Museum Trail

Museum Trail

Mississippi

2 Reviews

The name of the trail should tell you everything you need to know: that Jackson's museums are the centerpiece of this walking and biking path. The trail is anchored by the Two Mississippi Museums (Museum of Mississippi History and Civil Rights Museum) on one end and the MS Natural Science Museum and the Children's Museum on the other.

Making it all the more special, this is Jackson's first rail-trail, located partly within the old Gulf, Mobile & Ohio (GM&O) Railroad right-of-way. The trail begins at the Farmer's Market on the corner of Jefferson and Mississippi streets, and heads north west along the old rail line, under I-55 to Laurel Street. (As of January 2021, this is the only segment of trail that is complete and open for use). From Laurel Street, the trail heads west to Myrtle Street, where it makes a brief on-street connection to Riverside Drive. From Riverside Drive, trail users can safely cross over Interstate-55, protected from vehicle traffic. On the east side of I-55, the trail parallels Highland Drive, ending at the Children's Museum on the edge of Lefleur's Bluff State Park, for a total trip of 2.5 miles.

Plans are currently in the works for phase II of the trail to create an off-road trail alternative to this on-road portion, giving trail users an uninterrupted journey free from traffic.

The paved trail travels through three Jackson neighborhoods - Belhaven, Belhaven Heights and Lefleur East. It provides access to parks including Belhaven Park and Laurel Street Park. It's a flat, paved trail attracting a broad constituency of users to enjoy the outdoors and the city's storied history and culture.

Parking and Trail Access

Parking is available at the Farmers Market building, located at 929 High Street on the southern end of the trail. Parking is also available on the northern end at the lots for the two museums, located on Riverside Drive just east of Highland Drive.

Local residents can also access the trail from Laurel Street Park at 1841 Laurel Street, which has an unpaved hiking trail that leads south to the trail, with limited on-street parking also available at the park.