Falling in Love With Welty's Jackson
Jackson is the perfect stop for a literary pilgrimage, one that would not be complete without paying homage to Eudora Welty, one of the city’s most celebrated daughters – and most decorated authors in American history.
![A tudor style home](https://visit-jackson.imgix.net/images/weltyhouse-craig.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=max&position=50%2050&q=80&w=320&s=76afe47fa39601e3d84ef166d71451ea 320w, https://visit-jackson.imgix.net/images/weltyhouse-craig.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=max&position=50%2050&q=80&w=540&s=7bec938675390af9d2c14ae3d97aac59 540w, https://visit-jackson.imgix.net/images/weltyhouse-craig.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=max&position=50%2050&q=80&w=768&s=14ebcf71c968cab4a16e5d2ac44608cb 768w, https://visit-jackson.imgix.net/images/weltyhouse-craig.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=max&position=50%2050&q=80&w=1024&s=25f3e88ce76a4e075dbf47f882b5cb47 1024w)
Here are ten places to celebrate the life of Eudora Welty on your own self-guided tour of Eudora Welty’s Jackson.
Additional locations are indicated on the Welty Self Driving Tour map.
The Eudora Welty House and Garden
“The house was on a slight hill (my mother never could see the hill) covered with its original forest pines, on a gravel road then a little out from town…We had moved in, and Mother was laying out the garden.” – Eudora Welty
A celebration of Eudora Welty (and her mother Chestina Welty), a tour through the Eudora Welty House is a must for visitors wanting to celebrate her work or get an introduction.
Start or end with the video about Welty’s life that puts into context many of the sites in Jackson.
While touring the house, you can see her room where she wrote her Pulitzer Prize-winning novel, The Optimist’s Daughter, as well as the majority of her works. Her perennial garden is a must, too, as well as a newly released outdoor audio tour.
Book your tour in advance, and don’t skip the gift shop!
![A Tudor style storefront that says "Corner Market"](https://visit-jackson.imgix.net/images/Welty-jiteny14-craig.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=max&position=50%2050&q=80&w=320&s=6481d3d6f80630196a27eefb0b7c2436 320w, https://visit-jackson.imgix.net/images/Welty-jiteny14-craig.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=max&position=50%2050&q=80&w=540&s=09c6bfde999ce4071a59e7d1cefbcf6d 540w, https://visit-jackson.imgix.net/images/Welty-jiteny14-craig.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=max&position=50%2050&q=80&w=768&s=67ea526e7c32930798a2f650a3a5ad6c 768w, https://visit-jackson.imgix.net/images/Welty-jiteny14-craig.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=max&position=50%2050&q=80&w=1024&s=1d9c0c0c825e36756c3cf5f7163ef520 1024w)
Jitney 14 (now Corner Market)
The local grocery store - Jackson's first self-serve grocer - where Welty shopped for most of her life is as popular among locals as ever. You can see the historical marker out front honoring her, as well as a large portrait mural in the back.
![A three story yellow home](https://visit-jackson.imgix.net/images/Welty-birthhome-craig.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=max&position=50%2050&q=80&w=320&s=2f3e5680643a27d2b29d863546e57a56 320w, https://visit-jackson.imgix.net/images/Welty-birthhome-craig.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=max&position=50%2050&q=80&w=540&s=bf6332cc57c6a7de5dd7fb273b047275 540w, https://visit-jackson.imgix.net/images/Welty-birthhome-craig.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=max&position=50%2050&q=80&w=768&s=4084ab5d1aa63cf1b2df7203d51af55d 768w, https://visit-jackson.imgix.net/images/Welty-birthhome-craig.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=max&position=50%2050&q=80&w=1024&s=ec93002b36a48c61a9b9146b13616ddd 1024w)
Eudora Welty’s Birth Home
“In Our House on North Congress Street in Jackson, Mississippi, where I was born…we grew up to the striking of clocks…this was good at least for a future fiction writer, being able to learn so penetratingly, and almost first of all, about chronology.” – Eudora Welty
Located on North Congress, this is Welty’s first house in Jackson. Eudora and her brothers were all born here and lived in this house until they moved across town when she was sixteen.
