The Louisiana State Museum and the Wedell-Williams Memorial Foundation present Big Wheel Keep On Turning: Steamboats in Louisiana. In 1812 the introduction of steam power revolutionized transportation on the Mississippi and other Louisiana waterways, ushering in a golden age of travel that would last until the end of the...
Jazz En Route to France 1917-1918, examines how African-American military bands stationed in France helped popularize jazz in Paris during World War I.
Delve into the shared history of Spain and Louisiana through an exhibition at the Cabildo in Jackson Square from Saturday, April 21, through Sunday, July 8. Recovered Memories: Spain, New Orleans, and the Support for the American Revolution, organized by Iberdrola S.A. in association with the Louisiana State Museum, will showcase hundreds of...
The New Orleans Jazz Museum, in conjunction with Herman Leonard Photography, LLC and the GRAMMY Museum® L.A. LIVE in Los Angeles, debuts a new photo exhibition, Herman Leonard: Documenting the Giants of Jazz. The exhibit showcases some of the most iconic photos shot by prolific photographer Herman Leonard.
Join us on Saturday, May 5th, at 6:00 p.m. for the opening of Brave in the Attempt: Special Olympics in Louisiana. The public is invited to this free exhibit opening, which will include drinks and appetizers. Brave in the Attempt: Special Olympics in Louisiana explores the history of Special Olympics...
Join us on Saturday, May 5th, at 6:00 p.m. for the opening of Brave in the Attempt: Special Olympics in Louisiana. The public is invited to this free exhibit opening, which will include drinks and appetizers.
Brave in the Attempt: Special Olympics in Louisiana explores the history of Special Olympics...
The Louisiana State Museum, in partnership with the Krewes of Iris, Muses and Nyx, presents Iris and the Goddesses of Carnival, an exhibition commemorating the centennial of Iris and exploring the evolution of women’s krewes in New Orleans from the 1890s to the present. This exhibition features rare artifacts from the museum’s...
Celebrating the American Music Triangle will showcase the music, culture and history aligning 1,500 miles of highways connecting Memphis, New Orleans and Nashville where blues, jazz, country, rock 'n' roll, R&B, gospel, bluegrass and Cajun music began.
Former Big Chief of the Yellow Pocahontas Mardi Gras Indian Tribe, Darryl Montana designed and constructed 48 suits, bead by bead, sequin by sequin, feather by feather, beginning when he was six-years-old. Featuring additional works by Ron Bechet, Chandra McCormick, and Keith Calhoun.
Louis Armstrong, nicknamed "Satchmo," a trumpeter and singer born in New Orleans who went on to become one of America's most esteemed jazz musicians and - as its cultural ambassador - introduced jazz to the world, was also a visual artist whose creativity is currently on display in Reel-to-Real: Louis Armstrong Collages at the...
2018 is both the New Orleans Tricentennial and the Centennial of the birth of the most beloved and influential pianist in New Orleans history: Henry Roland Byrd aka Professor Longhair. This exhibit will celebrate all things Fess starting with his origins and development to his early hits such as “Tipitinas,” “Mardi Gras In New Orleans,” and “...
This exhibition has more than 60 pieces of contemporary Southern art by 34 self-taught artists. These two- and three-dimensional works of art defy labels. While this kind of art has been described as outsider, folk, naive, visionary or nontraditional, none of these terms adequately describes the art that Gitter and Yelen collected. Each artist...
Forum 35's Art Melt is the largest multi-media- juried art exhibit in the state of Louisiana. Now in its 15th year, Art Melt strives to promote professional artists throughout the state of Louisiana while providing an opportunity for the public to experience the best of local fine art, music, and performing arts. Art Melt Louisiana Art...
Forum 35's Art Melt is the largest multi-media- juried art exhibit in the state of Louisiana. Now in its 15th year, Art Melt strives to promote professional artists throughout the state of Louisiana while providing an opportunity for the public to experience the best of local fine art, music, and performing arts.
Art Melt Louisiana Art...
In commemoration of the city’s 300th anniversary, the Louisiana State Museum will debut a new exhibition, "We Love You, New Orleans!," in the historic Cabildo on August 30. This exhibit will celebrate people, places, and things that are quintessentially New Orleans including Sidney Bechet’s saxophone, a Mardi Gras Indian suit, memorabilia from...
