We invite you to join us in New Orleans. As the city slowly recovers from the devastation
wrought by Hurricane Katrina, we deem it timely to return to the Crescent City and do our part to aid in its renewal. Our program
leaders, all of whom have special connections to New Orleans, have arranged a
provocative adventure, certain to inspire and touch even those who’ve visited
the area many times before. During our three days and four nights together,
we’ll visit historic sites seldom seen as well as places destroyed by Hurricane
Katrina, meet colorful local people, and delve deeply into the history,
culture, architecture and cuisine of the most fascinating city in America.
After
an opening night reception and a mini-history of New Orleans presented by Charles P. Roland, we will begin on Thursday with a
combined driving and walking tour of the downtown and French Quarter areas. A special focus for us will be the long forgotten Battle of Liberty
Place (September 14, 1874). This engagement, between members of the White
League and the Metropolitan Police force, under the command of James
Longstreet, would mark the beginning of the end of the Reconstruction
Period. We will visit Gallier Hall - the Civil War period city hall, the United States Customs House - scene of the heaviest of the fighting, and
the St. Louis Hotel - headquarters of the reconstruction government of
Governor Kellogg. After lunch on Bourbon
Street, we will visit the Gallier
House, and the Ursuline Convent, the oldest building in the Mississippi Valley
 On Friday,
we will travel by bus upriver to the magnificent Evergreen Plantation.
With pigeonniers (structures used for housing pigeons), garconieries (dwellings
for a family's young boys), a privy, a kitchen, a guesthouse, an overseer's
house, and a double row of 22 slave cabins, Evergreen is unique. It is one of
only a few plantations that evoke what major plantations resembled in the
antebellum era, and provides an excellent example of the workings of the sugar
industry of that period. For lunch, we’ll enjoy regional fare at a local restaurant.
Later in the day, we’ll visit Laura Plantation and view the magnificent restoration
work that has taken place since a fire badly damaged the main house in August
of 2004.
On Saturday we will travel south from New
Orleans and into the areas heavily devastated
by Hurricane Katrina. We will tour the decimated lower 9th Ward and St.
Bernard Parish and hear some remarkable stories of how the locals
endured that terrible storm. We will stand on the Chalmette Battlefield where the visitor center, National Cemetery wall and park headquarters were destroyed. We will
visit what remains of the St. Bernard government building, the Isleno
Cultural Center, and Jackson Barracks. And we will travel to the shores
of Lake Borne and the coastal communities of Shell Beach and Yscloskey and see firsthand the terrible results of the tidal surge that swept over
these areas. All of this is of personal relevance to Bill Hyland who lost his
home to Katrina. He firmly believes that by visiting these locations and sharing
stories of the hurricane we assist the rebuilding process.
In
the afternoon, we will board pontoon boats and travel to Fort Proctor (near Shell Beach) and visit the remains of this post War of 1812 fortification.
Please remember to wear outdoor clothing and durable waterproof footwear because we may have to trek through some marsh mud. Dale Phillips and Bill
Hyland completed a trial run of this part of the tour in April. It was an incredibly
emotional experience for them and they feel that such a tour should be shared
by all of us on the tour because it will help demonstrate how fragile life can
be and how it can be shattered in a moment by the power of nature.
On
Saturday evening, we’ll cap off our program with cocktails and dinner at our
hotel and then enjoy a humorous and compelling presentation of “New Orleans Vignettes” by our three
accomplished raconteurs, Charles Roland, Bill Hyland and Dale
Phillips.
Our program will be based at the Garden District Hotel, on St. Charles Avenue in the beautiful and stately Garden District. From the front door of the hotel, you can hop aboard the streetcar for a nine-minute ride to the French Quarter and all that jazz ♫. We hope you’ll join us in November in New Orleans for a program that promises to be educational, compelling, friendly and fun!
About Our Tour
Leaders
Charles P. Roland recently retired as Professor of
History at the Univ. of Kentucky. Prior to that, he taught for eighteen years at Tulane University in New
Orleans. He is the
author of many books including Louisiana Sugar Plantations in the Civil War and An American Iliad: The Story of the Civil War. Dr. Roland and his wife,
Allie Lee, regard New
Orleans as their
favorite city.
Dale K. Phillips is the Superintendent of George Rogers Clark National Historical Park
in Vincennes, IN. Previously, he was manager of
the Chalmette (Battle of New Orleans site) and
Acadian Units of the Jean Lafitte National Historic Park and Preserve.
William de Marigny Hyland, a native of New Orleans, is a direct descendant of the
original French settlers of New Orleans.
He is historian of St. Bernard’s Parish and an expert on the history of the New Orleans area.
Recommended Reading: Battle of Liberty
Place, by Stuart Landry
Schedule
Wednesday, November 7
7:30 PM - 9:00 PM
Welcome Reception and
“A Mini-History of New Orleans” by Charles P. Roland
Thursday, Nov 8
8:30 AM – 5:00 PM Tour the French Quarter and Battle of Liberty Place sites, lunch on Bourbon Street,
visit Gallier House and Ursuline Convent
Friday, Nov 9
8:30 AM - 4:30 PM Tour Evergreen Plantation, lunch,
tour Laura Plantation.
Saturday, Nov 10
8:30
AM – 4:00 PM Tour of the 9th Ward and St. Bernard
Parish.
6:00
PM – 7:00 PM Cocktails (cash bar)
7:00
PM – 8:30 PM Dinner and “New Orleans Vignettes”
Registration Fee per Person (lodging not included): $
595
What is Included in Your Registration
· the services of expert historians chosen for their
knowledge and experience
· transportation to sites as described
· admissions to all sites
· Wednesday PM Reception
· Thursday, Friday and Saturday lunches and Saturday
evening dinner
If You Must Cancel: Your registration fee will be 100% refunded.
Base Location & Lodging: We will be based at the Garden District Hotel, 2203 St. Charles Avenue, New Orleans, LA. The hotel website is www.thegardendistricthotel.com We have reserved a block of sleeping rooms at the special rate of $129 + tax – Single or Double. Rooms are limited and YOU MUST MAKE YOUR ROOM RESERVATIONS ON OR BEFORE SEPTEMBER 25. This is because there is a large convention (American Academy of Opthamology) in New Orleans on our dates. Call 800-265-1856 and identify yourself as a registrant for the American History Forum tour to reserve a room under our block. Notes: Parking for hotel guests is complimentary * For Shuttle Service from Louis Armstrong International Airport, contact Airport Shuttle New Orleans at 866-596-2699 or book online at www.airportshuttleneworleans.com The fee from the airport to the Garden District Hotel is $13 per person one-way * You can quickly and inexpensively get downtown to the French Quarter and elsewhere around New Orleans by streetcar or taxi-cab.
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