GRAMMY-winning blues great Muddy Waters' Chicago home is a step closer to becoming a museum, studio and cultural center, thanks to a $50,000 grant from the National Trust for Historic Preservation's African American Cultural Heritage Action Fund.
The Hyde Park Herald reports the money from the Washington D.C. organization will go towards home renovations. The Muddy Waters Mojo Museum has been planning to renovate the home with the help of donations. The blues musician lived in the house on 4339 S. Lake Park Ave. for 20 years after moving from the South to Chicago and was the first he ever owned.
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Chandra Cooper, Muddy Waters Mojo Museum President and Waters' great-granddaughter, told the Hyde Park Herald the grant will be a major help.
"It was so significant to get this grant money from the trust, because it's really saving this house from any more deterioration," she said.
According to the Chicago Tribune, an Illinois landmark advocacy group listed the house as one of the most endangered in 2013.
Waters used the 19th century house as a place to convene with other blues musicians and entertainers. Cooper said the house will continue to be a supportive place for musicians.: "We want to be able to support older artists as well and as a small venue, where people can go in the basement and do a little recording, because while it wasn't a recording studio downstairs — it was a rehearsal studio — we'd like to incorporate that into the overall experience."
The grant won't cover all costs, but the museum’s interim executive director Amy Dean hopes the news will help attract more donations.
"It makes us legitimate and also helps get out the word about the project," Dean told the Chicago Tribune.
For more information on the house or how to donate, visit the Muddy Waters' Mojo Museum website.
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