The Cotton Museum at the Memphis Cotton Exchange
The Cotton Museum at the Memphis Cotton Exchange
The Cotton Museum at the Memphis Cotton Exchange
4
10:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Monday
10:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Tuesday
10:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Wednesday
10:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Thursday
10:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Friday
10:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Saturday
10:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Sunday
1:00 PM - 5:00 PM
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Most Recent: Reviews ordered by most recent publish date in descending order.
Detailed Reviews: Reviews ordered by recency and descriptiveness of user-identified themes such as wait time, length of visit, general tips, and location information.
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4.0
298 reviews
Excellent
110
Very good
118
Average
49
Poor
13
Terrible
8
esther s
11 contributions
Jul 2023 • Couples
My husband and I recently visited Nashville, TN for our summer vacation. We discovered this hidden gem when we were talking to the riverfront. It is an excellent museum. Artifacts and a replica of the old cotton exchange as well as the culture and music that developed around cotton. Don't miss the 2nd side that explains the science of growing and manufacturing cotton - it is very well done and yes, interesting. The museum also has a nice gift shop - they sponsor an art show every year and there are prints in the shop.
Written July 11, 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Susan H
Tacoma, WA4,093 contributions
May 2023 • Couples
We enjoy seeing places that are different or unique and the Cotton Exchange was very interesting. I learned a lot about the history and process of growing, harvesting, and selling cotton. In addition to that, the building is really cool and a great piece of Memphis history. There is a trolly you can take to get here for a couple dollars making it easy to visit as you explore downtown. The museum isn’t too large and we spent about an hour and a half here. Some of that time was sitting and watching videos about cotton and the history of the building. Nice break from walking.
Written May 20, 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
BLMerce
Kensington, MD920 contributions
Sep 2022 • Family
We were a family of 6 with two boys aged 11 and 9. I think we all learned information about cotton. Admission included earphones to listen to videos. Unfortunately, mine did not work. They offered to replace them, but I was ready to leave. I should have asked sooner. We spent about an hour there
Written September 29, 2022
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Nicole A
Staten Island, NY170 contributions
Aug 2019
I loved this museum! I don't know what I loved more, being in the space of the actual commodity exchange or learning the history of cotton planting and harvesting. The exhibits are well done. You get a true sense of what it was like for the gentlemen who worked in this trade, both in the fields and at the exchange. I loved the old boards and phone booths. My kids had great time learning about cotton in the hands-on portion of the museum. There are old relics from the industry that are worth admiring. I really enjoyed my experience in this museum. I wish I would have budgeted more time because there really was so much to learn. I would have loved to listen to more of the recorded messages about people who are in the cotton business.
The space is gorgeous, the film is inspiring and the exhibits are informational. This is a great place to visit while in Memphis. I would certainly go back if I am ever in the area again.
The space is gorgeous, the film is inspiring and the exhibits are informational. This is a great place to visit while in Memphis. I would certainly go back if I am ever in the area again.
Written April 4, 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Penny S
Raleigh, North Carolina, United States9 contributions
Aug 2014 • Friends
What was once THE Cotton Exchange Building is now the Cotton Exchange Museum. The original buy/sell floor is there with the chalk walls and teller windows. The original "phone booths" have been turned into informational history videos. You "feel" like you are there ... back in history. (I learned they played Dominoes while waiting at the exchange.)There are many displays, original doors, weights, etc. WE spent several hours there ... just to take it all in. The farming/growing of cotton has come a LONG way. Researchers are constantly at work with cotton. The Cotton Museum is a MUST to see in Memphis TN.
Written August 20, 2014
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Encajes
Albuquerque, NM144 contributions
Feb 2020
We hadn't really heard much about this place and decided at the last minute to drop in. What a treasure Memphis has here! The museum is very small, yet filled with wonderful history of the cotton industry and the ties to music of the area.
Written March 6, 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
JerryH9905
Baltimore, MD5,314 contributions
Dec 2017 • Couples
December 23, 2017 - Before leaving home for Memphis, we had purchased an Entertainment Coupon Book for Memphis that had a two for one coupon for the Cotton Exchange. The senior admission price is $9 and we used our two for one coupon to get one free admission. To be honest, the Museum is worth the regular price without using the coupon.
