Corinth Civil War Interpretive Center
A Unit of Shiloh National Military Park

501 W. Linden Street
662.287.9273
Open 8:30-4:30 Daily except Christmas
No admission charge
www.nps.gov/shil

For six months in 1862, Corinth, a critical railroad junction and second only to Richmond in military importance, captured the full attention of a divided nation.  Today, one of the National Park Service’s newest visitor centers interprets the key role of Corinth, Mississippi, in the Civil War’s western theater.

The 15,000 sq. ft. facility features interactive exhibits, a multimedia presentation on the Battle of Shiloh, and a video on the Battle of Corinth.  The center stands near the site of Battery Robinett, a Union fortification which was an important site of some of the bloody fighting during the October 1862 Battle of Corinth.

Visitors reach the center by ascending a walkway strewn with bronze replicas that reflect the aftermath of battle.  At the building entrance, visitors pass six bronze Civil War soldiers marching into the center at the double-quick.

Full-scale reproductions of earthworks explain the importance of field fortifications.  An extensive courtyard exhibit is home to a water feature commemorating one hundred years of American history.  The interpretive center houses a seventy-five-seat auditorium, public research library, and a Civil War bookstore.

The Crossroads Museum

221 N. Fillmore Street
662.287.3120
Tues.-Sat. 9:00-5:00, Sun. 1:00-5:00
$5/Adults, $3/Senior Citizens, Military & Students, Free/Children 16 and under
www.crossroadsmuseum.com

Serving as the hub of historical information for the area, the Crossroads Museum invites visitors to view its permanent exhibits dealing with Civil War, Railroad, Aviation, Business/Industry and Pre-History/Archeology.  Spend time in the adjacent galleries which offer special rotating exhibits.  The Museum also offers a gift shop and the Margaret Greene Rogers Research Library.

Black History Museum of Corinth

1109 Meigg Street
662.665.8500
Contributions appreciated

The museum features a vast permanent collection of pieces documenting Corinth and Alcorn County’s black history.  Exhibits are supplemented with special short=term displays.

Collections include tributes to Corinth’s first black Mayor, Mayor E.S. Bishop; entertainers such as opera singer, Ruby Elzy; local and nationally known sports figures; African art and artifacts; and artifacts from local historically black churches and former segregated black schools.

Considerable effort has been made to provide the public with comprehensive and positive information and images of black Americans and their contributions they have made to society.

Verandah/Curlee House Museum

301 Childs Street
662.287.9501
www.verandahhouse.org

Completed in the spring of 1857, the Verandah House was built for one of the two founders of Corinth, Hamilton Mask.  The house is a significant example of Greek Revival architecture. 

As a result of the crossroads of the two standard-gauge railroads in Corinth, the area became of prime importance to both the Union and Confederacy.  On the evening of April 2, 1862, Gen. Albert Sidney Johnston met with Gen. Braxton Bragg in his bedchambers at the Verandah House to officially sign Order No. 8 to launch the Confederate counter offensive against the Union army that ended in the Battle of Shiloh, April 6-7, 1862.

Throughout the war, generals from both the Confederacy and the Union were quartered in this house. Following the war, the Corinth Female Academy occupied the house for a short period of time.  It was then purchased by the William Peyton Curlee, one of the founders of the Curlee Clothing Company.  After Mr. Curlee’s death of yellow fever, Mrs. Curlee, a descendent of Daniel Boone, sold the house to the Leroy Montgomery, who raised a large family in the home.  In 1921, Shelby Hammond Curlee, oldest son of the previous Curlee owners, bought the house.  The descendants of the Curlee family donated the house to the city in 1961. 

Coca-Cola Museum

305 Waldron Street
662.284.4848
Tues.-Fri. 10:00-4, Sat. 10:00-2:00, closed Sun. & Mon.

In 1905, Avon Kenneth Weaver bought an interest in the Corinth Bottle Works, a small soda water plant.  At that time, Coca-Cola was being produced in Jackson, Tennessee, and shipped by rail to Corinth.  Mr. Weaver obtained a Coca-Cola franchise for Northeast Mississippi in 1907.  The company is still owned by the same family.

The story of Coca-Cola has enthralled people since the beginning in 1886.  Thousands of people collect, buy, sell, and swap almost every article ever stamped with the famous Coca-Cola trademark.

The Coca-Cola Museum is located in downtown Corinth.  The exhibits in the museum include historic images, artifacts from the past 100 years and interactive computer stations with information about the 100 years of Corinth Coca-Cola.

Corinth National Cemetary

Horton Street between Cemetery and Young Streets
Open daily dawn to dusk

The final resting place for 1,793 known and 3,895 unknown soldiers representing 273 regiments from 15 states.

