Historic New Orleans Collection Announces $35 Million Project to Reimagine Original Royal Street Campus

Since its founding in 1966, HNOC has grown from a small reading room at 533 Royal St. into an institution that houses the world’s largest collection of materials relating to the history and culture of New Orleans. The buildings of the Royal Street complex, which front both Royal and Toulouse Streets, are among HNOC’s most significant historic holdings, and their preservation reflects the institution’s commitment to protecting the French Quarter’s cultural heritage and supporting the city’s future.

“533 Royal is where HNOC began, and bringing new life to this campus is about more than renovating historic buildings,” said Daniel Hammer, HNOC’s president and CEO. “It is about ensuring that the French Quarter remains a place where history is preserved, culture is experienced, and people from New Orleans and around the world can come together. This $35 million project is an investment in HNOC, but, more than that, it is an investment in the future of the French Quarter and the city we serve.”

The project will significantly expand HNOC’s capacity for exhibitions, educational programming and public events, with a goal of welcoming 300,000-plus visitors annually. HNOC’s investment will also contribute to a broader vision of attracting one million visitors to French Quarter museums each year.

“The Historic New Orleans Collection was built on a belief that the stories and objects of this place are worth preserving, and our original campus is both the foundation and the key to our future,” said HNOC board chair Bonnie Boyd. “Over the next three years, we will restore these historic structures, renew the visitor experience, and reimagine what HNOC can mean for New Orleans and for everyone who comes here to learn about this extraordinary city.”

One of the new exhibition spaces will be home to Watershed, a groundbreaking exhibition examining New Orleans as fundamental to the story of the United States. Featuring more than 130 original artifacts spanning three centuries, the exhibition will explore subjects ranging from the Louisiana Purchase and Reconstruction to jazz and the climate crisis, inviting visitors to consider the city’s continuing role in shaping America’s future.

“New Orleans is often understood through its European, African and Caribbean influences, but its influence on the United States is just as profound,” said Erin M. Greenwald, HNOC’s deputy director. “The new gallery spaces give us an opportunity to use HNOC’s extraordinary holdings to tell that story in a way that is immersive, accessible, and meaningful to both our community and visitors from around the world. This is a chance to show why New Orleans is essential to understanding the American experience.”

Ryan Gootee General Contractors is leading construction, with Trapolin-Peer Architects and Hartman-Cox Architects serving as the project architects and Metcalfe Architecture and Design providing exhibition design services. The renovated campus is expected to open to the public in 2029.

To date, HNOC has successfully secured $30 million towards the 533 Royal St. project, including more than $11 million in philanthropic private giving from donors. For more information about the capital campaign and the campus transformation visit HNOC’s Restore, Renew, Reimagine webpage.