Marty Stuart says he started collecting country music artifacts about 40 years ago after finding something Patsy Cline had owned in a junk store. And he’s never slowed down. He’s accumulated more than 25,000 Smithsonian-quality pieces that’ll go on display when the Congress of Country Music opens in his hometown of Philadelphia. And you can get a sneak peek at some of those artifacts beginning May 7 when The World of Marty Stuart exhibit debuts at the Two Mississippi Museums in Jackson. Stuart will perform Monday night at a fundraiser for the Philadelphia project. He says he started out storing his treasures in a bedroom, then moved them to a warehouse before running out of room and needing two more buildings for storage. At the Congress of Country Music, he’ll have a city block to showcase such items as Johnny Cash’s first black performance suit, handwritten manuscripts by Hank Williams and Jimmie Rodgers’ blue yodel guitar.
