New Orleans Life Story
MSS 629
Narratives of people who have shaped the neighborhoods, politics, and culture of the city.
When levees failed during Hurricane Katrina, nearly 80 percent of New Orleans flooded. Photographs, correspondence, and other materials vital to the city’s historical record were destroyed in inundated homes throughout the region. In response, HNOC created the New Orleans Life Story Project to record and collect narratives of those who have shaped our community. The scope of the project is broad, ranging from neighborhood history to the politics and culture of the city.
Listen to Project Highlights
HNOC has collaborated with WWNO 89.9 FM to share highlights from select New Orleans Life Story oral history project interviews with our community.
Explore the Interviews
All the interviews are available in their entirety through our online catalog. To access full audio and transcripts of the oral histories, click the links beneath the contributor names below, which will take you to each corresponding catalog page. Scroll down to the View Online field to find links to audio and transcript files.
Contributors
Joyce Acuna
Lynward “Bud” Adams
Omar Aziz, Jr.
Sally Asher
Samson Alexander
Sidney Barthelemy
Jack Belsom
Adelaide Wisdom Benjamin
Tom Benson
Marian Mayer Berkett
Jason Berry
Sydney J. Besthoff III
Brandon-Marie Bigard
Edwin J. Blair
Lloyd Bone
Sheila Bosworth
Rene Brunet
Jeanne F. Bruno
John Bullard
Trudy Burkart
John Calico
Joseph C. Canizaro
Eugene D. Cizek
Jacquelyn Brechtel Clarkson
James Brumfield
Raphael Cassimere Jr.
JoAnn Clevenger
Harry Connick, Sr.
Joyce Corrington
David Cotton
Sandra Dartus
Nelson Davis
Allison Dean III
Michael J. Deas
David F. Dixon
John Shea Dixon
George Dunbar
Donald Dureau
Gerri Elie
Lolis Edward Elie
Mignon Faget
Charles A. Ferguson
James E. Fitzmorris, Jr.
Luke Fontana
L. Ronald Forman
Rosemarie B. Fowler
Richard Gaienne
Richard Gaiennie
Raymond J. Garrity
Vincent Glorioso Jr.
Benny Grunch
Ellen Viola Hardeman
Alana Rae Harris
Hans-Georg Heinemann
Ria Schaper Hilken
Angela Hill
Jim Henderson
Susan Hutson
Kenneth Jackson
Erik F. Johnsen
Rodger Kamenetz
Jeff Kent
Ron Kottemann
Klaus “Joe” Kueck
Yvonne LaFleur
Moon Landrieu
Angus M. Lind
Robert L. Livingston
Rose Mancini
Barry Martyn
Donald M. Marquis
Edward James Maxwell, Jr.
Jimmy Maxwell
John W. Mecom, Jr.
Samuel R. Menszer
Barbara Mollere
Gordon H. Mueller
DeWayne Murphy
Jeanne P. Nathan
Chris Owens
Auseklis Ozols
Dickie Brennan and Steven Pettus
Ashton Phelps, Jr.
Mark J. Plotkin
Manon Prizgintas
Albinas Prizgintas
Terry Flettrich Rohe
Jay Romig
William Cornelius Rouselle
Karran Harper Royal
Kenneth Royal
Hammond Scott
Gertrud “Trudy” Sigle
John "Kid" Simmons
Fred Smith
D. Paul Spencer
David Spielman
Robert Tannen
Leona Tate
Lois Tillman
Sandra Green Thomas
Doug Thornton
Roulhac B. Toledano
Alexander Pierre Tureaud, Jr.
Perlin M. Varenholt
Elfriede Vahrenhorst
John E. Walker
Lori Waselchuk
George Wein
Henry Wright
Vera Williams, Eileen Jackson, Cynthia Jackson, Vicki Perez, and Evelyn Jackson
Explore More Oral Histories
Oral History
HNOC’s oral history program preserves diverse personal narratives, fostering a richer collective memory through interviews and vignettes.
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