The Museum tour is self guided and one circulates among displays, exhibits, posters, artifacts, and interactive areas. It was very interesting to enter a telephone booth, select a featured person and listen to his or her story relating to cotton and the cotton exchange. The Exchange even has the large board kind of like the New York Stock Exchange which shows how the cotton was traded.
In another Museum area, there are additional displays including a full size bale of cotton.
Cotton was King and there are pictures which show the Cotton parade and the Cotton Queen.
The Museum is well worth you time for a visit.
The Museum tour is self guided and one circulates among displays, exhibits, posters, artifacts, and interactive areas. It was very interesting to enter a telephone booth, select a featured person and listen to his or her story relating to cotton and the cotton exchange. The Exchange even has the large board kind of like the New York Stock Exchange which shows how the cotton was traded.
In another Museum area, there are additional displays including a full size bale of cotton.
Cotton was King and there are pictures which show the Cotton parade and the Cotton Queen.
The Museum is well worth you time for a visit.
Written January 7, 2018
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
mikesportsinfo
Elmhurst, IL9 contributions
Jun 2017 • Couples
We spent a week in Memphis, and this was by far the worst attraction we visited. There is "nothing" to the museum, for which the tour is terribly overpriced @ $10. There are only 2 small rooms. The first initially looks appealing with a mannequin up on a ladder, posting cotton future prices in a "back in the day" setting. However, that is IT. The video which starts the presentation is worthless; and visually very difficult to look at, as it is simply pictures of pictures, which change rapidly. All it tells is that the Cotton Exchange was a clandestine group of wealthy old men, who made and lost fortunes speculating on the price of cotton, in a setting which was akin to a private social club, (i.e. simply an elite socially acceptable form of "gambling"). However, what is totally missing is any explanation of how cotton gets from the farmer to the users of the cotton (e.g. apparel manufacturers). How and where, and for what price did the farmer sell his cotton? You won't have any more of a clue about that after watching the video, and walking the two rooms, than before you came in.
Furthermore some of the displays, already small, are simply musical items which are irrelevant, and pale in comparison to the many excellent Memphis museums dedicated exclusively to the history of blues and rock & roll music. Yes, there is a part of the tour which involves walking around downtown to several other locations, but that is not what you want, or envision, as part of a museum tour when you enter.
Visiting this museum was a complete "bust". I will say that the people were "nice", but their museum needs to completely redesigned. As is, it is terribly inadequate, uninformative, and not worth the price of the tour.
Furthermore some of the displays, already small, are simply musical items which are irrelevant, and pale in comparison to the many excellent Memphis museums dedicated exclusively to the history of blues and rock & roll music. Yes, there is a part of the tour which involves walking around downtown to several other locations, but that is not what you want, or envision, as part of a museum tour when you enter.
Visiting this museum was a complete "bust". I will say that the people were "nice", but their museum needs to completely redesigned. As is, it is terribly inadequate, uninformative, and not worth the price of the tour.
Written June 25, 2017
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
janne
Wellington, New Zealand35 contributions
Went expecting a museum about history of cotton but hadnt realised just how intertwined it was with the history of Blues and Memphis music.
Very informative videos, and photos, well displayed and a section with interactive displays and Educational questions.
Well done was great.
Very informative videos, and photos, well displayed and a section with interactive displays and Educational questions.
Well done was great.
Written February 17, 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Thank you for coming by! We love to talk about cotton, music, food, and all things Memphis!
Written February 18, 2020
This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.
Joe H
DeWitt, NY837 contributions
Oct 2019 • Couples
The museum occupies two areas, one on the left of the hallway as you enter, the second on the right. Go to the left, into the gift shop to pay for your admission. Depending on what discount you may qualify for, you'll pay $8-10 per person. I thought that this was a bit too much after experiencing the museum.
After you pay, go across the hall into the large exchange room and watch the short intro video. The old hard wooden chairs are face a large screen display, which is mounted too low and results in blocked views for those in the second row. The sound is loud enough to fill the entire room, making for a distraction during your viewing of the exhibits and very annoying crosstalk with the sound from an exhibit at the other side of the room. This is less a problem if there aren't many visitors, but it was a nuisance while we were there.
The exhibits tell the story if cotton and its role in shaping Southern culture and importance in the economy. They also show how it was a factor in the development of music.