Noel Rockmore was one of the great painters of music and musicians in mid 20th century New Orleans. His daughter Emilie Rhys resides in New Orleans and is an artist of great sensitivity and technique. Their paintings have never been exhibited together, but they will have their family reunion at the New Orleans Jazz Museum.
This exhibition celebrates the legacy of aviation pioneers Jimmie Wedell and Harry P. Williams, who formed an air service in Patterson in 1928 that quickly rose to the top tier of air racing. Displays include numerous replica aircraft, such as the famous Miss Patterson #44 and the Gilmore #121,...
This exhibition commemorates the Battle of New Orleans. The overwhelming defeat of the British Redcoats at the hands of a rag tag band of “dirty shirts”—as the British derisively called their foes—captured the American imagination, contributed to a sense of national identity and...
Grounds for Greatness: Louisiana and the Nation shows Louisiana’s impact on the nation and the world. From the Louisiana Purchase to the critical role Louisiana played in our nation’s wars (including the Battle of New Orleans in the War of 1812, the Civil War and both World...
Combining eyewitness accounts, historical context, immersive environments and in-depth scientific exploration, this exhibition shows the impact of Hurricanes Katrina and Rita and how Louisiana is learning to live more safely with hurricanes. Oral histories and artifacts, such as a Coast...
An exhibition of photographs from the museums permanent collection, the images show the resilience of the people of Louisiana in the face of adversity and their enduring goodwill toward neighbors in times of disaster. Sept. 9, 2015, marks the 50th anniversary of Hurricane Betsy....
Since 1699, when Pierre Le Moyne, sieur d’Iberville, celebrated Shrove Tuesday at his encampment on the Mississippi River, Mardi Gras has been an integral part of Louisiana’s culture. Experience this extraordinary tradition through rare artifacts, scores of magnificent costumes,...
When Pete Fountain died Aug. 6, 2016, it was not only the passing of an icon, but also the end of the era. In tribute to this legendary icon, the Louisiana State Museum’s New Orleans Jazz Museum at the Old U. S. Mint presents Pete Fountain: A Life Half-Fast, an exhibition commemorating...
This exhibition tells the story of how diverse groups of people—Caddo Indians, French and Spanish settlers, free and enslaved Africans and rural Southern whites—created the distinctive regional culture that thrives today. With vibrant displays and diverse artifacts dating from the 1700s...
Discover Louisiana’s cypress lumber industry of the late 19th and 20th centuries. Patterson was the industry’s heart, with the largest cypress sawmill in the world at the F.B. Williams Cypress Company. Photographs and tools—including an 1890 passe-partout, or crosscut saw—tell the story...
Sports are a passion in Louisiana, as much a part of our rich culture and heritage as music, food and architecture. Now there’s a place to relive the great moments in Louisiana sports history and celebrate the achievements of our greatest athletes. Every day is game day at the Louisiana...
Every year in June new people are formally inducted into the Louisiana Sports Hall of Fame at the Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony in Natchitoches. In 2018, six-time Pro Bowl receiver Reggie Wayne, 18-year Major League Baseball pitcher Russ Springer, NBA champion and two-time Grambling...
Exploring this National Historic Landmark will offer both a tour through a historical structure and the culture that surrounded the home throughout history. Situated on the banks of Bayou Lafourche, this was the residence of two of Louisiana’s significant political figures: Governor...
The Louisiana Sports Hall of Fame has more than 300 men and women on its roster. Our interactive database can provide you with information on Hall inductees. You can look up figures by name, sport, hometown or alma mater and find out more about his or her career and biographical...
Take a road trip through the state, exploring regional culture, religious practices, foodways and architecture. Another feature highlights the rich legacy of Louisiana music—jazz, rhythm and blues, blues, country, zydeco, swamp pop and Cajun music—and its global influence. Key artifacts...
Part of the Lower Pontalba Building on Jackson Square, this row house represents mid-19th century life in New Orleans. Because residents were tenants who lived here for only a few years at a time, the 1850 House furnishings do not represent any single family. Rather it reflects mid-19th...
The Old U.S. Mint began producing coins for the United States in 1838. During the Civil War, it briefly issued Confederate coins, making this mint the only one to make both American and Confederate coins. Minting operations ceased in 1909, and for the next several decades the building...
Some of New Orleans jazz’s most beloved figures are women, from Sweet Emma Barrett to Aurora Nealand. Yet in many historical accounts of jazz history, women are relegated to the background or not mentioned at all. Like many aspects of the culture around it, early jazz was a world...
