Discover Haywood County
Accommodation in Haywood County
Haywood County combines the expansive natural landscape of the Hatchie River with an unusually diverse musical and cultural history. Those planning a trip involving birdwatching, walks, museums, and regional events will find a range of experiences here for days spent together. When choosing a vacation rental or holiday home, it is therefore worth defining your personal focus: Should the river landscape be the centerpiece, or would you like to combine culture, music, and history?
Nature along the Hatchie River
The Hatchie National Wildlife Refuge extends for 23 miles through Haywood County along the Hatchie River. The protected area is home to more than 100 fish species, 35 mussel species, and 250 bird species. For nature enthusiasts, this creates a destination whose special appeal lies in the combination of river landscape and wildlife. The Hatchie River itself is the longest free-flowing tributary of the lower Mississippi and is 238 miles long overall.
Options range from canoe trips and hiking excursions to an annual youth fishing event. There are also 10 public TWRA boat ramps along the river. Those who enjoy active days can take these details into account when searching for suitable accommodation and planning their own equipment, without having to combine every activity into a fixed itinerary.
Walking Trails and Sporting Experiences
Webb Banks Passive Park features 4,950-foot-long walking trails and informative signage. Another option is the Rockin’ Roll Hatchie Trails: The system consists of five separate trails named after notable musicians from Brownsville. The trails are suitable for mountain biking, hiking, and trail running; one of the trails is suitable for all fitness levels. At every turn, the trails highlight the local music culture of West Tennessee. This allows you to combine exercise with a regional theme rather than experiencing nature separately from the area’s history.
Music, Education, and Regional History
The Dunbar Carver Museum preserves the history of African American education and community life in Haywood County. The exhibition presents the development of local schools from the 1880s through the desegregation of schools in 1970. The West Tennessee Delta Heritage Center complements this focus with more than 8,000 square feet of exhibits on music and cotton in West Tennessee, as well as the Scenic Hatchie River.
The area’s musical history can also be experienced in several locations. The Tina Turner Museum is located in the Flagg Grove School, which was built in 1889 by Tina Turner’s great-uncle. Exhibits include costumes, gold records, and Tina Turner’s high school yearbook. The last home of “Sleepy” John Estes is a publicly accessible two-room shotgun house on the grounds of the West Tennessee Delta Heritage Center. The blues pioneer played a major role in the development of the country blues sound. The West Tennessee Music Museum also presents the musical history behind the road running between Nashville and Memphis, known as the “Music Highway.”
Historic Sites and Events
The College Hill Historic District includes 83 buildings, one vacant lot, and a cemetery. It is defined by the Brownsville Baptist Female College, built in 1851. The College Hill Center also houses the Haywood County Historical Museum, a collection of Abraham Lincoln memorabilia by Morton Felsenthal, and the Haywood County Sports Museum. For a trip planned around cultural interests, these offerings can be combined with the West Tennessee Cotton Museum, which traces the origins of cotton in West Tennessee and its influence on life in the region. Antique plows, a roller cotton gin, and cotton baskets, sacks, and scales illustrate this focus.
The annual Hatchie BirdFest in Brownsville is associated with the Hatchie National Wildlife Refuge and focuses on the area’s birdlife. The Exit 56 Blues Fest takes place every Memorial Day weekend on the grounds of the West Tennessee Delta Heritage Center in Brownsville. The venue is located off Interstate 40 at Exit 56, between Memphis and Nashville in historic Brownsville. In addition, the Haywood County Farmers Market offers regional produce and food trucks. For further orientation within the county, you can also view the location pages for Brownsville and Stanton.
Choosing the Right Travel Focus
Haywood County is well suited to travel planning that does not view nature experiences and culture separately. First decide whether you would like to spend more time along the Hatchie River, on walking and mountain biking trails, in museums, or at music events.
For the main travel overview: Tennessee.
More Destinations
More places within the same destination:
