Delta blues trip advice

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Dockery Plantation was a 10,000-acre cotton plantation and sawmill in Dockery, Mississippi on the Sunflower River between Ruleville and Cleveland, Mississippi. It is widely regarded as the place where Delta blues music was born. Blues musicians residents at Dockery included Charlie Patton, Robert Johnson and Howlin' Wolf. The property was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 2006.

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Charley Patton and his family are believed to have moved around 1900 to the Dockery Plantation, where he came under the influence of an older musician, Henry Sloan. In turn, Patton became the central figure of a group of blues musicians including Willie Brown, Tommy Johnson, and Eddie "Son" House, who played around the local area. Because of its location, central to Sunflower County's black population of some 35,000 in 1920, the plantation became a known centre for informal musical entertainment. By the mid-1920s, the group widened to include a younger generation of musicians including Robert Johnson, Chester "Howlin' Wolf" Burnett, Roebuck "Pops" Staples, and David "Honeyboy" Edwards. Some of these were itinerant workers while others lived more permanently on the farms.

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Visiting Dockery Farms

Dockery Farms is open year round and can be visited at any time. Most of the farm's notable spaces are outdoors and can be viewed by taking a walk across the property. You don't need special permission unless you'd like to arrange a tour. Don't miss a chance to hear Charley Patton sing for you while you're ambling about and soaking in the history. Go to the back of the property to the building farthest away from the highway; there you'll find a pedestal with an audio button to push and hear Patton's distinctive voice.

If you'd like to arrange a tour, please contact Bill Lester at 662-719-1048 or by email.

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