This Georgia couple had originally planned to have their wedding ceremony and reception at Le Musée de f.p.c. (the Free People of Color Museum), but COVID-19 restrictions prompted them to change their plans, with only the ceremony taking place at the museum, and the reception being moved to a rental lake house in Slidell. But everyone had a great time, and in addition to the ceremony, we captured some great portraits of the couple in and around the museum.
In addition to being an ideal venue for smaller weddings, the museum is also a wonderful educational resource for the countless contributions African-American have made to the city of New Orleans. A plaque in front of the museum reads:
Le Musee de f.p.c. is a historic house museum dedicated to preserving and interpreting the culture of free people of color in New Orleans and Louisiana dating back to their presence first documented here in 1722.
The house of classic Greek Italianate style was built in 1859 by developer Benjamin Rodriguez, who also built the house at 2306 Esplanade Avenue, the home of relatives of Edgar Degas, the artist, and while there is no record of free people of color ever having owned this house prior to the present ones, because of their dominance in the building trades and crafts, they likely contributed to its construction.
Afro New Orleanians have had am impactful presence in all of New Orleans. Their contributions are of immense historical significance to the vibrancy, architectural uniqueness and beauty of the city, but especially in this neighborhood. Here they touched every sphere of endeavor. Along with the building trades, they influenced music, the culinary arts, health care, education, decorative arts, politics, publishing and religion. Public records reflect that blacks have owned 80 percent of the property in the area bounded by Rampart Street, St. Bernard Avenue, Broad Street, and Orleans Avenue dating back to the Spanish Colonial days in the late 18th century.
Location: 2336 Esplanade Ave, New Orleans, LA 70119.
