James 'Son' Thomas — Leland, Mississippi

James 'Son' Thomas was born on October 14, 1926, in Eden, Mississippi, and spent much of his adult life in Leland, Washington County, becoming one of the most celebrated folk artists and blues musicians in the Delta. Thomas was equally known as a sculptor — he made haunting clay skulls and human heads that became sought-after folk art objects — and as a blues guitarist in the Delta tradition. William Ferris of Yale University documented Thomas extensively in his research on Delta culture, and that footage introduced him to academic and art world audiences.

Thomas's guitar playing was in the old Delta style — raw, bottleneck-inflected, descended from Charley Patton and Son House — and he played at juke joints, festivals, and community events throughout his life. His double identity as musician and sculptor made him a particularly rich subject for folk art collectors and documentarians. He became a regular at festivals and gallery shows in the 1980s, bringing the Delta blues tradition to contexts it had rarely entered.

Leland is in Washington County in the central Delta. The Highway 61 Blues Museum in Leland has material on Son Thomas and the local blues heritage. He is one of several major artists documented by the Mississippi Blues Trail in Washington County. Thomas died in Greenville, Mississippi, in 1993.