For those spellbound by hoodoo, a Downtown museum goes down to its roots
India Kiki rings a bell to demonstrate hoodoo rituals Saturday on the opening day of Beale Street Hoodoo History and Folklife Museum on Beale Street. (Greg Campbell/Special to The Daily Memphian)
As a kid, Tony Kail had no idea what hoodoo was.
He was a white kid from West Tennessee, so when walking into places like the A. Schwab’s Dry Goods Store on Beale Street, he’d see the hoodoo products – candles, oils, incenses and more — and be mystified.
That mystery sparked a lifelong passion in Kail to learn as much as he could about hoodoo, a passion that eventually led to the Saturday opening of the Beale Street Hoodoo History and Folklife Museum on the third floor of A. Schwab’s.
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Hoodoo A. Schwab Dry Goods Store Beale Street African American history Subscriber OnlyThank you for being a subscriber to The Daily Memphian. Your support is critical.
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Jody Callahan
Jody Callahan graduated with degrees in journalism and economics from what is now known as the University of Memphis. He has covered news in Memphis for more than 25 years.
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