Delta Magazine May/June 2023

Delta

MAY/JUNE 2023

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Dining in the Delta Best of...Good Eats “Best of” Results ● Restaurant Guide

Historic Club Ebony

Bringing the blues for years to come

DINOSAURS IN THE DELTA TINY TOURISTS

Attracting Hummingbirds

This Mother’s Day, show the women in your life how much you love them by encouraging them to schedule an annual mammogram.

BETH’S MISSION...BREAST HEALTH

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make yourself at home

available at 2 | MAY/JUNE 2023

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Publisher: J. Scott Coopwood Editor: Cindy Coopwood Managing Editor: Pam Parker Director of Special Projects: Kelli Williams Contributing Editors: Hank Burdine, Maude Schuyler Clay, Lea Margaret Hamilton, Jim “Fish” Michie, Brantley Snipes, Roger Stolle Digital Editor: Phil Schank Consultant: Samir Husni, Ph.D. Graphic Designers: Sandra Goff, Maggi Mosco Contributing Writers: Scott Baretta, Jim Beaugez, Robert F. Brzuszek, Sherry Lucas, Mary, Lee McKee, Leanna Miller, Angela Rogalski, Stafford Shurden, Kelli Williams Photography: Austin Britt, Maude Schuyler Clay, Rory Doyle, Anna Satterfield, Gunner Sizemore Account Executives: Joy Bateman, Melanie Dupree, Cristen Hemmins, Kristy Kitchings, Wendy Mize, Ann Nestler, Cadey True Circulation: Holly Tharp Accounting Manager: Emma Jean Thompson POSTMASTER: Send all address changes to Delta Magazine, PO Box 117, Cleveland, MS 38732

ADVERTISING: For advertising information, please call (662) 843-2700 Delta Magazine accepts no responsibility for unsolicited materials or photos and in general does not return them to sender. Photography obtained for editorial usage is owned by Delta Magazine and may not be released for commercial use such as in advertisements and may not be purchased from the magazine for any reason. All editorial and advertising information is taken from sources considered to be authoritative, but the publication cannot guarantee their accuracy. Neither that information nor any opinion expressed on the pages of Delta Magazine in any way constitutes a solicitation for the sale or purchase of securities mentioned. No material in Delta Magazine may be reproduced in any form without the written consent of the publication. Delta Magazine is published bimonthly by Coopwood Magazines, Inc., 125 South Court St., Cleveland, MS 38732-2626. Periodicals postage paid at Cleveland, MS and additional mailing office. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to Delta Magazine, PO Box 117, Cleveland, MS 38732-0117. Delta Magazine (USPS#022-954)

Delta Magazine is published six times a year by Coopwood Magazines, Inc. EDITORIAL & BUSINESS OFFICE ADDRESSES: Mailing Address: PO Box 117, Cleveland, MS 38732 Shipping Address: 125 South Court Street, Cleveland, MS 38732 E-mail: publisher@deltamagazine.com editor@deltamagazine.com

deltamagazine.com Subscriptions: $28 per year ©2023 Coopwood Magazines, Inc.

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History is more than a timeline—it is a thread woven through all of our lives. Pick up that thread at the Museum of Mississippi History and the Mississippi Civil Rights Museum. Explore and experience the moments, movements, and milestones that continue to shape our world. Plan your visit today at twomississippimuseums.com.

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from the editor

Food and Music—the Perfect Pair f the factors that typically define a region culturally, food and music would be at the top of most any list. Here in the Mississippi Delta these two

O With Scott Barretta and Kelly Williams at the Music Tourism Convention recently held in Cleveland. The event drew music industry and tourism professionals from around the world.

A makeshift office was set up outside the Rolling Fork Post Office, with employees hard at work to create order out of the chaos, and continue this vital service as much as possible.

ingredients blend perfectly, resonating in a way that is undeniable, and that has never been more evident than in the pages of this issue.

If the Delta is in fact the birthplace of American music, then Indianola’s Club Ebony has certainly played its part ever since the doors originally opened in 1948.

From the music of the Chitlin’ Circuit to B.B. King’s R&B to newer genres, the club has hosted artists consistently since day one, and it goes without saying a major renovation was in order. The club will reopen in June—ready to accommodate music lovers for decades to come. Turn to page 62 for blues historian Scott Barretta’s telling of the history of this iconic venue.

Another music milestone was recently reached by the influential, yet elusive Memphis-based power-pop band Big Star whose first album, #1 Record, notched its 50th anniversary,” page 48. Seemingly destined to be kept secret by poor distribution issues, the critically acclaimed band made it’s mark not in album sales, but as the inspiration to a generation of Southern alt-rock musicians such as Mitch Easter, the band R.E.M., and others.

If you’re a foodie, you are in luck as we share our “Best of…Good Eats” results—a tally of our readers’ favorite restaurants, from dine-in to pick-up, breakfast to dinner with cocktails and desserts to boot—from all around the region and beyond, page 94. Plus browse the additional Restaurant Guide with ads from eateries from Memphis to Jackson. You’ll want to keep this issue handy to be your culinary guide as you travel and make plans in and around the Delta this summer!

On a more somber note, our hearts continue to go out to our readers and friends affected by the March 24 EF4 tornado that tore through the south Delta.

Seeing the devastation first-hand left an indelible mark on Scott and me that we will never forget. We will always remember the courageous stories of survival and immediate response of hundreds of volunteers ready to help and serve in any way needed. We will continue to share these stories on our social media platforms and sister publications.

As we prepare to celebrate our twentieth anniversary with the July/August issue be sure to follow us on Instagram and FaceBook for opportunities to share your favorite stories, photos, recipes, and more of Delta Magazine over the years. We can’t wait to relive the memories with you! DM

Cindy Coopwood Editor @cindycoopwood | editor@deltamagazine.com

Juke Joint Festival celebrated its twentieth anniversary in April, an important milestone, especially after surviving the pandemic shutdowns. Rocker Derek St. Holmes of the Ted Nugent band along with Scott, bassist Dave Kiswiney, and John Whitehead on drums, took the stage at Ground Zero that Saturday and played to a packed house!

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Commercial Banking | Treasury Management | Capital Markets | Wealth Management © 2020 Regions Bank. All loans and lines subject to credit approval, terms and conditions. | Regions and the Regions logo are registered trademarks of Regions Bank. The LifeGreen color is a trademark of Regions Bank.

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contents MAY/JUNE Volume 20 No. 6

40 departments

32 BOOKS Reviews of new releases and RORY DOYLE

what Deltans are reading now

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36 SHOPPING Mother’s and Father’s Day Gift Ideas 40 ART LAUREN BOSTIC: Metalsmith forging beautiful designs of steel

48 MUSIC

BIG STAR: Legacy of the influential Memphis band

80 HOME

SMALL SPACE, BIG STYLE Airy comfort prevails in new downsized Cleveland home

122 YARD & GARDEN

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Attract Hummingbirds to your yard this summer

130 FOOD TACOS WITH A TWIST Elevated taco recipes with fresh flavors

features

54 Clarksdale’s Robin Colonas A Merchant Marine in the Home of the Blues 62 Historic Club Ebony Updated venue will keep bringing

136 HISTORY

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the blues for years to come

70 Dinosaurs in the Delta Hidden treasures of the Mississippi River 94 DINING IN THE DELTA

BEST OF…GOOD EATS: Our readers’ favorite restaurants, diners, and bars throughout the Delta and beyond, page 94 RESTAURANT GUIDE: Advertising section dedicated to restaurants and eateries across the region, page 106

ON THE COVER: Photo of the popular Bear Lake burger at Fratesi’s Grocery in Leland. Photo by Poppy P, owner of R.E.A.L. Music Entertainment, Greenville, Mississippi.

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THE TEST OF TIME: Friars Point’s oldest home key player in the history of Coahoma County

in every issue 14 Letters 20 On the Road Where we’ve been, where we’re going next

24 Off the Beaten Path Roaming the real and rustic Delta

28 Hot Topics 140 Events 146 Delta Seen 152 The Final Word

by Stafford Shurden

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LETTERS MARCH/APRIL 2023

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The

Wedding ISSUE

I just wanted to let you know how much we loved the photos of our son Ben and his bride, Makensie, in the recent March/April wedding issue. You did an incredible job with the entire issue and we truly thank you for all you did for them and our family. It was awesome and so beautiful!

We felt we were really treated like Parisian royalty! We loved seeing some other wonderful Clarksdalians in the issue as well.

And, you even squeezed our other son, Willis, and his wife in the Delta Seen photos. Thank you so much!

Willis Frazer Clarksdale, Mississippi

The late Aunt Florence Signa, salad maestro and beloved greeter at Doe’s Eat Place in Greenville holding forth over one of her huge salad bowls. It has been estimated that in her seventy years of making salads at Doe’s, she’s made over 1,600,000 individual salads, spreading a LOT of good eating and an abundance of love along the way.

Salad Queen of the Delta—if not the world—Aunt Florence Signa spent her entire life giving out salads and hugs and love

BY HANK BURDINE

The Frank and Florence Signa children Greenville, Mississippi Congratulations on this year’s wedding issue of Delta Magazine! It is truly a labor of love and a work of art on your part. The presentation of such dear moments is just lovely. I smile every time I pick it up, which may stem partly from the fact that both my son’s wedding and my daughter’s engagement pictures are beautifully displayed in this issue. I look forward with great anticipation to next year’s wedding issue which will include my daughter’s wedding pictures from her upcoming wedding in November 2023! Cheers to many more happy moments beautifully displayed in Delta Magazine.

Mary Helen Varner Merigold, Mississippi

SIGNA FAMILY COLLECTION

ure PLOVE

poured into this beautiful story! We have laughed, smiled, cried, and reminisced every time we’ve read it. The article made us remember when all Signa family used to work at Doe’s Eat Place, her tales of meeting famous people over the years, meeting the love of her life, and the famous sweetheart roses that she always shared. Also, the neverending hugs and salads! Hank nailed it when he said that Mom, Aunt Florence, Aunt Flo, Noni, or Mrs. Frank Signa, loved her Lord, her family, the extended Signa family, and making her famous salads for Doe’s customers. We are forever grateful to have her honored by Hank and Delta Magazine!

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My siblings and I have read the article “Pure Love” by Hank Burdine in the March/April issue of Delta Magazine over and over again. It’s the life and love story of Frank and Florence Signa. We could not be more proud of the love that Hank

SEND COMMENTS AND LETTERS TO: editor@deltamagazine.com or Delta Magazine PO Box 117,Cleveland, MS 38732

CORRECTION: In the March/April issue of Delta Magazine, the church, town and photographer were incorrectly listed in the Swindle/Branton and Turner/Beard wedding announcements. The correct information is as follows: The Swindle/Branton wedding took place March 19, 2022, at Saint Joseph Catholic Church, in Greenville, Mississippi with photography by BN Captures.

The Turner/Beard wedding took place November 19, 2022, at Latrobe’s on Royal, in New Orleans, Louisiana, with photography by Sully Clemmer.

The staff of Delta Magazine sincerely apologizes for these errors 14 | MAY/JUNE 2023

Y’all Said

SOCIAL MEDIA COMMENTS @deltamagazine

We Asked...

What's the best/most memorable advice your mother or father has ever given you?

I was the oldest of four girls, all four years apart.

Mother ruled the roost, but her number one piece of advice was “you would never do anything to disappoint your daddy!” And he was a good girl daddy! We did not want to disappoint him!

– Beth Callaway When my mother would hear one of us say “we are so lucky” she would correct us and say you mean “you are so Blessed” and, we were! She lived to be 95!!

When my Daddy would get a little tipsy, he would say, “right’s right and wrong’s wrong and there’s no two ways about it.” His advice to us many, many times.

– Mary Ervin “Life ain’t fair. There’s no free lunch. No worky, no eaty.” Compliments of my mom, Karen Kairit.

– Brant Kairit My mother always told us to live by the “Golden Rule”…Do unto others as you would have them do unto you. Such great advice. – Anita Bologna This too shall pass. – Pat Roberson See a doctor/dentist! – Mike Lucas

READER RESPONSE deltamagazine.com MUSIC

The Son Also Rises Tommy Collier shares a name with his late father, who was a respected artist in Greenville.

But he’s a creative force in his own right.

Tommy Collier’s dog, Hank, guards his guitar collection.

BY JIM BEAUGEZ

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It all began two years ago, when Collier lost his mother and sister within a year, following his father’s death in 2008. After he returned to Greenville to close his parents’ estate, he came across a cache of prints and paintings left by his father, Thomas Collier, who rendered scenes from the Delta and abroad with an impressionist’s hand.

He brought what remained of his father’s artistic legacy back with him to Nashville and had it appraised. “I started selling his prints, and people were buying them like crazy,” Collier says. “And so I got inspired to start painting again.”

As a kid, Collier would watch while his father turned blank canvases into colorful works of art, and in first grade, he won his first statewide art competition for a picture he drew of an underwater diver. More awards would follow, but in the meantime he discovered the Beatles and rock ‘n’ roll.

“I remember running through the house, and seeing ‘Help,’ the Beatles movie, playing on the TV,” he says. “I had this little toy gun and I can remember just falling on my knees and dropping the gun and looking at this.”

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JOSHUA BLACK WILKINS

KH PHOTOGRAPHY KEVIN HAMMETT

s a musician living in and around Nashville, Greenville native Tommy Collier has found himself in many unexpected situations, with plenty of valleys to accentuate the peaks in his career. But lately, even that has taken a sharp turn.

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March-April Issue 2023 The Son Also Rises by Jim Beaugez ~ Thank you so much Delta Magazine, for making this wonderful article visible on your site for the amazing and talented artist and musician, Tommy Collier. I have really enjoyed reading the well-written, heartwarming, and humorous moments in his story. Great job on this story, Delta Magazine, and Jim Beaugez.

– A. Maniscalco Fantastic story. I went to school with Tommy in the Delta. He was well liked by everyone. Always even tempered and just a nice guy. Super proud of the artist that he has become and with all of his accomplishments, I’ll say he still has quite the journey ahead. – Penny Eaton DELTA MAGAZINE 2023

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Survival of the Fittest

PHOTO BY MECHELLE GENTRY WILSON

The hard-baked earth may seem unyielding, but year after year lush crops spring forth seemingly defying all odds. Here, giving evidence of past crops in the rotation, a lone soybean plant bravely emerges amidst neatly planted cotton seedlings in this Sunflower County field. DM

One basic rule of water safety is to not dive into unknown depths, check the depth before jumping in by wading in first.

Campbell Clinic is coming to Oxford.

The region’s best orthopaedic specialists are coming to Oxford – Spring 2023.

A P P LY H E R E :

Our new location is hiring now!

Incredible Employee Culture, Amazing Benefits, and Time-Off Options.

CampbellClinic.com

@campbellclinicortho

Campbell Clinic Orthopaedics

ON THE ROAD

where we’ve been, where to go next

GRIFFITHVILLE, AR

ROLLING FORK

Scenes of agriculture go beyond the scope of the fields. – DIRK SYKES

BOLIVAR COUNTY

Still standing and ready to toll again, following the devastating tornadoes that ripped through the south Delta in March. – DELTA MAGAZINE

PHOTO OPS A small reminder of dove seasons past. – DELTA MAGAZINE

BRAZIL ARKANSAS

Wings of Honor Museum in Walnut Ridge where a flight school was located during World War II. The Beatles landed here in 1964 and drove to the Ozarks to rest during one of their tours. – LARRY HENDERSON

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Another signature crop in the Delta is showing off this time of year as we see beautiful pecan groves budding out across the region. – FRANK MELTON

CLARKSDALE DYESS, AR

The Man in Black, Johnny Cash’s boyhood home. – LARRY HENDERSON

BELEN

Grab a paddle, hit the water, and cruise on down. – VISIT CLARKSDALE

& FUNKY STOPS GREENWOOD A flashback to the time before “tap” transactions. – JABY DENTON

MEMPHIS

Come on in! But, be aware of lions, tigers, and bears. – MEMPHIS TRAVEL A permanent testiment to the memory of Emmett Till.

– GREENWOOD CONVENTION & VISITORS BUREAU

Instagram users, follow @deltamagazine

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OFF THE BEATEN PATH roaming the real and rustic Delta

THE GREENVILLE WRITER’S EXHIBIT & ROGER MALKIN GALLERY Highlighting Washington County Authors and Regional Artists

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OUSED IN THE WILLIAM ALEXANDER PERCY MEMORIAL LIBRARY IN GREENVILLE, the

Greenville Writer’s Exhibit features some of the town’s, and Washington County’s, best known authors. Works by Hodding Carter, Charles G. Bell, Ellen Douglas, Shelby Foote, Bern Keating, Walker Percy, among about ten others, line a special designated thirty-foot glass case in the library. Some books in the exhibit may be taken out and viewed but materials cannot be checked out due to their rare nature.

Established in the late 80s, the exhibit highlights the literary excellence and history that once flourished in the Greenville area. The Greenville Writer’s Exhibit was initially funded by grants from The Greenville Arts Council, the former Friends of Percy Library, Uncle Ben’s, Inc. and Mr. and Mrs. Robroy Fisher. The exhibit may be viewed during regular library hours: Monday through Tuesday, 9 a.m. - 6 p.m., Wednesday through Friday 10 a.m. - 5 p.m. and Saturday, 10 a.m. - 1 p.m.

341 Main Street, Greenville 662.335.2331; washington.lib.ms.us

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F YOU’RE LOOKING FOR A GIFT, THAT PERFECT CUSTOM PIECE OF ART FOR YOUR LIVING ROOM,

or just a treat for yourself, look no further than the newly opened Malkin Retail Space located in the E.E. Bass Cultural Arts Center and the Roger D. Malkin Gallery in Greenville.

The Greenville Arts Council Board of Directors has designated space in the Malkin Gallery specifically for the promotion and sale of local, handmade items. Visitors can now shop a variety of Delta-made items.

“This is a concept a few board members have been bouncing around for a while, but the recent addition of Viking Cruises stopping in Greenville to visit Bass created the perfect opportunity to jump in and get the space established,” said Board Member Wesley Smith, Executive Director of the Washington County Convention and Visitors Bureau. “The Greenville Arts Council’s mission is to promote the rich cultural heritage of the region.”

The Malkin Retail Space is open Monday through Friday, 8-5 pm.

323 South Main Street, Greenville 662.332.2246; greenville-arts-council.com 24 | MAY/JUNE 2023

Above, the exhibit features gifted authors from Washington County. Below, artists hailing from Vicksburg to Memphis have submitted their pieces for display.

