Abbay and Leatherman Plantation- Robert Johnson Historical Marker

This was the site of Abbay and Leatherman Plantation, which was recently added to the Mississippi Blues Trail owing to the time guitarist, singer, and songwriter, Robert Johnson spent living here with his family in a tenant shack on the property from approximately 1918 to 1928. The marker can be found on Casino Strip Resort Blvd, about four miles outside of Robinsonville.

The Mississippi Blues Trail Marker here reads, "ABBAY & LEATHERMAN – Abbay & Leatherman, one of the oldest and largest cotton plantations in the Delta, is known to music enthusiasts worldwide as the boyhood home of blues icon Robert Johnson (c. 1912-1938). Johnson lived here with his family in a tenant shack by the levee during the 1920s. The powerful and impassioned recordings he made in 1936-37 and often cited as the foundation of rock n’ roll, and the facts, fantasies, and mysteries of his life and death are a continuing source of intrigue.”

Once one of the largest cotton plantations in the Mississippi Delta, Abbay and Leatherman is included on the Blues Trail due to its association with blues musician Robert Johnson. Johnson, perhaps best known as the guitarist who supposedly sold his soul to the devil at a Mississippi crossroads, received little commercial success during his life. However, his recordings in 1936 and 1937 became a fundamental influence on later musicians. Johnson has been recognized since his death by the Rock and Roll, Grammy, and Blues Halls of Fame; as well as the National Recording Preservation Board.

Abbay & Leatherman, Roadtrippers. Accessed December 13th 2020. https://maps.roadtrippers.com/us/robinsonville-ms/points-of-interest/abbay-leatherman.

Abbay & Leatherman, Mississippi Blues Trail. Accessed December 13th 2020. http://www.mississippibluestravellers.com/MBT_WordPressDB/abbay-leatherman/.