B.B. King Museum receives $500,000 for education center

The Associated Press
Posted November 9, 2007

ROBINSONVILLE — A $500,000 donation will help build an education center at the B.B. King Museum and Delta Interpretive Center in Indianola.

The AT&T donation was announced during a ceremony today at the Hollywood Cafe in Robinsonville. B.B. King and Gov. Haley Barbour took part in the event.

"Mississippi is the birthplace of America's music, and it all started with blues in the Delta," Barbour said in a statement. "AT&T's significant gift will have a sizable impact on the museum and the Delta region and will help preserve Mississippi's unique and world-renowned cultural heritage."

The $14 million B.B. King Museum and Delta Interpretive Center is under construction near the Indianola cotton gin where King once worked and is scheduled to open fall 2008. It will have 20,000 square feet of exhibitions and educational programs.

"AT&T believes in the vision of the B.B. King Museum and Delta Interpretive Center, and we’re proud to be a supporter," AT&T Mississippi president Mayo Flynt said.

"This museum will honor the life and work of B.B. King, celebrate and preserve the Mississippi Delta blues, affect the lives of young people, attract visitors to Mississippi and promote a better quality of life for all."

"It does carry my name and we're hoping that it will do a lot for the Delta and a lot as far as education is concerned," King told The Associated Press in July after a visit to the museum site.

Oral histories have been collected from King and others to be used in short films to be shown throughout the exhibit. There are also several computer interactive elements planned for the exhibit, museum executive director Connie Gibbons has said.

Earlier this year, the Delta Regional Authority announced that it would provide $256,500 toward construction of the center.

The DRA, created by Congress in 2000, funds economic development programs in Mississippi, Arkansas, Alabama, Illinois, Kentucky, Louisiana, Missouri and Tennessee.

The Economic Development Administration will provide another $1 million for the project.

In January, Jim and Donna Barksdale issued a $2.5 million challenge grant for the museum, and Mississippi has provided $2 million for the project.

King, 82, is one of the nation's most influential blues musicians. His long list of hits includes "The Thrill is Gone," "Every Day I Have the Blues" and "You Upset Me Baby." He is known for playing his trademark guitar that he named "Lucille."