CUZ STUDIO AND SOUND Taking Recording to New Heights

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HRIS PARKS GREW UP WITH MUSIC IN HIS VERONA, MISSISSIPPI, HOME. DURING WEEKLY CHURCH SERVICES HE COULD BE FOUND PLAYING DRUMS AND LATER GUITAR AND THEN BASS. After a decade plus on the road as a bass player, Parks decided to settle down in Cleveland to open up Cuz Studio and Sound in Merigold. It was there he found a place he could put all of his talents together.

“We opened the studio fourteen years ago and it’s been growing since,” says Parks. “We have seven to ten big projects each year. We specialize in Gospel, but we do any type of music (Blues, R&B etc)—commercials, promo drops and more.”

Parks and his staff create music magic with high-end recording and editing equipment, such as his Presonus Studiolive console that, when combined with his Pro Tools and Sonar 8.5 Producer, creates a sound that reaches its full potential.

“We have all the latest plug-ins,” he says. “We work from a PC and Apple (MAC) platform.”

Musicians and singers are recorded with microphones ranging from Neumann, Sennheiser to Rode to Shure to Audio Technical and other top-of-the-line equipment to capture and reproduce the best possible sound.

“We have organs, bass, drums—the whole nine yards,” Parks says of his available instruments.

The recording studio has seen its share of gospel groups stopping by to lay their sound down on CD and digital recording.

“I also have a blues band called the Cuz Band, and we also have a sound company, and we do sound reinforcement for events, parties and DJs,” he says.

“My goal in the studio is to take gospel and other music to the next level,” he says. “I got tired of listening to the radio where quartet music sounded like it was AM quality. My motto is quality over quantity. If it takes me three months to do one project, I am willing to put in the time to end up with a top-notch product.”

19 Horseshoe Drive, Merigold 662.719.1717; cuzstudio.com

Musicians from several genres have recorded in the studio.

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Powering Mississippi since 1923 Ready for the next century Today, we proudly celebrate 100 years of service to Mississippi. Over the last century, we have put community at the heart of everything we do, from powering economic growth to rebuilding after storms. We believe our successes fuel each other and look forward to an even brighter future. entergymississippi.com

A message from Entergy Mississippi, LLC ©2023 Entergy Services, LLC. All Rights Reserved.

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HOT TOPICS JACKSON TO HOST INTERNATIONAL BALLET COMPETITION DANCE Fans will flock to city for two weeks in June The twelfth USA International Ballet Competition (IBC) in Jackson June 10–24 draws a global arts spotlight and the prime pick of the world’s best young dancers. This celebration of classical and contemporary ballet invited 119 top dancers from seventeen countries to impress jury members and dazzle audiences with their artistry, athleticism, grace, and technique. They will vie for medals, cash prizes, scholarships, and company contracts in three rounds of robust competition performances on a stage that has launched ballet careers.

The United States’ official IBC, so designated in 1982 by a joint resolution of Congress, is a Jackson staple every four years.

This twelfth edition was postponed a year in agreement with fellow prestigious competitions, and to ensure peak condition for dancers post-pandemic.

The USA IBC turns the capital city into a thrilling, two-week festival of dance. The Washington Ballet, its own ranks studded with former USA IBC competitors and medalists, performs for the opening Cceremony. An arts and lecture series, contemporary ballet showcase, tutu fashion show, and chances to observe competitor and dance school classes offer insights into this centuries-old art form.

USA IBC’s reach is worldwide, nationwide, and statewide. Nearly half of this year’s competitors represent the U.S., and Alexei Orohovsky of Hattiesburg (2022 Youth American Grand Prix winner, junior division) is among them.

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Jack Howard-Potter’s exuberant steel sculpture Dancer 12 will greet audiences out front at Thalia Mara Hall, site of the competition. The installation was inspired by the loan of his Dancer 10 by the Mathews-Sanders Sculpture Garden at Delta State’s Bologna Performing Arts Center (BPAC) for the eleventh USA IBC in 2018.

USA IBC and BPAC have partnered several times to bring professional dance to Delta audiences. “Now, we want to bring them to the IBC,” says Mona Nicholas, USA IBC executive director.

Mississippi’s dance fan base continues to grow—a key aim of USA IBC and BPAC—and audiences hungry for world-class ballet won’t find a closer spot than Jackson this summer to enjoy it, watching the best of the best, and catching an early glimpse of tomorrow’s ballet stars. Find out more at usaibc.com.

Tickets: USAIBC.COM/ATTEND or 601.973.9249 Instagram: @usabic Facebook: USAIBC

SPROUT OPENS IN GREENWOOD New boutique offers a great selection for babies, toddlers and tweens Sprout, Geenwood’s newest Childrens’ store has recently opened its doors and is ready to serve area families with classic, yet modern, children’s clothing from top boutique brands in a bright and inviting setting. After their grand opening in March, the children’s store was warmly received by families eager to dress their little sophisticates. “I love the retail industry and I love building relationships with my customers and helping them find the perfect outfit or gift,” says owner Mary Clyde King, who has three children of her own under the age of seven.

Mary Clyde was only in the tenth grade when she began working retail at The Country Gentleman in Greenville. After graduating college with an elementary education degree and moving back home to the Delta with her husband Miller, she was approached by the owners of Indianola’s Lavender Lane about opening a children’s space in their store in August 2018. Their growing family relocated to Greenwood

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in late 2019, and she heard of a potential space opening downtown toward the end of 2022. The decision was made to move the store to Greenwood.

Her son, Sam, was only eighteen months old when Mary Clyde opened the first Sprout. She recalls, “I had brands I loved to put him in and wanted to bring them to my shop!” Brands carried at Sprout are: Little English, The Beaufort Bonnet Company, Magnolia Baby, Lila + Hayes, Angel Dear, Peggy Green, Bella Bliss, James and Lottie, Lullaby Set, Pink Chicken, Noodle and Boo, Bari Lynn, Lola and the Boys, Pleat, Gabby Girl, Southern Tide, Southern Marsh, Prodoh, Fieldstone, Footmates, L’Amour Shoes, CHUS, Baby Deer Shoes, ShuShop, Apple of my Isla, and many more. With sizes available from infant to tween, there is great selection for children of all ages.

“Seeing a child smile in my store because of a dress, a toy, or a pair of shoes makes me happy because that’s the goal—happiness!

Let them be little, ‘cause they’re only that way for a while,” says Mary Clyde.

309 Howard Street, Greenwood; 662.219.0327 Facebook: Sprout Greenwood; Instagram: @shopsproutgreenwood

FROM SEED TO HARVEST TO YOUR SHELF Providing the freshest corn products from seed to harvest to your shelf Down Home Milling Co., in Holcomb is growing like a weed one might say, with owners Jacob Bennett and Andrew Nobile merging their separate businesses for one purpose: to bring local crops to local tables.

By the end of 2022, Bennett and Nobile, who are both first-generation farmers, officially started their business of growing and producing corn to create grits and cornmeal.

“When you buy from us, you’re supporting Mississippi farmers,” Nobile said. The product consists of only one ingredient—one hundred percent raw, shelled, yellow corn, with no additives.

“All we’re doing is taking corn and changing the shape and size of it. We don’t add anything to it. It’s just strictly cornmeal and grits. One ingredient, that’s it,” Nobile said.

The work, they said, is a full-time family endeavor. Not only do they grow the corn, they work the entire process, harvesting to transporting the product to customers.

“It’s a large process,” Bennett said. “You have to prep the land, plant the corn, tend to the corn all year long, and then we get into harvest and the cleaning process and grinding process and the bagging process.”

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Already, their two-pound bags of grits and cornmeal may be found at stores not only locally, but throughout the state. Their products may also be purchased on their website, down-homemilling-company.myshopify.com.

While there are some competitors in the market, they explained their product is unique because they oversee the entire process, growing, harvesting, milling, and packaging their grain— from farm to fork!

“We spend a lot of time on this product before it gets to the consumer. We take pride in what we do because we’re firstgeneration farmers. We want to be successful for our kids to be successful.”

10560 Highway 8 West, Holcomb; 662.299.8238 down-home-milling-company.myshopify.com

BEAR CREEK BOTANICALS Wholesale nursery offers locally grown plants for Delta landscapes Little Itta Bena, Mississippi, is growing— literally. Allison and Neil Pillow’s family dream of owning a wholesale growing operation to serve the Delta and Mid-South has manifested in full bloom with their budding new business: Bear Creek Botanicals.

Bear Creek Botanicals is a wholesale growing operation offering a wide range of products to retailers, garden centers and landscape designers. They seek to be a one-stop wholesale shop to meet landscape project needs.

From small ornamental trees to bright gerbera daisies, to the 12,000 spring annuals and an expected 8,000 baby landscape shrubs by the end of May, this new adventure of constructing a wholesale growing operation in the Delta has been a great deal of hard labor, sweat, and dirt for the Pillows. “Our peak push was January—potting, ordering, planning,” says Allison, “Someone in the industry reminded us, ‘it is just farming indoors’, and we have retold ourselves that many times.”

The Pillow family’s new job is not the first time a green thumb in the family has made it front and center. Neil has farmed row

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crops for twenty-five plus years. The greenhouses were constructed in Summer 2022 and are situated on Neil’s mother’s old horse pasture, surrounded by farmland. A farming family first, their stride toward a wholesale nursery was out of a passion for plants and watching new growth appear. “I have a background in physical therapy,” Allison says, “but it is Neil’s experience farming corn and soybeans where the chemistry comes in.”

Bear Creek Botanicals provides the Delta with high-quality finished products without the plants having to travel from one climate to another, where they may experience stress.

Shopping locally actually gives the homeowner more success.

Overlooking Bear Creek in Leflore County, Mississippi, Bear Creek Botanicals is located in Itta Bena near Moorhead, and invites you to explore their site and see their happy plants!

Hours of operation right now are by appointment only for retailers.

66983 County Road 546, Itta Bena; 662.392.2363 Facebook: Bear Creek Botanical; Instagram: @bearcreekbotanicals bearcreekbot.com DELTA MAGAZINE 2023

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BOOKS

Buzzworthy Comments

Conversations with Beth Henley edited by Jackson R. Bryer and Mary C. Hartig (University Press of Mississippi)

With roots in the American south, Beth Henley has been a working playwright and screenwriter for four decades. Winner of the Pulitzer Prize in 1981 at the age of twenty-eight, Henley so far has written twenty-five produced plays that are always original, usually darkly comic, and often experimental. In these interviews, Henley speaks of the plays, from her early crowd-pleasers, Crimes of the Heart and The Miss Firecracker Contest, to her more experimental plays, including The Debutante Ball and Control Freaks, to her brilliant and time-bending play, The Jacksonian. Henley is a master at writing about the duality of human experience—the beautiful and the grotesque, the cruel and the loving. This duality provokes in Henley both amazement and compassion. She discusses here not only her admiration for Chekhov and other influences, but also her process of bringing a play from notebooks of images and bits of dialogues through rumination, writing, and rewriting, to rehearsals and previews. (Special/DM Staff )

The Murder of Mr. Wickham by Claudia Gray (Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group) The happily married Mr. Knightley and Emma are throwing a house party, bringing together distant relatives and new acquaintances— characters beloved by Jane Austen fans. Definitely not invited is Mr. Wickham, whose latest financial scheme has netted him an even broader array of enemies. As tempers flare and secrets are revealed, it’s clear that everyone would be happier if Mr. Wickham got his comeuppance. Yet they’re all shocked when Wickham turns up murdered—except, of course, for the killer hidden in their midst. Nearly everyone at the house party is a suspect, so it falls to the party’s two youngest guests to solve the mystery: Juliet Tilney, the smart and resourceful daughter of Catherine and Henry, eager for adventure beyond Northanger Abbey; and Jonathan Darcy, the Darcys’ eldest Claudia Gray son, whose adherence to propriety makes his father seem almost relaxed. The unlikely pair must put aside their own poor first impressions and uncover the guilty party—before an innocent person is sentenced to hang. (Special/DM Staff ) Funkiest Man Alive by Matthew Ruddick (University Press of Mississippi) Rufus Thomas may not be a household name, but he is widely regarded as the patriarch of Memphis R&B, and his music influenced three generations. His first singles in the early 1950s were recorded as blues transitioned into R&B, and he was arguably one of the founding fathers of early rock ‘n’ roll. In Funkiest Man Alive: Rufus Thomas and Memphis Soul, Matthew Ruddick reveals the amazing life and career of Thomas, who started as a dancer in the minstrel shows that toured the South before becoming one of the nation’s early African American disc jockeys, and then going on to record the first hit singles for both Chess Records and Stax Records. (Special/DM Staff )

We asked Facebook friends and Delta Magazine fan page group members to share who is their favorite character from a book they have read. o Paula Hoke Bowers, teacher Olive Branch, Mississippi

Aibileen Clark from The Help “You is kind, you is smart, you is important.” She told the little girl she was taking care of this many times throughout the book. Clearly she wanted the child to know that she was important and she was loved. It touched me that she felt it was partly her job to lift up the little girl’s selfesteem. o Jon Alverson, publisher Greenville, Mississippi

Horatio Hornblower from the Hornblower Canon series books. In these books Hornblower is the lead character and the series follows his fictional naval career from his first day on the ship in the early 19th century British Navy until the end. It is a great story and he is an everyman who figures out a way to live and thrive in terrible times. o John Cox, attorney Cleveland, Mississippi

Mathew Ruddick

Will McLean from The Lords of Discipline. I’ve probably encountered other characters in other books who appealed to me, but for some reason, Will always comes to mind. He has a sense of fairness in an unfair environment and a strong sense of right and wrong. He is also written with the inimitable Conroy sarcasm and wit, so I can’t help but like him. I read this book as a teenager and it has been in my top three ever since.

For the Record Books Delta Magazine fans are currently reading o Tuck Buck Devilry in the Delta

by Mary S Palmer and Paula Lenor Webb

o Julianne Bailey I’m Glad My Mom Died

by Jennette McCurdy

o Sandra Perry The Personal Librarian

by Marie Benedict

o Leigh Harris Lessons in Chemistry

by Bonnie Garmus 32 | MAY/JUNE 2023

o Olive Crotwell Kitchens Party Favors

by Darden North

o Evelyn McDowell Sullivan The Wrong Side

by Robert Bailey

o Connie Elliot Cavett The Anthropocene Reviewed

by John Green

o Neal Berryhill Reversible Errors

by Scott Turow

o Eve Bell Lessons in Chemistry

by Bonnie Garmus

o JoJo Catledge Staten Faith Still Moves Mountains

by Harris Faulkner

o Tish Berry Blue Biscuits and Hurricanes

by Tom Ward

o Robert Samuel Stein The Warmth of Other Suns

by Isabel Wilkerson

The Trackers by Charles Frazier (Ecco) In the Trackers, painter Val Welch travels westward to the rural town of Dawes, Wyoming, hurtling past the downtrodden communities of Depression-era America. Through a stroke of luck, he’s landed a new deal assignment to create a mural representing the region for their new post office. A wealthy art lover named John Long and his wife, Eve, have agreed to host Val at their sprawling ranch. Rumors and intrigue surround the couple: Eve left behind an itinerant life riding the rails and singing in a western swing band. Long holds shady political aspirations, but was once a WWI sniper—and his right hand is a mysterious elder cowboy, a vestige of the violent old west. Val quickly finds himself entranced by their lives. One day, Eve flees home with a valuable painting in tow, and Long recruits Val to hit the road with a mission of tracking her down. Journeying from ramshackle Hoovervilles to San Francisco nightclubs to the swamps of Florida, Val’s search for Eve narrows, and he soon turns up secrets that could spark formidable changes for all of them. (Special/DM Staff ) Becoming Ezra Jack Keats by Virginia McGee Butler (University Press) Becoming Ezra Jack Keats offers the first complete biography of acclaimed children’s author and illustrator Ezra Jack Keats (1916–1983) intended for adult readers. Drawing extensively from his unpublished autobiography and letters, Becoming Ezra Jack Keats covers the breadth of Keats’s life, taking readers through his early years as the child of immigrant parents, his introduction to illustration and writing, and the full arc of his remarkable career. Beyond a standard biography, this volume presents a time capsule of the political, social, and economic issues evolving during the span of Keats’s lifetime. It also addresses his trailblazing commitment to representation and diversity, most notably in his work The Snowy Day, which won the Caldecott Medal as the first full-color picture book to feature a black child as the protagonist. Keats far surpassed his father’s prediction that he would be a starving artist. Instead, as shown in Becoming Ezra Jack Keats, he is now regarded as one of the most influential figures in children’s literature, having published twenty-two books translated into sixteen languages, all featuring the diversity he saw in the children outside the window of his Brooklyn studio.(Special/DM Staff ) In Sardinia: An Unexpected Journey in Italy

by Jeff Biggers (Melville House) After three decades of living and traveling in Italy, Jeff Biggers finally crossed over to Sardinia, uncovering a treasury of stories amid major archaeological discoveries rewriting the history of the Mediterranean. In his book In Sardinia: An Unexpected Journey in Italy, based in the bewitching port of Alghero, guided through the island’s rich and largely untranslated literature, Biggers embarked on a rare journey around the island to experience its famed cuisine, wine, traditional rituals, and thriving cultural movements. Beyond its fabled beaches, reconsidering how its unique history and ways have shaped Italy and Europe today, Biggers explores how travelers must first understand Sardinia and its ancient and modern history to truly understand the rest of Italy. (Special/DM Staff) DM DELTA MAGAZINE 2023

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DELTA MAGAZINE 2023

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SHOPPING Bright Eyes

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Form and function meets funky with these adorable and fashionforward shades.

Fine Eyes, Ridgeland 601.853.1695 @fineeyeseyewear

⋘ Pack it Up ⋘

Elevate your backpack game with this monochromatic look from The North Face. Perfect for traveling, school, vacations or work, these bags are built to last.

Abraham’s, Cleveland @abrahamsclothingcleveland 662.843.4541

Fantastic Flutes Drinking bubbly has never looked more stylish than with these pottery flutes from Etta B. Mississippi Gift Co., Greenwood @themississippigiftcompany 662.455.6961

Spring gift-giving season is officially upon us—whether it be a mom, dad, (or grad), here are some great ideas for them all!

⋘ Shining Star A beautiful piece of jewelry is a special way to celebrate a milestone like graduation. This dainty diamond starburst bracelet is perfect to wear alone or stack with others!

Mednikow, Memphis @mednikowmemphis 901.767.2100

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Mother’s Day & Father’s Day

Complexion Protection A summer sun hat is a must for walks on the beach or a fun day of sightseeing—and you may as well do it in style! It’s the quintessential summer accessory!

