Survival Of The Fittest Or Survival In Captivity By Martin Cj Mongiello
Slave Ship Museum Feasibility Study
1. National Slave Ship Museum
Preliminary Feasibility Study
Urban Design Research Center
Submitted by Cliff James
504 620 9655
Written by Mimi Loftus
SECTION 2
2. Introduction
The Preliminary Feasibility Study for National Slave Ship Museum project was funded
by the Southeast Regional Office, National Park Service, Atlanta, GA, under the Lower
Mississippi Delta Initiative (Public Law 103-433, Title XI) which provides grants to public and
non-profit organizations whose activities further the Delta’s economic development through
heritage tourism. The Secretary of the Interior has delegated the responsibility to manage the
Lower Mississippi Delta Initiative to the National Park Service.
This project was managed through Cooperative Agreement No. H7530050002 among
Jean Lafitte National Historical Park and Preserve and the Urban Design Research Center and
the Urban League of Greater New Orleans.
3. Table of Contents
Mission Statement………………………………….………………………………1
Program Statements………………………………..……………………………….1
Historical Background……………………………..……………………………….2
Slave Ships……………………………………….………………………………...7
Proposed Development Concept………………….………………………………..9
Education………………………………………...………………………………..11
Site and Area Evaluation……..….……………..………………………………....13
Market Analysis……………………………………..…………………………….15
Annual Usage Projections………………………………….……………………..17
Concept Development…………………………………………….………………19
Financial Analysis……………………………………………….………………..21
Conclusion………………………………………......…………………………….27
Acknowledgements…………………………………………….…………………29
References…………………………………………….…………………………..30
Appendix A (Master of Arts in Museum Studies)………………..………………32
Appendix B (Riverfront Vision 2005)………..…………………………………..33
4. 1
NATIONAL SLAVE SHIP MUSEUM
The National Slave Ship Museum is an enduring legacy of the American dream, and will be a
necessary part of American history immemorial.
This is a preliminary feasibility study. The National Slave Ship Museum will need an
additional $350,000 to complete the final feasibility study. The final feasibility study will
include consulting international and national market researchers and specialists, travel to
make contacts, consolidation of the site agreement, participating entities, and operating and
construction budgets, and finalized program requirements.
MISSION STATEMENT
The National Slave Ship Museum will recreate the saga of the African Diaspora and
preserve the story of the slave trade in the United States along the Mississippi River, via the Port
of New Orleans, Natchez, Mississippi, and the forks in the road, while examining historical
events within the South, and more specifically Louisiana. This museum will fulfill the
educational and scientific vacuum on the slave trade in both the national and international
community. Through research, ongoing programs in cultural exchange with African countries,
creating interactive exhibits, tours, and activities the National Slave Ship Museum will provide
the public with endless possibilities to enrich and increase their understanding of slavery and the
slave trade.
PROGRAM STATEMENTS
In the past, the peculiar institution of slavery drove the entire economy of Louisiana, and
the southern United States for at least two centuries. Major contributions to the social,
economic, and cultural aspects of Louisiana life have been made by people of African descent.
5. 2
The National Slave Ship Museum will offer an interactive vessel that will serve the
international public’s need to know the personal experience of the Middle Passage and personal
stories of the enslaved that took part in this journey.
Further, the National Slave Ship Museum will be the main educational conduit for
locals and tourists, and may serve as a healing mechanism for many Americans whose ancestors
took part in the trade and/or the transition of Africans into American society.
HISTORICAL BACKGROUND
There were many great African civilizations within the rich Gold Coast of West Africa,
including Ghana, Benin, Mali, Ashanti, and the Songhai Empire, which became the primary
area for the capture and sale of Africans into slavery.
Those early societies featured highly organized democratic forms of government with
military division and profitable trade relations with Europe, Asia, other world powers, and
smaller communities. Many factors contributed to the decline of these kingdoms, but the
growth of the slave trade made a huge impact on African life.
