Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
North of Downtown
Mud Island
PARK
(
www.mudisland.com
; 125 N Front St;
A
10am-5pm Tue-Sun Apr-Oct, later Jun-Aug;
)
small peninsula jutting into the Mississippi, Mud Island is downtown Memphis' best-
loved green space. Hop the monorail ($4, or free with Mississippi River Museum admis-
sion) or walk across the bridge to the park, where you can jog and rent bikes.
Mississippi River Museum
MUSEUM
(
www.mudisland.com/c-3-mississippi-river-museum.aspx
; 350 East 3rd St; adult/child $15/10;
10am-5pm Apr-Oct)
Located on Mud Island, this place is part Aquarium, part geological
and historical examination of America's greatest river. You'll find a full-size replica of a
packet boat and a scale model of the lower Mississippi, which includes a Gulf of Mexico
aquarium schooling with sharks and rays, where visitors tool around in pedal boats.
Slave Haven Underground Railroad Museum/Burkle Estate
MUSEUM
( 901-527-3427;
www.slavehavenundergroundrailroadmuseum.org
;
826 N 2nd St; adult/child
$10/8; 10am-1pm Mon-Sat)
An unimposing clapboard house, it's thought to have been a
way station for runaway slaves on the Underground Railroad, complete with trapdoors
and tunnels.
East of Downtown
Sun Studio
STUDIO TOUR
( 800-441-6249;
www.sunstudio.com
;
706 Union Ave; adult/child $12/free;
10:30am-5:30pm)
It doesn't look like much from outside, but this dusty storefront is
ground zero for American rock and roll music. Starting in the early 1950s, Sun's Sam
Phillips recorded blues artists such as Howlin' Wolf, BB King and Ike Turner, followed
by the rockabilly dynasty of Jerry Lee Lewis, Johnny Cash, Roy Orbison and, of course,
the King himself (who started here in 1953).
Packed 40-minute guided tours through the tiny studio offer a chance to hear original
tapes of historic recording sessions. Guides are full of anecdotes; you can pose for photos
on the 'X' where Elvis once stood, or buy a CD of the 'Million Dollar Quartet,' Sun's
spontaneous 1956 jam session between Elvis, Johnny Cash, Carl Perkins and Jerry Lee
