New Orleans African American Museum

What New Orleans African American Museum does

The New Orleans African American Museum (NOAAM) is a private nonprofit cultural institution founded in 1996 under the City of New Orleans Department of Housing and Neighborhood Development. Headquartered at 1417-1418 Governor Nicholls Street in New Orleans' Tremé neighborhood—the oldest Black neighborhood in the United States—NOAAM administers a 2-acre historic campus featuring the 1828 Meilleur-Goldthwaire Creole villa, Historic Gardens, and Bulbancha Lot, while currently operating out of the administrative Blue House pending full campus reopening.

The museum's offering centers on permanent and rotating exhibitions that combine physical art with immersive digital installations. Core anchors include Ancestral Odyssey, a June 2025 permanent installation by London-based digital artist Vince Fraser using AI-driven artistic storytelling to reimagine Black Masking Indian traditions; The Katrina List, a living memorial archiving nearly 7,000 names of Hurricane Katrina survivors, curated with the Katrina National Memorial Foundation; the AfroFuture Society Curatorial Studio; guided walking tours of Tremé; and The Heritage Lab modular educational workshop.

NOAAM's revenue model spans admissions ($10-$25, with free entry for Louisiana residents through The Helis Foundation's Art for All initiative), a five-tier membership program ($25-$1,000+ annually), ticketed guided tours ($30-$150 per person), event space rentals at the 88-person-capacity Blue House, donations, and signature fundraising events such as the annual Sips & Spirits gala. Customers include local residents, cultural heritage enthusiasts, K-12 and higher-education students, event hosts, and Black artists and curators—served through Thursday-Sunday on-site operations supplemented by Eventbrite and Square-powered digital ticketing.

Name

New Orleans African American Museum

Legal name

New Orleans African American Museum

Website

https://noaam.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

1996

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Private nonprofit museum founded in 1996 in New Orleans' Tremé neighborhood, preserving African American art, history, and culture through permanent and rotating exhibitions, immersive digital installations, guided tours, educational programs, and signature community events for local residents, students, artists, and visitors.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Cultural Heritage Museum

NAICS

Museums, Historical Sites, and Similar Institutions (712), Museums (712110), Museums, Historical Sites, and Similar Institutions (7121)

akta.pro primary industry

Museums & Heritage Sites (History, Science, Specialty) (BPAGAHAA)

akta.pro secondary industries

Cultural Heritage Institutions (Archives, Historic Houses, Monuments Foundations) (THAJADAI), Historic Preservation & Landmarks Conservation (BPAGAHAE)

Keywords

• Cultural heritage preservation
• African american art museum
• Exhibition programming services
• Community cultural education
• Heritage guided tours

Headquarters

HQ city

New Orleans

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure, Technology or R&D, Others

Revenue model

1. Membership Dues: Annual membership program with five tiers (Futurist through Liberation Circle) ranging from $25-1,000+ annually, offering unlimited admission, exclusive previews, discounts, and recognition benefits.
2. Event Space Rental: Venue rental for events including 88-person upstairs space with terraces, downstairs backyard with wrap-around porch and catering kitchen. Revenue from event inquiries and bookings.
3. Guided Tours: 1-hour private tours ($30-55) and 5-hour Treme Experience walking tours ($150 per person) led by Storytellers.
4. Admission Fees: General admission ranging from $10-25 depending on residency (local vs global) and student status. Free admission for Louisiana residents through The Helis Foundation Art for All initiative.
5. Donations and Fundraising: Donation page and annual fundraising campaigns to support cultural preservation mission. Sips & Spirits annual fundraiser event.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

The New Orleans African American Museum (NOAAM) preserves African American history and elevates African American art, culture, and contributions through rotating and permanent exhibitions (Ancestral Odyssey, The Katrina List, Treme Heroes), guided tours of its historic Treme campus, a tiered membership program, signature community programming (SATURDAYS @ NOAAM, Sips & Spirits, The REVIVAL, Conversations & Calas, FEATURES), and educational workshops via The Heritage Lab. The museum generates revenue from admissions, memberships, space rentals, tours, event ticketing, and donations.

Product overview

The New Orleans African American Museum (NOAAM) operates as a cultural preservation institution offering a unified portfolio of exhibitions, educational programs, and community engagement services. Core offerings include rotating and permanent exhibitions such as Ancestral Odyssey and The Katrina List; guided tour experiences; tiered membership programs; and space rental for events. Signature programs include SATURDAYS @ NOAAM, Conversations and Calas, The REVIVAL festival, FEATURES @ NOAAM cabaret events, and The Heritage Lab educational workshop. NOAAM also hosts the annual Sips & Spirits fundraiser and maintains strategic partnerships with organizations like Chinbo, Inc. (for Kouri-Vini language preservation) and the Katrina National Memorial Foundation. The museum generates revenue through admission fees, memberships, donations, space rentals, and event ticketing.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Museum Admission General admission to NOAAM's exhibitions and historic Tremé campus, priced at $10 local students, $20 local adults, $15 global students, and $25 global adults; free for Louisiana residents through The Helis Foundation's Art for All initiative.
• Guided Tours One-hour private tours of the NOAAM campus led by Storytellers ($30 students, $40 Louisiana adults, $55 global adults) and 5-hour Treme Experience walking tours of the historic Tremé neighborhood ($150 per person).
• NOAAM Membership Program Annual membership program with five tiers: Futurist ($25-$50), Revolutionary ($75-$100), Tribe/Family ($150-$200), Visionary ($300-$500), and Liberation Circle ($1,000+), offering unlimited admission, exclusive previews, guest passes, member discounts, and curator-led experiences.
• Exhibitions Rotating and permanent exhibitions including Ancestral Odyssey (AI-powered immersive installation on Black Masking Indians), The Katrina List (living memorial of nearly 7,000 names from Hurricane Katrina), Treme Heroes Mural Project, Maroon Queen, and the AfroFuture Society Curatorial Studio.
• Event Space Rental Event hosting at NOAAM facilities including the Blue House with 88-person capacity, two terraces, catering kitchen, and Historic Gardens. Available for private events, corporate functions, fundraisers, and community gatherings with preference for non-profits and visual artists.
• Sips & Spirits Annual Fundraiser Annual ticketed fundraiser held in the Historic Gardens featuring craft cocktails mixed by celebrity bartenders, live entertainment, and dinner to support NOAAM's cultural preservation mission.
• SATURDAYS @ NOAAM