The home is not open to tours, but you can drive by and see the fantastic views from the street and get a feel for Welty’s childhood.
![A sign reads "Barack H. Obama Magnet School. A school building is in the background.](https://visit-jackson.imgix.net/images/Welty-obamamagnet-craig.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=max&position=50%2050&q=80&w=320&s=b6a38fd2f2f49282b16d39c00e93e66e 320w, https://visit-jackson.imgix.net/images/Welty-obamamagnet-craig.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=max&position=50%2050&q=80&w=540&s=f0986d7226b4941be07bdd244e0c4284 540w, https://visit-jackson.imgix.net/images/Welty-obamamagnet-craig.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=max&position=50%2050&q=80&w=768&s=41dcfffbb2b4d4e6c4b2ec78864b0104 768w, https://visit-jackson.imgix.net/images/Welty-obamamagnet-craig.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=max&position=50%2050&q=80&w=1024&s=e73f0518e760f448036bae7866314129 1024w)
Barack Obama Magnet School
“Davis School was as close as across the street. I could keep up with it from the window beside me, hear the principal ring her bell, see which children were tardy…I was homesick for school.” – Eudora Welty
Renamed Barack Obama Magnet School, the former Jefferson Davis Elementary is where Eudora had her first school years. Located right across the street from her birth home, today it has a beautiful mural of President Obama, which is also worth seeing.
![A stately domed building](https://visit-jackson.imgix.net/images/welty-capitol-craig.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=max&position=50%2050&q=80&w=320&s=eb0624c01ac772ef217a68e14221b101 320w, https://visit-jackson.imgix.net/images/welty-capitol-craig.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=max&position=50%2050&q=80&w=540&s=3b4049a38991d0a69dfc32ad460df038 540w, https://visit-jackson.imgix.net/images/welty-capitol-craig.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=max&position=50%2050&q=80&w=768&s=44f11fd259707628ad9ffa459d359d75 768w, https://visit-jackson.imgix.net/images/welty-capitol-craig.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=max&position=50%2050&q=80&w=1024&s=5ceba30216f6d444d4865dc46342e244 1024w)
Mississippi State Capitol Building
“‘Through the Capital’ was the way to go to the library. You could glide through it on your bicycle or even coast through on roller skates, though without family permission.” – Eudora Welty
As soon as you turn onto Congress, you’ll notice the dome of the capitol building rising above the street. Here is also a great spot to snap a Jackson Instagram pic since it’s framed beautifully above the trees!
![A red bricked, New Orleans style building with a wrought iron balcony.](https://visit-jackson.imgix.net/images/welty-georgest-craig.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=max&position=50%2050&q=80&w=320&s=031920c96d805adba5ac6fc383778a2c 320w, https://visit-jackson.imgix.net/images/welty-georgest-craig.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=max&position=50%2050&q=80&w=540&s=ceb740d6f93d39d23b6eab85331e203a 540w, https://visit-jackson.imgix.net/images/welty-georgest-craig.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=max&position=50%2050&q=80&w=768&s=4c866f6e40ca6ec23db3ac2bb14d0bd7 768w, https://visit-jackson.imgix.net/images/welty-georgest-craig.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=max&position=50%2050&q=80&w=1024&s=c3043e6937013b6d85cff90928e0b9ff 1024w)
Ole Tavern on George Street
Now a tavern, this was a former grocery store where Welty would shop on errands with her mother as a child. This is another excellent place to take pictures in Jackson while you’re on your self-guided tour.
