Bury me with a spirit jug: viewing African American art, culture and history at the Tubman Museum in Macon, Georgia

Spirit jugs were used by African Americans to honor members of the family after they passed. The jug was plastered and then crusted with items belonging to the deceased person or persons. This jug (left) was created in the 1920s in South Georgia and is on display at the Tubman Museum in Macon. Once decorated, spirit jugs were used at gravesites or kept in the house to remember loved ones. It's believed the custom of spirit jugs is rooted in West African charm traditions.

The Tubman Museum in Macon is the Southeast's largest museum dedicated to the art, history and culture of African Americans. It has more than 7000 items, many on display, including items from the Jim Crow area, Macon's African American leaders, a quilt display and an exhibit on Harriett Tubman, for whom the museum is named.

Other exhibits include "King of Soul: Otis Redding in Photographs," "Untold Stories: Macon's African American History," "The World of Mr. Imagination," "From Africa to America," "From the Minds of African Americans" and "Black Artists of Georgia."

One of my favorite pieces in the of Georgia African American artist exhibit was this mixed media artwork, below, created by Amalia Amaki, titled "I'd Rather Two-Step Than Waltz." Her work often starts with stereotypical images of African Americans but Amaki uses "buttons and other found objects to transform these images into objects of power," according to the artist's note. This piece includes buttons, postcards, photographs and images of flowers.

The Tubman Museum is open 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday. Admission is $10 adults, $6 children ages 3-17 and $8 for AAA and AARP members, seniors, military personnel and educators.

Below are more photographs from the Tubman Museum.

I'd Rather Two-Step Than Waltz

Little Richard's piano

Harriett Tubman

Weird, Wacky and Wild South is written by travel writer Chere Dastugue Coen.

Berry College: 14 acres to every student

Who would imagine that a college with 2100 students would exist on the world’s largest campus. That’s 14 acres to every student.

Berry College outside of Rome, Georgia, sits upon 27,000 acres — that’s two times larger than Manhattan. The Christian school also contains the largest mill wheel (circa 1930) at 42 feet in diameter and still used to grind corn on special occasions. There’s also 88 miles of trails, including the three-mile Viking Trail that’s popular with hikers and bikers. The campus includes several beautiful chapels, the Gunby Equine College, a working farm, the WinShape Retreat Centre and the Roosevelt Cabin named for Pres. Theodore Roosevelt who dined there in 1910. Travel + Leisure named it one of America’s Most Beautiful College Campuses and on the day we visited, we spotted a bald eagle in the tree canopy. The natural landscape is the reason why “Remember the Titans” and “Sweet Home Alabama” were filmed here.

The liberal arts school was founded by Martha McChesney Berry in 1902 to educate children in the rural South who might not otherwise get an education. She enlisted the support of American celebrities of her time: Henry and Clara Ford, Andrew Carnegie, Charles Dana and Thomas Edison. Visitors can tour the Martha Berry Museum and gardens, also located on campus.

Chere Coen is a travel and food writer who loves strange and unique Southern locations and traditions.