A Fitting Place, Memphis @afittingplace

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Tea Time The Tea Room at the Woman’s Exchange of Memphis has been serving delicious eats in their cozy dining room since 1962.

Treat mom or a recent grad with their classic cookbook featuring some of the favorites throughout the years.

Woman’s Exchange of Memphis weofmemphis.org 901.327.5681

36 | MAY/JUNE 2023

Flower Power Elevate any occasion with floral-infused Cocktail Cubes by Flouwer Co. Add a cube or two to champagne or muddle with seltzer or your favorite spirit for a beautiful floral finish to any libation.

Moms will love this special treat!

Osmanthus Market, Greenwood @osmanthusmarket, 662.477.1026

Pit Master

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Help protect dad’s stylish duds when cooking and grilling with this leather apron which just looks better with use.

Viking Retail Store @thevikingcookingschool 662.451.6750

Divine Décor

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Handsome and durable—just like Dad!

Encourage mom and remind her what a blessing she is with these special verse cards. The beautiful collection of 24 cards and decorative gold easel allows the message to be changed throughout the year.

Mod + Proper, Cleveland @modandproper 662.400.3111

⋘ Hat Clips These ingenious hat clips are perfect for moms or grads! They are a must-have accessory for the beach, pool, or the airport!

Mimi’s on Main, Senatobia @mimisonmain 662.562.8261

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Futuristic Fire

Stay warm on cool spring evenings with this portable and low-smoke, sleek fire pit from Solo.

With a carrying case and easy-to-clean surface, it’s the perfect accessory to bring to the cabin, by the pool or on vacation.

Ace Hardware, Cleveland @clevelands_ace_hardware 662.843.8200

Southern Slides

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Who said flip-flops can’t be preppy?

Grab a pair of Southern Tide slipons for dad, perfect for those days at the lake or a family beach trip.

Abraham’s, Cleveland @abrahamsclothingcleveland 662.843.4541

⋘ Fit for a King If mom is an avid bird watcher, why not give them an adorable place to visit! This multiple-room bird house is not only functional, but complements her landscaping.

Mimi’s on Main, Senatobia @mimisonmain 662.562.8261

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DELTA MAGAZINE

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Give a gift that everyone on your Spring gifting list will love, from Moms and Dads to Grads and Newlyweds. Take advantage of our 20th anniversary rate of just $20—simply scan the QR code!

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The Toadfish folding cutting board will fold, lock, and stow easily in boat boxes, tackle bags, and travel packs. A great gift for dads and grads who love to hunt or fish!

The Sportsman, Greenville @the_sportsman_inc 662.335.5018 DELTA MAGAZINE 2023

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DELTA MAGAZINE 2023

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ART

Out of the

ASHES Metalsmith Lauren Bostic forges beautiful designs of steel

BY LEANNA MILLER • PHOTOGRAPHY BY ANNA SATTERFIELD

40 | MAY/JUNE 2023

Bostic discovered she had a passion for metalwork during her last semester of her senior year at Memphis Collage of Art.

ake one look at artist Lauren Bostic’s metal creations and one would never doubt she is a serious-about-her-art metalsmith. With her blacksmithing studio housed inside the E.E. Bass Cultural Arts Center in Greenville, Bostic is busy—and only getting busier. Inspired by the local flora and fauna of the Mississippi Delta, her unique work has been featured by the Greenville Arts Council and Delta Artists Association, and recently, completely sold out at her first exhibit at Turnrow Art Co. in Greenwood.

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Bostic’s house of metal art is officially called Bosco Metalworks, an endeavor many years in the making. She attended the Memphis College of Art from 2013-2017, but had not worked with metal before enrolling in a metals course in 2015. She wanted to get her hands on something tangible, but didn’t see working with metal as a potential profession—yet. Learning how to solder metal in a fun elective course piqued her interest. “Working with a physical medium like metal was a nice break from working digitally most of the time at that point,” says Bostic. She had always envisioned herself working for a game studio on digital-only platforms, which she eventually realized would involve grueling hours behind a computer.

Needless to say, the course went well for her, and so she continued to find her way down the metalworking path.

“Hot steel has similar properties to clay and can be thought of in a similar way. It can be spread thinner, it can be pinched inward, et cetera,” says Bostic.

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Area wildlife and botanicals are the inspiration for much of Bostic’s work, such as these stunning Calla Lillies.

Then during her last semester of her senior year, the Memphis College of Art offered a blacksmithing class. She decided to try it out, and that’s where her love for metalwork soared. Bostic explains, “I decided to try it out and loved it almost immediately.” In fact, she loved it so much that she didn’t want to stop forging steel after graduation. So after earning a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in Design Arts with a concentration in Illustration in 2017, she decided to work full time as a metalsmith.

“I built a (very inefficient) forge in the backyard at home so I could keep it up as a hobby. It ran on lump charcoal as fuel, and had to have a small shop vac set to ‘blow’ to function as the blower to keep the fire hot enough,” she explains. And so it began—Bostic soon received a few commissions and they just never stopped coming.

About a year after graduation, Bostic learned that the E.E. Bass Center offers rental space for artists. Considering how indispensable a supportive and creative environment is for a budding artist, she worked an arrangement to have her blacksmithing studio housed inside the cultural arts center. The dedicated studio space allowed Bostic to upgrade from her makeshift backyard equipment and purchase additional equipment to set up inside the studio, not to mention the indoor setup was much more comfortable than working outdoors in the Delta heat. She credits the E.E. Bass Center with providing her something essential to her craft.

Most of Bostic’s work is inspired by area wildlife and botanicals 42 | MAY/JUNE 2023

Even some of her smallest works such as this bottle opener, I have intricate detail.

such as her hand-forged, metal magnolia blossom that looks so real, it’s as if the large white petals of a magnolia flower were dipped in a liquid metal coat and then set out to dry. But Bostic is not all flowers.

She can forge a handsome steak turner, too.

Recently, Bostic completed a steel sheet metal sculpture of one of the most recognizable birds, a Mississippi kite. It was created for the Greenville Cypress Preserve with around seventy pieces of metal, skillfully streamlined into a graceful kite. With its wings arched back, it appears to be taking off in flight across a Mississippi Delta cypress swamp.

Outside of nature, one of Bostic’s main sources of design inspiration is the Art Deco style which gained popularity in the 1920s. It is a very geometric style most often recognized in architecture like the Empire State Building in New York. But the rich, boldly patterned ornamentation carried over into jewelry, sculpture, and other forms of art as well. Bostic loves the elegant modernity, the vertical emphasis and geometric patterns commonly seen in Art Deco style and often finds herself designing pieces with that influence in mind. She also takes some inspiration from the earlier Art Nouveau movement, which is a much more organic style with lots of scrolls and curves. That style was heavily influenced by natural forms like sunbursts and fern tendrils. “There is some incredible ironwork from that era, especially stair rails and gates.”

Says Bostic, “It’s about as far from the clean, minimal designs of Art Deco as you can get, but they’re both great styles.” You can clearly

Made of steel and glass with Art Deco inspiration, Bostic’s “Deco Table” received the Merit Award from the 2020 Delta Artists Association show.

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Bostic’s popular hand-forged metal magnolia blossoms and ginkgo leaves recently sold out at a showing at Turnrow Art Co. in Greenwood.

Bostic’s recent sculpture of a Mississippi Kite for the Cypress Preserve in Greenville was created using about seventy pieces of metal.

see the echo in her piece “Deco Table,” made with steel and glass, which received the Merit Award at the 2020 Delta Artists Association annual members exhibit.

Her favorite medium? Steel. Bostic says steel is the most fun to work with. In contrast to the copper and brass she used in the early days of her practice to create tiny pieces of jewelry, steel allowed her to expand the scope of her work. Malleable and tough, Bostic realized steel allowed her to make more structural pieces—like tables.

“Hot steel has similar properties to clay and can be thought of in a similar way. It can be spread thinner, it can be pinched inward, et cetera,” says Bostic, also noting that some blacksmithing programs even start their participants off with clay before moving to the metal.

Bostic creates her pieces using a variety of techniques, including forging, welding and chiseling. She listens to a variety of music while she is working, too. Right now, she plays The Killers, Bleachers, and Lord Huron. “They’re all fun to listen to while I work!” Bostic says.

Currently, Bosco Metalworks is busy churning out another batch of original pieces to sell at Turnrow Art Co. in Greenwood. We will be following along. DM To see more of her work, visit Bostic’s Instagram page, @boscometalworks or lbosticillustration.com 44 | MAY/JUNE 2023

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DELTA MAGAZINE 2023

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www.rossonco.com (662) 843-3986 Downtown Cleveland 46 | MAY/JUNE 2023

MUSIC

We’re All Gonna Be BIG Stars Inside the legacy of a legendary Memphis band whose influence can’t be measured in album sales

BY JIM BEAUGEZ • PHOTOS BY MAUDE SCHUYLER CLAY

48 | MAY/JUNE 2023

STEFANIE BILLUE

Performing at the #1 Record live show at Crosstown Theater in Memphis on December 3, 2022. Left to right: Pat Sansone, Jon Auer, Jody Stephens, Mike Mills, and Chris Stamey.

here’s a saying about the lasting influence of rock ‘n’ roll bands that, despite seeming to have all the ingredients of success in their pedigrees, somehow never find fame and fortune: They may not have sold many

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records, but everybody who bought one formed a band.

British musician and producer Brian Eno famously spoke words to that effect about the Andy Warhol-endorsed New York group the Velvet Underground. But they easily could have been about Memphis power-pop combo Big Star, whose three attempts to live up to their audacious moniker failed to register in any significant sales or chart numbers.

“They made these wonderful records that should have sold a lot,” says Mitch Easter, a North Carolina music producer famed for his work on the first three records by R.E.M. “I think they just truly Alex Chilton fell through every possible crack.”

Fronted by a charismatic duo of singer-songwriters—Alex Chilton, who found fame as a teenager singing with the Box Tops on their number-one 1967 hit “The Letter,” and Chris Bell, a

visionary talent in his own right—Big Star mixed British Invasion brashness with American folk sensibilities to create a bright, guitar-driven sound all their own.

If their name rings a bell, it could be because they lifted it from the Big Star supermarket chain, which had a store across National Street from Ardent Studios, where the band formed and recorded.

You may have even heard them before, although you probably didn’t realize it— the nineties/aughts TV sitcom “That ’70s Show” used the band’s tune “In the Street” as its theme song (albeit a cover version recorded by Cheap Trick).

Big Star’s 1972 debut album, #1 Record, was roundly praised by music critics, who loved their inventive songcraft and crisp production. Then there was the album’s title, meant as both tongue-in-cheek and dead serious, a reflection of the respective attitudes of frontmen Alex Chilton and Chris Bell.

However, it was anything but prophetic; despite rave reviews and radio airplay in cities like Boston and New York, the album only sold a few thousand copies, a victim of poor record distribution.

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Published in 2016, Big Star—Isolated in the Light, a limited edition photo book, included rare photographs of the group such as this one.

Easter was struck when he heard #1 Record standout “When surprisingly, most of the attendees never made it past the nightly My Baby’s Beside Me” on the radio in Winston-Salem, North entertainment at Lafayette’s Music Room. “It was really the first Carolina. He and his friends were fascinated by the band’s sound.

Big Star audience that we ever played to,” says drummer Jody “We didn’t really think music like that came from the South Stephens, the sole surviving band member. “They all knew #1 much anymore,” Easter says. “By the seventies, the South was all Record and they all sang along, with the help of an open bar.” about the blues and the Allman The rowdy response inspired Brothers, and what they were Stephens, Chilton and bassist starting to call Southern Rock, Andy Hummel to regroup and which was a different vibe record 1974’s Radio City. The altogether.” band shed most of its folky Despite the disappointing leanings in favor of a funkier sales of #1 Record and the power-trio feel on would-be hits subsequent departure of Bell, “September Gurls,” which The the band’s label, Ardent/Stax, Bangles later covered, and “Back had another card to play. The of a Car.” next year, they flew a cadre of “The spirit of it was there Big Star’s biggest fans—rock and things just clicked for us,” music journalists—to Memphis Stephens says of the Radio City on Memorial Day weekend of The members of Big Star—Hummel, Chilton and Stephens—on a photo sessions. “It felt good going 1973. back in, and there’s nothing like shoot in the Mississippi Delta, 1973.

Dubbed the National putting a track down and going Association of Rock Writers’ Convention, the event brought back in the control room and having John Fry play it back. He together luminaries of the craft such as Lester Bangs, Lenny Kaye always made it sparkle and added a nice little sonic frame to what and a teenaged Cameron Crowe—known then as an up-andwe were doing.” coming Rolling Stone scribe, and later for writing the movie Fast Once again, distribution woes helped keep Big Star a secret.

Times At Ridgemont High, as well as for helming Jerry Maguire, Stax honcho Al Bell had signed a distribution agreement with Vanilla Sky and Almost Famous.

CBS Records in 1972, but the relationship had never fully gelled.

While ostensibly gathered to organize a writers’ union, not After CBS fired label president Clive Davis the following year, the 50 | MAY/JUNE 2023

PHOTOS OBTAINED FROM DIGITAL MEDIA SOURCES

Big Star album covers, starting with their debut album #1 Record, at top.

band lost their cheerleader. No one at the label wanted much to do with Big Star after that. Still, Stephens and Chilton went back to Ardent Studios for recording sessions that led to Third, which sat in the vault until 1978. By then, the members of Big Star had all moved on.

In the decades since Big Star’s initial 1971-1975 run, bands like R.E.M. and Wilco have paid tribute by covering their songs and talking about them in interviews. The Replacements even recorded a song about them called “Alex Chilton,” recorded at Ardent and produced by Jim Dickinson, who had helmed Third.

“They gave me something to shoot for,” recalls R.E.M. bassist Mike Mills, who was introduced to Big Star by bandmate Peter Buck in 1979. “They put together all those parts [and sounds] that I thought were great, and made them into these really great three- and four-minute songs. That was what we were aiming for, and they did it as well as anyone has ever done it.”

Having finally found a modest audience, Chilton and Stephens reunited as Big Star in 1993, augmented by Jon Auer and Ken Stringfellow of The Posies, and toured the world sporadically until Chilton’s death in 2010. Mills and Easter, along with Chris Stamey of the dBs and Wilco multi-instrumentalist Pat Sansone (a Meridian, Miss., native), teamed with them in December 2010 as Big Star’s Third to perform the album of the same name. In 2022, a similar lineup played a series of shows in honor of the 50th anniversary of #1 Record.

“Everybody loves the back story and the mystery of the longtime non-surfacing Third record,” says Mills. “But the first two records, especially #1 Record, for me are gems. They’re among the best rock ‘n’ roll records ever made, as far as I’m concerned.”

These days, Stephens stays busy at Ardent Studios, where he’s worked since the Big Star days. He also writes music and performs in Those Pretty Wrongs, his band with singer-songwriter Luther Russell, which has released three albums, including 2023’s Holiday Camp. But as with bands like the Velvet Underground, whose legend among musicians brought them new fans long after their glory days, Big Star has never been bigger.

“They are kind of a household name now,” Easter says, “and that’s really weird because their career was almost not a career— they’re all legacy and no career, almost.” DM DELTA MAGAZINE 2023

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Clarksdale’s ROBIN COLONAS Merchant Mariner travels the open seas, but calls Clarksdale home

BY SHERRY LUCAS • PHOTOGRAPHY BY AUSTIN BRITT

54 | MAY/JUNE 2023

A love of blues music drew Robin Colonas to Clarksdale.

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“I saw the big ships in the harbor, and I was like, ‘Wow, how do I get to be on one of those, where the cargo can’t talk back to me, and I can travel farther?’”

“The short version is, I met some people shooting pool at a dive bar in downtown Seattle,” she recalls with a chuckle. She started asking questions. “At the time, I so didn’t know what the Merchant Marines was.” Turns out, the Sailor’s Union was across the street from where she lived.

People there introduced her to the union and helped her join the Harry Lundeberg School of Seamanship in the late 1980s.

Though jobs were hard to come by at the time, she says, lawsuits about gender equality in the maritime industry had left it more open to any women interested in joining the program.

“I didn’t fully know what I was getting into when I did it, but I was all about the adventure and wanting to travel.”

After training, her first ship was an LNG tanker operating between Japan and Indonesia for four months. “It was a definite full-on, ‘OK, this is what you signed up for and who you are.’”

ROBIN COLONAS

“I was always drawn to the water,” she says.

In thirty-five years as a Merchant Marine, she’s spent plenty of time there, circumnavigating the globe in the process. “I haven’t gone to the South or North Pole, but I’ve been over a lot of Asia and Central America, a little bit into Europe and the Middle East. I’ve had a good opportunity to see a little bit of a lot of places.”

Colonas still hears the siren call of her seaport city roots. She splits time between Seattle and Clarksdale, where various projects, often anchored in her love of blues music, present a whole new channel to explore.

Wanderlust was a motivator and word of mouth the propeller that led her to the Merchant Marines for work. Her post-high school goal was world travel for a few years, then college.

Cruise ship work was an initial thought. In a job aboard a high-speed passenger ferry between Seattle and Victoria, Canada, the boat work was a joy. But working with the general public all the time? Not so much. Plus, Colonas had farther destinations in mind.

Colonas takes a selfie aboard the Container Ship S/S Horizon Enterprise, with Diamondhead in the background.

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ROBIN COLONAS

obin Colonas grew up around the waters of the Pacific Northwest in Seattle, where fun adventures on her family’s small boats eventually led for bigger ones—bigger adventures, bigger boats—and a career that would keep her on the open seas.

Second Mate Robin Colonas is on the bow of the container ship M/V Matsonia, at sea in the Pacific Ocean, in 2021.

“I thought I would do it for a few years, travel around and then I would go to school and figure out what I really wanted to be. But it was an addictive lifestyle and a good job, so I ended up not leaving the industry,” and instead, upgrading her role within it. Colonas started out as an ordinary seaman, an entry-level position in the Merchant Marines deck department crew; she now sails as a second mate or second officer—the ship’s navigation officer and a licensed position.

Colonas has pretty much traveled the world on ships. It was once common to be in port for weeks at a time on occasion, if you worked on the type of ship that took a long time to unload and transfer cargo, she says. “The advent of containerized shipping changed the job a great deal. They’re able, at this point, to load and unload a large container ship in twenty-four hours, or forty-eight hours if it’s a very large ship. So, sometimes you’re in port for only as long as six hours or twelve hours, which doesn’t allow for a lot of time to go ashore.

