4 August 1901
Born in New Orleans. The house on the old Jane Alley came down in 1964 to make room for the courts and police buildings.
1936 The horn
1953 The smile
1946 Backstage
New Orleans · Chicago · the world · 107th Street
Louis Armstrong
The sound went everywhere. He kept coming home.
Every distance on this page is measured from one front door: 34-56 107th Street, Corona, Queens.
Drop the needleLouis Armstrong, as printed in Maud Cuney-Hare’s Negro Musicians and Their Music, 1936 (Maud Cuney-Hare (book, 1936), Public domain) · Herman Hiller’s1953 portrait. The source does not establish a specific performance venue. Resized and converted to WebP; retain photographic context. No endorsement implied (Herman Hiller, Public domain) · Backstage at the Aquarium, New York · July 1946. Not a photograph of the 1956 tour. Converted to WebP; display crop (William P. Gottlieb, Public domain — Gottlieb collection release)
Side one
New Orleans 1901–1922
The Karnofskys
The Karnofsky family, who kept a shop on South Rampart Street, lent the boy the money for his first cornet. The New Orleans Jazz Museum shows the one it calls his first. The shop stood until Hurricane Ida, in August 2021. Slide the years.
427 South Rampart Street. 2011: Jeffrey Beall, CC BY-SA 3.0 · September 2021, after Ida: Infrogmation of New Orleans, CC BY-SA 4.0
Sources
The Waif’s Home
At the Colored Waif’s Home, Peter Davis taught him the cornet. He was released in 1914.
Sources
Up the river
Summers from 1919 to 1921 on Fate Marable’s riverboats, New Orleans to St. Louis and back: a floating conservatory.
Sources
New Orleans Jazz Museum
New Orleans Jazz Museum
French Quarter, New Orleans · Tue–Sun 9am–4pm · adults $15
In the Old U.S. Mint on Esplanade Avenue, with exhibits on the lives of players including Louis Armstrong.
Plan a visit
Louis Park Hotel
Louis Park Hotel
Tremé, New Orleans
Guest houses on St Philip Street in the Tremé, a short walk from Armstrong Park. Its rooms include The Armstrong Collection, with others named for King Oliver and Buddy Bolden.
View roomsSide two
Chicago 1922–1929
In 1922 he joined King Oliver in Chicago. On 5 April 1923 the band made its first records, at Gennett in Richmond, Indiana, with Lil Hardin on piano. In 1924 he married her, and she pushed him to step out on his own.
Sources
Clarinet
Johnny Dodds
He could not play without patting his foot, and the horn picked it up. E. A. Fearn, OKeh’s president, went out and fetched a pillow.
Sources
Side three
Away and back again
From 1943 there was always a house to come back to. So here the world is drawn from his front door: pick a trip and watch it leave Queens and come home.
5,558 km from the front door
Britain and Ireland
Two shows a night, a city a day; then Sheffield, the one that didn’t happen.
- London4–13 May5,558 km
- Manchester14 May5,358 km
- Glasgow15 May5,167 km
- Newcastle16 May5,355 km
- Birmingham17 May5,410 km
- Leicester18 May5,455 km
- Dublin19 May5,103 km
- Liverpool20 May5,312 km
- Sheffield21 May · cancelled5,410 km
Sources
A map centred on 34-56 107th Street: every distance and direction from home is true; far-off coastlines are stretched. Dots without lines are where he came from before Corona.
Side four
Grand Forks, North Dakota. 17 September 1957.
The government was planning to send him to the Soviet Union. In an interview in Grand Forks, he talked about Little Rock instead.
He condemned what was being done in Little Rock.
He criticised Eisenhower and Faubus.
He turned down the government’s planned trip to the Soviet Union.
The Grand Forks Herald printed it the next morning. Records were boycotted and hostile letters arrived. He did not take a word back.
Sources
Side five
107th Street
On 3 March 1943, Lucille made the down payment. From her own account.
A brick house on an ordinary block in Queens. The world tours went out from here, and came back here.
Sources
The tape shelf. Pull one out.
Lunch break
On one den tape he plays the Hello, Dolly! demos over and over, then asks Lucille for a beer and an egg-and-liverwurst sandwich.
Sources
Louis Armstrong House Museum
Louis Armstrong House Museum
Corona, Queens · Thu–Sat, hourly 11am–3pm · adults $20
A 45-minute guided tour of the house in Corona and its exhibits; at most ten people a tour.
