THE COTTON MUSEUM
The first stop is the Cotton Museum in the downtown Memphis. Here, participants appreciate the economic and cultural centrality of 'King Cotton' to the evolution of Memphis and to the Delta. They witness the sheer size and density of a 500-pound bale of cotton, and learn of vast expanse of cotton products, which ranges from the predictable cotton balls and blue jeans to such surprising products as soap, insecticides, and LCD screens.
A key aspect of the Cotton Museum is that it highlights the role of cotton in the development of American music, namely the blues. Blues music has its roots in the cotton fields, where it evolved from African American works songs and spirituals. Blues has gone to influence many genres of American music.
THE STAX MUSEUM OF AMERICAN SOUL MUSIC
The next stop is Soulsville, USA, where participants visit the Stax Museum of American Soul Music, formerly Stax Records. Stax—a fusion of the last names of founders Jim Stewart and Estelle Axton—began in 1957 as Satellite records and throughout the 60s reached unanticipated heights, producing for such prominent artists as Otis Redding, Sam and Dave, and Booker T. and the MGs, and thus pioneering soul music.
Though Stax was forced into bankruptcy in 1976, the record label can hardly be said to be short-lived. Stax records was entrenched in the civil rights movement, boasting an integrated assortment of artists. Stax's famous 1972 Wattstax benefit concert commemorated the 7th anniversary of the riots in Watts Los Angeles was a beacon of black music and solidarity. Today, the music of Stax records continues to pervade American music and culture.
THE NATIONAL CIVIL RIGHTS MUSEUM
Perhaps the most poignant stop of the day is the National Civil Rights Museum, originally the Lorraine Motel, the assassination site of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. In addition to paying special homage to this defining figure of the Civil Rights Movement, the museum chronicles the civil rights journey of the United States, beginning with the Middle Passage from West Africa to the Americas and ends by looking onward to the future of the civil rights.
Often conveyed in the traditional narrative of blacks in the United States are the numerous and severe injustices they've historically faced. The Lorraine Motel adds dimension to this narrative by highlighting the resistance and resilience of blacks in the face of these injustices from the era of slavery, through Jim Crow and segregation, to today. The museum features eminent figures of this resistance as well as the stories of everyday people who lived this history.
THE PEABODY HOTEL
The Mississippi Delta is said to begin in the Lobby of the Peabody Hotel and end on Catfish Row in Vicksburg; the beginning of the Delta is the last stop on the group's trek through Memphis. The group arrives in time to observe the 5 o'clock walk of the Peabody ducks, a tradition that's been in place at the hotel for almost 90 years.