“It is not as fun and adventurous as it once was, but there are lots of different opportunities in the maritime industry,” says Colonas, who primarily works on deep sea-going container ships at this point.

“There are other types of vessels—research vessels and cruise ships and smaller, inland work on tugboats. … Depending on what

PHOTOS ROBIN COLONAS

The Merchant Marine consists of civilian vessels, such as tankers and cargo ships that import and export goods to other countries. Above, a ship docks at Sand Island, with Honolulu in the background. On the left is a view of the bridge of the Container Ship M/V Mahimahi as it approaches Shanghai.

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Various memorabilia displayed in the side yard of the New Roxy is a nod to Colonas’ roots and the theater’s past.

A decommissioned life ring from a ship calls to mind her career on the open seas.

about the industry you like, and what you want to do, it’s possible to still have ships that travel, but there’s not as much shore time as there used to be.

“I don’t have a lot of regret about my choice in career.” The Merchant Marines, while more physically demanding in years past than now with much of the work automated, remains a very physical, manual labor, blue collar kind of job, she says. Ships operate 24 hours a day, with shift work in the middle of the night, and the lack of sleep and noisy environment can be physically demanding in other ways. It’s also a male-dominated field.

Women are making more inroads on board cruise ships and inland ferries, but the female percentage for the offshore sector is much lower, she says.

Still, “It has afforded me a great

community and ended up buying property and pretty much live here now.”

She bought the cinema in Clarksdale in 2008, and work on it continues. New Roxy is an open-air art, music and theater venue that operates seasonally when the weather’s nice, in spring for Juke Joint Festival and Goat Fest, and again in fall for Deep Blues Festival in October. It’s also a venue for private rentals, such as events or weddings, but even with Colonas’ job flexibility, it can be tricky to commit too far ahead of time.

At this point in her maritime career, Colonas works about six months out of the year, and spends the rest of her time on the West Coast and in Clarksdale. Her aim with the New Roxy purchase was to prevent the building’s demise, and turn it from a blighted property to a place that could again contribute to the community, and become an economic driver, she says.

“We’re not quite there yet.”

It’s a key part of her involvement in community revitalization in Clarksdale, where much of the downtown effort focuses on tourism. She also does volunteer and paid work with the Visit Clarksdale tourism office.

Clarksdale Collective is her community development arm. A former project spiffed up the downtown alley between main streets Delta and Yazoo, with lighting, cleaning, and murals on boarded-up windows. “It’s a part of the downtown walking core, and it just needed a little bit of love to make it feel safer, and more appealing,” she says.

lifestyle.” A union member throughout, with many great opportunities, her job’s structure and time off is what allowed her to travel into Mississippi, end up in Clarksdale, and undertake an adventure on land—buying and restoring the New Roxy theater.

Colonas first landed in Clarksdale as a blues tourist. She’d taken a job on a Ready Reserve military cargo ship based out of New Orleans, specifically so she’d have weekends free to drive into Mississippi, explore the music and see the musicians perform it live. Her first weekend stop was Jackson in 2002 and the Farish Street Heritage Festival. The Delta, though, captured her heart.

“I passed through Clarksdale on my way to the King Biscuit Festival, and just kept coming back. I fell in love with the

This abandoned red bus at the New Roxy is occasionally pressed into service as a green room space for performers.

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The open-air main stage of the New Roxy in Clarksdale is set up for the opening of the 20th Annual Juke Joint Festival this past April. Then, after a hiatus during the summer heat, the New Roxy will be back in action for the Deep Blues Festival in the fall.

The small, rural Delta town is practically the polar opposite of the big-city West Coast surroundings she grew up in.

At one point, she had a house in Seattle too, and was going back and forth, and going to work at sea. “Ultimately, I felt like I could make more of a difference while I was in this community, than I would if I was in my community in Seattle. That is why I opted to lean toward Clarksdale.”

“But I’m still able to move about the world,” including spending time on the

West Coast and Seattle to get her big-city fix. “I still very much enjoy traveling and adventuring.” At home, gardening and cooking in her own kitchen are joys.

Her career on the seas has included work on container ships, oil tankers, car carriers, bulk freighters, a passenger ferry, and a parasailing boat. After a stint at home on land, “I do miss the water when I’m here. The Sunflower River doesn’t quite cut it,” she adds with a laugh. “I will sometimes go out to the river and seeing the

Mississippi does help sometimes.

“I do love being on the water. The positives of my job are you get to spend this amazing amount of time on the ocean. My office is a view of the ocean and the stars and beautiful sunsets. It can be a really rewarding work environment.

“And it’s a wide-open field!” she adds with the gusto of a recruiter. “If anyone is interested, there is a definite need for people to join the industry.” DM

The sound booth is tucked into the balcony (left) of the New Roxy. Its lobby (right) holds historic pictures of the theater and its renovations, and a collection of tiki mugs. The lobby’s use as a sailor bar/tiki bar is another toast to the Merchant Marine career of its owner.

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Andrew Abide, DMD | Lynsey Phillips, DMD 60 | MAY/JUNE 2023

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Historic CLUB EBONY Updated venue will keep bringing the blues for years to come

Much more than a fresh coat of paint, the iconic venue has been renovated with important structural repairs and numerous updates to the interior, ensuring decades of blues music still to come.

View from the newly positioned stage at the renovated venue.

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I

ndianola’s Club Ebony is one of the few stillactive venues from the glory days of the Chitlin’ Circuit, the nickname for the network of African American venues across the country during the segregation era. Following extensive renovations, the 75-year-old club promises to entertain many more generations of blues fans. Owned and operated by the nearby B.B. King Museum and Delta Interpretive Center, the club will celebrate its reopening June 1–3 with concerts each night by artists including Mr. Sipp and Tony Coleman, King’s longtime drummer.

B. B. King and Mary Shephard in 1980. Shephard owned club Ebony from the mid-‘70s to 2008.

In addition to stabilizing the building, the renovation work involved adding a new catering kitchen, creating larger ADAcompliant bathrooms, doubling the serving size of the bar, building a large “green room” for visiting artists, and installing a sprinkler system and new exits/load-in doors. New features include a glass-enclosed sound booth, a ticket booth with a window, and cameras set up for livestream broadcasts.

The director of the B.B. King Museum, Malika Polk-Lee, says that renovating the club is “like coming back full circle.”

“My first major project after coming on as director in 2012 was renovating the club to make it more operable, and I’ve always wanted to get it to this point, so it has a sentimental value.

“For us, this is another part of our mission of fulfilling B.B. King’s legacy. He played at Club Ebony for fifty years, and the

COURTESY OF JIM ABBOTT

The B.B. King Museum opened to the public in 2008, the same year King purchased Club Ebony from longtime owner Mary Shepard and subsequently transferred its ownership to the museum to ensure its preservation. The club was still in operation at the time and continued to host concerts, events arranged by the Mississippi Delta Blues Society of Indianola, birthday parties and other celebrations, and most notably, concerts by B.B. King during his annual “homecoming” visits to Indianola.

Founded in 1948, Club Ebony remained open continuously until the arrival of the pandemic in March 2020, hosting hundreds of stars of the blues and R&B world. Successive owners have made changes to the club to adapt to new demands from artists and the audience, and the recent renovations were set in motion to address serious structural problems with the south wall of the facility.

COURTESY OF JIM ABBOTT

BY SCOTT BARRETTA • PHOTOGRAPHY BY RORY DOYLE

Club Ebony, circa 1953. Courtesy of the B.B. King Museum collection. The “51” sign is an advertisement for the Memphis-based Goldcrest 51 Beer brand.

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COURTESY OF THE B.B. KING MUSEUM COLLECTION COURTESY OF JIM ABBOTT

A group of dapper revelers enjoying an evening at Club Ebony, ca. 1949.

B.B. King playing at Club Ebony, 1977.

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club was important enough to him to purchase it and entrust it to us. And since we are the preservers of his legacy, it was essential for us that its story would be told.

“Another aspect is the importance of the club to American musical history. So many artists were able to get their start here, keep alive their careers on the Chitlin’ Circuit and shape the development of African American music more broadly.

“And it’s also the story of the community. Club Ebony was not just a club, it was also a meeting place for the NAACP. It was a safe haven for talking about how to move the community forward, and a place where you could be around your own people and feel safe to be who you are and enjoy life.”

In addition to modernizing the facilities, the museum has been careful to preserve signature elements including the original stamped-tin ceiling and recessed neon lighting, as well as the glass block column designs of the bar and stage.

“We wanted to have a vintage look, but we also wanted to have modern features,” says Robert Terrell, the deputy director of the museum, who arrived there at the same time as Polk-Lee. “If we’re going to do something, we should do it right.”

One major difference is that the stage has been relocated.

“I always felt like the stage should be in the back, that way it’s convenient for everyone,” says Terrell. “When it was on the side, only so many people could see it. Now when you walk in the door you can see the stage.”

Sightline issues have also been addressed through purchasing new high tables and stools for the bar area.

“Another thing we thought about is that it’s such a historical place, so we wanted to tell its story,” says Terrell. A Mississippi Blues Trail marker out front summarizes its history, and a new addition to the Club is interpretive panels that address the Chitlin’

COURTESY OF THE B.B. KING MUSEUM COLLECTION

Circuit, the club’s ownership history, and dozens of stars who played there.

Since 2008 visitors to the museum have been able to tour Club Ebony, and larger tour groups often eat a meal of fried catfish while listening to local artists such as Mike Dennis. Immediately prior to the pandemic, the museum and Club Ebony were frequently on the itineraries of riverboats, including the American Queen, that dock in Greenville. Both river cruises and coach tours are quickly returning, and the new facilities allow for more comfortable visits.

“Now that it’s stabilized, it will stand for another seventy-five years,” says Terrell, who is also planning how it can be better utilized for the community.

The History of Club Ebony Many Delta readers no doubt recall seeing B.B. King at the club during his annual “homecoming” visits to Indianola between the late 1970s and the 2010s. But the premier stars of jazz and the blues were performing there even before King’s career took off. The club opened at its present location on Hanna Avenue in 1948 and was owned by Johnny Jones, who had earlier run Jones’ Night Spot on nearby Church Street.

In a 1967 interview King, who recalled peeking in at bands through the windows of Jones’ Night Spot as a youngster, said that Jones “was really the guy that kept the Negro neighborhood alive, by bringing people in, like Louis Jordan…Johnny Jones was a very nice fellow, and he knew the guys on the plantations didn’t have any money during the week, but he would often let us in and we would pay him off when we came in Saturday.”

Club Ebony quickly became a mainstay of the Chitlin’ Circuit.

The circuit originated in the mid-‘30s during the big band era, and took off in the more prosperous post-WWII years. Early visitors to Club Ebony included national stars such as the Count Basie Orchestra and King’s mentors including Louis Jordan and T-Bone Walker.

King, who moved from Indianola to Memphis in 1948, began

COURTESY OF JIM ABBOTT

Reigning heavyweight champion Joe Louis, middle, with Club Ebony’s founder Johnny Jones, right, circa 1949. This photo was displayed at the bar at Club Ebony during its early years.

B.B. King with Mary Shepard, 1977.

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The stage has been moved from its original location to the back of the building, improving sightlines for guests, but the new stage still incorporates the club’s original glass block design. The dining furniture was chosen to mimic the same style found in the club in the late ‘40s.

playing at the club regularly following his breakthrough 1952 hit “Three O’Clock Blues.” In 1958 King married Sue Hall, the daughter of Club Ebony’s owner Ruby Edwards. They had met at the club, and were married in Detroit in a ceremony presided over by Rev. C.L. Franklin, a native of Sunflower County and the father of Aretha.

For decades Club Ebony boasted a lineup of the leading stars from the rhythm and blues world. These included Delta musicians who became stars of Chicago blues, including Jimmy Reed, Howlin’ Wolf, Muddy Waters, Sonny Boy Williamson II, as well as pioneers of soul music, including Ray Charles, James Brown, and Clarksdale-born Sam Cooke.

In the wake of the Civil Rights movement, top African American artists had access to a much wider range of venues outside the traditional Chitlin’ Circuit, but Club Ebony remained particularly important into the 2000s for artists on the “soul blues/southern soul” circuit. These artists included many who The club’s new catering kitchen.

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The roof the building and the exterior were replaced as part of the renovations.

were hitmakers on the R&B charts in the ‘50s through the early ‘70s, and later played relatively more old school music for Southern audiences—Bobby “Blue” Bland, Tyrone Davis, Johnnie Taylor, Denise LaSalle, and Bobby Rush. The club also featured local bands playing in the same style, notably the Ladies Choice band led by Bobby Whalen and David Lee Durham.

B.B. King became an international icon in the early ‘70s in the wake of “The Thrill Is Gone,” but returned regularly to his “hometown.” He was actually born in tiny Berclair in 1925, and moved as a teen to Indianola, where he married, became a tractor driver, and began playing gospel and blues.

In the early ‘70s he began coming back to Mississippi annually in June to perform at events celebrating the legacy of Civil Rights martyr Medgar Evers, and in the late ‘70s added “homecoming” events in Indianola. These eventually became formalized—he would play a family-friendly outdoor show in the afternoon, followed by a late night show at Club Ebony, a pattern he followed until the 2010s, when the outdoor show was on the grounds of the B.B. King Museum. He last played the club in 2013.

“It seemed like he knew it was his last show there,” says Terrell.

“He stayed on the stage until 6:30 in the morning. He allowed his band to get off the stage, but he just stayed there and let fans take photos and talk to him.”

King died on May 14, 2015, and today visitors traveling between the museum to nearby Club Ebony pass King’s grave and “memorial pavilion,” which was unveiled in 2021 along with an expansion of the museum’s exhibit space. DM

Robert Terrell, the Deputy Director of the B.B. King Museum, at the soundboard, which is now housed in an enclosed sound booth.

Making his mark, King wrote his own name in the concrete out in front of the club when he acquired it in March, 2008.

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Over 120 Years of Combined Experience!

Meet our team!

• Donna G. Breeland, M.D. • Shani K. Meck, M.D. • Missy J. McMinn, M.D. • Lindsey M. Turner, M.D. • Michelle Taheri, M.D. • Sharon K. Brown, CFNP • Katie W. Sartin, CFNP

EastLakelandOBGYN.com

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601.936.1400

JUNE 1-3, 2023 • THE RETURN OF

CLUB EBONY A nightclub that cemented Indianola as a major entertainment hub in the 1940s, ’50s and ’60s has undergone a complete renovation and will be ready to welcome visitors for a Grand Re-opening Weekend on June 1-3. Make plans to visit and see this storied venue brought back to life.

In its heyday, Club Ebony had legendary acts including Ray Charles, Count Basie, Bobby Bland, Little Milton, Albert King, James Brown, Ike Turner, Howlin’ Wolf, Tyrone Davis and many more. It was also the place where B.B. King played to standing-room-only crowds after his popular annual homecoming concerts in Indianola.

You’ll find interpretive displays inside that are reminders of the glory days of Club Ebony while you enjoy live music and the hospitality that made it famous, so be sure to join us as we celebrate.

Club Ebony is owned and operated by the B.B. King Museum and Delta Interpretive Center.

This ad is sponsored by the Indianola Tourism Commission with funds from the Destination Marketing Organization Grant Program.

404 Hanna Avenue, Indianola, MS 662-887-9539 • bbkingmuseum.org

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DINOSAURS

in the DELTA

JAMES STARNES

Gravel and shells and dinosaur tales…hidden treasures of the Mississippi River

It takes a watchful and careful eye to notice, see and recognize a prehistoric relic on the banks of the Mississippi River. Even when vigilantly searching for artifacts you can easily walk right over a prized specimen that may be millions of years old. Pleistocene giant bison (Bison antiquus), found in Warren County.

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BY HANK BURDINE

id dinosaurs ever trek and roam down through the swamplands and forests of our Mississippi Delta? Maybe not Tyrannosaurus rex, but we sure do have a lot of evidence of their existence all throughout the Mississippi River floodplain and beyond.

D

And after every high-water event on the Mississippi River and the subsequent low water period the following year, more and more prehistoric collectible bones, teeth and horns show up along sand and gravel bars within the confines of the levees.

And last year was a winner!

The 2011 Mississippi River flood was the highest flood of our recorded history with subsequent high-water events since then. Last year during 2022, we had the lowest water of our recorded history. Commercial barge traffic stayed open on the Mississippi River although some areas had to be

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BURDINE COLLECTION WINN COLLECTION

Mastodon vertebrae in pristine condition.

within the confines of this tremendous watershed can and may possibly find their way into a streambed and river system.

During high-water, these fossils and relics will move along on the bottom of the rivers and go their way tumbling south towards the Gulf of Mexico. Along bends in the Mississippi River, fossils, bones, teeth, and petrified wood are caught up in gravel bars and revetments along the river.

It is a strenuous, hot, and sometimes dangerous trek to go fossiling along the

One day’s bounty loaded up on a truck console on the way home.

PRIVATE COLLECTION

dredged and some light loading of barges had to be done to maintain navigation on the Mississippi River and its tributaries.

And, along its banks a treasure trove of artifacts and relics were revealed. You just had to know where to go and find them.

The Mississippi River drains forty-one percent of the continental United States and two provinces of Canada, all the way from the Allegheny Mountains of New York to the Rocky Mountains of Montana. Any bones or relics that lie

PRIVATE COLLECTION

The Mississippi River holds untold treasures. A jawbone of a prehistoric animal found recently on the Mississippi River.

Back at home, the day’s treasures are added to the rest of the prized collection of horns, teeth, and bones.

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PRIVATE COLLECTION PRIVATE COLLECTION

BURDINE COLLECTION

The skull, with horns still intact, of an American Bison spans the width of the dining room table where it is displayed.

Author’s own collection from a one-day expedition. Petrified bones, wood, a shark’s tooth and vertebrae from a mastodon.

Partial horn of an American Bison.

anywhere. You have to acquire a feel for the river and be able to sense where relics are tumbling downstream under fortyfive feet of water and what makes them stop their journey and be covered up with sand and gravel until more current can partially expose them. Sure, you may stumble upon a shark tooth or piece of fossilized wood while walking along a sandbar, but that is highly unlikely unless you know where and how to look. And that, my friend, is a closely held secret by those who have learned. It’s kind of like a family recipe for a good hot tamale. They ain’t telling.

PRIVATE COLLECTION

required. A small fishing type jon boat is certainly not recommended to use in the Mississippi River.

