Featured Stories
Fort Macomb
Constructed in 1822 under the direction of architect Simon Bernard, Fort Wood was thought to be impregnable to enemy troops attacking in the narrow straits of lakes Borgne and St. Catherine. In 1851, the fort was renamed Fort Macomb to honor…
Gallatin Street: An Introduction
A small, two-block stretch called Gallatin Street, now called French Market Place, was once the headquarters of vice in New Orleans. A visitor to the street in 1873 described the scene for the Times-Picayune:
"Gallatin street is wet and…
Keep Marching On: Black Greek Organizations Performances on Leon C. Simon Drive
The half mile stretch of Leon C. Simon Drive, that forms the front boundary of the University of New Orleans’s campus, was a central performance space for Black Greek letter organizations in the 1980s and 1990s. The stretch of sidewalk was the sight…
Recent Stories
The Archaeology of a Colonial-Era New Orleans Prison
The excavations at the Cabildo represented a rare opportunity to recover archaeological evidence of Colonial era governance, particularly in the realm of punishment. Modern conceptions of the prison as a place of confinement and correction were…
The Cabildo (Introduction)
Today, the Cabildo is a facility of the Louisiana State Museum, but the courtyard of the Cabildo was the location of a city prison complex for nearly two hundred years, across French, Spanish, and American rule. Constructed in 1730, the prison and…
Fur Traders, Indigenous Peoples, and the Violence of Urban Slavery
Very few well-preserved archaeological sites dating from the French Colonial era have been excavated in New Orleans. As most of these are located in areas that have been developed continuously since the early eighteenth century, many are disturbed…
Archaeology in the Public Eye at 810 Royal Street
During the University of New Orleans field schools conducted at 801 Royal Street, students uncovered numerous building features dating to different eras of development at the site, from the wall of a French post-in-ground structure from the…
810 Royal Street (Introduction)
On October 22nd, 2014, an over-200-year-old building at 810 Royal Street collapsed, presumably a victim of unrepaired termite and moisture damage. The collapse sparked conversations in New Orleans about the importance of historic preservation. The…
1997 Excavation at Madame John's Legacy by Shannon Dawdy and GNOAP/UNO
In 1997, Dr. Shannon Dawdy directed the second series of excavations at Madame John’s Legacy under the auspices of the Greater New Orleans Archaeological Program, a state program then based at the University of New Orleans. These investigations…
Featured Tours
Shadow Steeds of the Crescent City
10 Locations ~ Curated by Lacar Musgrove, University of New OrleansCarville: The National Leprosarium
9 Locations ~ Curated by Elizabeth Schexnyder, Curator, National Hansen's Disease MuseumNew Orleans Historical
A project by University of New Orleans and Tulane UniversityNew Orleans Historical is a web and mobile platform for sharing stories & scholarship about New Orleans and the surrounding area. A project of the Midlo Center for New Orleans Studies at the University of New Orleans and the Communication Department of Tulane University, New Orleans Historical is a free app available on your Android or iPhone smartphone or tablet as well as on the web.