Visitors Guide to Attractions
in Dyer, Lauderdale, & Tipton Counties, Tennessee
Dyer, Lauderdale, & Tipton Counties offers it visitors a variety of historical, natural, and cultural activities. History can be found everywhere in Western Tennessee at such places as Fort Pillow State Historic Park, the Alex Haley Home and Interpretive Center, and many county museums. Nature can be explored at Fort Pillow State Historic Park and at the Tipton County Museum, Veterans Memorial & Nature Center. Unique architecture can be seen at the Tipton and Lauderdale County courthouses and their surrounding downtown districts. Theater lovers will delight in the atmosphere of the Ruffin Theater in Covington.
Dyersburg Army Air Base Veteran's Museum
Halls, Tennessee
This Veterans' Museum is located on the site of The Dyersburg Army Air Base which was established as a training facility during World War 2 for B-17Flying Fortress pilots. While the Museum honors veterans from that era with displays, photographs, and history of the base, it also honors all veterans with displays from the different wars and conflicts in which the U.S. has been involved.
Fort Pillow State Historic Park
Henning, Tennessee
Fort Pillow State Historic Park is scenically located in Lauderdale County on the Chickasaw Bluffs overlooking the Mississippi River. This 1,642-acre park is situated on the site of a Civil War fort and is rich with historical and archaeological significance as well as providing visitors with opportunities recreational activities such as hiking, fishing, camping, and wildlife viewing as well as offering camping opportunities. The park has an Interpretive Center/Museum where visitors will find displays of Civil War artifacts and interpretive displays.
Alex Haley Museum and Interpretive Center
Henning, Tennessee
Alexander Haley (1921 - 1992) was an American write best known as the author of Roots: The Alex Haley Home has been furnished to represent the home as it was when Haley lived there as a boy in the 1920s. Some of the furniture which decorates the home belonged to the Haley family. Also located on the grounds behind the boyhood home is the Alex Haley Interpretive Center. Opened in 2010, this 6,500 square foot this award winning center features a walk-through exhibit, a theater room where visitors can view a documentary, a genealogy room, and the gift shop.
Lauderdale County Courthouse
Ripley, Tennessee
On the National Register of Historic Places, this beautiful art-deco building was erected built in 1936 the Public Works Administration (PWA). The building has a unique design among the Nashville firm of Marr and Holman’s Public Works Administration courthouses due to its use of buff-colored glazed brick as the main exterior material and its cruciform plan. Located at the center of the cruciform, in the first floor rotunda, is an inlaid terrazzo map of the country, showing its towns and transportation systems.
Lauderdale County Museum
Ripley, Tennessee
The Lauderdale County Museum is housed in the historic Sugar Hill Mansion which was built in 1842. The museum showcases items highlighting the history of Lauderdale County. The Lauderdale County Chamber of Commerce moved into the facility in 1999 and began a restoration phase that included the Lauderdale County Museum. The building also houses the Lauderdale County Chamber of Commerce.
Ripley Post Office and Mural
Ripley, Tennessee
The one-story red brick Colonial Revival-styled post office in Ripley was built in 1941 by the Works Progress Administration. The building, designed by Louis A. Simon, was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1988. The post office contains a mural, "Autumn," painted by government-commissioned artist Marguerite Zorach which shows hunting and nutting in the West Tennessee country.
Newbern Depot & Railroad Museum
Newbern, Tennessee
The Newbern Depot & Railroad Museum is located in a former Illinois Central Railroad depot that was built in 1920. The station was restored in 1992 with private donations and added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1993. Today, the depot houses the museum in the southern part of the building, an Amtrak waiting room, and a room for public functions. The museum features tools, uniforms, schedules, photos, model railroads, and art work. The station is still served by two daily trains but Amtrak does not provide ticketing or baggage services at this facility.
Ruffin Theater
Covington, Tennessee
The Ruffin Theater is an Art Deco style building originally built in the mid 1920s as the Palace Theater, bringing some of the first motion pictures to western Tennessee. Through the years the Ruffin has undergone several renovations which have modified it to a full-fledged 640 seat theater with a large stage. A myriad of talented local actors, actresses, and theater aficionados work tirelessly to bring theatrical plays to Tipton County and rural western Tennessee.
