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LAPLACE — After a year of planning and installing exhibits, the 1811 Kid Ory Historic House opens at 10 a.m. on Tuesday, February 2, 2021 at 1128 Highway 628 in LaPlace. This will mark the first time the house has opened to the public.

Formerly known as the Woodland Plantation, or Montegut House, the 1811 Kid Ory Historic House dates back over two centuries to the Spanish colonial era. Two permanent exhibits tell the stories of the 1811 German Coast uprising of enslaved people and the life of jazz pioneer Kid Ory, born on the plantation in 1886.

Exhibit Room I, which features Stomping Grounds: Mules at Work in Southeast Louisiana, also explores the role of draft animals and sugar production in the area after the Civil War.

Exhibit Room II features photographs of regional culture. Patrons can find a selection of Kid Ory’s music on vinyl, CD, and 78rpm recordings as well as books, handmade string instruments, vintage phonographs, cards, photographs and art.

The executive team consists of museum founder, Kid Ory biographer and former Times-Picayune photojournalist John McCusker, along with non-profit founder and history practitioner Charlotte Jones and scholar-in-residence Daniel Senentez, Jr.

There will be 45-minute tours of the 4,000 square foot facility beginning at 11 a.m. Admission into the museum is $15.

While the ribbon-cutting ceremony is outside, masks and social distancing are strongly encouraged. Masks are required inside the building, and tour size is limited to four.