Zulu Warrior European Imperialism
6. 3
Slavery in the United States began in the 1600s and continued until 1865. Africans were
transported from Africa aboard ships, many of which were designed and built especially for the
slave trade. Approximately 20 percent of all slaves died during the passage, and it was not
unusual for a slave ship to lose half its cargo before reaching port. The State of Louisiana and
the Port of New Orleans were valuable assets to traders who took part in the slave trade a century
before the United States of America purchased Louisiana in 1803.
The first African slaves in Louisiana were captured by the French army in the Spanish
War of Succession in 1710.
Inspection and Sale of a Negro
The years 1719 – 1721 saw the first importation of African slaves to Louisiana with eight
boatloads of some 2,000 Africans.
7. 4
Stowage of the British slave ship Brookes
These first Africans in Louisiana were predominantly Malinke-speaking Bambaras
from the western interior of the continent who provided a cohesive group, particularly in New
Orleans. They were joined by smaller groups of slaves from coastal Africa, like the Wolofs and
Sereers.
Tipo Tib’s fresh captives being sent into bondage
8. 5
The first two French slave ships from Africa arrived between the years 1719 – 1743. By
1763, 17,000 Africans were enslaved in Louisiana, and thousands more were enslaved in
following years.
The Golden Age
Even though the United States Congress ended the legal importation of African into the
United States in 1808, more than 135,000 slaves were sold at the New Orleans market through
1862.
A Slave Auction at the South
9. 6
In 1838, the St. Louis hotel opened on the corner of St. Louis and Chartres street in the
French Quarter of New Orleans. The main entrance to the hotel led into the exchange, a
beautiful domed rotunda, where every afternoon between noon and 3 p.m. slave auctions were
held. Perhaps the most infamous of the slave auction blocks was located in this elegant hotel, the
center of Creole society before the Civil War.
The Omni Royal Hotel, former site of Slave
Auction
According to an article in The
Gambit’s Best of New Orleans, in
1842, George Buckingham reported
walking through the rotunda. The
auctioneers, he said, were
“endeavouring to drown every voice
but his own....One was selling pictures and dwelling on their merits; another was disposing of
some slaves. These consisted of an unhappy family who were all exposed to the hammer at the
same time. Their good qualities were enumerated in English and in French, and their persons
were carefully examined by intending purchasers, among whom they were ultimately disposed
of, chiefly to Creole buyers; the husband at 750 dollars, the wife at 550, and the children at 220
each.”
The enslaved were shipped into Louisiana from South Carolina, Texas, and Florida to be
sold through the Port of New Orleans. The arrival of the slaves was recorded by the United
States Customs Service, headquartered at the historic Custom House on Canal Street, from 1807
10. 7
– 1860. Before the Louisiana Purchase in 1803, slavery was a part of the lives of many of the
inhabitants of the Louisiana Territory, approximately 70 years before the United States existed.
Wilson Chinn, a branded slave from Louisiana
THE SLAVE SHIPS
A) Pre-1808
There exist lists of the names of all ships that arrived in New Orleans with slaves.
Typically, these ships were 200 – 300 tons, carrying 450 – 600 slaves. They had three masts,
and were considered French Merchant ships. After 1731, the French Company of the Indies no
longer traded slaves.
11. 8
Stowage of the British slave ship Brookes
B) Post-1808
After the British began to ban the slave trade, most ships trading in slaves were
not necessarily merchant ships, but faster ships, such as schooners. Most of these ships were
built for speed in the United States or the Caribbean, and typically were 150 – 200 tons and
carried 150 – 200 slaves.
There are many more records available from the National Archives in Washington, D. C.
With the exception of the earliest records known, most are in very good condition and those
manifests will be explored in detail in the full feasibility study. The coastwise manifests are well
organized by ports and dates, and can be easily searched. In fact, the only manifests to have
been microfilmed are those for the Port of New Orleans.