Jacinto Courthouse

Located off Hwy 356 on County Road 367
approximately 8 miles east of Rienzi
No admission
Open May-Sept.:
Tue.-Fri. & Sun. 1 p.m.-5 p.m.
Sat. 10 a.m.-5 p.m.
April, Oct.-Dec.:
Sat. 10 a.m.-5 p.m., Sun. 1 p.m.-5 p.m.

Jacinto Courthouse, established in 1836, served as the populous county seat of Tishomingo County.  Commissioned in 1852 and completed in 1854, the courthouse emerged as an impressive example of Federal Style architecture.  The courthouse includes a park area, walking rails, and RV hook-ups. 

Corinth Artist Guild Gallery

507 Cruise Street
662.665.0520 or 662.415.2688
No admission but donations are welcome
Open Tues.-Sat., 10 a.m.-4 p.m.

The Corinth Artist Guild Gallery has an outstanding collection of Southern regional art.  A large variety of artists exhibit one-of-a-kind works that range from realism, impressionism, abstract art, sculptures, stained glass, jewelry, and other decorative arts.

Corinth Contriband Camp

902 North Parkway
662.287.9273
No admission
Open dawn to dusk

Many African Americans who fled Southern plantations and farms seeking freedom and protection found the Union occupied Corinth to be a secure location.  Union General Grenville Dodge understood what effect the defection of thousands of African Americans would have on the Confederate War effort.  He began to enlist the escaped slaves who came into his lines as teamsters, cooks, and laborers.  He actively recruited male refugees, armed them, and placed them in charge of security at the newly organized contraband camp in Corinth. Dodge’s refugee administrative efforts led to the formation of the 1st Alabama Infantry Regiment of African Descent. Consisting of approximately 1,000 men.

Under the supervision of Chaplain James M. Alexander of the 66th Illinois Volunteer Infantry, the Corinth camp resembled a small town, complete with a church, commissary, hospital, both frame and log houses, and a street grid with named streets and numbered houses.  An American Missionary Association School operated where eager students of all ages sought knowledge day and night.

Today, a portion of this camp has been set aside to commemorate the events which changed the lives of so many people.  Bronze figures surround the trail through the camp depicting the lives of these people considered “contraband” of war.

The Coliseum Theater

404-408 Taylor Street
662-284-7440
Open for tours by appointment

Benjamin Franklin Liddon, a local banker and civic leader, designed and constructed the Coliseum Theater in 1924 with a capacity of 999 seats.  The theater is a showplace of Victorian and Art Deco Design.  Such elements as black and white tile, ornamental plaster on the ceilings, imported white marble wainscoting and a grand staircase warrant its inclusion on the National Register of Historic Places.  It is also a Mississippi Landmark.

The Railroad Crossing

View from Trailhead Park located on West Waldron Street

This crossroads of two railroads, the Memphis & Charleston and the Mobile & Ohio, identified Corinth as a strategic location in the Western Theater during the Civil War.  These were the only two major standard-gauge railroads in the Confederacy and prompted the Battle of Shiloh as well as the Battle of Corinth.  Today the tracks are in the same beds and are in use.

Historic Downtown Corinth

Experience the heart of Corinth in its busy beautiful downtown.  Here you will find unique specialty shops, business offices, restaurants, a regal courthouse, and the world’s friendliest people.

Three legendary businesses are “must see” locations downtown.

Borroums Drug Store was founded in 1865 by former CSA army surgeon A.J. Borroum.  It is the oldest drug store in continuous operation in Mississippi.  It houses Native American artifact, Civil War relics, and an authentic, working soda fountain.  This business has been owned and operated by the Borroum family since its founding.

Biggers Hardware opened its doors in 1918 and has been a mainstay in the community ever since.  The store’s ownership is in the fourth generation of the Biggers family.

Waits Jewelry and Fine Gifts is the oldest business in Corinth dating from 1865.  The store’s second generation of ownership was Earnest J. Waits, a true “renaissance man.”  Not only was he a watchmaker and jeweler, but he constructed an “aeroplane” from plans in Popular Mechanics  and its flights in Corinth were the first in Mississippi and probably ion the Deep South.  He built an early wireless telegraph, an X-ray machine, and painted beautiful seasonal murals in the building. A small area of the store is dedicated to him and his wife Eugenia who was the last family member to own the
Store in 2004.

Lake Hills Motor Museum

2003 Hwy 72 E.
662.287.4451
No admission
8-5 Mon.-Fri., 8-3 Sat.
No admission

Lake Hill Motors, one of America’s largest motorcycle/ATV dealerships, is home to a collection of antique classic and custom automobiles and motorcycles.

Kossuth Museum

35 CR 512
662.287.3308
No admission
By appointment

Local artifacts from the Kossuth Community housed in a former Post Office built over a century ago.