Tour leader: Josh Lewis, Bywater Institute, Tulane University, and staff of the Whitney Plantation Museum

The area along the Mississippi River between New Orleans and St. John the Baptist Parish is known by several names: the River Parishes, the German Coast, and Cancer Alley, among others. In the 18th and 19th centuries, thousands of enslaved Africans, Afro Creoles, and Black Americans cultivated and processed sugar at the many plantations established along this corridor. The region now serves as a central node in the global circulation of petrochemicals and bulk agricultural commodities. Industrial development and water management practices have transformed the region and its waterways, bringing new forms of economic activity as well as serious environmental impacts, which have contributed to the marginalization of Black residents. This combination driving and walking excursion begins with a bus tour focused on points of environmental and historical interest along the Mississippi River between New Orleans and the Whitney Plantation Museum, including a major flood-control structure, the site of the 1811 Slave Revolt, and several petrochemical facilities. The tour continues with a self-guided walking tour of Whitney Plantation, the only plantation in the United States interpreted entirely through an African American lens, and concludes with a return bus drive to New Orleans.

Please note: The museum sustained damage during Hurricane Ida. We will notify registrants if changes to the itinerary are necessary. This bus tour includes some walking. The Whitney Plantation Visitor Center is ADA compliant. Most of the tour is on a gravel path. Smaller wheelchairs may have difficulty navigating the grounds; motorized wheelchairs work well on the gravel. Some of the historic structures are accessible only by stairs. Visitors must download the Whitney Plantation app to take the tour.

Limit 30 people. $60 members, $70 nonmembers