Tipton County Courthouse
Covington, Tennessee
Tipton County’s current courthouse is the third built for the county since its inception in 1823. This current courthouse was finished in 1889-90 and originally had a clock tower that was damaged by a tornado in 1909. The late nineteenth century Victorian-styled building is surrounded by historic commercial and public buildings from the 1870s to the 1970s. Many buildings have been restored and adapted to new uses, and a recent streetscape project has improved the appearance of this important public space. On the south side of the courthouse is a monument to the Confederate soldiers of Tipton County erected in 1895.
Tipton County Museum, Veterans Memorial & Nature Center
Covington, Tennessee
The Tipton County Museum, Veterans Memorial & Nature Center is one of the first facilities in the country to bring together military history, environmental education, and historical preservation into one place. The Museum is located in the largest urban park in Tipton County that includes a twenty-acre wildlife sanctuary, a half-mile nature trail through a woodland forest, and a wetland study area. The Museum houses changing history exhibits featuring artifacts from Tipton County’s rich heritage and the nature center exhibits are designed to teach elements of ecology, botany, zoology, and geology.
Nearby Attractions
Lake and Obion Counties, Tennessee
Lake and Obion Counties are located in the northwest most corner of Tennessee. Lake County, as its name suggests, is home to Reelfoot Lake, Tennessee’s largest natural lake. The lake harbors almost every kind of shore and wading bird including the golden and American bald eagles. Visitors can take advantage of this natural feature at either Reelfoot Lake State Park or Reelfoot NWR. The Carl Perkins Visitor Center, honoring rockabilly musician Carl Perkins, is located in nearby Tiptonville. Confederate monuments can be found in Union City and Trimble. The Emerson Parks Covered Bridge is the only one of Tennessee's four historic covered bridges located in the western portion of the state is also located in Trimble.
Bootheel Missouri
The Missouri Bootheel is the southeastern most part of the state and is composed of the counties of Dunklin, New Madrid, and Pemiscot. Explore what the region once was like at the area’s many conservation areas. Learn the history of New Madrid, the great earthquakes of 1812-13, the role the town played in the Civil War, and the town’s history at several museums and historic sites in the town. Get a great view of the Mississippi from New Madrid’s riverfront. Other regional history can be found in museums in the towns of Kennett and Malden.
Crowley's Ridge Parkway in Northeast Arkansas
The counties of Clay, Greene, Craighead, Pointsett, and Cross comprise the upper two thirds of the Crowley's Ridge Parkway National Scenic Byway. Crowley's Ridge rises as much as 200 feet above the vast flatland of the Mississippi River Delta and is characterized by upland hardwood forests, farmland, orchards and a variety of recreational and historical resources. Four state parks lie along the parkway which passes through the St. Francis National Forest. Cultural attractions can be found in Jonesboro, home of Arkansas State University. Many of the regions communities are host to small museums that interprets the area’s history.
Northeast Arkansas along the Great River Road
Northeastern Arkansas along the Mississippi River offers its visitors a variety of attractions. The downtown districts of Blytheville and Osceola have distinctive architecture in their downtown districts. The small communities of Manila and Earle have county museums covering the history and culture of the region. At Sans Souci Landing visitors can get a great up close view of the Mississippi River. Nature lovers will find plenty to do at Big Lake National Wildlife Refuge and Wapanocca National Wildlife Refuge.
For Travelers Heading Up the River
The Mississippi Meets the Ohio River Region
After the Mississippi River passes St. Louis it begins to change character. When the Mississippi River meets the Ohio River at Cairo, Illinois it is halfway on its journey to the sea. It is here that the brown muddy water of the Mississippi begins to mingle with the clearer water of the Ohio. Without the locks and dams the Mississippi begins to wind and curve so much so that the distance by water from Cape Girardeau to the Gulf of Mexico is twice the distance as a crow flies. The region where the Mississippi River meets the Ohio River is an area of transition in several respects both in terms of the flora and fauna but the culture begins to take on that of the Deep South. The Meeting the Ohio region of the Middle Mississippi River Valley offers it visitors a wide variety of options of activities to do and sites to see. Whether you’re looking for historical or cultural sites or a place to enjoy nature you’ll find it in this part of the country.