While there is some good stuff here, and we spent about an hour here, there were places where displays needed a little maintenance. The exhibits had sort of a logic behind their arrangement but at times they seemed a bit random.
Most irritating to me were the numerous videos. While an orientation or overview video is fine with me, I dislike museums that present lots of information in video format without telling you the length of the videos you will be watching. Often visitors have a time and/or interest limitation and want to know, if I watch this, will I be at this spot for 1 minute? 3 minutes? 10 minutes? Knowing in advance helps visitors decide whether to begin watching or to move on. Now, this is a major problem in this museum. Wisely, they set up video stations in the former row of phone booths in the exchange room, each equipped with a set of headphones a video screen. You choose which of 27 (yes, 27, not a typo!) you want to watch without disturbing anyone else. Good, until you realize that you have no clue how long any of them are. I started watching one and even though the information was good, I gave up 10 minutes later realizing that I might be there all day listening to this stuff. The hard metal stools in the cramped booths didn't help any.
As if this weren’t bad enough, there are about nine more videos, covering interesting topics, at a table in the room, with only four sets of screens and headphones available to access them. The day I was there one was out of order and I had to wait a while for a turn. Again, there are no clues about how long the videos are, and based on the one I watched, you might be sitting there for an hour or more watching them while other frustrated visitors wait for a chance at the equipment.
To me, you come to a museum to see stuff you can't see at home. Videos could easily be made available on line for viewing anywhere. This museum has way too high a ratio of videos to items on exhibit, and does nothing to help a visitor select which videos to watch.
Back across the hall there are some hands-on exhibits that are more kid friendly. While they are informative, I sensed a touch of industry propaganda. Not enough to be a big deal, though.
I still learned a lot here and I was glad I came here. I just think that the museum is badly flawed by its handling of the videos.
After you pay, go across the hall into the large exchange room and watch the short intro video. The old hard wooden chairs are face a large screen display, which is mounted too low and results in blocked views for those in the second row. The sound is loud enough to fill the entire room, making for a distraction during your viewing of the exhibits and very annoying crosstalk with the sound from an exhibit at the other side of the room. This is less a problem if there aren't many visitors, but it was a nuisance while we were there.
The exhibits tell the story if cotton and its role in shaping Southern culture and importance in the economy. They also show how it was a factor in the development of music.
While there is some good stuff here, and we spent about an hour here, there were places where displays needed a little maintenance. The exhibits had sort of a logic behind their arrangement but at times they seemed a bit random.
Most irritating to me were the numerous videos. While an orientation or overview video is fine with me, I dislike museums that present lots of information in video format without telling you the length of the videos you will be watching. Often visitors have a time and/or interest limitation and want to know, if I watch this, will I be at this spot for 1 minute? 3 minutes? 10 minutes? Knowing in advance helps visitors decide whether to begin watching or to move on. Now, this is a major problem in this museum. Wisely, they set up video stations in the former row of phone booths in the exchange room, each equipped with a set of headphones a video screen. You choose which of 27 (yes, 27, not a typo!) you want to watch without disturbing anyone else. Good, until you realize that you have no clue how long any of them are. I started watching one and even though the information was good, I gave up 10 minutes later realizing that I might be there all day listening to this stuff. The hard metal stools in the cramped booths didn't help any.
As if this weren’t bad enough, there are about nine more videos, covering interesting topics, at a table in the room, with only four sets of screens and headphones available to access them. The day I was there one was out of order and I had to wait a while for a turn. Again, there are no clues about how long the videos are, and based on the one I watched, you might be sitting there for an hour or more watching them while other frustrated visitors wait for a chance at the equipment.
To me, you come to a museum to see stuff you can't see at home. Videos could easily be made available on line for viewing anywhere. This museum has way too high a ratio of videos to items on exhibit, and does nothing to help a visitor select which videos to watch.
Back across the hall there are some hands-on exhibits that are more kid friendly. While they are informative, I sensed a touch of industry propaganda. Not enough to be a big deal, though.
I still learned a lot here and I was glad I came here. I just think that the museum is badly flawed by its handling of the videos.
Written October 15, 2019
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Is this exhibit open or still closed due to Covid?
Written April 8, 2021
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