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Historic New Orleans

Get to know New Orleans' 300-year history, its multicultural and multilingual heritage, with these resources on the Crescent City was born, and all that's happened since.
New Orleans Facts and Info
The history, culture, and people of New Orleans have created a city with a deep and varied background. From small local facts to centuries of art and commerce, getting to know New Orleans can be a lifelong educational experience.
Cajun vs. Creole
Cajun and Creole music, food, and language share a great deal, particularly through their shared French origins, but they do have their distinctive properties, helping to give New Orleans its rich and varied culture.
Dan Baum's Nine Lives: Death and Life in New Orleans
Dan Baum's Nine Lives: Death and Life in New Orleans relates the narratives of New Orleanians from Hurricane Betsy to Hurricane Katrina, and all the life that got lived in between. This is a must-read for anyone who cares about this town.
Neutral Ground
The local history and relevance of the term neutral ground in New Orleans.
New Orleans Street Names - A History
New Orleans' streets are named for all manner of people, places, and things. Here's a reference guide to New Orleans street names, their origins, and their special meaning for the people of this town.
Mardi Gras - Five Fun Facts
Check out these five bits of trivia for New Orleans' biggest party. Did you already know them?
American Italian Renaissance Foundation
The Foundation operates a museum and research library to gather information and memorabilia of Italian heritage.
Amistad Research Center
An incredible resource for scholars of people of color in the Gulf South, the Amistad Research Center is on the Tulane University Campus.
Confederate Museum
Locals tend to forget about this one. It's the oldest museum in Louisiana, built in 1891. It includes the collection donated by the wife of Jefferson Davis, Confederate uniforms, weapons, and paraphernalia of the day.
D-Day Museum
This first-class operation has been declared by Congress as the official US World War II Museum. There are four permanent galleries and a number of special exhibits.
George & Leah McKenna Museum of African American Art
Features the private collection of Dr. Dwight McKenna, the Museum presents works by local and international artists, including Henry Ossawa Tanner, William Edouard Scott, Clementine Hunter, Ernie Barnes, and Ulrich Jean Pierre.
Historic New Orleans Collection
It started in 1966 with a private collection and has grown into a research center dedicated to the preservation of the history and culture of New Orleans and the Gulf South region.
Louisiana Children’s Museum
Over 100 hands-on exhibits designed to teach and amuse children in all aspects of arts and sciences.
Musée Conti Historical Wax Museum
Founded in 1963, the museum offers about 150 life-sized wax figures demonstrating events in New Orleans history, from her founding to the present day. There's also a haunted dungeon.
New Orleans Historic Voodoo Museum
This two-room museum on Dumaine St. is largely a tourist destination and offers a few suitably dusty artifacts and occult objects, some that allegedly belonged to Marie Laveau. Psychic readings and personal gris-gris bags are sold there as well.
New Orleans Museum of Art
Located in City Park, with free admission for all LA residents (with ID), this impressive museum has numerous permanent collections, and hosts many exhibits and special events throughout the year.
New Orleans Pharmacy Museum
The United State' largest pharmaceutical collection is in the 1823 apothecary of America’s first licensed pharmacist, Louis Joseph Dufilho, Jr.
Ogden Museum of Southern Art
This museum at the University of New Orleans offers many permanent and traveling exhibitions, educational programs, a research center, and the Goldring-Woldenberg Institute for the Advancement of Southern Art and Culture.
Preservation Resource Center of New Orleans
They're primarily known for buying run-down, historically relevant houses, restoring them, and selling them. But they're also part of Operation Comeback and offer preservation-oriented books and gifts.
Southern Food and Beverage Museum
Special exhibits, demonstrations, lectures, and tastings can be found at this non-profit organization dedicated to food, drink, and their related culture of the South. Located in the Riverwalk.
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