Beale Street Hoodoo History and Folklife Museum

09/02/2026

New signage in the museum.

08/27/2026

Memphis faced a number of panics concerning African traditions. The theme of Memphis becoming like New Orleans was feared as many newspapers warned that New Orleans was a city overrun by malevolent practices, cannibalism and human sacrifice. This article appeared in the Memphis Daily Appeal in June, 1870.

08/27/2026

08/24/2026

Vintage ad for Adam and Eve Root from Lucky Heart Cosmetics, Memphis Tennessee. See this and more vintage curio advertisements on display at the Memphis Hoodoo History and Folklife Museum.

08/24/2026

October 1916. The Majestic Theater in Memphis opens a showing of silent film ‘Hoodoo Ann’ directed by infamous director D.W. Griffith who directed the racially charged film ‘Birth of a Nation’. The description of Hoodoo Ann reads ‘Ann (Mae Marsh) believes herself ‘hoodooed’ by Black Cindy, the orphanage cook’.

The Beale Street Hoodoo History and Folklife Museum recently obtained a copy of the film for our collection.

08/23/2026

Dancer performing the Likishi dance where ancestors connect with the local community. Taken from ‘African Dances of Northern Rhodesia’ in the Occasional Papers of the Rhodes-Livingstone Museum, 1959.

08/18/2026

It is with a heavy heart that we share the message about the passing of a New Orleans icon. Mary Robin Williams known around the world as Priestess Miriam, founder of the New Orleans Voodoo Spiritual Temple has passed away. Originally from Mississippi, Priestess Miriam is a legend in the New Orleans Voodoo community and is known around the world for her work as an educator in African traditions and a compassionate spiritual healer.

08/07/2026

Sister Ruby was a prominent spiritual reader that operated at 2403 Lamar Avenue in Memphis in the 1970’s.

08/04/2026

Beale Street became home for several policy houses throughout the years. The policy game was an illegal lottery where players would put bets on a set of numbers. If these numbers were selected the player would win cash prizes. Dream books became popular tools that were said to interpret symbols in dreams and would give associated numbers for policy players to bet on. The Beale Street Hoodoo History and Folklife Museum located on the top floor of A.Schwab maintains an exhibit focusing on the policy game and its connection to Memphis Hoodoo history.

07/31/2026

A 1924 letter from E.W. Hoyt & Company to A. Schwab. Early record of Hoyt's cologne being ordered.