This stately 14 room brick museum, designed by Thomas Broadwater of Virginia, denotes a Greek Revival Style, with its three story tower it conveys a strong Italianate character. The Downing Family was from Virginia and were wealthy. William G. Downing married Mary Jones, daughter of the first sheriff of Scotland County. After the marriage William G. went back to Virginia and returned with 12 slaves, 10 men and 2 women and prepared to build the home. There were 14 original rooms in the house with 8 fireplaces, 6 porches, and 15 doors to the outside. The slaves built a kiln and burnt brick for the house which took 2 years to complete. William and Mary Downing were the parents of 10 children and also raised 2 orphaned nieces in their home. During the Civil War Union Soldiers used the Downing House as Headquarters, and rode their horses in through the 10 foot doors. Prisoners were also kept in the house. On September 1, 1978, the Scotland County Historical Society purchased the property and have been restoring and renovating the house to its original condition. Period furnishings have been donated to outfit many of the rooms. One of the most interesting exhibits at the Downing House is the life size model of Ella Ewing, the Missouri Giantess. Ella, born in 1872 in Scotland County, died at age 40 in 1913. She was 8 feet 4 inches tall and weighed 277 pounds and in her youth was an attraction in the P.T. Barnum Circus. Several other memorial rooms are devoted to Scotland Countys history, including a vintage barber shop, Civil War relics, early aviation history, and other interesting glimpses into the past.

How did the tradition of the ducks in The Peabody fountain begin? Back in 1932 Frank Schutt, General Manager of The Peabody, and a friend, Chip Barwick, returned from a weekend hunting trip to Arkansas. The men had a little too much Jack Daniel's Tennessee sippin' whiskey, and thought it would be funny to place some of their live duck decoys (it was legal then for hunters to use live decoys) in the beautiful Peabody fountain. Three small English call ducks were selected as "guinea pigs," and the reaction was nothing short of enthusiastic. Soon, five North American Mallard ducks would replace the original ducks. In 1940, Bellman Edward Pembroke, a former circus animal trainer, offered to help with delivering the ducks to the fountain each day and taught them the now-famous Peabody Duck March. Mr. Pembroke became the Peabody Duckmaster, serving in that capacity for 50 years until his retirement in 1991. The original ducks have long since gone, but after 75 years, the marble fountain in the hotel lobby is still graced with ducks. The Peabody ducks march at 11 a.m. and 5 p.m. daily.

It's easy to fit a tour of the Cotton Museum into your schedule. We're located in the heart of downtown Memphis with ample parking nearby. And our small scale and open floor plan allows you to explore the museum at your leisure and see as much as you choose to see. Memphis was founded in 1812 on the Mississippi River's fourth Chickasaw Bluff as a shipping port for both cotton and the African slaves whose hard labor was the foundation of the southern economy.  As the city bourgeoned into a global hub of Cotton Commerce a vast group of people were drawn here in search of work. Merchants, insurers, aspiring entrepreneurs, former slaves, sharecroppers, and laborers migrated to Memphis from across the south. Included among their ranks were the artists, musicians and story-tellers that helped shape our culture.  They came seeking not only economic opportunity, but the chance to share their voices with a diverse and rapidly expanding audience. Through language, music, and art they told created legends, heralded change, and shed light on injustice.