MISSISSIPPI A Cultural Collection A Cultural VISITORS GUIDE Columbus P.O. BOX 789 COLUMBUS, MS 39703 MISSISSIPPI TOURISM ASSOCIATION’S CONVENTION & VISITORS BUREAU OF THE YEAR 2008 JULY 2010 WELCOME TennesseeWelcome WilliamsCenter Welcome to Columbus Inside About Columbus . .4 “Whoever you are, I’ve always depended on the kindness of strangers.” If this line sounds familiar, you’ve probably Attractions . .5 seen A Streetcar Named Desire, a play written by legendary playwright Tennessee Williams. Long before Tennessee Parks & Recreation . .11 was awarded the Pulitzer Prize for Streetcar and Cat on a Hot Tin Roof, he was just a simple southern boy living in Special Events . .14 Columbus, Miss. Through perseverance and creativity, he rose to fame and established himself as an icon for present Lodging . .18 and future generations. Throughout his lifetime, Tennessee made several trips back home to Columbus, Dining . .20 even when he no longer had relatives here. He was always greeted with a welcoming smile and open arms because Shopping . .24 Columbus’ kindness is one he knew he could depend on. Regional Sites . .25 That same kindness is extended to each and every visitor and is a quality deeply entwined with the city’s rich Locator Map . .26 history. During the Civil War, Columbus opened its churches and homes to the wounded. While other cities were ravaged, its status as a “hospital town” left the antebellum and Victorian homes, along with their contents, untouched. Many of these architectural gems are open for tour year-round. The National Trust for Historic Preservation named Columbus, Mississippi one of its 2008 Dozen Distinctive Destinations. Columbus is home to three National Register Historic Districts that boast an impressive 676 properties. In addition to daily home tours, Columbus offers numerous attractions, scenic outdoor recreation venues, and endless options for lodging, dining and shopping. Call the Columbus/ Services: Additional Columbus Make the first home of legendary playwright Tennessee Lowndes County Convention and Visitors Bureau today Literature: Williams your first stop in Columbus. This home was the ADA Accessible and let us assist you in all aspects of your visit. rectory of St. Paul’s Episcopal Church, where his grandfather, Brochures and Maps Annual Pilgrimage Brochure the Reverend Walter Dakin, served. In 1993, the rectory was 318 B Seventh Avenue North Complimentary Coffee African-American Heritage in jeopardy of being torn down to make room for a church (800) 327-2686 • www.columbus-ms.org Brochure expansion. In an effort to preserve this historical and literary Gift Shop landmark, the home was loaded onto flatbed trucks and Motor Coach Parking Destination Wedding Guide taken to its new site on Main Street. Public Rest Rooms Group Tour Guide Travel Counselor Extensive efforts were made to restore the 1875 Victorian Tennessee Williams Historic Home Tours Brochure Visitor Parking home to its original glory. It was then reopened as the Centennial Celebration official Welcome Center for the city of Columbus. Just three Wireless Internet Access Meeting Planner Guide 2011 will mark a century’s months after the opening, Tennessee Williams was honored 24-Hour Information Reunion Guide with a U.S. postage stamp and a ceremony was held at the passing since the birth of home. The Tennessee Williams Welcome Center is also a America’s Greatest Playwright. Tennessee-Tombigbee 300 Main Street National Literary Landmark. It is located in the heart of Columbus will play host to a Waterway/Angler Information (662) 328-0222 year-long program of plays, Columbus’ downtown historic district at the corner of Main Tennessee Williams Brochure Street and Third Street South. Open Monday-Saturday literary events, and festivals. 8:30 a.m.-5 p.m. Visit Columbus in 2011 and be part of the celebration. Sunday, 12 p.m.-5 p.m. COLUMBUS VISITORS GUIDE 318 B SEVENTH STREET NORTH • (800) 327-2686 • WWW.COLUMBUS-MS.ORG 3 ATTRACTIONS Drink it in: Beauty, style and a rich sense of place make the attractions of Historic Columbus a real pleasure: gorgeous historic homes, treasure-filled antique and specialty shops, divine dining from casual to elegant, year-round celebrations, and outstanding recreation at parks, ABOUT COLUMBUS campgrounds, golf courses and, of course, the Tennessee-Tombigbee Waterway. Dive right in and soak up the atmosphere! Attractions AMERICAN-INDIAN ARTIFACTS MUSEUM HISTORIC DISTRICT DRIVING TOUR 179 State Line Road Wind through Columbus’ scenic historic About Columbus (662) 251-1125 district while learning about the historic and The Museum holds Native American architecturally significant sights of artifacts dating back hundreds and even Columbus. Guide information and CDs thousands of years. Many of the artifacts available at the Tennessee Williams were given to the museum by local Indian Welcome Center. tribe members. Open for tour by appointment. HISTORIC DISTRICT WALKING TOUR “Put your walking shoes on” and take in the COLUMBUS AIR FORCE BASE splendor of Columbus’ Downtown and Highway 45 North @ Route 373 Southside Historic Districts. Guide (662) 434-7068 information available at the Tennessee CAFB has trained pilots since WWII. Once Williams Welcome Center. Columbus, Mississippi, with its rich While Tennessee Williams was one of our home of the B-52 bomber, it graduates historical heritage, is the perfect destination for most beloved sons, he is not the only native of hundreds of Air Aces annually. Open for LOWNDES COUNTY COURTHOUSE anyone who appreciates classic Southern extraordinary talent and achievement. Baseball tour by appointment. 