Celebrating Jim Henson at the Birthplace of the Frog Museum in Leland, Mississippi

By Meg Brunson

The Muppets, Sesame Street, even Labyrinth – Jim Henson has had a huge impact on my childhood – and I’ve introduced many of those same Muppets to my kids – so, when we were traveling through Mississippi, I jumped at the opportunity to visit the museum built to honor his boyhood home.

The Birthplace of the Frog museum is located in Leland, Mississippi, on the banks of Deer Creek – a waterway that inspired Henson to create Kermit! The museum is a relatively small building full of Jim Henson memorabilia! There is no admission fees, however donations are accepted and there is a wonderful little gift shop with a variety of souvenirs.  

In addition to the main exhibit room, and the gift shop room, there is a kids’ play room – which I did not expect from the reviews I read in preparation of my trip – but it totally makes sense given Henson’s creation of childhood characters! My kids were eager to play with the toys, flip through books, and line up stuffed animals to watch movies. Everywhere you looked were Muppets, and Sesame Street charters, books, toys, and more!

While the kids played to their content, we were able to read some of the history in the main exhibit – the smaller size of the facility allowed us to still keep an eye/ear on the kids playing in the other room.

The staff member on site the day of our visit was very friendly, and we enjoyed chatting with her about Jim Henson and learning more about his childhood in Mississippi. As I mentioned, it’s not a big facility – it’s a relatively small building with one large room of memorabilia, the playroom, and a gift shop. We enjoyed out visit and the trip down memory lane it invoked.  We spent about 90 minutes at the museum. – mostly because the kids were content to play and we were enjoying the conversation with the staff… but the museum could be consumed in less time for sure.

We also took a short drive to the Rainbow Connection Bridge – dedicated by the town to honor Jim Henson. If you are passing through Mississippi, or a fan of Henson’s work, you’ll definitely want to plan a trip to see The Birthplace of the Frog museum! Learn more and start planning your trip at: https://birthplaceofthefrog.org/

Read about some of the other adventures we're having on our Year-Long Road Trip!

© 2019 Meg Brunson

All opinions expressed are my own. See more on Instagram!

Meg is a mommy blogger, Facebook marketer, and much more. She is a mom to four kids who live full-time in an RV exploring the US! As a former Facebook employee, Meg remains a Facebook addict and handles KidsOutAndAbout.com's Social Media Marketing in addition to providing freelance services for other small businesses on how to best leverage Facebook as a part of their marketing strategy. Meg also hosts the FamilyPreneur Podcast, a podcast for parent entrepreneurs raising entrepreneurial children. Learn more about Meg at MegBrunson.com!