12. 9
PROPOSED DEVELOPMENT CONCEPT
The tentative development strategy for Entergy New Orleans is to donate the Market
Street Sub-Station at 2600 South Peters Street to the Southern University Foundation.
If, due to post-Katrina scenarios, the site is no longer available, we will find another
suitable site, collaborating with the Riverfront Master Plan as citizen participants.
The buildings will be developed with the National Slave Ship Museum and Southern
University at New Orleans River Front Campus as part of a development, including the New
Orleans Jazz Orchestra (NOJO), the Trust for Public Land (TPL), and other private entities
surrounding the site. The inclusion of private development partners will create a synergy for
success and inclusion.
This mixed use residential and entertainment venue will be the nexus of the riverfront
activity south of the Ernest N. Morial Convention Center and the gateway to the TPL Riverfront
Park, including adequate parking decks, at Jackson Avenue. This site will be a destination for
13. 10
river taxis, riverboat tours, and the riverfront street car line connecting Audubon Park,
Downtown, and French Quarter tourism.
A) Current Land Status
The Dry Dock sections for the Class Study Exhibits of the slave trade will be located at
1600 South Peters Street, at the old Market Street sub-stations. Entergy New Orleans has the
National Slave Ship Museum as part of their future development for the site. The use of
hydraulic and visual technology will create a realistic and educational experience. The theatrical
interpretive presentations will reflect historical truths, and add to the interactivity of the museum.
14. 11
Entergy Market Street Sub-Station
B) Replica Slave Ship Interactive Exhibit: Mississippi River
The location of the replica slave ship interactive exhibit will be on the Mississippi
River/Market Street Wharf as part of the Trust for Public Land Riverfront Park. The City of
New Orleans Planning Commission has placed the National Slave Ship Museum on the agenda
for future development of the wharves.
EDUCATION
It is important to understand the historical and social relevance of slavery in the United
States, and the people who were affected as a result of this institution. It is also important to
look at the impact on the environment and science while considering the positive and negative
effects of the slave trade to the Louisiana area.
The National Slave Ship Museum will be an important resource for public and private
schools, from elementary through post-secondary levels. As the United States Holocaust
15. 12
Memorial Museum in Washington, DC, and the National World War II Museum in New
Orleans, LA, offer a standard curriculum for teachers, the National Slave Ship Museum will
offer the same, coordinating levels and making content area connections.
Southern University at New Orleans (SUNO)
Vision for Biology
Dr. David S. Adegboye
Associate Professor and Chair
Department of Biology
Contributions of the Department of Biology, Southern University at New Orleans to the
museum project are in three dimensions:
1. Establish a DNA Laboratory in which descendents of African slaves can trace their ancestry
2. Establish a Museum of Organisms relevant to the Lower Mississippi Delta Region and the
relative areas of the slaves’ origins
3. Molecular Biology Laboratory at SUNO, which demonstrates basic relevant DNA
technology
Master
of
Arts
in
Museum
Studies
Dr.
Sara
Hollis
Interim Director
Museum Studies Department
The Museum Studies program at SUNO is the only Museum Studies program in the State
of Louisiana, and will be housed in the facility, and use the National Slave Ship Museum as its
source for practicum work for graduate level students.
Please refer to the attached curriculum in Appendix A for further evaluation of
SUNO’s program of study.
16. 13
SITE AND AREA EVALUATION
Market Proximity
The site is approximately one mile from the French Quarter, adjacent to the Warehouse
Arts District, and downtown hotel and shopping districts. As a local, regional, national, and
international tourist destination, New Orleans and the National Slave Ship Museum will attract
tourists, most of whom will stay in hotels in the downtown area and Warehouse Arts District.
