated to our nation's service men and women.
This site made possible through the support of Mississippi Arts Commission, National Endowment for the Humanities and the Rock River Foundation.
Support for the Delta Blues Foudation, Inc has been provided by explore.org, a direct charitable activity of the Annenberg Foundation.
Latest Posts
New Permanent Exhibit Unveiled
October, 2024
"New World District" Virtual Field Trip
August, 2024
60 Minutes - "Kingfish"
October, 2023
Museum Links
Museum Contact information
#1 Blues Alley Lane
Clarksdale, MS 38614
Phone: 662-627-6820
Email: info@deltabluesmuseum.org
