No city in the U. S. A. has an authentic, usable riverfront cobblestone landing, except Memphis.  It's the last remaining complete stone-paved landing on any United States waterfront.  There were others - especially St. Louis and Cincinnati, but those have now been mostly destroyed. 

Once the shore of the Chickasaw Bluffs was paved with cobblestones in the 1800s, Memphis became a major center of commerce.  And because of that, Memphis has finally decided on the preservation of the cobblestones to "...full usability for boating and enjoyment of locals and visitors, because the landing symbolizes Memphis' history as a busy river port".  Indeed the cobblestones are perhaps the most significant historic site in the area. 

The Cobblestone Landing in Memphis is the nation's largest remaining, intact cobblestone landing.  It's located on Riverside Drive between Beale Street and Jefferson.  It was built between the late 1850s and 1890s by immigrant laborers who laid the stone from quarries from Illinois.  The landing was created because of the heavy commerce of incoming ships which exchanged their loads for cotton, lumber, and other products - making Memphis the world's largest cotton and hardwood markets.  These distinctions helped contribute to Memphis becoming the largest mule market because so many mules were used to unload the ships and take the products up the bluffs to the warehouses.  Memphis was also the major slave port in the mid-south.

Cotton

Mules

More Cotton

        Major Cotton Market

The City originally hired paving contractor John Loudon to pave the wharf with limestone or granite between Adams and Beale,  and to cover a width of 100 feet and length of 3,300 feet.  The thickness of the paving was set at 12 inches.  The stone was quarried in Illinois.  Loudon began the work in 1859.  However work was halted soon after the outbreak of the Civil War.  He resumed the project in 1866 and completed it in 1881.  Analysis of the stones on the Landing, suggest that portions of each of London's paving projects remains in place today.  In 1979 the Cobblestone Landing was placed on the he National Register of Historic Places.

Major Mule Market

1911 - Busy Port

Busy Port 1906

Mississippi Riverboats calling at Memphis... Before 1859, the Memphis Landing and was quite different from the existing stone pavement one sees today.   Drawings from the 1840s show the Landing as an expanse of rough, eroded bluff terraces, divided by road cuts through the terraces to reach a narrow strip of land at the water's edge. The river's edge was subject to erosion by the currents of the River and proved to be an unreliable place for river traffic to land.  Falling water levels revealed drops in the slope of the embankment, caused by erosion.  The vertical movement of the Mississippi River sometimes exceeds 50 feet between periods of high and low water. During periods of low water, river passengers and laborers had to walk over 200 feet of the unstable bank before reaching compacted ground.  It was unusually difficult, and virtually impossible during rainy periods.   Once the Cobblestone Landing was completed, conditions were far more favorable to commerce, and Memphis became a MAJOR river port.

Memphis Landing 1870

2011... Today, the historic cobblestones have fallen into disrepair.  The result is unsafe walking conditions which can result in injuries or lawsuits.  Mud and weeds are claiming significant portions of the landing, and patches of unsightly asphalt cover gaps in the stone - testifying to a previous botched restoration.  There's been further deterioration as a result of erosion and settling.   All of these problems can be solved by restoring the landing and preventing further deterioration.  A 1996 survey estimated there were more than 800,000 of the original cobblestones left at the landing.

Missing stones...

        Cement grout...

Neglect                 

Neglect   

Weeds...

             Bad Asphalt Restoration

Controversy over restoration plans... Of course there's controversy.  Long-time Memphians will have no trouble believing that originally, the city actually thought about demolishing the Cobblestone Landing? Eventually the City proposed building a large dock at the foot of Beale Street, named "Beale Landing", and then restoring the existing cobblestones, adding a "foot" at the bottom so the stones wouldn't slip into the water.  The critics insist that Beale Landing is a waste of money, because Mud Island already has the dock built that could be used by ships for "day cruises".   In addition, the Beale Landing has nothing to do with history or the cobblestone landing.  In fact, it's a "dock" - not a landing.  They also say that if a footing is added to the bottom of the cobblestones, riverboats won't be able to come in as they always have - and that destroys the history part of the renovation.  Rip-rap footing is a layer of jagged ruble-stones and is used for erosion control, NOT for boat landings.  Any boater will tell you that you land on rip-rap at your own risk, because it can destroy the bottom of barges.  Rip-rap is also a trash-collector and this would be exposed 50% of the time, at low tide.