505 Second Avenue North architecture, food and hospitality. announcer Red Barber and the first boxer ever (662) 329-5884 The site now called Columbus was first to have world championships in three different COLUMBUS-LOWNDES PUBLIC LIBRARY: Where the Mississippi Legislature met mentioned in the writings of explorer Hernando divisions at the same time, Henry Armstrong, BILLUPS-GARTH ARCHIVES/BUCKLEY during the Civil War after the city of de Soto, who is reputed to have crossed the were born in Columbus. Sam Hairston, the first GENEALOGY ROOM Jackson fell to Union forces. nearby Tombigbee River in December of 1540 African-American player signed to the Chicago 314 Seventh Street North on his search for El Dorado. White Sox, was born in Crawford, Mississippi. (662) 329-5300 Oscar®-winning animator and one-time head of Peruse extensive records of many aspects of Before it was named Columbus, the Walt Disney Production’s animation effects Columbus history including education, settlement was referred to as Possum’s Town, a department, Joshua Meador, spent his childhood churches, government, businesses, buildings, moniker created by the local Native Americans. honing his artistic talents surrounded by the historic homes, and local organizations. The nickname is still used by some locals. sights and sounds of Columbus. Lenore L. During the American Civil War, Columbus Prather, the first female Chief Justice of COLUMBUS WAR MUSEUM maintained an arsenal that made gunpowder, Mississippi Supreme Court, is also from 1501 Main Street • (205) 662-4129 handguns, and cannons. Because of this the Columbus, and the city provided inspiration for Created to honor and recognize not only yet another Pulitzer Prize-winner, Eudora those who died in military battles, but also Union Army repeatedly tried to invade the many who lived through them. Open Columbus, but was stopped by forces under the Welty, who began her undergraduate work at year-round. Free Admission. command of General Nathan Bedford Forrest. Mississippi University for Women. As a result of Forrest’s success and Columbus’ Columbus continues to break through EUGENIA SUMMER GALLERY status as a hospital town, many of its boundaries and produce pioneers in the arts, Mississippi University for Women antebellum homes were spared, making its education and cultural diversity. Columbus’ 1100 College Street • (662) 329-7341 collection second only to Natchez as the most citizens pride themselves on keeping up with Located on MUW campus and houses the extensive in Mississippi. the times while preserving the past. Columbus departments of Art and Design and Music The nation’s Memorial Day originated in is a place people are proud to call home. and Theatre. Open Monday-Friday. Columbus when, after the war, women of the town decorated the graves of both Confederate HISTORIC DOWNTOWN DISTRICT and Union soldiers. The generous deed was (662) 328-6305 memorialized in the poem, The Blue and the The district is made up of blocks of specialty shops, restaurants and historic buildings. Gray by Francis Miles Finch of New York, who saw mention of the act in The New York Tribune. 4 COLUMBUS VISITORS GUIDE 318 B SEVENTH STREET NORTH • (800) 327-2686 • WWW.COLUMBUS-MS.ORG 5 ATTRACTIONS BLUES TRAIL MARKERS SEE COLUMBUS FROM A WHOLE NEW ANGLE! During events, Columbus’ new authentic British double-decker bus The Mississippi Blues Trail identifies ATTRACTIONS will be cruising the streets of Historic Downtown Columbus, allowing influential musicians as well as historic sites visitors and locals alike to gain a fresh perspective on the sights and and places that contributed to our wonderful sounds of the city. The bus is also available for rent by anyone looking blues heritage. for unique private event transportation. To book the bus for your event, call the Columbus/Lowndes BIG JOE WILLIAMS BLUES MARKER County Convention Downtown Crawford, MS and Visitors Bureau at In the late ‘50s Big Joe began a career as a (800) 327-2686. “folk blues” artist. He performed widely at coffeehouses and festivals and recorded many albums for Delmark, Arhoolie, Testament, and Bluesville. He was particularly popular in Chicago, where he lived in the basement of the Jazz Record Mart, and his legendary travels and cantankerous personality were captured in guitarist Mike Bloomfield’s memoir, Me and Big Joe. Williams died in Macon on December 17, 1982, and is buried about six miles west of AFRICAN-AMERICAN HERITAGE DRIVING TOUR town in Oktibbeha County.