Book the tour
Louis Armstrong House Museum
The Louis Armstrong Center
34-56 107th Street, Corona · Exhibitions $10
Across the street since 2023: the permanent exhibition “Here to Stay”, with rare photographs, recordings and his own things. The archive can be seen free by appointment.
Plan a visitEvery road on this page starts or ends on this block.
Where he is now
Places that keep his name, and places that kept him. All of them you can stand in front of today.
Pins mark places you can see today.
General reference · Access unconfirmed · Coordinate precision: site · Not an exact scene or camera position; not a visitor route. The site only: a later building stands here. Look from the street.
General reference · Public access · Coordinate precision: site · Not an exact scene or camera position; not a visitor route. Seen from the pavement on South Rampart Street. The building collapsed in 2021; respect any site fencing.
General reference · Public access · Coordinate precision: site · Not an exact scene or camera position; not a visitor route. Public park; enter through the arch on North Rampart Street.
General reference · Public access · Coordinate precision: building · Not an exact scene or camera position; not a visitor route. In the public park.
General reference · Public access · Coordinate precision: building · Not an exact scene or camera position; not a visitor route. A museum: check opening hours and admission before you go.
The Waifs’ Home band in the Times-Democrat, 26 December 1913. Staff of the Times-Democrat · Public domain Colored Waif’s Home, New Orleans
Site of the Colored Waif’s Home, 431 City Park Avenue
Where Peter Davis taught him the cornet. The Waif’s Home itself is gone.
The site only: a later building stands here. Look from the street.
Sources
The same row after Hurricane Ida, September 2021. Infrogmation of New Orleans · CC BY-SA 4.0 Karnofsky shop/residence site — 427 South Rampart
427 South Rampart Street, New Orleans
Where the family that lent him the money for his first cornet kept their shop. The building collapsed in 2021.
Seen from the pavement on South Rampart Street. The building collapsed in 2021; respect any site fencing.
Sources
The gate to Louis Armstrong Park, Tremé. Carol M. Highsmith · Public domain Louis Armstrong Park
Rampart Street at St Ann, Tremé, New Orleans
The park that carries his name, opened in 1980, with Congo Square inside its gates.
Public park; enter through the arch on North Rampart Street.
Sources
Elizabeth Catlett’s Armstrong, Louis Armstrong Park, 2016. Yair Haklai · CC BY-SA 4.0 Elizabeth Catlett’s Armstrong
Inside Louis Armstrong Park, New Orleans
Elizabeth Catlett’s Armstrong, horn in one hand, handkerchief in the other.
In the public park.
Sources
The Old U.S. Mint, Esplanade Avenue, 2017. DNMaurer · CC BY-SA 4.0 The first cornet, New Orleans Jazz Museum
Old U.S. Mint, 400 Esplanade Avenue, New Orleans
The museum holds what it calls his first cornet.
A museum: check opening hours and admission before you go.
Sources
Stay
Sleep a block from the park.
Guest houses in the Tremé, named for him and his teachers.
Louis Park Hotel
Louis Park Hotel
Tremé, New Orleans
Guest houses on St Philip Street in the Tremé, a short walk from Armstrong Park. Its rooms include The Armstrong Collection, with others named for King Oliver and Buddy Bolden.
View roomsGo inside
Ring the bell on 107th Street.
The house, the new Center across the street, the Mint and the park rangers.
Louis Armstrong House Museum
Louis Armstrong House Museum
Corona, Queens · Thu–Sat, hourly 11am–3pm · adults $20
A 45-minute guided tour of the house in Corona and its exhibits; at most ten people a tour.
Book the tourLouis Armstrong House Museum
The Louis Armstrong Center
34-56 107th Street, Corona · Exhibitions $10
Across the street since 2023: the permanent exhibition “Here to Stay”, with rare photographs, recordings and his own things. The archive can be seen free by appointment.
Plan a visitNew Orleans Jazz Museum
New Orleans Jazz Museum
French Quarter, New Orleans · Tue–Sun 9am–4pm · adults $15
In the Old U.S. Mint on Esplanade Avenue, with exhibits on the lives of players including Louis Armstrong.
Plan a visit
National Park Service
New Orleans Jazz National Historical Park
New Orleans · Visitor centre Tue–Sat
Live performances, exhibits and ranger programmes; the visitor centre is at 419 Decatur Street.
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Jazz history walks in New Orleans
New Orleans
Live marketplace results for jazz walking tours of the Tremé and the French Quarter. Check that an itinerary includes Armstrong’s places.
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Hear it live.
Concerts at his house, and the New Orleans festivals that play his music, one in his name.
