< Back to Oral History project: Greenwood Restaurants
ORAL HISTORY
Stacy Ragland, owner
Stacy Ragland
The Cotton Row Club has been a fixture in downtown Greenwood for as long as anyone can remember. Located just off of the Yazoo River and behind the legendary Cotton Row, this building is rumored to be the second oldest building in town. Once a stable and a blacksmith shop, it eventually became a hangout for cotton factors and other businessmen sometime during the first half of the twentieth century. Its current owner, Stacy Ragland, started coming to the club in the 1950s, began working there in the 1970s and when his boss retired, Mr. Ragland bought the place. And, fortunately or unfortunately, you can’t get food here. Sure, there are peanuts at poker games and a potluck during the Super Bowl, but this is not a restaurant. Rather, it’s a private little hideaway and watering hole for local businessmen and their friends. Mr. Ragland assures me that anyone is welcome (and that even women would be welcome too), but the place is known for its tight crowd and tight lips. Stop in, though, and get a beer out of the Coke machine, have Mr. Hambone shine your shoes and let the world around you stop for a spell.
The Cotton Row Club was sold in February 2008.