Tourism
Map
–
Numbers
not
applicable
to
study
Access
Routes
There exist gateways in the floodwall, and across the railroad tracks. The extension of
the existing Riverfront Streetcar line would increase public access opportunities. Tchoupitoulas
Street provides vehicular access from uptown and downtown, as well as connections via the
West Bank, Mississippi River Bridge, and the I-10 expressway. The property is easily accessible
via South Peters Street, although access from the site to the riverfront is currently blocked by the
floodwall. This access can be accommodated by air-rights over the railroad line at an upper
level, as exhibited by the Riverwalk and the Hilton Hotel.
17. 14
Traffic Patterns
The Tchoupitoulas Corridor is an active traffic route for cars and trucks, some of which
are going to or from the Port of New Orleans. The Crescent City Connection and the Greater
New Orleans Bridge both offer direct exits to the Tchoupitoulas Corridor. Once visitors reach
the museum, we have provided ample parking within the facility.
Surrounding Developments
The Trust for Public Land (TPL) is planning a Riverfront Park that will run from the
Jackson Avenue Wharf to the Orange Street Wharf and will ultimately tie into the Spanish Plaza.
This plan includes docking for the sailing replica ship, and entry above the tracks and floodwall,
which will provide access to the National Slave Ship Museum. There are plans for bicycle and
pedestrian trails, recreational opportunities and some light commercial uses. Public support for
the park is strong, as is referenced in the Riverfront Vision in Appendix B.
Medium density residential and hospitality developments are planned for sites adjacent to
the Market Street Power Plant parcel, due to the scale of development at the Convention Center
and the Power Plant structure itself, with densities becoming progressively lower upriver.
Medium density uses could include: retail, arts and cultural facilities, and a berthing facility.
Potential complementary facilities
As previously mentioned, the Riverfront
Park will complement the National Slave Ship
Museum, as well as the existing Riverwalk
Shopping District.
18. 15
Also located at the Riverwalk are the Steamboat Natchez and Cajun Queen, tourist
paddleboats for dinner and other cruises.
Within walking distance of the proposed site is the Aquarium of the Americas, the
Contemporary Arts Center, the National World War II Museum, the Ogden Museum of Southern
Art, and the Warehouse Arts District where privately owned galleries line the streets.
MARKET ANALYSIS
Population Information
Post-Katrina, the population of Orleans Parish is approximately 200,000, with a
metropolitan population of 929,554. These numbers compare to pre-Katrina statistics of 484,000
people and 1.4 million, respectively. Tourism is the major industry in New Orleans, attracting
close to $5 billion in visitor spending to the region annually, with a record number of visitors in
19. 16
2004 at 10.1 million. New Orleans was on pace to meet and potentially exceed those numbers in
2006 when Hurricane Katrina hit in August 2005.
In 2006, 13 conventions returned to New Orleans, which is only 35 percent of booked
conventions, bringing in 113,500 people. The convention retention rate for 2007 is 70 percent
and 100 percent for 2008, which will bring in close to 350,000 conventioneers annually.
An average convention delegate generates $1,500 for the local economy during his or her
stay. Convention visitors stay longer in hotels, entertain more in restaurants, and spend more
money in retail shops. It is common for convention organizers to include local attractions as part
of the activities for attendees. To that end, the National Slave Ship Museum will have natural
appeal for conventioneers.
The National Slave Ship Museum is a five-year project, and we anticipate that the
permanent and tourist populations will have returned to pre-Katrina numbers by that time. In
fact, New Orleans was recently named a Top Destination for 2007 by Orbitz.com, and Travel &
Leisure included the city in its “Where to Go Next” feature article. In a New York Times article
dated January 22, 2006, staff writer Pableaux Johnson awarded New Orleans the title
“Comeback of the Year,” his article, stating that visitors to New Orleans are “investors in
its…recovery.”
0
100,000
200,000
300,000
400,000
2006 2007 2008
2006
2007
2008
20. 17
The Riverfront has been under consideration for development for some time. On May
15, 2003, The New Orleans City Council passed resolution R-03-2817-0 that the “City Planning
Commission pursue a vision and [implement a] strategy for New Orleans riverfront and continue
to serve as the coordinating and managing entity for riverfront development, and to conduct this
public process to produce a Riverfront Vision.” On June 27, 2006, the City Planning
Commission adopted the Final Draft of Riverfront Vision in City Council Chambers.