I know of a couple areas between Memphis and Baton Rouge that because of either the bends or intersecting back channels seem to catch a lot of relics. The Mississippi River and Tributaries Project provides for a dike and revetment system to hold the Mississippi River in its path that allows the scouring action of the river itself to keep the channel open for navigation. Outside of this channel and in some of the back channels are where fossils can be found. But, not just

ANNA REGINELLI

Mississippi River, and one must be very careful when planning an excursion. The currents, swirls, eddies, and down and upflows of the river, even at low water stages, can be quite dangerous and treacherous.

Sunken hazards and submerged sandbars can turn a boat over and get a vessel stuck if you are not very careful. No one that is not experienced with the Mississippi River and its intricacies should dare attempt to go out on the big river without someone aboard who knows about all the hazards and dangers you can face. And a big, wide beamed, high gunwale boat with ample horsepower and a kicker motor should be

Jawbone of the American lion found by Wiley Prewitt near Rosedale.

Dinosaur tooth found among the rocks of a gravel bar.

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Eustace Winn of Merigold with part of a mastodon skull found between Vicksburg and Memphis.

BURDINE COLLECTION

Another problem with going out on the Mississippi River to look for fossils is access. There are few boat ramps where you can safely put in the river along the way during low water, and those accessible boat ramps that are open at low water are very few and far between. I have seen boats come off of trailers as they fall into a scoured-out hole at the end of the ramp only to be caught up in the current and bashed against the rocks and beat up or even sunk. And, if you do decide to go out on the river, at any time, always file a float plan with family or a friend. Let them know what time you are putting in, where you will put in, where you are going and what time you expect to return. Always call them to let them know you are safely back on the bank when you return. And, always remember, you can have a lot of fun on the river, but you should never play on the river. One mistake can be fatal.

On any excursion on the river, you should plan ahead. Sunscreen and water

WINN COLLECTION

BURDINE COLLECTION

Leslie Ballard of Hernando with a mastodon vertebrae fully intact.

Tara Decarlis of the Emerald Coast of Florida examining a dinosaur tooth found along the banks of the Mississippi River.

are a necessity along with a wide brimmed hat. The sun can be unforgiving out there even on an overcast day, Don’t think, “Oh, it’s just the river, not the beach.” You will regret it. Sandals, ice beverages, snacks, bug spray, rain gear, cell phone and extra gas are required. You don’t want to get stuck out on the river and have to spend the night without being prepared. I know!

Several years ago, I was out on the river with a good friend who was one of the premier fossil collectors around. He pulled over on a seemingly nondescript looking gravel bar and threw his anchor out and tugged it tight into the sand.

He told me to grab a cold one or two and let’s go. We walked along side by side with him venturing off a ways every now and then and sometimes going back over rocks and gravel runs that I had just walked through. Every now and then I’d see him bend over and pick something up, look at it, blow on it, and maybe even walk over to the water and wash it off. Most of the time he would

BURDINE COLLECTION

LEE COLLECTION

Diddo Lee with a femur from a mastodon. It took her about an hour to dig it out of the sand and gravel. A very big and unique specimen!

just throw what he had picked up back on the sandy gravel. When we got back to the boat, he reached into his pockets and pulled out two sharks’ teeth, a piece of petrified wood, and two pieces of petrified bone. He looked at me and said, “You walked right over them,” and then he gave them to me!

From the Mississippi Department of Environmental Quality Fossil Friday FB post on October 14, 2022: “The current historic low of the Mississippi River has its dry banks exposing miles of seemingly endless sandbars that are now, once again, sharing its ice-age secrets from the river’s depths. Pleistocene fossils from extinct beasts such as American lion, giant bison, mastodon, saber toothed cats, horses, giant ground sloths, tapir, gomphothere, pampather, and dire wolves that once hunted and grazed along the forests and wetlands of the Mississippi River floodplain have now been exposed along the now barren river bottoms. Surface Geology staff joined the Mississippi Museum of Natural Science and USFWS

PRIVATE COLLECTION

One should never go out on the river unless in a safe, dependable and seaworthy boat, well provisioned and with an auxiliary engine.

Plan ahead and expect mishaps, because they can and will happen.

A prime example of a totally intact tooth found in the rocks of the Mississippi River.

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scientists this week along the banks of the Mississippi River in Warren County to help understand and to better document these important paleontological resources during this unique environmental opportunity.

During this field trip an important discovery of a fossil of an ancient bearsized rodent, a giant beaver called Castoroides ohioensis, was made by biologist Paul Hartfield during the trip.

Paleoindian cultures, the first human inhabitants of Mississippi, likely shared their environment with this and other strange Mississippi ice-age beasts.

Additionally, a larger ice-age Mississippi River bottomland ecosystem was documented during the study which included fossils of giant catfish, gar, turtles, alligators, giant bison, deer, elk, mastodon, mammoth, and horse. These fossil specimens will be accessioned into the Mississippi Museum of Natural Science paleontological collections for public display and for scientific study.”

That’s pretty cool! But, one of the coolest parts of fossiling on the Mississippi River is when you see something that you know is not a rock or a piece of driftwood, but is a prehistoric jawbone or tooth or vertebrae and you reach down to pick it up, and realize that your hand is the first human to touch that bone in possibly thirty thousand years or maybe longer. It kind of puts one in perspective. The Mississippi River is one of the last wilderness areas we have down in the South. It is huge, it is relentless, it can be unforgiving and dangerous, yet, it can at times give up untold prehistoric treasures.

You just have to know where and when to go. You have to know the intricacies and challenging nuances of the largest river on the North American continent.

And, you have to respect the river, not fear it, but give it every benefit of the doubt, because one slip-up out there may not end up pretty. So, if you think you want to go and find a dinosaur tooth, be prepared to hunt a long time, get a good safe boat, provision it well, learn the course and pathways and backwaters of this magnificent fourth coast of America, and be safe above all.

“That Ole Man River, that Ole Man River, he just keeps rolling along…rolling along.” DM 76 | MAY/JUNE 2023

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Kim Buehring 662.588.7120

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| Chris Collins 662.843.5060

HOME

Small Space

BIG STYLE

Airy comfort prevails in new downsized Cleveland home

BY SHERRY LUCAS • PHOTOGRAPHY BY RORY DOYLE

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The limestone fireplace is among many custom touches in Dr. Bob Ragan’s new home. Reconfigured arrangements put favorite furnishings in a new light.

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The transitional Tudor home is part of the new Mockingtrail Square development in Cleveland.

IN A DOWNSIZING move from a 4,500-square-foot home to one with a footprint less than half that size, Dr. Bob Ragan left behind a ton of living space but, with the help of designer Judy Wilson, none of the airy comfort and welcoming appeal he loves.

His newly built transitional Tudor This is his third house to tap Wilson’s home in the Mockingtrail Square design talents. The first two involved his development was custom-designed by late wife, Marilyn. With this one, the architect Michael Hogstrom of Onsite widower’s biggest challenge lay in deciding Design in Baton Rouge and built by which of the many beautiful furnishings BUCO LLC, a partnership of Chris would make the move with him.

Collins and Kim Buehring, with interior By adapting favorite pieces to new design and finishes by Judy Wilson purpose, Wilson has designed living spaces Interiors. that are more uniquely and recognizably Smaller lots with less landscape to Ragan’s own. The result is more masculine maintain are prime characteristics of and less formal, with an easy flow and houses in this new neighborhood, as are details that touch on his career, art twelve-foot ceilings in the main areas and collection, treasured gifts and family custom finishes, Buehring says. memories.

“Everything in this home…was done to Aside from the bedding and his liking.” headboard in the master suite, custom “It was a nice collaboration between the window treatments throughout the architect, construction team, interior home, and a few light fixtures, designer, and homeowner, that resulted in “Everything in this house was in his The decor is less formal and more masculine in Dr. a beautiful residence,” Collins says. previous houses,” Wilson says. “We had Bob Ragan’s new home.

Ragan, a dentist who still works three to pick and choose what we would use in and a half days each week, has lived in Cleveland all his life, save for this house, and yet make it very comfortable.” Her primarily goal time away at school and service in the U.S. Air Force. is always an environment that suits and reflects the person at

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Natural light is another key ingredient to the home’s spacious feel.

An abundant use of glass and mirrors works with the coffered ceiling in the entryway to amplify the space and bring a fresh, contemporary slant to the traditional furnishings.

A Venetian mirror and Thibaut shower curtain add elegance to the guest powder room.

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The portrait of his children holds a place of honor in Dr. Bob Ragan’s dining room.

Rattan chairs and a large glass and iron dining table in the dining area are a casual counter point to the brass chandelier which has traveled with Ragan from house to house.

home there. “I like for it to look like they live there, not like I live there.”

“Kudos to Judy, I did not have to buy a single bit of new furniture,” Ragan says. He chuckled to recall the friendly ribbing he’d give her, about trimming his possessions by half or more to fit the new residence. “I quickly realized she knew a lot more about decorating than I did.

“To her credit, she always gave me a choice. So, I did have some input,” he says. Furnishings that didn’t make the move were passed along to the next generations, many settling in with his grandchildren.

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The grandfather clock finds a perfect spot in his new home, as do the antique apothecary bottles, handed down from his late wife’s grandfather’s pharmacy. Designer Judy Wilson’s daughter, Stuart Ware, painted the abstract work in the dining room.

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The stunning brushed gold triple pendant light fixture over the kitchen island brings a modern touch to the traditional space.

A silver tray with crystal decanters creates a countertop bar area.

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Kitchen cabinets clear up to the ceiling provide much-needed storage.

where the foyer’s beautiful coffered ceiling and crystal chandelier offer dramatic impact, backed up by fellow furnishings that catch and reflect the light.

Wilson designs mirrors for Greenwood-based John-Richard and a standout—the Equinox Mirror—holds court in the foyer, its circular shapes echoed in the glass-topped entryway table just beneath. The subtle graphic of the wallpaper and original art of flowers and botanicals contribute to the elegant welcome, and key accents in the powder room—the beautiful Venetian mirror, Thibaut Willow Tree shower curtain—support the scene.

The continuous flow of the living areas and a generous use of glass and mirrors put a fresh, contemporary light on the traditional furnishings, and enhance the home’s spacious feel.

“It’s large to look at, but it’s small in square footage,” Ragan says of the interior. “It’s open, and with the twelve-foot ceilings that I have, you don’t feel claustrophobic at all. … Everything is finished beautifully.”

In the living room, Wilson pulled together furniture from several different rooms in his previous house, fitting them together anew.

“We used it in a totally different way,” she says of the game table and chairs under one window, desk under another, antique linen press along the wall, and the convivial arrangement of sofa, chairs and cocktail table at its heart.

The rust-colored sofa and chairs, cut velvet accent pillows and taupe-and-white-striped linen drapes convey a crisp, comfortable, masculine air. Celadon jars and a saucer in that hue add a pleasing pop of color to the arrangement and a rug that was in the master

Happy at home in his new home, Dr. Bob Ragan is pictured with a tooth-shaped cookie jar a gift from a patient—a clever nod to his longtime dental career in Cleveland.

bedroom in a previous life, now anchors the living room. The limestone fireplace surround and hearth were custom-designed and made by Christie Cut Stone of Memphis.

Artwork, arranged to perfection, brings in a touch of nature in beautifully rendered landscapes and florals. Ragan’s art collection, displayed throughout the home, is a celebration of Mississippi creativity with a distinct Delta touch, with works by Sammy Britt, DELTA MAGAZINE 2023

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Wilson’s designs for the upholstered headboard and new bedding make the master suite a restful retreat.

Lallah Perry, Bill Lester, Richard Kelso, Nan Sanders, and more. grandfather clock, custom-built by a Madison cabinetmaker.

The lovely wooden desk, a gift from his late wife to mark a Originally made for an entryway space two houses ago, this previous move, holds an alabaster lamp that lights up a trove of serendipitous timekeeper has stuck with him through a couple of treasures—antique dental cabinet, moves. “Now, I have a space in this mother of pearl opera glasses, a house that’s perfect for the clock. It snapshot of Ragan as the Charity Ball just fits beautifully.”

King, vintage handkerchief box, and Quartz countertops and high-end more. On the game table, a small, Thermador appliances are right at intricately carved wooden bird home in the kitchen, as is a cheeky charms with its remarkable detail and nod to Ragan’s profession. The giant lifelike stance. white cookie jar shaped like a tooth A large Dud Collier portrait of was a gift from a patient, and it just Ragan’s children—Rob, Richard, might hold a stash of Ragan’s favorite Melissa, and Jay—is the focal point cookie, oatmeal raisin. A silver tray of of the dining room, holding a place crystal decanters shines with the of honor and pulling in a warm sense promise of cocktail hour. of family. On the opposite wall, an The bedside marble-topped table, inherited from his mother, Soothing neutrals reign in the abstract painting by Stuart Ware of is among his prized possessions. master bedroom. The mushroom Hernando (Wilson’s daughter) provides a contemporary hue of the upholstered headboard is picked up in the drapery’s counterpoint, and its touches of gold leaf gleam in the light. Antique grosgrain ribbon trim, and the bench’s linen leopard print adds a apothecary bottles grouped on the console table below (a twin of stylish pattern to the mix. The marble-topped bedside table is a the one in the foyer) were handed down from his late wife’s cherished heirloom from Ragan’s mother, as is a miniature dresser grandfather’s pharmacy in Brooksville. in his guest bedroom.

Rattan chairs and the large glass and iron dining table suit the In the master bath, cork wallpaper. porcelain tile, and polished space with attractive aplomb. Ragan is particularly fond of his nickel fixtures are timeless touches, and the tall, built-in cabinet is a

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Cork wallpaper, porcelain tile and polished nickel fixtures are timeless touches in the master bath. Custom cabinetry adds more storage in the bathroom—a practical necessity in a downsizing move to a space less than half the size of Ragan’s previous home.

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The back porch and patio are outfitted for year-round comfort, with remote-controlled screens to provide protection from sun and bugs and a heater for colder months.

A few of the special keepsakes throughout the house include the desk his late wife gave him on the occasion of a previous move; an antique dental instrument cabinet; photos of SEC championship Ole Miss baseball teams Ragan played on; and a rare golfing poster from North Korea.

practical addition. The cabinet was not part of the home’s original plan, but was added for more storage for Ragan. “Downsizing everything else, he had to downsize his closets, too, and we thought that extra storage in the bathroom would help,” Wilson says.

A wooden clock handed down from his grandfather to his father, and now to Ragan “is one of my most prized possessions,” he says, and now hangs in his exercise room. A silk-screened golfing poster from North Korea—”Such a unique thing, the only one I know of outside North Korea”—was a gift from his son Richard, who headed the U.N. World Food Program there for two years. Photos of Ole Miss baseball teams from 1959 and 1960 commemorate their backto-back SEC championships when Ragan was a player.

The back porch and patio are prime pleasers. The windows’ custom motorized screens offer remote-controlled wind, sun, and bug protection when the occasion demands, and an infrared heater

assures outside comfort even through the winter. The custom grill station with a honed granite countertop, wall-mounted television, and views of live golf on the adjacent Cleveland Country Club Golf Course make this an outdoor oasis. Dragonflies flit through bamboo in stained-glass artwork hanging in the window.

“I got that at Crosstie (Arts & Jazz Festival) probably forty years ago, and I’ve had it hanging in different locations as I have moved since,” Ragan says of the art piece. Tiny prisms in the dragonflies’ eyes are its greatest feature, catching the rays of the setting sun to magical effect. “They light up! It’s quite striking, really.”

Ragan likes to entertain, and hosting Calvary Episcopal Church’s Christmas party shortly after move-in was an early test of the function and flow of his lovely new abode, “We had about seventy people, and the house accommodated them admirably,” he reports.

“I was very pleased.” DM DELTA MAGAZINE 2023

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Dining in the Delta “Best of” 2023 Food Edition If there is one thing people love about this region—it’s the food. The

legendary restaurants, diners, and bars in the region are a huge part of what defines the culture of the Delta. We asked our readers to nominate their favorite eateries and dishes throughout the flatlands and beyond— and while people may argue about who has the best so-and-so, there are clearly some tried and true favorites! The following categories were presented through social media and we tallied all the responses, grouping the Delta establishments and then also favorites from the surrounding areas. We’re proud to announce the winners from our recent “Best of” nominations, and encourage you to eat your way through this unique (and delicious) place we call home.

Best Breakfast

Some would argue that breakfast is the most important meal of the day. All around the Delta you see local establishments with their regulars, sitting around and sharing gossip and news over eggs and hot coffee, or the opposite end of the spectrum with the mid-morning eaters who prefer their dishes a bit later in the day, complemented by a zesty Bloody Mary or bubble-filled drink. Luckily, there is no shortage of either!

WINNER

Best Brunch

Delta Meat Market

GREEN OLIVE MEDAI

Delta Meat Market, Cleveland With alfresco dining, bottomless mimosas, and an ever-changing brunch menu dependent on fresh seasonal favorites, the Delta Meat Market brunch took the top prize in the Delta.

TOP NOMINEES

• 8 West Grille, Cleveland • Anchuca, Vicksburg

Regional Favorites • Big Bad Breakfast, Oxford • Brother Junipers, Memphis • Primos, Jackson

WINNER

Best Traditional Breakfast Spot

There’s a reason countless tv show hosts, celebrities and locals enjoy the hearty breakfasts at Jim’s Cafe in downtown Greenville. It’s a mixture of delicious food, nostalgia, and down-home conversations every time you visit.

TOP NOMINEES

• Rest Haven, Clarksdale • The Blue and White, Tunica • Farmhouse Table, Cleveland

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PHOTOS OBTAINED FROM DIGITAL MEDIA SOURCES

Jim’s Cafe, Greenville

VISIT OXFORD

Big Bad Breakfast

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Huey’s

Best Hamburger

There’s no doubt that our region boasts some of the most legendary hamburgers to be found. Whether you plan on sitting down and staying a while to enjoy one, or are grabbing one onthe-go, the options are endless.

WINNER

Best Sit-down Hamburger Airport Grocery, Cleveland

With its red and white checked tablecloths and vintage memorabilia adorning the walls, Airport Grocery has been a mainstay in the Delta for decades. There is a reason why people keep coming back for its mouthwatering burgers. Just don’t miss pairing it with a side of gravy fries. Yum!

TOP NOMINEES

• Hometown, Inverness • Uncle Joe’s, Cleveland WINNER

Best To-Go Burgers Gino’s, Greenville

An icon of the Delta, has served their famous burgers in Greenville to countless generations. Whether you prefer the #2 with chili and slaw, or keep it simple, diners know they can’t go wrong.

