The streets of downtown Hattiesburg were buzzing with life this weekend not with traffic, but with celebration. The Mobile Street Festival, now a cornerstone of the city’s cultural calendar, was originally founded to bring attention back to a once-thriving community that had fallen into decline.
“During segregation, black owned businesses and entrepreneurs had no place they could locate in this city…except in their own community and that community happened to be Mobile Street,” said festival organizer Deborah Delgado. “Mobile Street was known as an entertainment district during segregation in Hattiesburg.”
Mobile Street was a place where black business owners and professionals could open office spaces to serve African-American people within the community with dignity. A place where people could enjoy each other through empowerment and not oppression, so years later the Hattiesburg community wanted a way to bring that feeling back to its residents.
“You had great gospel music, great blues, and strong Black-owned businesses located here,” Delgado added. “We wanted to bring that center back, so we decided to start out with a festival 20 years ago.”
Once a hub for Black entrepreneurship and cultural expression, Mobile Street’s history still echoes through the blocks of downtown Hattiesburg. Educating attendees on the history of Mobile Street using information booths as well as a visit to the Smith Drug Store, once a local business on the street that has since been turned into a museum and ice cream shop, along with much more. The festival not only highlights that legacy, but also ensures it remains alive and celebrated while making people feel good in the process.
“I feel excited, it feels really good to be working in the Hattiesburg community as a part of the Mobile Street community, as a part of the greater Hattiesburg community and really engaging with folks, having conversations and, really enjoying it…I feel inspired,” festival attendee Sabir Abdul-Haqq said.
Creating inspiration using food trucks, vendors, choirs and even bouncy houses over the past two decades, the event has grown into more than just a gathering. It has become a reunion for the community, a space where residents and visitors alike can connect, enjoy live music, and honor the neighborhood’s lasting impact.
With each passing year, the Mobile Street Festival continues to incorporate its mission: celebrating heritage, uplifting the community, and keeping Hattiesburg’s cultural heartbeat alive.
