6 Surprisingly Splendid Downtown Memphis Museums!

I’m willing to bet that you have either not heard of these 6 wonderful downtown Memphis, Tennessee museums, or you have not visited all 6! Maybe it’s because they are hidden jewels amongst larger attractions, or maybe most folks believe they’re just children’s museums. Nonetheless, these history museums all reside in beautiful downtown Memphis, they’re all small and cozy, they’re more affordable to enjoy than some of the larger facilities, AND they contain so much enlightening information! With fall season approaching, Memphis weather is about to be PERFECT for outdoor, downtown walking, just in time for an unexpectedly fantastic, majorly surprising, wonderfully educational experience!

And the nominees for the Six Surprisingly Splendid Downtown Memphis Museums are… Drum roll, please…

1. Fire Museum of Memphis
2. Memphis Rock 'N' Soul Museum
3. Memphis Music Hall of Fame
4. A. Schwab Museum on Beale
5. I-40 Welcome Center of Memphis
6. Cotton Museum ​at the Memphis Cotton Exchange

1.  Fire Museum
​$5 Group Admission (10 or more guests)
The Fire Museum is VERY informative and educational and wonderfully provides essential fire safety information that people of all ages should learn! It is filled with engaging presentations of information about what to do and not to do in the case of fire, inviting displays of the history of fire stations in Memphis, and cleverly productive hands-on games and activities testing and reinforcing the importance of fire safety. It’s one of the BEST, more effectively informative, little known (or advertised) museums in Memphis!

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2.  Memphis Rock ’N Soul Museum
Free for Shelby County, TN residents on Tuesdays from 2 to 7 p.m.
Adjacent to the FedEx Forum, this surprisingly fun, informative, and insightful Memphis Rock 'N' Soul Museum offers an extensive presentation of Memphis’s music history, but on a smaller, quaint, personal scale (than say the Stax Museum). The best part about this museum experience is that it’s self-guided with individual interactive headphone systems that correspond to certain tracks or numbers on each display you choose to learn more about. Go at your own pace! The images, articles, photos, sets, displays are all beautifully presented and well-organized. Unbelievably excellent and chock-full of lotttts of edifying history!

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3.  Memphis Music Hall of Fame
Free for Shelby County, TN residents on Tuesdays from 2 to 7 p.m.
Adjacent to the Hard Rock Cafe on Beale Street, the Memphis Music Hall of Fame is another jewel hidden amongst us. Patrons will be amazed at the wonderful discoveries of how musicians living right here in Memphis helped shaped the international culture of several music genres! The exhibit displays a variety of never-before-seen memorabilia by famous musicians, snippets of rare live performances and interviews, and so much more, all compact in one cozy, elaborate facility.

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4. A. Schwab Store & Museum
ALWAYS FREE
Located on Beale Street, we stumbled upon this museum on a field trip last spring when we were visiting the store because (1) they are in their original store location, and (2) to experience the Old Fashioned General Store and tasty Soda Fountain that are still being served since 1876! A. Schwab is quite a unique store, “full of delightful regional merchandise and memorabilia - everything from nostalgic toys, cast iron, fine hats, and local made candles to regional souvenirs.” The stairwell up to the second and third floor still creeks, and the ceiling upstairs is low, but the experience was so cool! A. Schwab is the only original establishment still on Beale Street.

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5. I-40 Downtown Welcome Center
ALWAYS FREE!
You will be thoroughly surprised at how beautiful, inviting and information-stocked Visitors Centers can be! We were headed to the Bass Pro Shops at the Pyramid Downtown and stopped in to find brochures on nearby restaurants. Low and behold, we discovered a splendid museum on the Tennessee Civil War, huge statues of Memphis’s own King of Blues - BBKing, and King of Rock n Roll - Elvis Presley, gorgeous 6-ft carousel displays of brochures, splendid views of the Mighty Mississippi River, AND gorgeous pavilions for rest stops facing the river! Phenomenal find!

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6.  Cotton Museum
Admission between $8 and $10 dollars
Excellent, affordable, unsuspecting, all-inclusive complete history on the history of cotton of the Mid South! The amazing museum experience includes videos, wall-to-wall paintings, original photos, Interactive games and displays, and so much more. Though small in size physically, this museum packs a punch with wads of historical, educational information!

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So, of all six nominees, who do you grant the first place winning award to? And why? We toggle between a couple of the museums for first place, depending on what subjects we’re studying at the time because THEY ARE ALL FANTASTIC!

If you live in or near Memphis, Tennessee, or plan to visit for Elvis Week, Memphis in May, Africa in April, or any other annual events, be sure to check out one or all of these museums for a fraction of the cost of larger, more commercial attractions. Drop in on one of the Welcome Centers first for additional attraction pamphlets or brochures. (Check out this video on how to explore your Welcome Center here).

Hopefully you’re encouraged to explore these exciting places, and let us know when you do! Friend and follow us on social media -  Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, and Instagram and YouTube for more fun, educational, artistic adventures to enjoy and explore. Thanks for reading!

​“Do or do not. There is no try.”
Yoda

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