The Society's Mission

The Algiers Historical Society (AHS) was formed in October 1999 by Kevin Herridge, Judi Robertson and a handful of like-minded people to promote the history of Algiers - and occasionally McDonoghville, Freetown and Gretna.  The Society is also dedicated to informing Algiers’ natives and newcomers through "The Algerine," our quarterly newsletter, as well as, monthly speakers on the history of Algiers and metro New Orleans, its people and places.

Join the Society

If you are interested in your local lineage, history of your home and/or local truth and lore, then please consider joining the Algiers Historical Society.  In doing so, you will begin to amass the tools you will need to research your family home and ancestors. By joining, you will receive word of monthly* meetings along with the quarterly newsletter, "The Algerine".  

Membership

The Society's membership year runs from January 1st to December 31st. Subscriptions are due each year on January 1st.  If you should join towards the end of a year you will receive the back issues of "The Algerine" for that year unless you stipulate you wish to join for the forthcoming year.

History Relevance - The Value of History

The Algiers Historical Society (AHS) Board of Directors, in July 2020, unanimously voted to adopt and endorse the History Relevance initiative and its seven principle components. This will guide the AHS, an IRS 501(c)(3) organization, henceforth. For more details about History Relevance, click on the link below. 

The AHS now joins the ranks of over 400 other organizations, across America, that have already embraced this initiative that began informally, in early 2013, with a series of conversations about why history - both knowledge about the past and the practice of researching and interpreting the past - was marginalized in our country. 

Touro Shakespeare Home

The City of New Orleans is looking for someone interested in restoring and leasing the historic 50,000 square foot TOURO-SHAKSPEARE Home, 2650 Gen. Meyer Ave. in Algiers, which has sat vacant and deteriorating since Hurricane Katrina, over 15 years ago.

The driving force to bring attention to this long abandoned, vandalized, graffiti-ladened and neglected city property the past four plus years has been AHS Vice Pres. Arthur RUIZ, Jr. He is also working with native Algierine, Louisiana Lt. Gov. Billy NUNGESSER's Office of Cultural Development, Division of Historic Preservation to get the TOURO-SHAKSPEARE Home listed on the National Register of Historic Places (NRHP).

On March 18, 2021 Arthur RUIZ, Jr. met with a news team from WVUE-TV Fox 8 News. They did a three & one half minute video and verbal narrative, for their evening newscast, on the long neglected, city owned property, including some great aerial footage, using a drone. Click on this link: https://www.fox8live.com/2021/03/19/fox-defenders-touro-shakspeare-could-be-restored-leased/ 

The AHS sincerely thanks Ms. Shelley BROWN, news anchor, at WVUE-TV FOX 8 News for her and the station's continuing news coverage.

The Algiers Historical Society Officers

President...........Donald Costello
Vice President.... Arthur Ruiz, Jr. .
Secretary/Treasurer...........Frank Wagner

Algiers Courthouse
​Built 1896 - Restored 2018

Algiers Courthouse $1.38 million restoration, at 225 Morgan St., in Historic Algiers Point is now completed. It began in early 2017 and the ribbon cutting ceremony was on Feb. 1, 2018. (Click on this paragraph, then scroll down to the middle of the web page to review FEMA documents, descriptions and photos taken throughout the year long project.)

Family & Home Histories Wanted

If you are an AHS member and would like to share your family and/or home history or your life in any part of Algiers, please contact us and we would be happy to add it as a future AHS meeting.

General Meetings

The Algiers Historical Society (AHS) meets from 10:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m., the third (3rd) Saturday of each month, January thru November, unless otherwise noted. There is no meeting in December. 
 
All meetings are free and open to the public and media.
 
Location: Algiers Regional Library, 3014 Holiday Dr., New Orleans Westbank (Algiers), La. 70131, in the large, first floor meeting room. Library Phone: 504-596-2641.
 
AHS meetings, at the library, are not endorsed by or affiliated with the New Orleans Public Library.

We have some exciting presentations coming up, so please do join us. Be sure to share this information with your family members, friends and neighbors. 
 
Like us on Facebook: www.facebook.com/AlgiersHistoricalSociety/

Speakers & Volunteers Needed

The Society is always seeking speakers, preferably on Algiers or New Orleans related topics. If you can speak for 20-30 minutes on your life, family, church, music or Algiers experiences, we want you!  The Society is also looking for volunteers. Duties will include typing documents, collecting information from headstones in churchyards, transcribing interviews, photography, etc.  Please contact us if you can help in either area.    algiershistory@yahoo.com

Upcoming Meetings

​Location: Algiers Regional Library, 3014 Holiday Dr. in Algiers. Library phone: 504-596-2641. Large, first floor meeting room.

