OXFORD, Miss. (AP) — Five decades after his death, William Faulkner still draws literary pilgrims to his Mississippi hometown, the “little postage stamp of native soil” he made famous through his novels.
Oxford is commemorating the 50th anniversary of Faulkner’s death Friday with several events, including a tag-team reading of his novel, “The Reivers,” beginning about daybreak.
Roughly 25,000 people a year visit Faulkner’s antebellum home, Rowan Oak, where they can see his handwritten outline for the 1954 novel, “A Fable,” on the office walls.
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A life-sized bronze statue of the 1949 Nobel laureate sits in front of Oxford City Hall, and it’s a favorite spot for tourist photos.
Faulkner and his wife are buried in St. Peter’s Cemetery, north of the town square, and fans pay tribute by pouring bourbon on the gravesite.
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