The Origins of the Mississippi Delta Blues by James Miller May
20, 2002 The origins of the blues in the Mississippi Delta are
as deep, wide, and muddy as the river that gives the area its
name. These origins are the culmination of hundreds of years of
slavery, pain, prosperity, and revolution, and dealing with many
races and creeds. The palate for this subject is so broad that
all the information cannot be addressed in a small paper such as
this one. This work covers the years 1890 to 1930, is the most
exemplary and explosive time for the birth of the Mississippi
Delta Blues. The regional focus will be on the area known as the
Mississippi Delta, both colloquially and analytically. This does
not include the entire Mississippi Delta Basin, but only a few
hundred square miles of the alluvial plain. The main counties to
be looked at will be Coahoma and Sunflower, with a peripheral
use of Washington, Bolivar, Humphreys, and Yazoo counties. The
origins of the blues in the Mississippi Delta can be studied in
a schol