JANS – Two Mississippi Museums in Jackson will play host to the Mule Train exhibition next month. The opening ceremony will be held Friday, Sept. 15 at 10 a.m. The exhibit is a celebration of the caravan of 28 covered wagons pulled by 56 mules 1,000 miles from Marks, Mississippi, to Washington, DC May 13-June 19, 1968. The mule train was the centerpiece of the Poor People’s Campaign inspired by Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. just before his martyrdom.

The opening ceremony will include music by The Lackey Scholars griots and the Mockingbird musicians. The groups were spotted last week rehearsing at Palmer High School in Marks. 

A griot is a West African storyteller, singer, musician, and oral historian. They train to excel as orators, lyricists, and musicians. The griot keeps records of all the births, deaths, marriages, and other historical events.