Storyville

Storyville was one of the most prominent red-light districts in the nation’s history. From 1897-1917, this neighborhood within New Orleans curated a culture unique to the city and fostered a hub for Black jazz musicians. 

Storyville was created as a means to regulate the high prostitution rates in New Orleans at the time. In 1897, New Orleans City Alderman Sidney Story passed ordinance No. 13,032 that created a 38-block area district in which prostitution was regulated without officially legalizing it. Storyville was established originally to keep talk about prostitution in New Orleans to a minimum, but over its 20-year lifespan the exact opposite occurred. Originally, the area was known as “The District,” but as the neighborhood gained popularity the nickname, “Storyville”, caught on (1). 

While the French photographer, E.J. Bellocq, had little prominence during his lifetime, his work became recognized by one of the most distinguished museums in the country. The book, E.J. Bellocq: Storyville Portraits, is a collection of images taken by Bellocq that was published in 1970 by the Museum of Modern Art and features prostitutes in Storyville in 1912. Little is known as to why he chose to work with these women, but Bellocq was able to transform the narrative of these ladies with his camera alone. In these photographs, the women are pictured with a certain amount of elegance and bliss, which is contrary to the usual stereotypes instilled upon sex workers. The editor of E.J. Bellocq: Storyville Portraits, John Szarkowski, said, “By seeing his pictures, we are persuaded that he had knowledge of the nature of human beings.” E.J. Bellocq’s work depicts cultural aspects of the district and implements a visual history of Storyville that we know today (3).

When learning about the history of Storyville, it is almost impossible for jazz music not to be mentioned. The owners of barrelhouses, saloons, and clubs would often hire musicians to keep their patrons entertained. Because Black artists sometimes had a hard time getting booked in other parts of the city, Storyville became a hotspot for local Black artist to play in front of crowds. Prominent Black musicians that helped paved the way for jazz in Storyville included: King Oliver, Jelly Roll Morton, Louis Armstrong, and more (5). These musicians experimented with a new concept of music that we know today as jazz, and they were able to share it with the world in Storyville. 

Storyville came to an end during the World War I era when the United States’ government mandated that the district be shut down due to its proximity to military bases (6). Even though Storyville is no longer physically with us, its legacy lives on. Once Storyville shut down, several musicians from the area took the new style of music from the area and brought it to other areas of the country. Many Black artists moved to Chicago, which was also a hub for urban jazz. By Storyville closing its doors, the district played a part in the Great Migration in relation to Black musicians in New Orleans. By studying Storyville, one can conclude that the short-lived, red-light district played an important role in not only the American South and Louisiana, but also in the shaping of American culture.

See more of E.J. Bellocq’s photographs in the book published by the MoMA, E.J. Bellocq: Storyville Portraits!

Written by Jordyn Burrell

Citations: 

(1) Landau, Emily “Storyville” https://64parishes.org Encyclopedia of Louisiana. Ed. David Johnson. Louisiana Endowment for the Humanities, 27 Jan 2011. 13 Nov 2019

(2) Bellocq, E.J.. Storyville portraits: photographs from the New Orleans red-light district, circa 1912. New York, The Museum of Modern Art, 1970.

(3) Box 8, in the Edmiston Family Collection on New Orleans #5750, Southern Historical Collection, The Wilson Library, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

(4) Young, Donn. Storyville Jazz Hall, 494407c024d – Donn Young Photographs. LSU Libraries Special Collections. LSU Libraries: Hill Memorial Library, Baton Rouge, Louisiana, United States.

(5) Landau, Emily “Storyville” https://64parishes.org Encyclopedia of Louisiana. Ed. David Johnson. Louisiana Endowment for the Humanities, 27 Jan 2011. 13 Nov 2019

(6) Landau, Emily “Storyville” https://64parishes.org Encyclopedia of Louisiana. Ed. David Johnson. Louisiana Endowment for the Humanities, 27 Jan 2011. 13 Nov 2019