TOP NOMINEES

Regional Favorites • Handy Andy, Oxford • Blue Canoe, Tupelo • CS’s, Jackson • Huey’s, Memphis Area • Boure, Oxford • Bin 612, Starkville

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PHOTOS OBTAINED FROM DIGITAL MEDIA SOURCES

• Fratesi’s Grocery, Leland • Acy Grocery and Deli, Greenwood • Roy’s Store, Chatham • Hall of Fame Burger, Yazoo

RORY DOYLE

POPPY P

Fratesi’s Grocery

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LOGAN KIRKLAND

Starkville Cafe

Best Plate Lunch

Blue & White Restaurant

Deltans are serious about their meat-and-threes, and these tried and true favorites from the region keep the hunger at bay.

The Crystal Grill, Greenwood WINNER

Anyone who appreciates good food has heard or eaten at “The Crystal.”

With an extensive create-your-own blue plate special daily, you could go every day and never get the same thing twice!

TOP NOMINEES

Regional Favorites • Ajax, Oxford • Angelo’s, Gluckstadt • Starkville Cafe, Starkville The Blind Pig

VISIT OXFORD

• Catfish Cabin, Boyle • Scoops, Greenville • Rest Haven, Clarksdale • Blue and White, Tunica • (Tie) Walnut Hills, Vicksburg

Best Deli Sandwich

Our readers were highly particular when it came to their favorite deli sandwich, and for good reason! Not only are we shouting out the winners, but also some crowd favorite selections as well.

The Warehouse, Cleveland

Located in an old lumber warehouse, this iconic lunch stop is popular with the “eat and shop” crowd. Even though the list of sandwiches and wraps is extensive, the Haley’s Special came out on top.

TOP NOMINEES

• Mississippi Grounds, Cleveland – Basil Sylvester • Fratesi’s Grocery, Leland – Reuben • KK’s Deli, Greenwood – Around the World

Walnut Hills

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Regional Favorites • Buon Cibo, Hernando – Buon Cibo Club • Basil’s, Jackson – Pimento Cheese BLT • Vanelli’s Deli, Germantown – The ‘Ami • The Blind Pig, Oxford – Philly Cheese Steak

PHOTOS OBTAINED FROM DIGITAL MEDIA SOURCES

WINNER

Best Seafood

Best Steak

You don’t have to see the sea in order to have a fabulous seafood meal. In fact, some would argue that these restaurants do it better. Whether it be oysters, broiled or fried jumbo shrimp, fresh fish or crab, the Delta has a lock on all things delicious.

Whether you like a filet, t-bone, ribeye or strip, the Delta has no shortage of fantastic steak houses.

WINNER

Doe’s Eat Place, Greenville

The James Beard winner continues to impress guests both locally, and those that travel hundreds of miles away to enjoy a perfectly cooked steak.

WINNER

TOP NOMINEES

• Bellazar’s, Boyle • Crawdads, Merigold • Backdraft, Cleveland • 5 O’clock on Deer Creek, Scott

Backdraft, Cleveland

Not only does this downtown Cleveland establishment have great steaks, but their seafood selection is extensive and crowd-pleasing!

TOP NOMINEES

• Bellazar’s, Boyle • Sherman’s at South Main, Greenville • Ramon’s, Clarksdale • Nola, Indianola

LOGAN KIRKLAND

Regional Favorites • Como Steak House, Como • Shapley’s, Ridgeland • Tico’s, Ridgeland • Ely’s, Ridgeland • Gibbes and Sons, Learned • Oxford Grillhouse, Oxford Backdraft

Regional Favorites • Coastal Fish Co., Shelby Farms • P-Reaux’s, Yazoo City • Rusty’s Riverfront Grill, Vicksburg • Walker’s Drive-In, Jackson • Crechales, Jackson

VISIT MISSISSIPPI

Doe’s Eat Place

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The Crystal Grill

Best Place to Cure a Sweet Tooth

Let’s face it—dessert is the preverbal cherry on top after enjoying a fantastic meal. It can also be the meal itself in some cases! Our voters were not only keen to nominate their favorite restaurants, but also their favorite dishes as well!

WINNER

The Crystal Grill, Greenwood

It’s all about the pie at The Crystal, and not only because of the famous Mile-high meringue that can be spotted across the restaurant, but the fact that it’s melt-in-your-mouth delicious. There’s a close tie between the chocolate and coconut version, so we just say to get both!

VISIT JACKSON

TOP NOMINEES

Best Chicken Salad

WINNER

Mississippi Grounds, Cleveland

This gas station turned coffee shop is not just for caffeinated beverages, but also has one of the best chicken salads in the Delta. Diners can grab a scoop or have it served up on a sandwich.

TOP NOMINEES

• Our Delta Table, Cleveland • Vito’s, Leland • Bear’s Deli, Clarksdale • Delta Meat Market, Cleveland

• Our Delta Table, Cleveland • The Crown, Indianola • Bear’s Deli, Clarksdale • Dutch Oven, Clarksdale

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Best Pimento Cheese Mississippi Grounds, Cleveland

To add to their chicken salad title, Mississippi Grounds also takes the crown with voters with their delicious pimento cheese!

TOP NOMINEES

Regional Favorites • Lindsey’s Gas station, Oxford • Chicken Salad Chick, Oxford and Madison • Beagle Bagel, Jackson

Regional Favorites • Amerigo’s, Jackson • Lou’s Full Serve, Jackson • City Hall Cheesecake, Hernando • Nothing Bundt Cakes, Flowood

Regional Favorites • Volta Taverna, Oxford • Brent’s Drugs, Jackson The Crown

PHOTOS OBTAINED FROM DIGITAL MEDIA SOURCES

WINNER

• Delta Dairy, Cleveland – The Original Ice Cream Sandwich • The Gallery, Merigold – Chocolate Cobbler • Rest Haven, Clarksdale – Coconut Pie • Vito’s, Leland – Chocolate Chess Pie

Bar Fontaine

The First Lady

Best Cocktails

Whetting your whistle in the Delta before dinner or meeting friends has become elevated in the last few years. Here are some of the top cocktail menus and nominated favorites!

WINNER

Bar Fontaine, Cleveland

Not only does Bar Fontaine, located on the rooftop of the Cotton House Hotel, have fantastic views, but the top-notch drink menu varies from the standard classics to the fresh seasonal options. Drink of Choice – The First Lady WHITE STUDIO CREATIVE

TOP NOMINEES

Bar Muse

• Giardinia’s, Greenwood – Delta Gem • Backdraft, Cleveland – The Gimlet • Downtown Grille, Greenville – Old Fashioned • Levon’s, Clarksdale – Lemon Drop

Saint Leo

Top Cocktail Menus Around the Region

ERIN AUSTEN ABBOTT

• Acre, Memphis • Andrew Michael, Memphis • Bar Muse, Oxford • Saint Leo, Oxford • Snackbar, Oxford • Fairview Inn, Jackson • Table 100, Jackson • The Pub at Dunleith, Natchez

Delta Gem DELTA MAGAZINE 2023

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Catfish Cabin

Best Fried Catfish

One of the Delta’s most famous delicacies is served best…anyway you want to enjoy it. On a po-boy, cut thick or thin, or served with hushpuppies and a side of slaw, whatever way you slice it is the best.

WINNER

Catfish Cabin, Boyle

What’s in a name? Well, a lot actually! The delicious catfish served hot brings in a crowd from all around.

TOP NOMINEES

• Larry’s Fish House, Itta Bena • Gino’s, Greenville • Hollywood Cafe, Tunica • Cicero’s, Stoneville

Taylor Grocery

Regional Favorites • Ajax, Oxford • Cock of the Walk, Jackson • Soul Fish Cafe, Memphis • Taylor Grocery, Taylor

Best Fried Chicken

People don’t play around about their fried chicken—or are particular about where it comes from as long as it’s hot, flavorful and crispy. Whether it comes from a buffet, a grocery store or gas station, or a sit-down restaurant, these nominees have made quite the impression.

WINNER

Catfish Cabin, Boyle

Drive by Catfish Cabin on any day during the lunch or dinner rush and see the vehicles vying for a spot in the parking lot to indulge in some of the best fried chicken around. And our readers agree.

• Stafford’s on Main, Drew • Walnut Hills, Vicksburg • Sherman’s on Main, Greenville • Double Quick, Various locations

Regional Favorites • Mama Hamil’s, Jackson • Gus’s, Memphis • Old Country Store, Lorman • Ajax, Oxford

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Walnut Hills

PHOTOS OBTAINED FROM DIGITAL MEDIA SOURCES

TOP NOMINEES

RORY DOYLE

Abe’s Bar-B-Q

Best Barbecue

Some like it with slaw, some without, but what everyone can agree on is that Delta barbecue is second to none.

WINNER

Lost Pizza

Abe’s, Clarksdale

Located close to the famous Crossroads in Clarksdale, Abe’s has been serving generations their delicious barbecue, vinegar-based slaw and crumpled up chips in a bag with their famous sauce. It really is an art form.

TOP NOMINEES

• Yo Eddie’s BBQ, Cleveland • J&W Smokehouse, Cleveland • Ubon’s, Yazoo City • Airport Grocery, Cleveland

Regional Favorites • Central Barbecue, Memphis • Hickory Pit, Jackson • Pig and Pint, Jackson • Memphis BBQ Company, Southaven • Moe’s BBQ, Oxford and Starkville

The Pig & Pint

Best Pizza

Whether you like yours crispy or hand-tossed, the Delta has no shortage of delicious local offerings.

WINNER

Lost Pizza, Indianola and Cleveland

What started off as two locations in the Delta has grown in to a pizza phenomenon all across the south. With everything from bbq topped favorites to traditional and dessert pizzas, our voters weren’t lost on their favorite.

VISIT JACKSON

TOP NOMINEES

• Lillo’s, Leland • Vito’s, Leland • Pasquales, Greenville • Stone Pony, Clarksdale

Regional Favorites • Angelo’s, Gluckstadt • Aldo’s Pizza, Memphis • Dave’s Darkhorse Tavern, Starkville • Funky’s, Oxford • Fox Pizza Den, Tupelo

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Best Hot Tamales

Spicy, bold, wrapped in wax paper or corn husks…the hot tamales of the Mississippi Delta have long been a staple on many restaurant tables. Whether paired with hot sauce, ketchup, saltines or a beer (or all of the above) there is no denying their place in a regional food hall of fame.

WINNER

Doe’s Eat Place, Greenville

The best part is that you can order by the dozen or half-dozen to have as a meal or an appetizer, these wrapped delicacies continue to keep diners coming back for more.

TOP NOMINEES

• Airport Grocery, Cleveland • Hot Tamale Heaven, Greenville • White Front Cafe, Rosedale • 5 O’Clock on Deer Creek, Scott

Regional Favorites • Fat Mama’s, Natchez • Koestler Prime, Jackson Airport Grocery WINNER

Best Coffee Shop Zoe Coffee Shop, Cleveland

Coffee with a cause is always a great combination, and the proceeds from this downtown Cleveland coffee house go towards Zoe Ministries in order to help bring clean and safe drinking water to the people of Kenya.

TOP NOMINEES

5 O’Clock On Deer Creek

• Mississippi Grounds, Cleveland • The Grounded Sister, Greenville • Meraki Roasting Company, Clarksdale • Kudzu Coffee, Yazoo City

Regional Favorites • Bottletree Bakery, Oxford • Cups, Jackson

Zoe

Editors’ choice

We loved reading our responses to the “Best of” and felt there were a few more categories that deserved special recognition in our Editors’ Choice selections!

Best Eats with a View

• Uncle Henry’s on Moon Lake • 10 South, Vicksburg • The Coop at the Graduate, Oxford • Nonna’s, Greenville • Molly’s, Grenada • Pulito Osteria, Jackson

Ground Zero

Uncle Henry’s

Best Pre-Dinner Bites

• Fried Green Tomatoes with Hollandaise Sauce and Lump Crab – Rusty’s Riverfront Grill, Vicksburg

• Fried Onion Rings – Ramon’s, Clarksdale • Italian Nachos – Papa Roc’s, Cleveland

Best Restaurant to hear live Music • Ground Zero Blues Club, Clarksdale • The Blue Biscuit, Indianola • Hey Joe’s, Cleveland and Merigold

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Rusty’s Riverfront Grill

PHOTOS OBTAINED FROM DIGITAL MEDIA SOURCES

Best New Restaurant

Dining in the Delta Delta Magazine’s 2023

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YARD & GARDEN

Tiny Tourists

How to make your yard an irresistible Hummingbird destination

BY ROBERT F. BRZUSZEK • PHOTOS OBTAINED FROM DIGITAL MEDIA SOURCES

ummingbirds are some of the most fascinating and widely anticipated little creatures to make an appearance each year. If you want your yard

H

or garden to be a regular stop on their annual migration trip—here are some tips to make sure your yard is on their annual bucket list.

MIGRATION Hummingbirds are migratory birds and spend their winters in Central and South America. They return to Mississippi in early spring and leave before the onset of cold weather in fall. These tiny birds like flashy bright colors and can be easily attracted to visit your garden with a red plastic feeder, which will let the birds know where your garden is located.

Red Begonias and all nectar producing blooms will help attract hummingbirds.

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The more types of food plants and environments added to your landscape the better. If possible plant shrubs (such as this bank of azaleas) and other flowering plants that have staggered blooming times to consistently attract hummingbirds over a longer period of time.

FOOD Hummingbirds actually need a variety of food types in addition to sugar water. Insects are another important source of food, especially during the nesting season. They consume spiders and many types of flying insects. Because of this, it is very important not to use pesticides on plants when providing for the needs of hummingbirds.

It is actually unnecessary to provide sugar water feeders when the correct combinations of flowering plants are added to the garden. When this approach is used, it is important to provide plant types that either flower throughout the growing season, or to use combinations of different plants that will extend nectar sources all year long.

And if there is little room in your landscape for hummingbird plants, patio containers or hanging baskets are perfectly suitable for attracting these birds.

To attract hummingbirds, it is best to plant a large group of flowering plants rather than a single source. The extra blooms provide more food and are more noticeable.

Since these birds are fiercely territorial, provide several locations of plants throughout the landscape.

Crabapple trees are a wonderful addition to your landscape and hummers are attracted to their blossoms!

NECTAR RECIPE Mix one part refined sugar to four parts water and boil to dissolve the granules. Let the mixture cool and fill the feeder. It is very important to keep feeders clean, especially in hot weather. The mixture should be changed regularly.

If you put feeders out year after year, your hummingbird visitors will learn to return every year. Be sure to place feeders in the same spot so that the returning birds will look for them in the exact location as last year.

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Be sure spread out multiple feeders and not to hang them so that they are visible to one another. Try hanging them on different sides of your house, or with trees and other natural or human-made elements to block their view.

Feeder with perch available at Wild Birds Unlimited, wbu.com

Hummingbirds typically arrive in Mississippi in March, at the time that red buckeye and native azalea shrubs are in bloom. Hummingbirds are said to follow the bloom time of these plants on their migration north, and these and other spring blooming plants will attract them earlier to your garden. Most hummingbird flowers are tubular in arrangement or shape, scentless, brightly colored, and easy for hummingbirds to hover around. As hummingbirds visit the flowers, the pollen from the male flowers often coat the bird's feathers, and help to pollinate the next flowers visited.

WATER Water is an important factor for hummingbirds, as much as eight times their body weight is taken in per day!

They will use any source of water but usually avoid landing on the ground, and prefer safe water sources.

Typically they avoid deep water as in a birdbath, but can

A mister has a small hose attachment that shoots a fine spray or mist into the air. Hummers can drink from it or fly through the mist to cool down on hot days.

Hibiscus plants are a good choice for your landscape or in pots on your deck or patio.

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With proper care and deadheading pots of geraniums are not only beautiful, but will keep blooming all season.

Cypress vine, honeysuckle, and trumpet vines are all great perennial options to incorporate.

be used by the addition of a few rocks or bricks to decrease depth.

A great source of water, especially in the summer, is with the addition of a mister. This small hose attachment shoots a fine spray or mist into the air. Hummers will fly through the mist to cool down on hot days, or will drink from it.

SHELTER A variety of landscape spaces appeals to hummingbirds and other birds. Open sunny areas, partial shade areas, and dense shade will provide opportunities for birds to either cool down or warm up. Groups of shrubs and trees will allow birds to perch and survey their territories or favorite plants, as well as keep an eye out for predators. The birds spend about four-fifths of each day perching quietly in trees or shrubs. Males will usually perch anywhere in the open, while the females tend to perch in protected areas of shrubs or trees.

Ruby-throated hummingbirds have a heart rate of over 1,000 beats per minute and beat their wings fifty times a second. The speed that they beat their wings creates a humming noise, giving them their name.

A hummingbird’s long tongue, which can extend to about twice the length of its bill, is perfectly adapted to salvia’s long tubular flowers.

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Native Salvia provides the most nectar, but hummers will also sip from cultivated varieties, which come in a wider range of colors and sizes.

Annuals such as impatiens, which love shade, and sun-loving Zinnias, below, will provide food in different areas of your yard.

Curated goods for the garden and patio, in the heart of the Mississippi Delta.

319 Howard Street

Greenwood

NESTING SPACE Hummingbirds usually use vines, shrubs or trees as nesting sites. The nest is most often attached to a branch or in the crotch of a forked limb. Plant fibers, fluffy seeds, lichens, and spider webs are used to construct the tiny nest. Leave plenty of these items available in your yard throughout the year. Allow undisturbed areas of your yard to grow with thickets of trees, shrubs, and vines to provide for nesting space. Birds will not nest in high traffic areas.

DM

@osmanthusmarket 126 | MAY/JUNE 2023

Osmanthus Market

Robert F. Brzuszek is an Assistant Extension Professor in the Department of Landscape Architecture, Mississippi State University. For more information about Hummingbirds go to extension.msstate.edu

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FOOD

TACOS with a TWIST Fresh flavors and new condiments to elevate your folded favorites

A NEW GENERATION OF TACOS has forever changed the way we will think about one of our favorite meals. They’re no longer the domain of ground beef and grated cheese— shrimp, fish, and chicken are new standards—and when paired with flavorful add-ons such as pickled onions, tangy slaw, a yogurt lime-cilantro ranch and sweet salsas, they take taco night to the next level!

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RECIPES AND PHOTOS

BY CINDY COOPWOOD

DELTA CATFISH TACOS Inspired by favorite local ingredients, such as catfish, pimento cheese, and slaw and topped with tangy pickled onions and fresh cilantro—delicious! Serves 4.

