New Orleans: Urban Enslavement Tour at Hermann-Grima House

4.76

(162 reviews)

What’s the experience like?

I almost missed the start because I got distracted by a street band on St. Louis Street—brass echoing off old brick, you know how it is in New Orleans. By the time I ducked under the iron gate of Hermann-Grima House, our guide (I think her name was Denise?) was already gathering everyone in the courtyard. She had this calm way of talking that made me pay attention, even though my mind was still half outside with the music.

The tour focused on urban enslavement, which honestly, I hadn’t thought about much before. Most stories you hear are about plantations out in the country, but here it’s right in the middle of the French Quarter. Denise pointed to the slave quarters—small brick rooms behind the main house—and described daily routines. There was this faint smell of wood smoke near the old kitchen; she said they still use the open hearth sometimes for demonstrations. The kitchen felt both ordinary and heavy, like it remembered things nobody says out loud.

At one point, Denise paused by a faded ledger on display and read out a name—Marie, I think—and for a second it was quiet except for someone’s shoes squeaking on tile. That stuck with me more than anything else. We wandered through rooms with high ceilings and creaky floors, sunlight slanting through shutters onto old furniture. It’s strange to realize how close together everyone lived—owners and enslaved people under one roof, their lives tangled up but worlds apart.

Afterwards I poked around The Exchange Shop in what used to be the carriage house (they’ve got pralines and these odd little bonnets). The shop’s run by women from a nonprofit that’s been around since 1881—Denise told us that too, almost as an afterthought. Anyway, if you’re looking for a day trip in New Orleans that doesn’t gloss over history, this is it. Just don’t get lost listening to jazz outside first.