Discover Yazoo City

If you are interested in historic architecture, museums, and literary history, you can include a range of themes in your travel plans for Yazoo City. The city combines a cohesive historic district with individual buildings, collections, and places of remembrance. The landscape and public art also add their own touches. Before your trip, you can decide whether architectural history, literature, or local stories should especially shape your stay.

Historic architecture in Yazoo City

The Yazoo City Town Center Historic District is a cohesive, architecturally significant collection of buildings. It represents 150 years of small-scale urban development and includes residential and commercial areas. You can explore the district on walking or driving tours. This brings the focus not only to individual buildings but also to the different areas that make up the historic city center.

One distinctive building is the Triangle Cultural Center. It was built in early 1904 as Yazoo’s Main Street School. Facing Main Street, its façade features a monumental portico with massive modified Ionic columns. The building also houses the William Duke Carter Collection of Antique Tools. The building’s history and its collection offer two different ways to explore the site.

The Sam Olden Historical Museum focuses on other subjects. Its exhibits include the Civil War, the 1904 Yazoo City fire, the 1927 flood, and the daily lives of Yazoo’s early residents. The topics range from major events to everyday life in earlier times.

The B.S. Ricks Memorial Library is also part of the city’s cultural heritage. It is the oldest public library building still in use in the state of Mississippi. Because of its connection to author Willie Morris, it is also designated a Mississippi Literary Landmark. The Oakes House adds to this picture: it was home to members of the Oakes family for more than a century and now houses the Oakes African-American Cultural Center. Another architectural landmark is Bethel African Methodist Episcopal Church, the first brick church in Mississippi built by African Americans.

Literature and local stories

Literary tributes can be found at several sites. The Henry Herschel Brickell Memorial Yazoo Literary Walkway honors more than 100 people from Yazoo who have contributed to the literary world. The B.S. Ricks Memorial Library’s designation as a Literary Landmark also points to literary history, in this case its connection to Willie Morris.

Glenwood Cemetery has been in existence since at least 1856. It is home to the grave known as “The Witch’s Grave.” The grave is associated with the legend that a witch burned Yazoo City in 1904. Willie Morris made the legend known through a book. The story is part of local lore and offers a distinctive way to explore Yazoo City’s accounts of the past.

Views and public art

Broadway Hill offers a different perspective on the surrounding area: it drops more than 200 feet from Battle Road to Main Street. From there, you can enjoy views of Yazoo City’s historic district and the Mississippi Delta. This adds a distinct landscape feature to your plans, alongside the buildings and museums.

Several murals can be found in the historic business district, and colorful guitar-shaped artworks line historic Main Street. Public art can change. If these works are important to your visit, check in advance to see what is currently on display. With its architecture, museum exhibits, literary sites, and visual impressions, Yazoo City offers a range of cultural highlights to help you decide what to focus on during your stay.

For the broader travel overview: Yazoo County.