African American Heritage Tour of Shreveport-Bossier
Welcome
In 2003, the Louisiana Regional Folklife Program at Northwestern State University partnered with the Multicultural Tourism Commission to develop an online tour of culturally significant sites in the Shreveport-Bossier area. Using the MTC publication Ole Southern Hospitality as a starting place, we developed a heritage tour that can be enjoyed both online and on the ground.
Several people, publications, and online resources were consulted while developing this tour. An especially valuable resource was historian Willie Burton’s On the Black Side of Shreveport. This comprehensive and informative book remains the seminal work on the historic African American experience in Shreveport. Appreciation goes to Mike Jones of MTC, who brought thoughtful perspective and guidance to the present research efforts. Thanks also to Director Harry Thomas and Commissioner Mrs. Otis Emanual for their insight and for their clear vision of a multicultural Shreveport/Bossier.
This section of the site was designed by: Michael Fontenot, LFRP
Research and text: Autumn Campbell, LFRP
Photographs and text: Dayna Bowker Lee, Ph.D., LFRP
Click Here to Begin Tour
References
Belton, Dr. Ray L. "A Message from the Chancellor." Southern University at Shreveport
http://www.susla.edu/html/general/chan.htm
Doughty, Junior. Huddie Ledbetter (Leadbelly): King Of The 12-String Guitar.
http://www.deltablues.net/lead.html
Brock, Eric J. Shreveport.net, Shreveport-Bossier Convention and Tourist Bureau
http://www.shreveport.net/sites/historic/
Burton, Willie. On the Black Side of Shreveport. Shreveport, La: 1983.
"Huddie Ledbetter, aka Leadbelly." Geoff Reeves Homepage.
http://leadbelly.lanl.gov/leadbelly.html
Louisiana Division of Historic Preservation website, National Register Properties.
http://www.crt.state.la.us/nhl2/default.htm
Ole Southern Hospitality. Shreveport, LA: 2001. African American Multicultural Tourism Commission.
“Historical Sketch of Southern University at Shreveport,”Southern University at Shreveport
http://www.susla.edu/html/general/history.htm
Selecting an image during the online tour will show a larger version.