ANNUAL USAGE PROJECTIONS
Planned components
In the National Slave Ship Museum, there will be six floors, each housing several
components of planned space.
On the first floor, there will be a multi-purpose exhibit and concert area, similar to the
lobby of the Ogden Museum or the Rose Center for Earth and Space Cullman Hall of the
Universe at the American Museum of Natural History. The first floor will also house the dry-
dock Slave Ship Museum, The Slave Ship and Maritime Pilots Exhibit, the workroom and
receiving area, the curatorial, and the SUNO educational facility.
Ground Level Parking
(250 Cars)
Separate Access
Entergy Facility
Atrium
Substation
Convention Center
Entergy Parking Structure
(2100 Cars)
S. Peters Street
First Floor/Site Plan
21. 18
On the second floor, there will be a Multi-Purpose Theatre and Conference Hall, the
continuation of the Slave Ship Museum, a Culture and Music Hall, a research lab, the
administrative offices for the Slave Ship Museum, and storage.
The third floor will house the Theatre & Conference Hall Mezzanine, a Film Production
Studio & Editing facility, the Genealogy and DNA Research Center, a computer lab, SUNO
administration and SUNO classrooms.
The fourth and fifth floors will house offices and commercial space, and the sixth floor
will house the restaurant.
22. 19
Market penetration rates achieved by comparable facilities
The National World War II Museum, formerly known as the D-Day Museum, is located
in New Orleans, within walking distance of the proposed site for the National Slave Ship
Museum. Over 1,000,000 people have attended the museum with an average of 187,000 visitors
per year, attracting 300,000 in 2004 alone. Additionally, the United States Holocaust Memorial
Museum in Washington, DC, attracts 1.5 million visitors per year, and boasts a membership base
of 145,000 people.
Location and possible competition
Due to the nature of the museum, competition is not a consideration. As a result of its
location and proximity to the downtown area as well as the aforementioned aquarium, museums
and galleries, the National Slave Ship Museum will become a natural destination for visitors to
the city, as well as a pilgrimage site for Africans, African-Americans, and other Americans
whose ancestry can be traced to this time in history.
CONCEPT DEVELOPMENT
Recommended types of activities
The Concert Area, Theatre, and Culture and Music Hall will be the ideal locations for
performances of traditional African cultural festivals, as well as the New Orleans Jazz Orchestra,
Mardi Gras Indian Tribes, and other cultural activities unique to New Orleans.
New Orleans Jazz Orchestra
24. 21
Recommended food service and merchandise space
There is a proposed restaurant of over 6,000 square feet, where traditional African food
will be served, along with traditional Creole dishes created by the African slaves and free people
of color in the city of New Orleans.
The Genealogy and DNA Laboratory will provide DNA testing for a fee that will offer
the possibility to trace ones ancestry to the slaves who came on the Middle Passage to New
Orleans.
The Museum Store will offer art, replicas, books, and other typical articles apropos to the
museum experience. Imported African arts and crafts will be a part of this offering, as well as art
from contemporary African artists.
Parking
Open lots on the parcel of land abutting the site for the museum will be developed into
parking decks that will meet the needs of visitors with cars, tour buses, and RVs. It should be
noted, however, that there is the proposed continuation of the Riverfront Streetcar line, which
would be a convenient, affordable and safe form of public transportation that would carry
visitors directly to the site.
FINANCIAL ANALYSIS
Phases
The project will be developed over four phases.