4 fresh catfish filets 2 teaspoons cajun seasoning 4 tablespoons olive oil

Drizzle filets with oil, and season generously on both sides. Cook on preheated grill or grill pan over high heat about 4 minutes on each side until firm to the touch.

Pickled onions are a flavorful addition to tacos, salads, and sides of all types.

Make ahead and keep them onhand!

Pimento cheese Make or purchase your favorite pimento cheese.

Lime-Cabbage slaw 2 cups shredded red cabbage ½ cup chopped fresh cilantro, plus extra for topping 2 to 3 tablespoons mayonnaise 1 lime, juiced ¼ teaspoon salt

Mix all ingredients in a small bowl and set aside.

Quick pickled onions 1 large red onion, thinly sliced 1 cup apple cider vinegar 1 cup white vinegar 2 cups water ⅓ cup sugar 2 tablespoons coarse salt

Place the onions in a jar or container.

Heat vinegar, water, sugar, and salt over medium heat until completely dissolved.

Allow to cool slightly and pour over the sliced onions. Set aside to cool to room temperature. They will be tender, bright pink, and ready to eat in about an hour.

To assemble tacos: Char your tortillas on the grill or directly over the eye on your stovetop. Spread the tortillas with a few spoonfuls of pimento cheese. Top with the lime slaw. Add a catfish filet coarsely broken into pieces. Top with the pickled onions and if desired, add a sprinkling of feta cheese.

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GarnisHes: Mango, peach, or pineapple salsas add an interesting layer of flavor to everyday tacos.

CHEESY OVEN-BAKED CHICKEN TACOS Store-bought condiments and seasoning mixes make this an easy weeknight option for a crowd. Serves 6.

2 tablespoons olive oil 1 pound ground chicken ½ large onion, chopped 1 8 to 12 packet store-bought taco dinner kit with soft com tortillas (or hard taco shells, if preferred) 2 cups shredded Mexican cheese 1 recipe cilantro-lime ranch dressing (see recipe) 1 container store-bought mango or peach salsa

Cilantro-lime ranch dressing ½ cup plain Greek yogurt or sour cream ⅓ cup mayonnaise 2 tablespoons fresh lime juice 1 cup fresh cilantro 1 teaspoon finely chopped jalapeño, if desired 1 teaspoon onion powder 1 teaspoon garlic powder

Mix all ingredients together in a small bowl and set aside until ready to serve. May be made ahead and kept in the refrigerator.

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Drizzle oil in a large skillet and heat. Add chicken and onion, cooking and breaking up meat as it cooks. Add packet of seasoning and about ½ cup of water. Allow liquid to cook out.

If using tortillas: On a paper-lined sheet pan, lay out tortillas and rub with olive oil.

Layer with cheese and chicken mixture, then fold the tortilla in half—a second sheet pan may be placed on top of folded tortillas to keep them flat while they bake, if needed.

Bake about 15 to 20 minutes, until cheese is melted and tortilla is browned.

If using hard taco shells: Line the shells up on a sheet pan or in a 9x13 inch baking dish. Bake about 5 minutes. Divide the meat among each taco shell and top with cheese. Bake 10 minutes, until the cheese has melted.

Serve the tacos topped with ranch, avocado, cilantro, and a dollop of salsa.

POBLANO SHRIMP AND SWEET POTATO TACOS We love the rich, peppery flavor of the poblano, blended with the roasted sweetness of the potatoes in these elevated tacos. Serves 6.

Roasted sweet potatoes 2 medium sweet potatoes, peeled and cubed 2 to 3 tablespoons olive oil 2 teaspoons chili powder salt and pepper to taste

Preheat oven to 430 degrees. Place the sweet potatoes on baking sheet and drizzle with the olive oil. Sprinkle with seasonings and toss until evenly coated in oil, and arrange them in a single layer. Bake about 30 minutes turning halfway through, to be sure all sides are caramelized.

Sauteed shrimp and peppers

Always make extra roasted sweet potatoes!

They are a delicious addition to salads, tacos, and alongside scrambled eggs for breakfast.

½ pound shrimp, peeled and deveined 1 medium poblano pepper, seeded and cut into strips 2 tablespoons salsa verde 1½ teaspoons cumin 1½ teaspoons chili powder salt to taste 2 cups shredded Monterey Jack cheese 1 recipe cilantro-lime ranch dressing (see recipe) 6 soft tortillas

While sweet potatoes are roasting, mix shrimp and remaining ingredients in a bowl; set aside a few minutes to allow flavors to blend. Sauté in a skillet over mediumhigh heat until shrimp are nicely browned and peppers tender.

To assemble tacos: Carefully char tortillas over stovetop flame. Sprinkle warm tortillas with a layer of Monterey Jack cheese. Add shrimp and pepper mixture and a spoonful of potatoes. Drizzle with a dollop of ranch dressing and top with chopped avocado and a sprinkle of fresh cilantro.

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HISTORY

D. Robinson home, Friars Point, known as the Minie Ball House.

The Test of Time FRIARS POINT’S OLDEST HOME IS CENTRAL TO THE HISTORY OF THE TOWN AND COAHOMA COUNTY

BY MARY LEE MCKEE • AUSTIN BRITT PHOTOGRAPHY

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HERE’S A SPECIAL HOUSE IN FRIARS POINT THAT ALSO HAPPENS TO BE THE OLDEST HOUSE IN TOWN—BUT IT IS MUCH MORE THAN THAT. It is the nexus of so many stories and histories, of first-generation Americans and multi-generational Coahomians, of progress and endurance, of war, Ole Man River and his levees. The history of the house begins with a Mr. Robinson. But the story goes back to the origins of Coahoma County.

M.M. PAINTER COLLECTION

T

In 1844, James Dardis Robinson, the son of an Irish immigrant, travelled down the Mississippi on a trading boat and landed in the port town of Delta, Mississippi, where, according to his granddaughter Mary Fisher Robinson, he built a log building and sold coal. Delta doesn’t exist anymore but there is a cemetery bearing the name, Delta Cemetery, near the southwest tip of Moon Lake. Once upon a time Delta was a busy landing at the mouth of the Yazoo Pass, important enough to earn the distinction of becoming Coahoma County’s government

seat in 1842, the young county’s second seat.

Coahoma County was established in 1836, when enterprising adventurers were buying and clearing swaths of land that had recently been made available by the Treaty of Dancing Rabbit Creek. Even Andrew Jackson purchased 1100 acres in Coahoma County. Another entrepreneur was William John Oldham who purchased what is now a portion of Stovall Farms, the oldest operating farm in Coahoma County.

Oldham, his wife, Nancy Carver Oldham, and their four daughters, moved from South

Current owners of the Minie Ball House, L.C. and Essie Carver.

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Carolina. In 1839, an illness ravaged the Oldham household, taking the lives of three of the four daughters. Having met her limit, Nancy Carver decided to return to South Carolina. “Before departing Mississippi,” the Stovall Gin Company website explains, “she offered the slaves she had brought with her from South Carolina the choice to either return to South Carolina with her or to remain in Mississippi as freed men.” Carver gave each freedman 40 acres and built a church, Oak Ridge Missionary Baptist Church, which still worships today. More than twenty years prior to the Emancipation Proclamation, freedmen, many of whom took Nancy’s surname, Carver, were farming their own land. To this day, there are Carvers who still own some of that land.

It was near that community, at a bend in the river, now Horseshoe Lake, where another river landing settlement was established. Port Royal was likely named by Oldham who was from a town by the same name in South Carolina. Purportedly, this settlement, which existed since at least 1833, is where Clarksdale’s founder, John Clark, landed when he first arrived in the area.

When the county was established, the new government designated Port Royal as the first county seat. But it would not last even a decade as county seat because the river would flood it in 1841, cutting it off entirely at the horseshoe. So in 1842, the county seat was moved to Delta where, two years later, Mr. Robinson would set up his coal shop.

While in Delta, Robinson married Catherine Elizabeth Morton, the daughter of a Delta judge. The Robinsons eventually moved to Farrar’s Point which would, after many decades of debate and contention, become Friars Point.

Like many settlers of the time, the Robinsons ordered a “pre-fabricated” house, which was an easier way to construct a home 138 | MAY/JUNE 2023

in remote regions. In 1848, a barge loaded with lumber and supplies left Cincinnati and travelled down to Friars Point where the materials would be constructed to become the area’s first two-story frame house. Mary Fisher Robinson claimed that “people came for miles about to view this frame structure.”

As Friars Point continued to grow, the Robinson home was “the center of much social life of that section of the Delta,” Harry Abernathy, former assistant editor of The

The original staircase constructed from the pre-fabricated materials still stands. It led up to what was once a glass observatory, originally installed for watching activity on the river.

Clarksdale Press Register reported. By 1850, Delta, having been gobbled by the river, lost its county seat status to Friars Point, which became the third county seat.

At that time, Friars Point was the center of Coahoma County, the hub of commerce and society, even boasting three newspapers, The Friars Point Delta, Friars Point Gazette and The Weekly Coahomian, which eventually moved to Clarksdale and became

The Clarksdale Daily News. The town would continue to grow and flourish until progress was abruptly halted by the Civil War, episodes of which played out in Friars Point and, more specifically, in the Robinson house. Because the house faced the Mississippi and was equipped with a glass observatory for watching activity on the river, it was seized by Union troops and used as General Napoleon Bonaparte Buford’s headquarters.

Jack Dodson and Flo Larson, both direct descendants of the Robinsons and county residents, shared several Civil War tales that are woven into the Robinson family legacy.

A favorite is the story of Mrs. Robinson hiding a Confederate soldier between the ticking of her bed. When a Union soldier was about to spear her bed with his bayonet, she pointed a gun at him and declared, “I am a Southern lady and I allow no man to molest my bed.” The hidden soldier kept his life. When the town was fired upon by Union gunboats, the Robinson home was struck by a Minié ball, the recently invented bullet that reportedly accounted for ninety percent of Civil War casualties. The house, which still bears the scar of the shot today, became known as the Minie Ball House.

The Minie Ball house would outlast the war, and survived though much of Friars Point was burned down by Union soldiers.

It would continue to house members of the Robinson family as Friars Point recovered and progressed again; and it would endure when the town lost the struggle for dominance to Clarksdale, named county seat in 1930, which had prospered in large part due to the railroad.

Another historic occasion occurred when the levee was built, around 1937. Originally, the house faced the river on First Street, also called Front Street. The levee was built on top of First Street creating the need to turn the house ninety degrees to face Second Street. This monumental task was accomplished by a single gentleman, a dolly, and a mule, inches at a time.

Over the next thirty years, the house would fall into disrepair until it was purchased in 1969 by Johnnie Marinelli for $3000. Like Robinson who built the Minie Ball house, Marinelli was a first generation American whose parents moved to the Delta from Italy. His father owned a store outside of Friars Point. When Marinelli bought the antebellum home, it was in such poor condition that he planned to tear it down and build on the lot. But as demolition

The river is directly behind a little Minie Ball house, just over the levee.

Flooding was clearly an ever-present danger before the Levee was built.

Upon close inspection, the levee, built in 1937 is visible, only yards behind the house, which originally faced the river. The home was manually turned a full 90 degrees out of necessity, after the levee was built on top of First Street.

Additional gingerbread trim was added by Marinelli to the porch roof.

began, he realized the exceptional quality of She laughs, “It’s built like a brick house, will carry on the tradition of family and a the house and decided instead to launch a even though it’s made of wood,” says love for the history means the world to me.” massive renovation. The house was saved McKee. Indeed, L.C. sees his property ownership as from ruin and the Marinelli’s occupied it for L.C. and Essie have enjoyed making part of a bigger picture. What he really wants three decades. some needed renovations to Minie Ball and is to contribute to the well-being of Friars Coming full circle, given the house’s at the time of this writing, L.C. was busy Point. “We’re trying to do a lot in the town,” legacy of endurance, it is fitting that its planting flowers in the front yard. “I want to he says with genuine excitement. “My current owner traces his lineage back to the keep it beautiful.” However, his love is not father-in-law is moving here from Texas and beginnings of Coahoma County. L.C. has already started a business, MBJ Carver grew up in Stovall, as did his Enterprises. We want to help bring parents L.C. and Mary Carver, his business to Friars Point.” He declares aunts and uncles, his grandparents that “everyone wants to see the town Alma and Nowillie Carver, his great grow.” When asked what that will grandfather, “Mr. Monk” Carver, and take, L.C. is quick to reply, ancestors all the way back to the first “cooperative people.”

Carvers around 1839. He brings to L.C.’s grandfather Alma worked Friars Point some distinctly Stovall with the Stovall family until his death characteristics, like avid in 1993. In his obituary, Alma’s outdoorsmanship and a love for service and friendship were hunting and fishing, hard work and, commended as “a hallmark of similar to the house he now occupies Nancy Carver offered the slaves she had brought with her the Coahoma County hospitality.” L.C.’s choice to either return to South Carolina with her, or to remain with his wife Essie, a spirit of in Mississippi as freedmen. She gave each freedman forty uncle, Freddie Carver, who shares his perseverance. acres and built a church, Oak Ridge Missionary Baptist nephew’s sincere friendliness, testified L.C. purchased the house from Church, which still holds worship services to this day. about his father Alma, “My dad previous owner, Nancy McKee, and taught us a lot. He taught us how to was amazed at how solid the house is. only for the house—it encompasses the love people.”

McKee agrees, recalling that when she first town of which it is a part. “I’m proud to own With hospitality and a love for others as toured the house, her realtor couldn’t a piece of Friars Point and its history.” That a family trait, it won’t be long before the believe its quality, saying that it was the sentiment is what made the sale of the house Minie Ball house becomes more than just an most well-built house she’d seen. “The exciting for McKee. “Friars Point and its historically significant house. It will be a boards don’t creak, the floors are leadership have made a lot of outstanding home with a lot of heart that just might be incredible, you can’t hear through the changes in the last year,” she explains. restored to the center of social life it once walls; everything is extremely well done.”

“Having a local owner in that home who was. DM DELTA MAGAZINE 2023

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EVENTS

Rodney Carrington, June 17

May 6, 7:30 pm

FESTIVALS, MUSIC & FUN THINGS TO DO

Latimer Lakes Park visitdesotocounty.com

May 6, 7:30 pm

Annie

Sista Strut 3K Breast Cancer Walk

Frank Ferrante in an evening with Groucho

Thalia Mara Hall thaliamarahall.net

Lefleur’s Bluff State Park visitjackson.com

Halloran Centre orpheum-memphis.com

May 3, 7:30 pm

Jackson

May 3–6

Horn Lake

Horn Lake

Ultimate Cowboy Series Rodeo

Beale Street Music Festival, May 5–7

May 6, 8 am

May 6, 9 am

Jackson

Southaven

May 6, 8 pm

Memphis

Jackson

Magnolia Fest

Demo Days

Katt Williams: 2023 and Me Tour

Latimer Lakes Park hornlakeevents.com

Southern Thunder Harley-Davidson southernthunderhd.com

Mississippi Coliseum kattwilliamslive.com

May 5–7

Memphis

May 6, 11 am

Vicksburg

May 10, 6 pm

Beale Street Music Festival

Fruhlingsfest (Springfest) 2023

Three Blind Wines

Tom Lee Park memphisinmay.org

Key City Brewing Company visitvicksburg.com

The Powerhouse oxfordarts.com

May 5–June 10

Memphis

Michelangelo’s Sistine Chapel The Exhibit Renasant Convention Center chapelsistine.com

May 6, 11 am

Leland

May 11

31st Annual Leland Crawfish Festival

44th Blues Music Awards

Historic Downtown Leland lelandchamber.com

Renasant Convention Center blues.org

May 6, 3 pm

Memphis

May 11–14

MEM Auto Expo

Gumtree Art & Wine Festival

World Famous Armadillo Festival featuring Marshall Tucker Band

Beale Street kjrproduction.com

Gumtree Museum of Art gumtreeartandwinefestival.com

Hamburg Area Chamber of Commerce hamburgchamber.com

May 6, 7:30

Rachmaninoff and Shostakovich

Boyz II Men

May 6

Cannon Center for the Performing Arts memphissymphony.org

Orpheum Theatre orpheum-memphis.com

May 6

Hamburg

Clarksdale

Clarksdale Caravan Music Festival Cat Head clarksdalecaravan.com

World Famous Armadillo Festival, May 6

Memphis

May 12, 8 pm

May 12–13

Oxford

Memphis

Tupelo

Memphis

Memphis

64th Annual Memphis Greek Festival Annunciation Greek Orthodox Church memphisgreekfestival.com

May 13, 10 am

Jackson

Mississippi Makers Fest Two Mississippi Museums msmakersfest.mdah.ms.gov

May 13, 8:30

Orion 5k Downtown Memphis raceroster.com 140 | MAY/JUNE 2023

Memphis

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May 14

Cleveland

Pour Mississippi Beer and Music Festival Downtown Cleveland keepclevelandboring.com

Jackson

My Morning Jacket Thalia Mara Hall thaliamarahall.net

Cleveland

Grammy Museum MS grammymuseumms.org

Memphis

World Championship Barbecue Cooking Contest

Jackson

Museum After Hours Food Truck Festival MS Museum of Art msmuseumart.org

Memphis

Jason Bonham’s Led Zeppelin Evening Graceland Soundstage gracelandlive.com

Duling Hall dulinghall.com

Downtown Vicksburg visitvicksburg.com

Hernando

Antique Auto Show

Tunica

Little River Band Horseshoe Casino tunicatravel.com

Southaven

Dwight Yoakam with special guest Aaron Lewis

Memphis

Chelsea Handler: Little Big Bitch Tour Graceland Soundstage gracelandlive.com

Clarksdale

Women In Blues Festival May 20

Tunica

Southern Soul Black Invitational Rodeo Tunica Arena & Expo tunicatravel.com

Memphis

Southaven

June 8–10

Memphis

Great American River Run Expo

June 8–10 Clarksdale

Whispering Woods Hotel & Conference Center midsouthnostalgiafestival.com

Shack Up Inn songkick.com

June 9–10 Oxford

World Championship Old Time Piano Playing Contest & Festival University of Mississippi Music Building oldtimepianocontest.com

