Browse Items (105 total)

This placard marks the spot where Homer Plessy was arrested on June 7, 1892, for boarding a train designated for whites only. This event sparked the landmark U.S. Supreme Court case over the legalization of segregation.

Madame John's Legacy is a great example of Louisiana-Creole 18th c. residential architecture, and is one of the oldest remaining houses in the French Quarter. It is run by the Louisiana State Museum and was declared a National Historic Landmark in…

The slave quarters on the other side of the rear courtyard from Madame John's Legacy are now the Louisiana State Museum offices.

This is another view of the Madame John's Legacy slave quarters. Notice the close proximity of the quarters to the main house.

This ink and water color image from 1831, which is part of the Historic New Orleans Collection, depicts a slave auction. The iron ball and chain were "worn by the slave Peggy," a slave who lived 40 miles upriver from New Orleans and was accused of…

This 1855 notice advertises a large slave auction that was to take place at Bank's Place (J. A. Beard and May auctioneers) on Magazine Street, on February 27, during the high season in New Orleans.

Exchange Place, or Exchange Alley, was the corridor that connected the American to the French sectors of town. It was created as a result of the 1829 law against keeping slave depots and jails in the French Quarter. Slaves would be led through the…

This is the main entrance to Louis Armstrong Park in the Treme just across Rampart Street from the French Quarter. Today the park honors jazz legend Louis Armstrong, but it is here where Congo Square still stands, where slaves and free blacks would…

This memorial, depicting blacks dancing, stands in Congo Square as a remembrance of the congregations who met here. As the placard says, "This rich legacy of African celebration is the foundation of New Orleans' unique musical traditions, including…

In addition to the memorial, there is also a placard here recognizing the location as Congo Square, but there is not much else. The park remains a dangerous place after dark.