In the early 20th century, this address was the location of Wonder Bar, a New Orleans female impersonation club. Although Wonder Bar soon moved across town and changed its name several times, it remained a popular drag club for several decades, attracting both locals and tourists to its extravagant shows.
This street corner was once the location of the New Orleans International Trade Mart, which first opened its doors in 1947. The founder of the Trade Mart was a local gay businessman named Clay Shaw, who became the only person ever to be tried in connection with the assassination of President John F. Kennedy.
The deadliest fire in New Orleans history occurred at this location in 1973 when an arsonist set a fire with the intention of killing attendees of a social sponsored by the Metropolitan Community Church-an organization that served members of New Orleans gay community. The attack occurred at the UpStairs Lounge, a bar that doubled as a meeting place and sanctuary for the church and other organizations. The arsonist designed their attack to create an updraft of flame that prevented escape, trapping those who could not fit through a window in an inferno that claimed the lives of pastor Bill Larson and thirty others. The attack occurred on the final day of Pride Week and the 4th anniversary of the Stonewall Uprising in New York.
Across the street from the Louisiana Supreme Court, Brennan’s restaurant has been a New Orleans staple since 1946. Pleasantly pink with the iron-framed balconies and the exterior window shutters so distinct to the city’s architecture, the dining establishment heralds itself for providing innovative Creole cuisine and charming meal service and ambiance. The restaurant also has an important place in New Orleans queer history, having hosted the original Fat Monday Luncheon, America's longest-running event to be continually hosted for and by members of the gay community.
This address was one of several places in New Orleans where renowned American playwright Tennessee Williams once lived. Although he only lived here a short time, it was in this apartment that Williams began to write his famous play A Streetcar Named Desire. The actual apartment that Williams lived in is no longer here, but the back staircase he used to access his living quarters still remains.
In 1958, a gay man named Fernando Rios was murdered in this alleyway. Although the three college students responsible for his murder were identified, they were all acquitted due to the homophobia surrounding the trial. This event stands out as an example of the past failure, and even refusal, of the New Orleans justice system to protect its LGBTQ citizens, which lead to protest and activism in the following decades.
This is the site of Cafe Lafitte in Exile, a very popular New Orleans gay bar and perhaps the oldest continuously operating gay bar in the United States. It is open 24 hours a day and has occupied this spot on Bourbon Street since 1953, after moving from 941 Bourbon St, where it originally opened in 1933.
Now home to a grocery store and deli eatery of the same name, Matassa’s Bar was the former establishment operated by a member of the same Matassa family. It also dually functioned as a recording studio for local musicians. This was the location of the second Southern Decadence festival, now a world-famous celebration put on by the LGBT community in New Orleans. The marketplace is located two blocks off North Rampart Street within the French Quarter.
Residing within the Louis Armstrong Park, the Municipal Auditorium is a large stone structure that can be found towards the center of the public grounds. The building is designed with an assortment of arch-shaped windows, multi-tiered stories, rectangular stone pillars, and engravings declaring its association to several facets of the humanities such as “music,” “poetry,” and “art.” The auditorium, which is now closed, was home in 1977 to a protest organized by the New Orleans gay community against anti-gay celebrity Anita Bryant.
This Tour is a Walking Tour.
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This walking tour delves into the queer history of New Orleans. This tour will take you through many New Orleans LGBTQ historical landmarks, from social spaces and bars (some of which still stand today) to the sites of important events that helped to shape and organize the New Orleans queer community. Total walking time is about 30 minutes.
