Sunflower River Blues & Gospel Festival
The Sunflower River Blues & Gospel Festival, a preeminent showcase for homegrown Mississippi talent, began in 1988 as a promotion to draw area shoppers to downtown Clarksdale. The festival’s dedication to presenting authentic blues soon made it a renowned attraction for blues enthusiasts from around the world, as local favorites began sharing the stage with an international cast of guest stars.
The Sunflower River Blues Festival evolved from the free Holiday Music Festivals sponsored in 1986 and 1987 by the Downtown Association of Clarksdale as a local business promotion. In 1988 the merchants, with the Chamber of Commerce and other organizations, opted for a full-fledged festival, initially called the Sunflower Riverbank Blues Festival, featuring Otis Rush, James “Son” Thomas, Jessie Mae Hemphill, and others on three different stages. A biracial group of volunteers with a mission “to preserve, promote, perpetuate and document the blues in its homeland” formed the nonprofit Sunflower River Blues Association (SRBA) in 1990 and produced the annual festival at various locations around town until the newly constructed Delta Blues Museum (DBM) stage became its primary base. The North Delta Academy of Gospel Music presented its first festival in 1992 and joined with the SRBA in 1993 to form the Sunflower River Blues & Gospel Festival. As a showcase for Mississippi Delta talent in a town seeped in blues history and Southern hospitality, the festival earned widespread acclaim from the worldwide blues community as well as from travel organizations and news media.
During its first twenty-five years the festival presented many acts from around the country and overseas, including musicians from Clarksdale’s sister city, Notodden, Norway, but always maintained its primary focus on blues, soul, and gospel performers with roots in Mississippi. Local bassist Wesley Jefferson’s band played at every festival prior to his death in 2009, and others who appeared numerous times included the Rising Star Fife & Drum Band (led by Othar Turner and later by his granddaughter Sharde Thomas), Big Jack Johnson, Sam Carr, James “Super Chikan” Johnson, Wade Walton, Eddie Cusic, T-Model Ford, C. V. Veal, Pat Thomas, Foster “Mr. Tater” Wiley, Johnnie Billington, Arthneice Jones, Lonnie Shields, John Mohead, Lonnie Pitchford, Robert “Bilbo” Walker, Jimbo Mathus, and Terry “Big T” Williams. Among the repeat headliners were Bobby Rush, Charlie Musselwhite, Denise LaSalle, Otis Clay, Latimore, and Nathaniel Kimble.
The festival played a key role in Clarksdale’s development into a mecca for blues tourists and media, building on cornerstones laid earlier by local juke joints, Wade Walton’s barbershop, and the Delta Blues Museum. More businesses began courting the blues trade, as did new events such as the annual Juke Joint Festival. Clarksdale provided city support for the festival and passed or amended laws to accommodate festival and nightclub activity, and Coahoma County established a tourism commission in 1991. To recognize the efforts of those who have worked on behalf of blues and gospel, the festival began presenting an annual Early Wright Award in 1991 in honor of the legendary Clarksdale deejay, followed by the Julius Guy Award, named for the co-founder of the gospel festiva
The Mississippi Blues Trail markers tell stories through words and images of bluesmen and women and how the places where they lived and the times in which they existed–and continue to exist–influenced their music. The sites run the gamut from city streets to cotton fields, train depots to cemeteries, and clubs to churches. We have a lot to share, and it’s just down the Mississippi Blues Trail.
The Mississippi Blues Trail is an ongoing project of the Mississippi Blues Commission. Funding for this project has been made possible by grants from the National Endowment for the Arts, National Endowment for the Humanities, Mississippi Department of Transportation, the Federal Highway Administration, AT&T, and the Delta Center for Culture and Learning at Delta State University plus additional support from the Mississippi Development Authority Tourism Division.
For more information visit msbluestrail.org.
In 1962, the University of Mississippi, located in Oxford, was the site of a violent confrontation between federal forces and white segregationists over the enrollment of James Meredith, the university's first African American student.
The county was officially established in 1836 and was named after a Native American word meaning "red panther." In the decades that followed, Coahoma County saw a significant influx of settlers, mainly from the southern states, who were drawn to the fertile agricultural lands along the Mississippi Delta.
The economy of the county was heavily dependent on agriculture, with cotton being the primary cash crop. Plantations dominated the landscape, and the county's population grew rapidly due to the demand for labor. However, this growth came at the expense of the enslaved African Americans, who were forcibly brought to the region to work on the plantations.
Coahoma County played a significant role in the Civil Rights Movement of the 20th century. It was the birthplace of influential figures like Aaron Henry, who fought for racial equality and was a prominent leader in the Mississippi State Conference of the NAACP. The county also witnessed the efforts of civil rights activists like Medgar Evers and Fannie Lou Hamer, who organized voter registration drives and challenged segregation.
Today, Coahoma County continues to reflect its rich history through its cultural heritage and music. The city of Clarksdale, located in the county, is known as the birthplace of the blues. It has been home to influential musicians such as Muddy Waters, Sam Cooke, and Ike Turner. The county also houses the Delta Blues Museum, providing visitors with a glimpse into the region's musical heritage and its impact on American culture.
Coahoma County Timeline
This timeline provides a condensed summary of the historical journey of Coahoma County, Mississippi.
- 1836 - Coahoma County is established as a county in the state of Mississippi.
- 1839 - The city of Friars Point is incorporated.
- 1841 - The town of Clarksdale is founded.
- 1882 - The Yazoo-Mississippi Delta Levee District is formed to control flooding.
- 1888 - The Yazoo-Mississippi Delta Levee Board is established to oversee levee construction.
- 1903 - The first railroad arrives in Clarksdale, boosting economic development.
- 1920s - Coahoma County becomes a major center for blues music.
- 1930s - The Great Depression and the boll weevil infestation severely impact Coahoma County's economy.
- 1942 - The Coahoma County Fair is first held.
- 1954 - The "Coahoma County Project" is initiated to promote economic development.
- 1980s - Coahoma County experiences a decline in population and economic activity.
- 2002 - The Delta Blues Museum is designated as a Mississippi Landmark.
- 2011 - The Mississippi Development Authority designates Coahoma County as a "Gulf Opportunity Zone," aimed at stimulating recovery after Hurricane Katrina.