LOUISIANA and MISSISSIPPI - As victims of Hurricane Katrina
continue to be relocated throughout the United States and many of
he final holdouts that remained in New Orleans are finally
evacuated, some news organizations have turned their eye toward
the devastation of historical monuments and museums.
Situations within the museums vary with location, with most
Louisiana institutions outside of the New Orleans area reporting
relatively little effect or damage from the storm. Museums inside
New Orleans face serious loss and damage, as do archival storage
facilities within the city that house the ephemera collection of
one of America's most influential and historically important
ports. As water levels subside, fires have also threatened and
consumed historic buildings.
Kacey Hill, public information director of the Louisiana State
Museum, reported that the nine historic French Quarter properties
sustained varying degrees of damage, ranging from "modest to
severe."
A Times-Picayune report indicated that the New Orleans Museum of
Art had avoided significant damage, largely due to several
security and maintenance employees who defied evacuation orders
and remained on duty during the hurricane and ensuing flood. The
Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) wanted them to move to
a safer location, but there was no way to secure the artwork
inside, so the staff stayed on site. Museum workers had
reportedly taken down some pieces in the sculpture garden before
the storm; however an unmovable sculpture by Kenneth Snelson was
destroyed in the storm.
The holdout museum staff was reportedly forced to leave the
facility by the National Guard last week, and the current status
of the artworks left behind remains unclear.
To the east, many of the museums in Mississippi were hit hard,
with the devastation reported as ten fold. Not only was severe
water damage reported, but there was also the structural
destruction normally associated with hurricane-force winds,
according to the Mississippi Department of Archives and History
website.
In Biloxi, the storm's brute force flattened many of the
buildings on the Beauvoir estate, Jefferson Davis's last home in
the city. Despite the front gallery being torn from the home and
large holes ripped through the roof, the main house is still
standing and early reports indicate that it may be restorable.
Other buildings on the property did not fare as well, however, as
architectural structure marble arches in front of the mansion and
the two flanking pavilions were completely destroyed, according
to reports. One of the buildings demolished by the storm was the
former veterans hospital that had recently served as a
Confederate museum. The director's residence was also destroyed.
The surge of the storm reportedly washed away a large portion of
the first floor of the Jefferson Davis Presidential Library and
Museum; however, the second floor and upper parts of the
structure weathered the storm. Much of the library's collection,
including what are considered to be priceless historical
artifacts, was moved by the staff from harm's way prior to the
storm arriving.
Perhaps the most upsetting news regarding museum losses comes
from the site of the new Ohr-O'Keefe Museum of Art in Biloxi. At
least a portion of the Frank Gehry designed Center for Ceramics
and the Exhibitions Gallery that housed the George Ohr museum has
been wiped out.
Amidst conflicting reports, satellite imagery revealed that the
enormous Grand Casino barge washed ashore and landed on top of at
least a portion of the museum. Details pertaining to the safety
of the collection of Ohr pottery housed there have also been
sketchy, although the Clarion Ledger reported in its September 5
pages that Marjie Gowdy, director of the museum, stated that the
"Ohr pottery collection is intact and guarded."
Many of the massive oak trees that Gehry had incorporated into
the museum's design were destroyed. Gehry has committed to help
in the rebuilding efforts.
The first museum to be dedicated to an American potter, the
Ohr-O'Keefe was to have five pavilions - three galleries, a
cultural center and an education building - linked by a central
courtyard. The Pleasant Reed House, a Nineteenth Century historic
structure named after the former slave who built the house, was
but one of the structures that was totally destroyed by the
hurricane, with only the chimney left standing.
Other structures throughout the region that will remain closed
due to significant damage include the Old Capitol Museum, where
reports have surfaced that the museum had a third of its copper
roof blown off and was subject to substantial amounts of water
entering an exhibit area and a storage facility. The museum's
staff has been moving objects to another part of the building and
has cited large quantities of water-damaged materials, some of
which may not be salvageable.
Biloxi's Dantzler House, which had recently been remodeled and
served as the home of the Mardi Gras Museum, has reportedly been
destroyed.
The Walter Anderson Museum in Ocean Springs re-ported that the
building seems to have weathered the storm without significant
damage, although the Shearwater Pottery, Anderson's original
studio, was reported damaged. Many of the watercolors in the
Anderson Museum collection were found to be wet after the
hurricane passed; however, conservation efforts there have been
regarded as highly successful.
Museums and archives that were largely unaffected by the storm,
several of which have reopened, include the state archives at the
William F. Winter Building, the Manship House Museum, Eudora
Welty House, The Historic Preservation Division and the state
archives at The Grand Village of the Natchez Indians and Historic
Jefferson College.
The deadline to apply for a Community Heritage Preservation Grant
through Mississippi Department of Archives and History has been
pushed back to Friday, October 7. The grants of up to $500,000
can be used to pay the cost of preservation and restoration of
many historic buildings statewide that were damaged by the storm.
Museum officials from throughout the storm-struck area have
received calls from other institutions offering assistance with
regard to storage and conservation efforts.
Many of Mississippi's historic sites, artifacts and documents
have been damaged or destroyed by Hurricane Katrina. Those
wishing to make a tax-deductible donation to assist with
restoration efforts may contact the Foundation for Mississippi
History, POB 571, Jackson MS 39205.