Quantifiable outcome

• Free admission provided to Louisiana residents through The Helis Foundation Art for All initiative
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers4 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature2 records

Partnerships

Seven partnerships are on record, tiered core, major and minor.

• Chinbo, Inc.coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2023Partnership to preserve and revitalize Kouri-Vini (Louisiana Creole) language through The Heritage Lab. Since opening The Heritage Lab in 2023, NOAAM and Chinbo have hosted interactive cultural activations, unveiled the first-ever film in Louisiana Creole (Tambou), and created opportunities for people to learn the endangered language. Future plans include NOAAM exhibition tours in Kouri-Vini and expanded immersive cultural experiences.
• Katrina National Memorial Foundation (KNMF)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerNOAAM and KNMF have joined forces to preserve stories, archives, and lived experiences of Hurricane Katrina with dignity. The partnership houses the KNMF collection within NOAAM's institutional framework, protecting Black historical memory, supporting community scholarship, and expanding public access to intergenerational knowledge. The featured project The Katrina List—told by historian Omar Casimire—documents names and stories of thousands impacted by Hurricane Katrina, including those at the Convention Center.
• Afrofuture SocietycoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerAfrofuture Society partners with NOAAM on the AfroFuture Society Curatorial Studio—a living exhibition and creative hub where art, culture, and technology converge. The Studio fuels imagination, preserves culture, and shapes futures through evolving fellowships, exhibitions, and workshops that bridge ancestral memory with visionary creation.
• The Kennedy CentermajorGTM or Marketing PartnerPartnership through The Kennedy Center's Cartography Project. Collaborated on The AfroRave event and Black Futures Dance Party held at the Andre Cailloux Center. Co-presented cultural programming connecting New Orleans Black culture to national audiences.
• Prospect New OrleansmajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership on Prospect.5 citywide art triennial. NOAAM hosted Harbingers of Now fireside chat featuring Prospect.5 artists Jeannette Ehlers, L. Kasimu Harris, and Joiri Minaya. Connected local audiences to international contemporary art programming.
• The NOLA ProjectminorGTM or Marketing PartnerTheatre partnership presenting PASS OVER and The Colored Museum theatrical productions at NOAAM's historic venue, combining performing arts with museum programming.
• Vince FrasercoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerLondon-based digital artist commissioned to create Ancestral Odyssey permanent immersive installation honoring Black Masking Indians. Collaboration with local New Orleans artists including Big Chief Shaka Zulu, Marcus Akinlana, Nana Sula Spirit, Sarrauniya Zulu, and Sunni Patterson.

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• DuSable Museum of African American History: Chicago-based nonprofit museum focused on African American history, art, and culture, comparable in operating model, revenue mix (admissions, memberships, rentals), and community-anchored mission. Strong direct peer for benchmarking fundraising and programming.
• Studio Museum in Harlem: Harlem-based nonprofit museum dedicated to artists of African descent with a curatorial residency model that mirrors NOAAM's AfroFuture Society Curatorial Studio. Closest direct comparable in scale, mission, and artist-incubation operating model.
• Museum of the African Diaspora (MoAD): San Francisco-based nonprofit museum dedicated to African diaspora art and culture with comparable exhibitions, membership, and educational programming. Direct peer in diaspora-focused storytelling and urban museum operations.
• Charles H. Wright Museum of African American History: Detroit-based nonprofit museum covering African American history with extensive permanent and traveling exhibitions. Comparable in operating scale, programming cadence, and foundation-funded model.
• African American Museum in Philadelphia: Philadelphia-based cultural heritage institution dedicated to African American history and the broader Black experience. Direct comparable in exhibit-driven admissions model and signature community programming.

Others

• Prospect New Orleans: New Orleans citywide art triennial with which NOAAM partners on programming (Prospect.5). Comparable as a New Orleans-based cultural organization sharing donor pools, audiences, and contemporary art positioning.
• Joan Mitchell Center: New Orleans-based artist residency and cultural programs hub led by the Joan Mitchell Foundation, where NOAAM's Executive Director previously worked. Operates in the same Tremé-area cultural ecosystem as a programming and audience peer.

Emerging players

• Hampton University Museum: One of the oldest African American museums in the U.S., embedded in an HBCU campus. Shares the African American art and cultural preservation focus with NOAAM, though anchored in a different institutional context.

Regional players

• Amistad Research Center: New Orleans-based independent research library and archive focused on African American history. Operates as a direct local peer in the same Tremé-adjacent cultural heritage ecosystem with overlapping subject-matter and donor base.

Broad incumbents

• Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture: Smithsonian-operated national museum in Washington, D.C. sharing the core mission of preserving African American history and culture. While vastly larger and federally funded, it sets the national standard and brand comparable peer for NOAAM's storytelling scope.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat6 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds1 record

Investors1 record

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about New Orleans African American Museum