![a headstone that says "Eudora Welty"](https://visit-jackson.imgix.net/images/welty-greenwood-craig.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=max&position=50%2050&q=80&w=320&s=c2aaa87f744f45957dcd78916c29ae74 320w, https://visit-jackson.imgix.net/images/welty-greenwood-craig.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=max&position=50%2050&q=80&w=540&s=6a596f4f9aa417c72b2a473d7e95c177 540w, https://visit-jackson.imgix.net/images/welty-greenwood-craig.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=max&position=50%2050&q=80&w=768&s=a81819c9f46085afc7a5ac418350a488 768w, https://visit-jackson.imgix.net/images/welty-greenwood-craig.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=max&position=50%2050&q=80&w=1024&s=89ebb0636f974892be1ffaf4364ad39c 1024w)
Welty’s Grave at Greenwood Cemetery
“Eudora Welty died on July 23, 2001…A storm of brief and terrible violence had swept through that morning and instead of making the weather worse, as summer storms are wont to do, it made things better. It was seventy-five degrees as we made our way to the cemetery after the service, something I doubt had ever happened in Jackson in July before. I doubt it will happen again. Greatness had come through once, which is really all that we could hope for, and the world that had been so justly represented took back the one who loved it best.” – Ann Patchett, Introduction to The Collected Stories of Eudora Welty
A stop in Jackson’s first cemetery can be a bit emotional, but it is worth it to see Welty’s lovingly kept grave and other historic graves in the city.
![A group of buildings](https://visit-jackson.imgix.net/images/Welty-lamarlife-craig.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=max&position=50%2050&q=80&w=320&s=570efd0de4720fdc326f4acde119deb2 320w, https://visit-jackson.imgix.net/images/Welty-lamarlife-craig.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=max&position=50%2050&q=80&w=540&s=4a036e0b493883fbf881ffda5744c946 540w, https://visit-jackson.imgix.net/images/Welty-lamarlife-craig.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=max&position=50%2050&q=80&w=768&s=1c9322dc58388558f12f2d6670753073 768w, https://visit-jackson.imgix.net/images/Welty-lamarlife-craig.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=max&position=50%2050&q=80&w=1024&s=06e81d295a36ae67946964762da39c26 1024w)
Lamar Life Building
“At every stage of the building, Daddy took his family to see as much as we could climb over, usually on Sunday mornings. At last we could climb by the fire escape to reach the top. We stood on the roof…and viewed all Jackson below.” – Eudora Welty
One of the crowning achievements of Eudora’s father, Christian Welty, the Lamar Life Building was Jackson’s first skyscraper. Today it’s the twelfth tallest building in Jackson.
![A restaurant facade with a neon sign that says "Cafe"](https://visit-jackson.imgix.net/images/welt-mayflower-craig.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=max&position=50%2050&q=80&w=320&s=cedd843f5a7dfb3a41af571e6dd57e96 320w, https://visit-jackson.imgix.net/images/welt-mayflower-craig.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=max&position=50%2050&q=80&w=540&s=025fbf6b48dfb49e3dc4b03de18b5a07 540w, https://visit-jackson.imgix.net/images/welt-mayflower-craig.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=max&position=50%2050&q=80&w=768&s=2c05db351899dbf67844f8fde6e97d00 768w, https://visit-jackson.imgix.net/images/welt-mayflower-craig.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=max&position=50%2050&q=80&w=1024&s=2275bedbcc17d65f24974a57b766f0ce 1024w)
Mayflower Cafe
Opened in 1935, the Mayflower Cafe is a place that Weltyn frequented when she worked downtown. It’s also one of the oldest restaurants in Jackson, so it’s worth a stop in its own right!
If you’re going to spend a weekend in Jackson, you can come here for a lovely dinner and appreciate the historic interiors.
![A bust of Eudora Welty surrounded by books](https://visit-jackson.imgix.net/images/Welty-lemuria-craig.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=max&position=50%2050&q=80&w=320&s=78ebd67885a1d89eb19692cc35ee71d7 320w, https://visit-jackson.imgix.net/images/Welty-lemuria-craig.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=max&position=50%2050&q=80&w=540&s=6c7ba77654ef87ae6192b0ef1b3b5944 540w, https://visit-jackson.imgix.net/images/Welty-lemuria-craig.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=max&position=50%2050&q=80&w=768&s=2202905c7c9425f53a057960de642350 768w, https://visit-jackson.imgix.net/images/Welty-lemuria-craig.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=max&position=50%2050&q=80&w=1024&s=0760d34cf0de07673164c6770a80988b 1024w)
Lemuria Books
“It had been startling and disappointing to me to find out that story books had been written by people, that books were not natural wonders, coming up of themselves like grass.” – Eudora Welty
The perfect way to end your self-guided tour, come and sink into a comfy couch and read one of Welty’s books or find a new Jackson author to fall in love with.
