As recording technology got better (some early recordings were done on wire cylinders before vinyl records could be “cut”), the sound improved and the blues genre became more popular.
In an effort to experience the land and some of the people for myself, I set out on a journey that eventually took me to Clarksdale, Mississippi, and to Memphis and Nashville, Tennessee. Clarksdale is the home of the Delta Blues Museum, which has been a repository for many original recordings and memorabilia of this important genre. Founded in 1979 and revamped in 1999, it has become Mississippi’s oldest museum dedicated to the Blues genre.
Its mission statement reads: “The Delta Blues Museum is dedicated to creating a welcoming place where visitors find meaning, value, and perspective by exploring the history and heritage of the unique American musical art form of the blues.”
The museum itself is a long, brown, brick building that houses a vast amount of memorabilia from all the great bluesmen. It is the former Yazoo Mississippi Passenger Freight Depot circa 1914. It was renovated in 1999 to house the museum. A 7300 square foot addition was added in 2012. There is even a partially reconstructed cabin made from the boards of Muddy Waters’ home.
Shelley Ritter is a native Southerner, born in Memphis. She currently presides over the museum in Clarksdale and has held that post since 2003. She previously worked for the Mississippi Department of Archives and History as a Field Services curator and also for
Elvis Presley Enterprises. She has a musical background, having taken years of piano lessons and, of course, she credits Elvis with providing her with inspiration!
Shelley Ritter