Checking current event dates…
Take it home
Put the needle down.
The records, his own book, the biographies, and a Hello, Dolly! poster from our store.
Printed Originals · Our poster store
Hello, Dolly! (French, 1969)
The French grande for the film in which Armstrong sings the title song on screen. Art by Richard Amsel.
Check availability on the store
View poster
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The Complete Hot Five and Hot Seven Recordings
Louis Armstrong · 4×CD, Columbia/Legacy, 2000
The Chicago records, complete.
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Ella and Louis
Ella Fitzgerald and Louis Armstrong · LP, Verve, 1956
Two voices and the Oscar Peterson rhythm section.
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What a Wonderful World
Louis Armstrong · LP, Stateside, 1968
The late song the world remembers.
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Louis Armstrong Plays W.C. Handy
Louis Armstrong and His All-Stars · CD, Columbia, 1997
The 1954 blues session, reissued.
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Bookshop.org UK · Ad / affiliate
Satchmo: My Life in New Orleans
Louis Armstrong
His own account of the New Orleans years.
Find the book
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Pops: A Life of Louis Armstrong
Terry Teachout
The full biography.
Find the book
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What a Wonderful World
Ricky Riccardi
The later years, from Hello, Dolly! to What a Wonderful World.
Find the bookDates, prices, rooms and stock change: confirm with the provider before you travel or buy. A stay or tour is described as a filming location only where the card says so.
The full catalogue
Every place and moment behind this page, with its sources, including the ones no map can pin.
38 of 38 places · 32 of 32 Moments
Gennett recording site, Whitewater gorge, Richmond, Indiana
Gennett Walk of Fame, Whitewater Gorge Park, Richmond, Indiana
The travelling band becomes a record
The museum dates Armstrong’s first recordings with King Oliver’s Creole Jazz Band at Gennett Studios in Richmond, Indiana, to 5 April 1923.
5 April 1923
Mississippi River, New Orleans–St. Louis
Mississippi River, New Orleans–St. Louis
The river as a working education
The museum places Armstrong’s summer work with Fate Marable on Mississippi riverboats between New Orleans and St. Louis in 1919–1921.
1919–1921 summers
Armstrong home, Corona, Queens
Armstrong home, Corona, Queens
A conversation kept at home
Fred Robbins interviewed Armstrong at his Corona home about Hello, Dolly!, the Beatles and Jack Teagarden’s death; the museum dates the resulting broadcast to 19 April 1964.
Broadcast 19 April 1964
Lucille makes a home
Lucille made the down payment on their Corona home on 3 March 1943 using her own account.
3 March 1943
Keeping the private voice
Armstrong began recording personal conversations on reel-to-reel tape inDecember 1950.
December 1950
Bellevue, Manchester
Bellevue, Manchester
Manchester: two shows
The museum itinerary records two Manchester Bellevue shows on 14 May 1956.
14 May 1956
City Hall, Newcastle
City Hall, Newcastle
Newcastle: two shows
The museum itinerary records two Newcastle City Hall shows on 16 May 1956.
16 May 1956
Embassy Sportsdrome, Birmingham
Embassy Sportsdrome, Birmingham
Birmingham: two shows
The museum itinerary records two Birmingham Embassy Sportsdrome shows on 17 May 1956.
17 May 1956
Granby Halls, Leicester
Granby Halls, Leicester
Leicester: two shows
The museum itinerary records two Leicester Granby Halls shows on 18 May 1956.
18 May 1956
National Sports Arena, Dublin
National Sports Arena, Dublin
Dublin: two shows
The museum itinerary records two Dublin National Sports Arena shows on 19 May 1956.
19 May 1956
The Stadium, Liverpool
The Stadium, Liverpool
Liverpool: two shows
The museum itinerary records two Liverpool Stadium shows on 20 May 1956.
20 May 1956
Colored Waif’s Home, New Orleans
Site of the Colored Waif’s Home, 431 City Park Avenue
Learning the cornet
At the Colored Waif’s Home, Peter Davis taught Armstrong cornet; he was released in 1914.
1912–1914
Karnofsky family places, New Orleans
Karnofsky family places, New Orleans
The first cornet loan
The Karnofsky family lent Armstrong money for his first cornet.
Childhood
Chicago
Chicago
Joining King Oliver
Armstrong joined King Oliver in Chicago in 1922; they recorded together in 1923.
1922–1923
Accra
Accra
Akwaba: arrival in Accra
Armstrong and the All Stars arrived in Accra on 23 May 1956.
