We left the New Orleans area and turned the Tincan north to Oxford, Mississippi. Oxford has an interesting history. It’s home to the University of Mississippi (Ole Miss), where in 1962 James Meredith integrated the university. Oxford was also the home of the author William Faulkner.
We camped about 30 minutes south of town in an Army Corp of Engineers campground called Persimmon Hill on Enid Lake. This was a great stop, the Army Corp campgrounds are very spacious and often have sewer hookups. This one had hiking, biking and fishing.
We drove into town and were taken aback by the traffic and people wandering around. The Ole Miss baseball team is the defending US Collegiate Champions and they were playing their rivals LSU over the weekend. In addition, Morgan Wallen (we had to ask who he was) was playing two large stadium shows as well. He’s a country artist which explained all the cowboy boots and hats. In spite of the crowds we were able to do most of what we had planned other than wander the University campus.
Faulkner never taught at Ole Miss and only attended for three semesters before quitting. However, the University maintains the house and does tours.
We realized we were only an hour away from the National Civil Rights Museum in Memphis. We’ve wanted to visit for awhile so we took advantage of our proximity to make it happen.
The museum is built around the former Lorraine Motel where Dr. Martin Luther King was murdered in 1968. The museum opened in 1991 and has exhibits that trace the US civil rights movement from the 17th century to the present. The museum is very well done and worth checking out.
While we ended our stay in Mississippi on a somber note we enjoyed our visit and are sure to return. But it’s time to pack up and head to Kentucky.
Tincan Travels 