Museum of African-American History

The Natchez Association for the Preservation of African American Culture, NAPAC, was formed in 1990 to research, collect, exhibit, interpret and preserve the cultural and historical contributions of African Americans to the growth and development of Natchez and the nation. The association exhibits its findings and artifacts in the Natchez Museum of African Art and Heritage located in the old Natchez post office on Main Street. The museum contains exhibits from a number of Natchez related African American historic sites, important citizens and events, as well as an exhibit of African art that is on permanent loan from the Finley family of Albuquerque, New Mexico. The collection was formerly housed in the Ohr O'Keefe Museum on the Mississippi Gulf Coast, but was rescued before falling victim to Hurricane Katrina. After a diligent search for a new home, the Finley's decided that Natchez was a perfect location and the collection would be safe from the threat of damage from future hurricanes. Other exhibits within the museum include: The Rhythm Nightclub fire, where over 200 African American Natchez citizens were either burned or trampled to death, information on the Forks of the Road, which was the second largest slave market in the South and some of the literary works of critically acclaimed author Richard Nathaniel Wright, a Natchez native. Adding the Natchez Museum of African Art and Heritage to your trip itinerary, will provide you with a look at another dimension of Natchez history that you won't get anywhere else.