I bet you didn’t know Muppets creator Jim Henson was originally from Mississippi. I bet you also didn’t know that Jim Henson had a (human) friend named Kermit. They used to play along the banks of Deer Creek in the small town of Leland, which has since been proclaimed as the birthplace of the frog (which must be true…I mean look at that autographed photo above). Deer Creek not only has a historic marker commemorating such an important event, but it’s also home to a museum officially called “Birthplace of the Frog: The Jim Henson Delta Boyhood Exhibit”.
A small, roadside museum off Highways 61 and 82, several walls are lined with glass cases of Muppets/Jim Henson memorabilia and collectibles as well as a giant Kermit the Frog for touristy photo ops. And even though the very first Kermit puppet resides in the Smithsonian National Museum of American History in Washington, D.C. there is an early but post-metamorphosis Kermit here as well as several other incarnations of the various Muppets. Leland also hosts an annual FrogFest event each fall at the Rainbow Connection Bridge, named for Kermit’s signature song from his first feature film, The Muppet Movie (check out Kermit’s duet with Debbie Harry here). But there is more to the town than Muppets as it’s also home to the Highway 61 Blues Museum, part of the Mississippi Blues Trail.