Explore the Welty Self-Driving Tour Google Map
Stephanie Craig is an amateur historian, blogger, podcaster and enthusiastic traveler who spent a long weekend in the City With Soul as a guest of Visit Jackson in the spring of 2021. Find her work at historyfangirl.com.
Welty's Jackson
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Jitney 14
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Welty’s Birth Home
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Barack Obama Magnet School
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Beaux Arts Building, Seat of State Government
Get Directions (601) 359-3114Designated a Mississippi Landmark in 1986 and a National Historic Landmark in 2016, the Mississippi State Capitol has been the seat of the state’s government since 1903. Tours detail its history and…
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Pub With Southern Flair
Get Directions (601) 960-2700Open after 9pm. Closed Thanksgiving Day and Christmas Day. Groups of 40 or more by reservation
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Resting Place of Welty, MS Governors
Get Directions (601) 960-1891Jackson's original, historic burial grounds, the burial site of Pulitzer Prize-winning author Eudora Welty, six Confederate brigadier generals, over 100 soldiers and past governors of Mississippi.
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Lamar Life Building
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Jxn’s Oldest Restaurant
Get Directions (601) 355-4122Established in 1935 by Greek immigrants George Kountouris and John Gouras, Mayflower Cafe specializes in seafood - redfish, oysters, shrimp, soft-shell crab, pompano and lemon fish.
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Historic Bookseller in Banner Hall
Get Directions (601) 366-7619Being independent anything is tough. Ask a singer, artist, writer or retailer: without large-scale backing, there are places you want to go — but must fight for… claw for, every step in…
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Regional Professional Theatre in Belhaven
Get Directions (601) 948-3531New Stage Theatre, founded in 1965, is one of Mississippi's oldest and finest professional theaters. New Stage produces a critically-acclaimed season of plays ranging from musicals to children's theatre, to comedies, to…
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Central High School
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Galloway United Methodist Church
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Downtown Green Space + Amphitheater
Get Directions (601) 960-0471Located in the heart of Downtown Jackson, Smith Park offers a breath of fresh air in the middle of an urban environment, allowing residents and visitors alike to withdraw from the city…
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The Charlotte Capers Building
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Eudora Welty Library
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Explore 15,000 Years of Mississippi
Get Directions (601) 576-6800The Museum of Mississippi History encourages people to explore more than 15,000 years of state history. Throughout the galleries, visitors will explore interactive exhibits, see engaging artifacts and hear stories from people…
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Experience the Power of the Movement
Get Directions (601) 576-6800The Mississippi Civil Rights Museum shares the stories of a Mississippi movement that changed the nation. Through eight interactive exhibits the museum promotes a greater understanding of the Mississippi Civil Rights Movement…
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JXN Icons Mural
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State Archives + Venue
Get Directions (601) 576-6850The Williams F. Winter Archives and History Building is the second-oldest state archives department in the country. It houses U.S. Bureau of Census records, private collections, news footage, microfilmed newspapers, state government…
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Home of the Late Pulitzer Prize-Winning Author Eudora Welty
1119 Pinehurst St.
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(601) 353-7762
Website
Eudora Welty House and Garden1119 Pinehurst St.
Jackson, Mississippi 39202
Beaux Arts Building, Seat of State Government
400 High Street
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Mississippi State Capitol400 High Street
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Pub With Southern Flair
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Jackson, Mississippi 39202
Resting Place of Welty, MS Governors
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(601) 960-1891
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Greenwood CemeteryWest Street at Lamar Street
Jackson, Mississippi 39201
Jxn’s Oldest Restaurant
123 W. Capitol Street
Jackson, Mississippi 39201
(601) 355-4122
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Mayflower Cafe123 W. Capitol Street
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Historic Bookseller in Banner Hall
4465 I-55 North
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Jackson, 39206