May 27–28

Brandon

Widespread Panic

June 1–4

June 2–3

June 3, 5:30 pm

Aisling Farm mississippimoonfestival.bandzoogle.com

June 9–11

Grenada

Thunder On Water Festival Grenada Lake thunderonwater.org

Starkville

Greater Tuna Greenville

Starkville Community Theatre starkville.org

June 10

Memphis

Juneteenth the Musical Stage Play Jackson

Orpheum Theatre orpheum-memphis.com

June 10, 3 pm

Jackson

Mississippi Pickle Fest Cleveland

MS Agriculture & Forestry Museum msagmuseum.org

A Night in the Arts

June 10, 5 pm

Delta Arts Alliance deltaartsalliance.org

Disciple Fest ’22 Southaven

Vicksburg

Zion Traveler Church visitvicksburg.com

June 10, 7 pm

Walk for Life–Women’s Resource Center

Gary Allan & Tracy Lawrence 2023 Summer Tour

Historic Downtown–Walking Trail friendsofwrccleveland.com

BankPlus Amphitheater at Snowden Grove bankplusamphitheater.com

Vicksburg Convention Center visitvicksburg.com

142 | MAY/JUNE 2023

Olive Branch

Mississippi Moon Festival

June 9–13

“To Kill A Mockingbird”

June 3, 7 pm Cleveland

Olive Branch

MidSouth Nostalgia Festival

Goat Fest 2023

Cathead Distillery catheadjam.com

May 20, 8 am

Greenville

The Steve Azar Delta Soul Celebrity Golf and Charity Event steveazarsaintceciliafoundation.org

Memphis in May memphisinmay.org

Cathead Jam

Hernando Courthouse Square hernandooptimist.org

Tupelo

Tupelo Elvis Festival

BankPlus Amphitheater at Snowden Grove davematthewsband.com

Shelby Farms Park mammothmarch.com

Hernando

Vicksburg

Miss Mississippi Preliminary

Tupelo Main Street tupeloelvisfestival.com

Mammoth March

49th Annual A’Fair Arts & Crafts Festival/ Memorial 5k Run/Walk

June 7, 7 pm

Dave Matthews Band

Delta Center Stage deltastage.com

May 20

Memphis

Ryan Adams and the Cardinals

June 7–11

Brandon Amphitheater brandonamphitheater.com

womeninblues.org

June 6, 7:30 pm

Vicksburg Convention Center visitvicksburg.com

May 26–28

May 19, 7:30 pm

Vicksburg

Orpheum Theatre orpheum-memphis.com

Hernando Courthouse Square mealsonwheelshernando.com

May 26–28

May 19

June 5, 7 pm

Miss Mississippi Parade

May 26, 7 am

May 18, 8 pm

May 20, 7:30 am

Jackson

The Molly Ringwalds

May 24, 7:30 pm

May 18, 5 pm

May 19–20

MS Museum of Art msmuseumart.org

BankPlus Amphitheater bankplusamphitheater.com

Tom Lee Park memphisinmay.org

Jackson

Brandon Amphitheater brandonamphitheater.com

May 23

May 17–20

June 3–August 12

How We Get Over: We Grow On

May 21, 2 pm

Big Night with Women in the Round

Brandon

Alabama with The Frontmen

May 20, 9 pm

May 15, 8 pm

May 16, 5:30 pm

May 20, 7 pm

Miss Mississippi Crowning

Vicksburg

This is physical jumps and mental leaps.

This is the discipline, the art, the passion, the world, on one stage.

And it all comes down to this.

THIS IS BALLET. THIS IS JACKSON.

JUNE 10 – 24 2023 TICKETS: USAIBC.COM/ATTEND OR 601.973.9249 Julia Rust USA IBC 2018 Silver Medalist Joffery Ballet

June 10, 8 pm

Memphis

Eddie B–Teacher’s Only Comedy Tour Orpheum Theatre orpheum-memphis.com

June 11, 7:30 pm

Memphis

Women of Soul Halloran Centre orpheum-memphis.com

June 13, 7:30

Brandon

James Taylor Brandon Amphitheater brandonamphitheater.com

June 16–17

Olive Branch

Light the Way Music Festival 2023 Olive Branch City Park lightthewayministry.com

June 17

Greenville

Hotter Than Hades Half-Marathon Downtown Greenville visitgreenville.org

June 17

Tunica

Rodney Carrington Horseshoe Casino tunicatravel.com

June 17, 10 am

Vicksburg

Vicksburg Juneteenth Heritage Festival Halls Ferry Park visitvicksburg.com

June 18, 7 pm

TODD&CO

Southaven

Fantasia Landers Center landerscenter.com

June 19

Greenville

MS Delta Black Farmers Co-op Annual Juneteenth Farmers Festival Downtown Greenville visitgreenville.org

June 22–July 2

Memphis

Disney’s Frozen Orpheum Theatre orpheum-memphis.com

June 23

Tunica

Anthony Jeselnik Gold Strike Casino Resort tunicatravel.com

June 23

Southaven

Dwight Yoakam Live in Concert BankPlus Amphitheater at Snowden Grove bankplusamphitheater.com

June 24–25

Jackson

Mississippi Comic Con MS Trade Mart mississippicomiccon.com

June 25, 3 pm

Craft, Food, and Wine Festival Columns at One Commerce Square citytastingexperiences.com 144Todd&Co | MAY/JUNE 2023 Apr10 ad ArtDining.indd 1

4/6/2023 1:56:41 PM

Memphis

June 25, 7 pm

Southaven

Big Time Rush “Can’t Get Enough Tour” BankPlus Amphitheater at Snowden Grove bankplusamphitheater.com

LITERARY EVENTS Karen Cecile Davidson

The Geography of First Kisses May 1, 5 pm: Lemuria Books, Jackson

Suzanne Craig Robertson with Bill Haltom

He Called Me Sister: A True Story of Finding Humanity on Death Row

May 1, 6 pm: Novel, Memphis Simon Winchester

Knowing What We Know–The Transmission of Knowledge: From Ancient Wisdom to Modern Magic May 2, 5 pm: Lemuria Books, Jackson Katy Simpson Smith

The Weeds May 2, 5:30: Off Square Books, Oxford May 4, 5 pm: The Eudora Welty House, Jackson

We Are A Haunting

May 6, 2 pm: Novel, Memphis

May 16, 6 pm: Off Square Books, Oxford

Lee Durkee

Hezehiah Watkins

Stalking Shakespeare: A Memoir of Madness, Murder, and My Search for the Poet Beneath the Paint

Pushing Forward: The Story of Mississippi’s Youngest Freedom Rider

May 9, 5 pm: Lemuria Books, Jackson

A.J. Wolfe

Michael Farris Smith

Salvage This World

Tyriek White in conversation with Deesha Philyaw

Theresa Levitt in conversation with Aimee Nezhukumatathil

May 18, 6 pm: Robinson-Carpenter Memorial Library, Cleveland

The Aether Chronicles: Rebellium May 20, 12 pm: Lemuria Books, Jackson

Elixir: A Parisian Perfume House and The Quest for the Secret of Life

Adriane Johnson-Williams

May 9, 5:30 pm: Off Square Books, Oxford

May 23, 6 pm: Novel, Memphis

Tom Piazza

Ruta Sepetys

The Auburn Conference

Not Your Father’s Capitalism

You: The Story

May 10, 5 pm: Lemuria Books, Jackson

May 25, 5:30 pm: Off Square Books, Oxford

Matthew Ruddick

Chris Offutt in conversation with Michael Farris Smith

Funkiest Man Alive: Rufus Thomas and Memphis Soul

Code of The Hills

May 11, 5 pm: Lemuria Books, Jackson

June 13, 5:30 pm: Off Square Books, Oxford

Robert Hitt Neill

Poly Stewart with Ace Atkins

The Book of Betsy

The Good Ones

May 13, 12 pm: Lemuria Books, Jackson

June 13, 6 pm: Novel, Memphis

Bruce Meisterman

Susan Cushman

The Light Inerrant

All Night, All Day

May 16, 6 pm: Novel, Memphis

June 20, 6 pm: Novel, Memphis DM

Elizabeth Passarella

It Was An Ugly Couch Anyway May 2, 6 pm: Novel, Memphis Allie Stuart Povall

Union Warriors at Sunset: The Lives of Twenty Commanders After the War May 6, 12 pm: Lemuria Books, Jackson

DELTA MAGAZINE 2023

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DELTA SEEN

Leland Deer Creek Garden Club 100th Anniversary Celebration at the Capps Center in Stoneville on April 5 Photos by Beth Giachelli

Stephanie Patton, Margaret Walker Hays, and Eloise Cumbaa

Beth O’Reilly, Margaret Baird, and Sherry Spragins

Margaret Baird, Ellen Daniels, and Merry Anne Jones

Billy and Cindy Johnson

Eloise Cumbaa, Dean Cumbaa, and Lanie Bridewell

Wilma and Bob Wilbanks with Ellen Ann Johnson

Susan Moore, Margaret DuBoise, and Ann Dickens

Kay Boone, Mary Adcock, Dottie Lowe, and Evelyn Fratesi

Angie Zepponi, Sarah Smythe, and Mary Catherine Jamie Murrell and Jami Smith Brooks

Debbie Boykin and Ann Kelly 146 | MAY/JUNE 2023

Mary Ann Brocato and Deborah Steen

Dr. Jimmy Hays and Margaret Walker Hays

Lanie Bridewell and Eloise Cumbaa

Ronda Schiefer and Anne Austin Donna Beckham and Kay Newsom

DELTA SEEN

Cleveland Junior Auxiliary Children’s Benefit Ball at the Bolivar County Expo Center in Cleveland on February 17 Photos by William Powell Photography

Queen, Vicki Pentecost and King, Danny Whalen

Hayden Robinson, Ann Elise Neblett, and Mary Courtland Crews

Michael McRae Stanford, Joseph Pearson Burd, Frances Elizabeth Selman, Turner Louise Pentecost, Molly Cathryn Whalen, Poppy Louise Rosson, Harper Mae Satterfield, Mary Milton Burd, and Riggs Walt Rosson

Sara Peyton Edwards, Davis Warrington, Ella Fioranelli, Homer Sledge IV, Mary Michael Fioranelli, John Brennan Capocaccia, Mary Cambre Lee, Rhett McKnight, Price Rosson, Leah Ferretti, Haley Chaney, Sandee King, Ellen Fiser, Ann Riley Cotton, John Christopher Cox, Marleigh Mancini, Reid McKnight, Kate Rae Crews, Georgia Tindall, Stephanie Melton, Joannah Taylor, and Griffin, Charlie Moore, and Anna Scott Gant Lindsay Brown

Front Row: Turner Pentecost, Frances Selman. Back Row: Dr. John Turner, IV, Susan Turner, Lea Turner, John Turner, III, Oliva Turner, Jacquie Turner, Michael Fancher, Vicki Pentecost, Ben Pentecost, Tilley Selman, Ryan Selman, Ann Turner Selman, Swayze Pentecost, Will Pentecost, Ben Pentecost, III

Amber Kincaid and Dr. Bob Ragan

Andrew, Molly Cate, Emily, Thomas, Tammy, Danny, Ben, Sara, and Adam Whalen

Kelly Cardelli, Marcia Houser, Sydney DeFillips, Jamey and Gary Gainspoletti, Jennifer Pongetti, Lainey Aldridge, and Brandyn Skeen

Will Howarth, Laura Abraham, Lee Howarth, and Claire Wilson DELTA MAGAZINE 2023

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DELTA SEEN

Music Tourism Convention in Cleveland on April 11-13 Photos by Anna Satterfield and Gunner Sizemore

Don Alan Mitchell and Shelly Ritter

Toyo Bagoso and Bubba O'Keefe

Scott Beretta and Tricia Walker

Byron Nash and Annelise Martinez

Bootsie Lyon and Connie Cossar

Margie Collins and John Elliot

Bib Balenchia and Debbie Hutchinson

Terry Routman and Susan Denton

Eric Kelly, Sean Johnson, Becky Nowell, and Debbie Hutchinson

Sophie Streitboerger, Dr. Wolfgang Streitboerger, Lee Aylward, and Rachel Obermeier

Peter Jasso, Nick Gutierrez, and MyKenzy Norman Amy Keifenheim, Kelsie McCrary and Lacey Chataignier

GT and Orson Weems

148 | MAY/JUNE 2023

Desira Warrington, Haley Kelly, and Hannah Aguzzi

Becky Nowell, Leah Ross, and Billy Nowell

Jeff Lorenzo and Anthony Scarlati

Beverly Janoush and Lynn Shurden

DELTA SEEN

Luke Jones, Sandra Perrens, Cristina Peregrina, and Pablo Borchi

Connor Huggins, Jeffrey Laurenzo, and Ryan Betz

Willie Simmons, Jon Hornyak, and Shain Shapiro

Bubba O’Keefe and Kelli Williams

Deana McCloud, Reid Wick, and Emily Havens

Betsy Aguzzi, Michael Hackney, and Debbie Hutchison

Willie Simmons and Danny Abraham

Becky Nowell and Hannah Aguzzi

Maggie Lowery, Connie Cossar, Yvonne Layton, and Michael Jones

Lauren and Ben Powell

Sheretha Bell and Pablo Borchi

Nick Gutierrez, Mykenzy Norman, Stephanie Riley, Callie Cooper, Lizzie Lafont, and Emily Muse

Jeri Hudgins, Pam Ikard, Nena Murrell, Charlene Steed, and Donna Lauderdale

Maribeth Crews and Libbi Logan

Martin Turner, John Christopher Cox, and Holden Cooke

Adam, River, and Samantha Johnson DELTA MAGAZINE 2023

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DELTA SEEN

DeadSoxy Rebel Road Trip at GRAMMY Museum MS on April 3 Photos by Gunner Sizemore

Mississippi State Road Dawgs Tour at the Cotton House Hotel on April 19

Patrick Wessel, Homer Sledge IV, Lane Kiffin, Luke Ward, Will Clark, and John Christopher Cox

Elizabeh Gray Havens, Nancy Havens, Lane Kiffin, and Anna Patrick Havens

Sam Dunning, Mike Sanders and Jim Tims

Allen and Callie Towles

150 | MAY/JUNE 2023

Photos by Andy Collier

James Glorioso, Lane Kiffin, and Layton Glorioso

Hunter, Ann, Elizabeth, and Sims Nowell with Lane Kiffin

Stephanie Jones with Molly Cate and Tammy Whalen

Mike Belenchia, Camile Walton, and Lane Kiffin

Tommy Whatley, Lane Kiffin, and Penny Whatley

Dee and Gina Haynes with Carmen and Cetin Oguz

Seated (from left) Harry McCarley, Jarrett Mills, John Land, (back row from left) Ben Moore, Paul McCarley, John Philip Land, Paul McCarley, John Philip Land and Gary Blair.

Juan Rivera and Celeste Turner

DELTA SEEN

A Collection of Photos from Delta Magazine Readers

Ben and Anna Ryan Angel, Mississippi Levee Board Commissioners Katherine Crump and Hank Burdine with Chief Engineer Peter Nimrod aboard MV Mississippi V

Kara Dulaney, Lanier and Robin Hurdle, Patrick and Anna Booth Weems, Stacye Trout, Olivia Dunning, and Brenda Smith

Kirkham Povall, Johnny Henson, George Fair and Richard Noble attending Ole Miss Law School Reunion celebrating fifty years since graduation

Howard Brent, Captain Gary Hines and Betty Jo Brent Boyd aboard the MV Mississippi V

Mississippi Tourism Association Executive Board members: Marlo Dorsey, Danielle Cox Morgan, Chris Chapman, Christy Burns, and Laura Beth Strickland

Aubry and Alan Lucas, Ronnie Myers, and Kent Wyatt

Amy Wheeler and Steven Smith, Mary Helen Varner, Frances Varner and Will Hardman at the Annual Big Band Bash in Cleveland

Erik, Laura, and Prentiss Howell in Amsterdam

John and Sharon Aguzzi, Regina Howarth, and Joe Aguzzi at the Annual Big Band Bash in Cleveland DELTA MAGAZINE 2023

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Thefinalword

Driving the Delta

BY STAFFORD SHURDEN

here is nothing like a summer drive in the Mississippi Delta.

Historic Highway 61 from Vicksburg to The Peabody in Memphis, or Highway 49 that can take you all the way to the Mississippi Sound. The first two-lane paved road in the Delta was between Ruleville and Drew. The older generation tells me people used to drive from all over to see a two-lane road. Our roads are long and straight and a great place for a young person to learn to drive.

My first drive was in Daddy’s 1980 something El Camino. He was planting cotton and I was his shadow as usual. We had walked across the field on the old Smith Place about a quarter of a mile digging in the rich Delta soil to make sure the cotton seed was the proper depth for that white gold. Dad asked me to go get the truck. I had never driven before. I don’t remember if I was nervous but I am sure I was. It was my first taste of Delta freedom and I loved it.

Soon after, I got a three wheeler and then a four wheeler. I would leave at dawn most summer days and meet up with my friends. We would certainly have a fishing pole. We’d drive all over creation and come in long after dark. I am not sure how my sweet momma handled it—us gone for hours and no way to know where or who we were with. We’d fish Long Lake, the Sunflower, or Quiver, and sometimes Mr. Red Parker would let us fish one of his catfish ponds out on Lost 40. If we weren’t catching anything, he would come by with some fish feed and make the fish boil to the surface like the fried hushpuppies in grease we’d cook up with the fish later.

It was a great childhood.

T

Stafford Shurden of Drew is a fourth generation Delta farmer, restaurateur, writer, and renowned eater.

152 | MAY/JUNE 2023

As an adult, my love for driving this alluvial plane has not waivered. It is my time to clear the cobwebs of my mind.

Many a great Delta sunset has been seen through the windshield of my pickup truck. Many an idea has passed through my mind as the rows of cotton, corn, and soybeans pass the corner of my eye, stripping away the cares and troubles of the day. Drives like that leave only the good stuff.

A particular favorite drive of mine is Highway 35 from Batesville to Charleston. The winding highway weaving its way in and out of the Delta, up and down between two worlds—the dichotomy of a world that won’t quite let you go. Highway 35 pulls you up a hill and out of the Delta only to plop you right back down again. It seems that is the story for so many of us from here. We leave. We come back. We leave. We cannot stay gone.

A drive through the Delta is like a drive right through history. The crumbling sharecropper’s shacks that line our roads and the patchwork fields of green. The old cotton gins and shiny new grain bins. It is hard to tell if the Delta is coming or going. Even with the radio off I can hear the cry of a blues guitar, and the Friday night cheers for a kid named Archie.

Like an old Tennessee Williams play, there is something mysterious at work here in the Delta that only a summer drive can reveal. It is one of those things that can’t be put on paper. You can only know it if you take that steering wheel and point it down a dusty road at sunset with the windows down. Feel the wind. Smell the dirt. Hear the Delta. DM

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