From AL.com: Parrot Heads, rejoice! Mobile planning Jimmy Buffett-themed museum experience
Long before Jimmy Buffett strummed a guitar, his family’s story was intertwined with Mobile Bay.
Nearly 72 years ago, the Chiquimula—a schooner once captained by his grandfather, the inspiration behind ‘Son of a Son of a Sailor’ —stood tall along the Causeway and served as a floating landmark. But in 1953, vandals set it ablaze, sending a piece of Buffett’s Mobile roots up in smoke.
Now, decades later, those roots are drifting back home. The National Maritime Museum of the Gulf of Mexico, docked on the Mobile River, is developing an immersive, 5,000-square-foot exhibit celebrating Buffett’s seafaring heritage and legendary island sound. Slated to open in September 2026, the exhibit will bring Buffett’s story full circle, back to the waters where his grandfather once sailed and where his parents built a life on the waterfront.
“Our view is that the National Maritime Museum is positioned uniquely being across the river where Jimmy’s parents worked and adjacent to the river where his grandfather sailed,” said Matt Anderson, executive director of Civic, Culture, and Maritime Affairs with the City of Mobile. “When he talks about the ‘Son of a Sailor,’ he is talking about the man who sailed across the Mobile River.”
Claiming Jimmy
Anderson said the city wants to put its imprint on the Buffett legacy, creating a must-visit spot for funky and laid-back Parrot Heads and curious history buffs alike.
The feature will be located on Deck 1 and 1A, essentially the museum’s main entrance.
“A lot of places are wanting to claim Jimmy,” Anderson said. “He only has one home and that is Mobile.”
The city looks to take its first big step toward making the exhibit a reality on Tuesday, if the council approves over $740,000 to settle debts on the museum’s exhibits under its original moniker GulfQuest, which would clear the decks for Buffett’s legacy to set sail.
The museum exhibit will be the first of its kind about the iconic beach bum in his coastal Alabama hometown. Buffett died in 2023, at age 76 following a bout with a rare and aggressive form of skin cancer. He was inducted last year into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame for musical excellence.
Buffett, born in Pascagoula, grew up in Mobile and attended St. Ignatius and McGill-Toolen High School. He played his first shows downtown at the Admiral Hotel and made his first recordings inside a studio that was once located within the Loop.
Early mementos will be included within the exhibit, including his first signed music contract, family photos and a paper he wrote when he was 8 years old.
Karen Poth, executive director of the museum, said they have been working with Buffett’s family to acquire items that will be displayed inside the exhibit.
“They’ve kept everything including grade school papers, and things he wrote,” she said. “The gallery part has been a lot of fun to research.”
She said that museum officials are also working with Margaritaville Holdings LLC and other entities on the exhibit.
Coastal focus
It will go beyond Buffett’s Mobile roots and will connect to the museum’s overall theme of celebrating the entirety of the Gulf of Mexico.
“He spent his whole life in the Gulf of Mexico whether it’s Key West (or other places),” Poth said. “We will cover all of those things.”
She added, “It will be about his life and his contributions to the Gulf of Mexico identity and the contributions to his identity.”
Poth said the exhibit’s immersive feature is still in its “beginning stages.” She said that requests for proposal will go out soon for the feature’s design.
Poth said the goal is to give visitors a feeling of attending a Buffett concert in an “intimate setting.” One potential show to be featured is the intimate concert Buffett delivered at Lulu’s, the popular Gulf Shores venue owned by his sister, Lucy. Buffett played a surprised concert before about 2,000 people at Lulu’s in 2010.
She said the shows will be interchangeable, allowing the museum to switch out shows to give visitors a different experience.
Poth said one feature the museum is considering is building a replica of Shrimp Boat Studios, a white building with no windows that Buffett used a recording studio in Key West.
“It’s a white building that looks like a giant Yeti cooler,” Poth said. “My hope is to build that out in the middle of the gallery and the interactive component is that people can look and see the recording sessions.”
She added, “It will be things that people have never experienced before, will be neat and something interactive for the Parrot Heads.”
Potential donors, Anderson said, are uninterested in supporting the museum’s debt payments. They are interested in fundraising that includes “events that are fun and engaging.”
“We want to make this as clean as possible so the board (of directors) can spearhead the private fundraising for this,” he said. “They are raring to go. They are being held back by this right now.”
The museum was a costly and lengthy construction project for the city, wrapping up and opening in 2015. The total price tag was around $62 million, and close to half was covered through grant money. The city’s remaining debt on the building is set to expire by 2030, as part of a general bond package that was refinanced over 10 years ago when Mobile Mayor Sandy Stimpson took office.
Renewed focus
The museum has struggled to attract visitors for years, but changes are occurring as revenues begin to rise.
Mobile celebrated the inaugural “Son of a Sailor Fest” in September, a family-friendly street party honoring Buffett and his music. Gulf Shores has hosted two “Meeting of the Minds” events that celebrated Buffett, and featured performances by the Coral Reefers.
Last August, The Wharf in Orange Beach announced plans to build a Margaritaville Resort on 70 acres along the Intracoastal Waterway. The project’s first phase is expected to open by 2027, with the complete resort opening in 2029.
A Margaritaville restaurant is expected to open in Gulf Shores sometime this year.