HNOC in the News

NOLA.com: In a Tourist-Heavy Part of the City, Voices of New Orleans Civil Rights Movement Are Heard

June 16, 2025

Dave Walker for the Times Picayune explores the personal stories embedded HNOC’s new exhibition, “The Trail They Blazed.”

An exhibition installation shows a streetcar bench from a New Orleans streetcar, labeled "FOR COLORED PATRONS," and placed in front of a vintage black and white photo of a streetcar from the same era.

Photo by Dave Walker

“The new Historic New Orleans Collection exhibit The Trail They Blazed got its start about a decade ago with an oral history project called NOLA Resistance, an effort to record the voices of participants in the city's midcentury contributions to the national Civil Rights Movement. Those contributions were substantial; the oral histories, which are archived at hnoc.org, fill more than 50 hours.”

Dave Walker, contributing writer, NOLA.com | The Times Picayune

Related Exhibitions

Exhibitions

The Trail They Blazed

June 6, 2025 to June 7, 2026

Leaders of the local Civil Rights Movement tell their stories of resistance and persistence.

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Black and white photo of people in line for voting registration outside a building. Two men are seated near a Voting Applications sign, and several individuals are standing in line, some wearing hats and summer clothing.

Related Collection Highlights

A sepia-toned vintage photograph of a man with curly dark hair and a mustache. He is dressed in a 19th-century suit with a double-breasted coat and bow tie. The image has an old, slightly worn appearance.

Dr. Louis Charles Roudanez Papers

A rare collection of manuscript essays and family correspondence offers a thrilling look at one of the most influential people in the early struggle for African American civil rights in Louisiana.

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American Black Directory

A post-segregation sibling to the Green Book, this directory compiled information on Black-owned businesses across the country.

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Related Virtual Exhibitions

Four women stand behind a table set with a tablecloth, glassware, and a candle holder. Three of them wear light-colored dresses with floral corsages, and one wears a dark dress with a white collar. They are smiling and posed for a photograph.

Women's Rights

Voices of Progress: Twenty Women Who Changed New Orleans

Portraits of women who fought for equality, justice, and charity

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A group of people walking on a street, several wearing Vote 3 Dutch Morial shirts. Some are smiling and waving. Trees and houses are in the background. The mood appears lively and supportive.

Women's Rights

“Yet She Is Advancing”: New Orleans Women and the Right to Vote, 1878–1970

The story of women’s suffrage, leading up to and beyond the passage of the 19th Amendment

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Related News

HNOC in the News

Verite News: New Exhibit Showcases Local Figures of Civil Rights Movement

June 13, 2025

“The Trail The Blazed” comes to the Historic New Orleans Collection after appearing as a traveling exhibition at different locations throughout the city.

Visitors explore "The Trail They Blazed" exhibition at HNOC.

HNOC in the News

Beyond Bourbon Street Podcast Explores “The Trail They Blazed”

September 10, 2025

Exhibition curator Eric Seiferth joined host Mark Bologna to discuss HNOC’s newest exhibition about the Civil Rights Movement in New Orleans.

Students visit HNOC's exhibition "The Trail They Blazed."

Announcement

HNOC Announces Winners of 2026 Student Writing Contest

April 15, 2026

This year’s contest challenged students to address important civil rights issues facing America today and in the future, inspired by the HNOC exhibition “The Trail They Blazed.”