PHASE I Construction Renovation of the Entergy Facility
PHASE II Construction of Wharf Side Pavilion
PHASE III Construction of Second Level Pedestrian Bridge
PHASE IV Construction of Replica Sailing Slave Ship
25. 22
Construction and Renovation
The post-Katrina construction industry is experiencing unprecedented escalation in labor
and material costs. Over the next 10 years of recovery and rebuild, this trend is expected to
continue. Our current experience with museum projects of new construction shows an average
construction cost of approximately $130 per square foot for moderately designed structures. The
Entergy Facility is not an ordinary structure in its scale and construction methodology and
requires careful and sensitive deconstruction and very heavy equipment. Due to these simplified
factors, we are projecting the construction cost at $210 per square foot, or an increase of 50
percent over 2006 costs. This cost figure should be valid for the next two years. Obviously, we
cannot foretell the cost escalations within the Gulf Region, and these numbers must be updated
yearly.
Estimated
Construction
Costs
Construction cost of Entergy Facility
275,924 Sq. Ft. Gross @ $210/Sq. Ft. $57,944,040
Construction cost of Wharf side Pavilion
10,000 Sq. Ft. @ $130/Sq. Ft. $ 1,300,000
Construction of Second Level Pedestrian Bridge
4,800 Sq. Ft. @ $110/Sq. Ft. $ 528,000
Construction of the Replica Sailing Slave Ship $ 6,000,000
Total Project Hard Cost $65,772,040
Total Project Soft Cost $ 9,865,800
Total Project Budget $75,637,840
A more accurate analysis of construction and renovation costs will be determined in the final
feasibility study. Please refer to the Cost Analysis and Phasing for detailed area calculation
26. 23
and cost projection, and the Conceptual Design Approach for an architectural layout of the
building.
Salaries
Director $ 100,000
Security (guards/elec. monitoring) $ 250,000
Support Staff $ 300,000
Assistant Director $ 75,000
Public Relations, National $ 60,000
Public Relations, International $ 60,000
Administrator, Exhibits $ 60,000
Administrator, Restaurant & Shop $ 60,000
Administrator, Maintenance $ 60,000
Administrator, Tours $ 60,000
Administrator, Security $ 60,000
Administrator, Commercial Space $ 60,000
Curator $ 50,000
Curator $ 50,000
Maintenance $ 50,000
Maintenance $ 50,000
Maintenance $ 50,000
Maintenance $ 50,000
Tour Guide $ 30,000
Tour Guide $ 30,000
Tour Guide $ 30,000
Tour Guide $ 30,000
Tour Guide $ 30,000
Estimated Gross Salaries $1,655,000
Revenue Sources
Membership (Annual)
Individual $ 50.00
Dual $ 75.00
Family $ 100.00
Associate $ 150.00
Supporter $ 300.00
Sponsor $ 500.00
Friend $1,000.00
Patron $5,000.00
Admission (Daily)
Regular Admission $14.00
Student with ID $ 8.00
Seniors over 65 $ 8.00
27. 24
Military $ 8.00
Children 5 – 13 $ 8.00
Children under 5 Free
The Gross total of anticipated revenue from membership and admission will be
determined through the final feasibility study.
Retail
It is expected that 80 percent of museum visitors will purchase an item from the museum
shop, ranging from books, music, to small African sculpture, arts and crafts, and textiles.
Café
It is expected that 50% of museum visitors will eat a meal at the café, featuring authentic
African foods, preparation, ceremony and custom.
The Gross total of anticipated revenue from the retail and café sales will be determined
through the final feasibility study.
Funding
Funding for the project will come from federal, local, corporate, and private
contributions, as well as a corporate endeavor agreement with the State of Louisiana.
Grants
Public Law 103-433, Lower Mississippi Delta Initiatives, section 1104 states that
“…appropriate African American…organizations in the Delta Region are further directed to
prepare and transmit to the Congress a plan for necessary funding, for the establishment of a
Delta Region Native American Heritage Corridor and Heritage and Cultural Center and an
African American Heritage Corridor and Heritage and Cultural Center with a network of satellite
of cooperative units.” The National Slave Ship Museum should be designated as the African
American Delta Region Cultural Center.