Objections to the Restoration Plans... The main objection to the restoration plan seems to be the stone rip-rap or the "foot" at the bottom, designed to keep the stones from slipping into the water.  Critics say this will prevent River Boats from being able to come up to the landing, and make it impossible for small boats.  In addition it will "inhibit access to the river", and at low tide, would be exposed 50% of the time - showing unsightly trash that has been collected.  A secondary objection is the concrete walkway extending down the landing and destroying the historic appearance.  Critics say that walking on cobblestones requires your attention.  Europe wouldn't think about discontinuing their cobblestones.  Why should Memphis?  And you wouldn't expect to see concrete walkways over a sandy beach to make it easier to get to the water - so why add them over a cobblestone landing?  The rallying cry is "Restoration, not alteration". 

Once-Busy River Port... It's not easy to establish exactly when the Memphis Landing slipped in commercial importance and prestige.  Some say that when the Frisco Bridge was built, the decline started.  Others say it had to do with the agricultural depression that began in the 1910s.  But everyone agrees that one factor was the isolation of the Memphis Landing from the main channel of the River by the growth of Mud Island.  The growth of the Island is narrowing the main channel.

1895 Postcard

1911 Postcard

With the Renaissance of downtown Memphis, and the development of the Beale Street Historical District, the city has become a major tourist destination.  It's not much of a stretch to realize that the port landing will become part of this Renaissance, because River Cruises are a major draw for today's travelers.  Thus, proper restoration, with attention to "HISTORY" should be a top priority for the City when the Cobblestone Landing is restored.   After 150 years of continuous and thriving use, if the city continues with the current "Rip-Rap" footing plan for the landing, Memphians and tourists will never again see those grand riverboats tied up at the foot of the Cobblestones, like in the numerous photos on this web page. 

<>  Vintage Riverboat Photos and Memorabilia <>

Memphis is at the widest point along the Mississippi River.  Over 50 stops are made by major boats each year - not including local excursion boats.  The city felt that a modern docking facility was needed along the waterfront and the natural place for it would be where the Cobblestone Landing meets Tom Lee Park - at the foot of Beale Street. 

In the summer of 1994, the City began digging up the Cobblestone Landing at the foot of Beale Street in preparation to move the Tom Lee Monument there.  Before they could be stopped by the Army Corps of Engineers, the City workers had already destroyed a large section of the cobblestone landing and had carted away two acres of the historic cobblestones, and unearthed artifacts from the beginnings of the City's history.  And...they hadn't even secured the necessary permits and approvals for this project.  After a major delay, including a revised plan to make the Beale Landing blend in with the Cobblestone Landing, the work continued.  In addition to the large floating dock, it will include a building for a restaurant and a park.  In August of 2011, the Beale Landing is behind schedule and is plagued by rising costs.

** The Garrow Report

The City of Memphis recognized that the surface of the Landing should be improved.  They hired Garrow & Associates to perform the study and prepare the plan. Their two-volume report is formally titled, Memphis Landing Cultural Resource Assessment and Preservation Plan (December 1995/January 1996). Informally, it is commonly known as the Garrow Report, Part 1 and Part 2.

Garrow Report greatly condensed:  "...prepare a preservation plan for the total remaining cobblestone area north of the Tom Lee Monument relocation project area. The preservation plan shall include, but not be limited to: 1) Additional archival research 2) Mapping and photo-documentation of the cobblestones 3) Geologic study of the cobblestone area that includes distribution, size, texture, pattern, and lithology of the entire cobblestone area 4) Plan for future renovation programs including repair methods 5) Plan for future potential economic developments and long-tenn maintenance in the area (restaurants, boat docks, general accessibility, etc.) 6) Plans for interpretive booklets and exhibits. To these ends, Garrow Associates presented a proposal to the City outlining a multidisciplinary approach to the problems of preservation, maintenance, and future development of the Memphis Landing".

Garrow Report, Part 1: Cultural Resource Assessment

Garrow Report, Part 2: Preservation Plan

1907

1913

1915

1910

1935

1905

c.1900

1895

1906

1908

1913

"Trucking"

Delta Queen

Katie Robbins 1908

1910s

1908

1900s            

1910

1910

1907

1912

1910

1939

Vintage     

Vintage     

1907    

James Lee

The New Wagon...           

Stacker Lee - 1906

At the Wharf

1916

1906           

...approaching

Riverfront                

Skyline

Vintage Wharf           

       Ready for Shipment