23 May 1956
Opera Cinema, Accra
Opera Cinema, Accra
The invitation at the Opera
A preserved VIP pass identifies the Opera performance on 24 May 1956.
24 May 1956
Mensah’s Paramount Night Club, Accra
Mensah’s Paramount Night Club, Accra
Sharing a stage in Accra
After the outdoor concert, Armstrong’s musicians shared a stage with a local band at Mensah’s Paramount Night Club.
May 1956
Empress Hall, London
Empress Hall, London
London’s Empress Hall engagement
The museum’s1956 itinerary records London Empress Hall engagements on 4–13 May.
4–13 May 1956
Kelvin Hall, Glasgow
Kelvin Hall, Glasgow
Two shows in Glasgow
The museum’s1956 itinerary records two Glasgow Kelvin Hall shows on 15 May.
15 May 1956
Sheffield — planned engagement
Sheffield — planned engagement
The Sheffield concert that did not happen
The planned21 May 1956 Sheffield concert was cancelled.
21 May 1956
Grand Forks, North Dakota
Grand Forks, North Dakota
Speaking out from Grand Forks
Armstrong’s 17 September 1957 Grand Forks interview condemned racial injustice in Little Rock, criticised Eisenhower and Faubus over integration, and rejected a planned government-sponsored Soviet trip. The Herald printed it the next day; museum-preserved coverage records a music boycott, hostile letters and his refusal to retract his position.
17 September 1957
Okeh recording session, Chicago
Okeh recording session, Chicago
The first Hot Five session
The Hot Five’s first recording session took place in Chicago on 12 November 1925.
12 November 1925
Lil’s My Heart opens the session
The first number recorded at that session was Lil Hardin Armstrong’s My Heart.
12 November 1925
Boxes, a horn and a pillow
Johnny St. Cyr recalled sitting on boxes near the recording horn; Fearn fetched a pillow to quiet Johnny Dodds’s foot-tapping.
First Hot Five session
Dreamland Cafe, Chicago
Dreamland Cafe, Chicago
Lil leads the Dreamland Syncopators
Lil Hardin opened at Chicago’s Dreamland Cafe on 24 October 1925 with her Dreamland Syncopators.
24 October 1925
Léopoldville, now Kinshasa
Léopoldville, now Kinshasa
Arrival in Léopoldville
Armstrong arrived in Léopoldville on 28 October 1960 to perform with the All Stars.
28 October 1960
Léopoldville concert site
Léopoldville concert site
The concert in the diplomatic memo
The exhibited State Department memo reports 10,000 attendees at Armstrong’s Léopoldville concert.
1960 visit
Great Sphinx, Giza
Great Sphinx, Giza
Louis and Lucille at the Sphinx
Louis and Lucille visited the Great Sphinx with Kamal el-Mallakh on 28 January 1961.
28 January 1961
American Embassy reception, Cairo
American Embassy reception, Cairo
The Cairo reception invitation
The Armstrongs were invited to an American Embassy reception in Cairo on 28 January 1961.
28 January 1961
Sydney Stadium
Sydney Stadium
Two nights at Sydney Stadium
Armstrong performed at Sydney Stadium over two nights inOctober 1954.
October 1954
ATN-7 studios, Epping
ATN-7 studios, Epping
Satchmo recorded for Australian television
Riggio Presents Satchmo was recorded at ATN-7’s Epping studios inNovember 1964 and televised in 1965.
November 1964
Mal Badenoch’s home, Adelaide
Mal Badenoch’s home, Adelaide
An Adelaide evening with Mal Badenoch
During the1956 visit Armstrong jammed and dined at Mal Badenoch’s home inAdelaide.
1956
Karnofsky shop/residence site — 427 South Rampart
427 South Rampart Street, New Orleans
Memling Palace Hotel, Léopoldville
Memling Palace Hotel, Léopoldville
Old Polo Ground, Accra
Old Polo Ground, Accra
Hotel Olga, Harlem
Hotel Olga, Harlem
Jane/James Alley birthplace, New Orleans
Jane/James Alley birthplace, New Orleans
Louis Armstrong Park
Rampart Street at St Ann, Tremé, New Orleans
Elizabeth Catlett’s Armstrong
Inside Louis Armstrong Park, New Orleans
The first cornet, New Orleans Jazz Museum
Old U.S. Mint, 400 Esplanade Avenue, New Orleans
Louis Armstrong’s grave
Flushing Cemetery, 163-06 46th Avenue, section 9, Queens
Louis Armstrong Stadium
USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center, Flushing Meadows, Queens