Places Maggie Mason Wants to Go

One of the best-preserved Native American mounds remaining in the southern United States.

A parade of interactive nostalgia nestled within a giant brick building in downtown Hattiesburg.

A decaying building marks the site associated with Emmett Till's brutal 1955 murder, which helped sparking the civil rights movement.

This iron and wood Civil War city-ship was the first vessel to be sunk by an electrically detonated torpedo.

A historic Civil War estate-turned-museum looks back on the Confederate States of America.

The second-largest ceremonial mound in the United States is an artificial hill that is loosely shaped like a pentagon.

Walk through row upon row of manicured miniature trees at the United States' largest bonsai nursery.

This racially troublesome eatery thought a new coat of paint could erase its offensive connotations.

This historic general store still operates much as it did in the late 1800s.

A preserved stretch of ancient fossilized trees with an impressive gem collection to boot.

Built following the War of 1812, this fort has withstood hurricanes for centuries.

This two-room shotgun shack in Tupelo is the birthplace of a King.

William Faulkner kept his beloved estate wild and untamed.

After the parade, students throw their beads on the tree hoping for good luck on exams.

One of the last remaining venues on the Old Chitlin’ Circuit is a kaleidoscopic music hall at the end of a dirt road.

The ill-fated plan to reroute the Mississippi so that Union ships could bypass Confederate fortifications on the river bend.

This 19th-century sugarcane plantation is one of the most well-preserved estates of its kind, including its original quarters for enslaved laborers.

An artist weaves "wooden quilts" with scraps salvaged from his Katrina-damaged home in Tremé.

Roadside attraction with more than 1,000 stuffed and mounted animal skins displayed in simulated natural habitats with hand-painted backdrops.

A miscalculation turns a very shallow freshwater lake into a very deep saltwater lake.

The first plantation museum in the United States to focus on the lives of enslaved people.

A museum of unusual collections, mini-towns, and a half-dog, half-alligator.

The stone labyrinth in this New Orleans city park was laid to symbolize healing in the wake of Hurricane Katrina.

A swamp and garden tour featuring local wildlife and exotic botanical specimens from around the world.