28. 25
In addition, there are numerous federal and private grants that are appropriate for ongoing
support of the museum.
For example:
1. National Endowment for the Humanities: Museums, Libraries, or Special Projects:
Consultation Grants. http://www.neh.gov/grants/guidelines/public-consult.html
2. Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS)
Museum Grants for African American History and Culture
http://www.imls.gov/news/2006/112206.shtm
3. National Endowment of the Arts: Funding Opportunities in Museums:
http://www.arts.gov/grants/apply/Museums.html
4. National Park Service: Department of the Interior: Park Ethnography Program:
http://www.cr.nps.gov/ethnography/aah/aaheritage/HPNd.htm
SUNO
The Southern University at New Orleans will operate its Master of Arts Museum Studies
program, as well as the Molecular Biology Laboratory, from the facility. SUNO’s funding will
come from the State of Louisiana, which will lease the classrooms, offices, and labs.
Anticipated revenue from SUNO’s participation will be determined through the final
feasibility study.
DNA Lab
The proposed DNA Laboratory will offer a genealogy service for a fee to museum guests
who wish to trace their ancestry to the slaves who were bought and sold in Louisiana,
Mississippi, and the region, and the relationship with the Caribbean, Jamaica in particular, and
West Africa.
Anticipated revenue from the DNA Lab will be determined through the final feasibility
study.
29. 26
Traveling Slave Ship
The Slave Ship will be a functioning ship, which will travel up the Mississippi to Baton
Rouge, “Scotts Bluff” at Southern University, Natchez, Mississippi, to the forks in the road, and
other places of historical significance.
Anticipated revenue from the Traveling Slave Ship will be determined through the
final feasibility study.
30. 27
CONCLUSION
In this preliminary feasibility study, The Urban Design research Center (UDRC) has
focused its research on information available from primary and secondary sources, with a special
focus on the market potential of the Riverfront Development proposed by the New Orleans City
Council and the New Orleans City Planning Commission.
In summary, the UDRC has determined the National Slave Ship Museum will administer
to cultural and economic needs, and New Orleans will provide an ideal setting for such a
museum to flourish. The city already supports a national museum – the National World War II
Museum, as well as a strong and growing arts district, which is within walking distance to the
proposed site. The Riverfront Development is an ongoing project for which there is a great deal
of public support. The Public Law 103-433 mandates that Congress disseminates funding to
African American cultural centers, and the National Slave Ship Museum is an obvious candidate
for that funding.
New Orleans is a major tourist destination, and while post-Katrina numbers are not
comparable to pre-Katrina figures, there are clear indicators that tourism will soon reign as New
Orleans top industry. With the number of conventions expected for the 2008 fiscal year, we see
the movement toward normalcy. National Museums do not only draw tourists who visit a city,
but act as destinations in their own right. Such will be the case with the National Slave Ship
Museum, as it will attract worldwide visitors for a variety of reasons, including Africans and
African Americans who make a pilgrimage to the cradle of the slave trade in the Americas.
While the findings in this study warrant a deeper and more comprehensive feasibility
study to determine the details and requirements of an undertaking involved in a project of this
magnitude, it is the determination of the UDRC that the National Slave Ship Museum is a viable
31. 28
and meaningful project that will flourish in New Orleans. It will be a five-year time frame from
feasibility to complete construction, which allows for tourism to rejuvenate and evacuees to
return in significant numbers including school children. The unveiling of the National Slave
Ship Museum project will be timely in the long-term development plans of the Riverfront
properties.
32. 29
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
The National Slave Ship Museum and this preliminary feasibility study were completed
through the efforts and services provided by the following people:
Lloyd E. Lazard, Founder, National Slave Ship Museum
Clifton C. James, Sr.
Director
Urban Design Research Center
2322 Canal Street
New Orleans, LA 70119
504 620 9655
Urban Design Research Center Staff:
Clifton C. James, Jr.
Mimi Loftus
33. 30
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