Le Museé de FPC

I had my wedding at this amazing gem of a place, and it was absolutely amazing. I was able to take a tour and walk through prior to my event. Since I was out of town, a lot of what I did was virtual, which could be a bit scary because you are trusting others, but it was great. The staff was really great a friendly and they work like clockwork. The day before my event, we did another walk through and the only thing I will say is that I wish we were told to rent outdoor lights prior to the day ny the venue (we ended up getting them on a last minute whim and because my wedding planner had another wedding there and it was literally in the dark). Other than that, the day of my wedding was such a beautiful and magical experience in such a history rich place. It was everything I imagined and and then some. The price was great and it's really an awesome venue for weddings or any type of celebration for adults. I also love that there's a little cottage that you can rent out as well on the property. I highly recommend that because otherwise it can be air bnb by anyone and that would be awkward. But if you are looking to make an impact and support black business while highlighting the struggles and triumphs of the black community, this is the place to do it.

One of the many stops on our trip. I loved this little home! In a quaint and quiet community, surrounded by so much greenery. It was peaceful just sitting in the courtyard outside the house. We did this as part of the GoCity New Orleans pass. It is a small home, but you learn SO much and the workers there make everything fun and informative. At first I was a little hesitant because I didn't know what to expect. I looked up some YouTube videos and it looked like people just singing and dancing while telling a story. I am glad we gave it a shot because it was so much more about the history. The inside of the home itself was gorgeous, with beautiful paintings and artifacts from back in the days. We were there for about an hour, and found plenty of parking in front of the house. They have multiple museums so if you don't catch this one, deff check out one of their sister museums!

Review 1000. I knew this landmark review needed something special, and usually for every 100, I go with a city I have been to, but in this case, I wanted more. Well, this is more.I found this on the Louisiana African American Heritage Trail list and have been gradually visiting as many as I can, which hasn't been that many thus far. So far, this was the absolute best tour. This is an often-overlooked small museum in the grand scheme of New Orleans with so much going on. There are bigger, shinier things, and things closer in. This is the only museum of this kind in the entire state of Louisiana, the entire United States, and quite possibly the whole of the world. The whole museum is dedicated to telling the story of the free people of color, primarily in New Orleans, LA, their lives and the interactions between the Whites and the enslaved people of color. Free people of color contributed greatly to the society of the human race as a whole. Openly Jewish citizens were not even allowed to live in New Orleans legally, and people of color were forced to prove if they were free or enslaved, having to carry "their papers" as to proof of what they were. Restrictions were placed on women of color, which were then appropriated by the white women because they made it look so good.This is eye-opening information. I am so very glad I came; I look forward to coming back and I look forward to pointing others in this direction. There are not enough words in my vocabulary to properly explain why I think everyone should come. It is quite educational.

Loved this. Great collection, great presentations from both the founder, Mrs. McKenna, and a woman portraying a free woman of color who presented the collection itself. Eye-opening history that's not told eno.

While planning my trip to Nola, I knew I wanted to get in some historical finds. So, I did a search on the tourism site and found this museum. Im not sure why i stuck out to me but I did. So I began to email the curator and owner of the musee. We were back and forth in correspondence and she was very accommodating to our schedule on the day of our visit. The museum was gorgeous and the back drop was this beautiful home on Esplanade Ave, which I was told where Solange lives at, lol. The owner, Beverly McKenna, happened to be our tour guide and eloquently painted a picture of the past and present of Nola. I think what surprised my friends and I the most is that her and husband had been collecting art from around their early 20s to know almost 40 years later. It was empowering to see that her and her husband were prolific A.A in the community that worked toward educating the youth of NOLA about their history and thereby instilling pride in our history. I recommend this museum for anyone who pays NOLA a visit and the FPC stands for Free People of Color...

I had never been to New Orleans before, but generally speaking I am not a touristy person--I travel, I don't tour. That said, I knew I wanted to do *some* adventuring. I had learned a bit about free people of color in New Orleans, so I just googled that to see if there happened to be any museums dedicated to the subject, and voilà! Practically speaking, this museum is the perfect size and the tour the perfect length to make you feel like you got your money's worth and learned something but are not overwhelmed or exhausted. I spent about two hours there, and I like that they gave a tour but also allowed for time to just browse. It's only a couple rooms, but it's chock full of stuff--it reminded me of the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum in Boston, except that one is chock full and a mess, and this one was chock full but not so busy you couldn't focus on one thing at a time.The docents are really brilliant women who talk like humans, not tour guide robots, and I could tell it wasn't a script so much as a person with genuine interest just telling me about a subject they happen to know a lot about. I learned a lot, but not in a way that feels like attending class (like so many museum tours feel like). Highly, highly recommend! I'm finally getting to this review like three weeks after being there and I still have a strong memory of how much I enjoyed my experience there.The building itself and the grounds are gorgeous, and I can see why people hold weddings and other events there.

Loved the tour and hearing about the history of free people of color which I had not heard before. I recommend making a stop here if you are visiting NOLA. Call ahead to get their tour times.

Hands down!The best venue to get married in New Orleans. We had guests in attendance from all over the US. They were in awe at the art and history of the museum. We were given a few tours before we actually got married. From day 1, I knew this was the place I wanted to get married. There were no hidden charges and everyone was so responsive. They worked well with our vendors, so everyone was happy. I think our photographer booked his wedding there as well. I loved the space. We had guests indoors on 2 floors and outdoors in a beautiful garden. There was not a bored soul in the space. I loved renting the cottage to get dressed and spend our wedding night. It was beautiful. They served great champagne, wine and punch. It was truly romantic. Thanks sooo much, Beverly, Andrea, Wendy, Clare. Happy wife, happy life.

How many people need to tell you that this is a five star stop on a trip to New Orleans before you go?! Looks like I'm the 22nd of what now has become many and plenty of visitors.Albeit small for a museum given that it looks like it's in a home, every inch (and I mean it) is filled with a fascinating piece of history. I learned, felt and experienced so much.The museum is open daily from 12-4 during the week and by appointment only on the weekends due to their limited staffing. I went on a Wednesday around 1 and we were the only patrons. In fact, I thought the museum was closed because all of the lights were off. Silly me! They were just saving some energy because no one was there. So if it looks closed during their open hours just give the door a hard knock or the door bell a ring or two.As the only people there, I guess you could say we were on a private tour. The house is divided into rooms based on time period with primary historical sources on display. I think a lot of people think slavery was some sort of cut and dry thing based on what we learn briefly in school or see in movies. It in itself is incredibly complex along with the long-term implications it's left behind (but I guess that's a discussion for a different website). All I'm saying is: race relations in the South were and are incredibly interesting. I'm glad to know more from such an incredibly engaging and knowledgable tour guide, Sarah. You can definitely tell that she is the heart of le musee.I also like that this is the only museum in the country that tells an African-American narrative from African-American NARRATORS! Who would have thunk it! About damn time!

Visiting this Museum as part of my tour of new Orleans was eye opening. The presenter was very knowledgeable and filled us with a lot of history of the free people of color. A lot to take in indeed and will be visiting again. Everyone should plan to see this museum. You won't be sorry. My group was quite impressed. Mrs. McKenna who established this museum also came in to meet and greet us. That was a treat and to hear of her devotion to gather and protect artifacts etc preserving the history is remarkable.