Things to Do in Oxford, Mississippi
The best things to do in Oxford, Mississippi, are touring William Faulkner’s Rowan Oak, browsing Square Books on the courthouse Square and walking the Ole Miss campus. Oxford is a college town of 25,416 people and the seat of Lafayette County, about 75 miles southeast of Memphis.
In 1837 three settlers bought the town site from a Chickasaw landowner named Hoka. They named it after Oxford, England, hoping it would become a center of learning. It worked: the legislature picked Oxford for the state university in 1841, and Ole Miss opened in 1848. Faulkner later turned the town into Jefferson, the county seat of his fictional Yoknapatawpha County.
Rowan Oak
Faulkner bought this 1844 Greek Revival house in 1930 and lived here until his death in 1962. The University of Mississippi has owned it since 1972 and keeps it about as he left it, with 90% of the original furnishings. In his ground-floor office you can still see the plot outline of A Fable, his Pulitzer Prize winner, written on the walls.
★ Good to know The grounds are free and open dawn to dusk daily; going inside the house costs a small fee, and the house is closed Mondays.
The Square and Square Books
The Lafayette County Courthouse, built in 1872 after Union troops burned the old one in 1864, anchors a square of shops and restaurants. Square Books opened here in 1979 and now has three stores on the Square. Off Square Books handles used books, and Square Books Jr. is for kids. The store hosts author readings and signings most weeks.
★ Good to know Check the Square Books events calendar before your trip; signed copies are often available if you can’t make a reading.
The Lyceum and the Ole Miss campus
The Lyceum, finished in 1848, is the oldest building at Ole Miss. It was the center of the 1962 riot when James Meredith became the university’s first Black student. A Civil Rights Memorial with a statue of Meredith was unveiled nearby in 2006.
★ Good to know The campus sits just west of downtown, and the city’s Oxford-University Transit buses serve both.
University of Mississippi Museum
The campus museum at University Avenue and 5th Street is free. Its permanent collections include the Robinson collection of Greek and Roman antiquities and 19th-century scientific instruments. Plan about an hour for the galleries.
★ Good to know Bailey Woods Trail, the wooded path from the museum to Rowan Oak, has been closed for bridge repairs, so check its status before you plan to walk it.
Burns-Belfry Museum and Multicultural Center
Freed African Americans organized Burns Methodist Episcopal Church, and its brick church went up in 1910. It’s one of the oldest Black churches in Oxford. Today it’s a museum and cultural center on African American life in Oxford and Lafayette County, from slavery through the Civil Rights Movement.
★ Good to know It’s a few blocks from the Square, so pair it with a walk downtown.
L.Q.C. Lamar House Museum
Lucius Q.C. Lamar, a congressman, Secretary of the Interior and Supreme Court justice, built this house at 616 N. 14th St. in 1869. It’s a National Historic Landmark and was restored in 2007 and 2008, including the hand-painted frescoes in the main hall.
★ Good to know Admission is free, and it opens on a limited weekend schedule, so check before you go.
Thacker Mountain Radio Hour
This weekly live radio show mixes author readings with music, hosted by Jim Dees with the house band Paul Tate and the Yalobushwhackers. Shows are recorded on Thursday evenings, usually at the Powerhouse or Off Square Books, and admission is free.
★ Good to know The show runs in spring and fall seasons, so check the schedule online.
Also in town
Drive past historic homes such as Ammadelle, an Italianate villa of about 1859 by Central Park designer Calvert Vaux, and Isom Place of 1843. Then stop at St. Peter’s Episcopal Church (1860) and College Hill Presbyterian Church (1846), where Faulkner married Estelle Oldham in 1929.
Can you tour William Faulkner’s house in Oxford?
Yes. Rowan Oak is open Tuesday through Sunday, with a small fee to go inside, and the grounds are free and open daily. Groups of 10 or more should call ahead.
Is the University of Mississippi Museum free?
Yes. Admission to the museum is free, as are the Rowan Oak grounds and Bailey Woods Trail when it’s open.
What is Oxford, Mississippi, known for?
Ole Miss, William Faulkner, Square Books and the courthouse Square. It’s also where James Meredith integrated the university in 1962.
What towns are near Oxford, Mississippi?
Holly Springs is about 30 miles north on Highway 7, and the Delta starts to the west. See Holly Springs, Clarksdale or all our small towns in Mississippi.
Where to find them
- Rowan Oak 916 Old Taylor Rd., Oxford, MS 38655 Website Directions
- The Square and Square Books Courthouse Square, Oxford, MS 38655 Website Directions
- The Lyceum and the Ole Miss campus University, MS 38677 Website Directions
- University of Mississippi Museum University Ave. and 5th St., Oxford, MS 38655 Website Directions
- Burns-Belfry Museum and Multicultural Center Oxford, MS 38655 Website Directions
- L.Q.C. Lamar House Museum 616 N. 14th St., Oxford, MS 38655 Directions
- Thacker Mountain Radio Hour 413 S. 14th St., Oxford, MS 38655 Website Directions
Plan your trip: for events and current visitor info in Oxford, see Oxford Lafayette Chamber of Commerce →
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Where to stay in Oxford
Keep exploring
Holly Springs, MSAbout 27 miles as the crow fliesIda B. Wells's hometown, with antebellum homes and Hill Country blues.Things to do in Holly Springs →
Clarksdale, MSAbout 62 miles as the crow fliesThe Delta blues town at the Crossroads of 61 and 49.Things to do in Clarksdale →
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