AHS meetings, at the library, are free and open to the public and media. Also, they are not affiliated with or endorsed by the New Orleans Public Library.

​Saturday, May 17, 2025
10:30 a.m. - 12:30 p.m.

Keep Algiers Beautiful: What You Can Do To Help?
 
Presenter: Stephen MOSGROVE
 
The negative impact of litter goes far beyond its unsightliness. There are economic, opportunity and social costs to communities, like Algiers, that they are not aware of, until after the actual litter is seen. Many Algerines care about solving the problem, but haven't exactly found the right avenue to become engaged in that process. There are ways to improve the look and health of our Algiers community.

Algerines can help tackle this daunting problem by assisting Keep Algiers Beautiful (KAB), a local nonprofit affiliate of Keep Louisiana Beautiful, both led by native Algerines: KAB founder Stephen MOSGROVE and Louisiana Lt. Gov. Billy NUNGESSER's Department of Culture, Recreation & Tourism, respectively.

Keep Algiers Beautiful (KAB) has recently partnered with private citizens, as well as, the following organizations: Kiwanis Club of Algiers; The Cabildo; New Orleans Military & Maritime Academy (NOMMA) at Federal City; Edna Karr High School Key Club; New Orleans Filipino American Lions Club; and the City of New Orleans Neighborhood Engagement Office.

Stephen MOSGROVE, founder and Chairman of Keep Algiers Beautiful (KAB) is a dedicated participant in Algiers' civic and community life. He has served as a neighborhood president in his Aurora West neighborhood and on the Algiers Neighborhood Presidents Council. He serves actively in the Kiwanis Club of Algiers, is on the board of the Old Algiers Main Street Corp. and the Lower 9th Ward Economic Development District. Having grown up walking on Newton St. where his Greatest Generation relatives owned National Cleaners and whose mother grew up on Diana St., Stephen is a proud Algerine and alum of Jesuit High School and Boston College. 
​

​Saturday, June 21, 2025
10:30 a.m. - 12:30 p.m.

Algiers During The American Civil War
 
Presenter: Lt. Col. Mike LARKIN, USAF Retired
 
Algiers played a critical role during the American Civil War that is largely forgotten. This talk will center on the camps, people and significant events that took place or emanated from Algiers during the Civil War.  These events include the "Fox Incident" when a Confederate blockade runner was intercepted by Union troops stationed in Algiers because the Rebels had forgotten to take down the telegraph lines to the Union troop's headquarters.  
 
There is also the investment of the intact Opelousas Rail Road by the Federals, giving them access to an open railway line and all its rolling stock.  Just after taking over the city, Union Commander Gen. BUTLER sent one of his Colonels and a company of Indiana troops on a train ride through Confederate-held territory, all the way from Algiers to BRASHEAR City, later named Morgan City, and back again without being challenged by even one Rebel soldier. 
 
LARKIN will also discuss the Belleville Foundry, its importance to the Union efforts to subdue Southeast Louisiana; its use as a Camp of Distribution; and more importantly, its significance as a source of ammunition for young Algiers Point boys armed with slingshots, in the 1930s.
 
Lt. Col. Mike LARKIN, USAF Retired, was born in the Irish Channel, but raised in Metairie. He attended RUMMEL High School; earned a BA in History from UNO; and a Masters in Management from Troy State, in Alabama.
 
He joined the Navy during the final months of the Vietnam War. After being honorably discharged from the Navy and graduating from college, LARKIN worked in the offshore oil business as a completions engineer, conducting surveys and setting off explosives in oil wells.
 
He rejoined the military, this time in the U. S. Air Force (USAF), where he became a full time reservist working on the armament systems of the A-10 Thunderbolt II attack jet. He received his Commission in 1990 as a munitions officer, just in time to be deployed to Saudi Arabia, for Operation Desert Storm.
 
LARKIN then transferred to USAF Security Forces and became commander of a number of Security Forces Squadrons, where he made deployments to Korea, Germany, Egypt, Qatar and Britain.
 
In 2004, he deployed to Iraq and was the Defense Force Commander at the American Airbase at Kirkuk. He retired from the USAF, in 2005, with the rank of Lieutenant Colonel.
 
After LARKIN's notable military career he went to work for FEMA following Hurricane Katrina where he acted as Emergency Management and Safety Officer for all FEMA operations in Louisiana. Then he taught Emergency Management to police, fire and EMTs at Tulane University for nine semesters.
 
Afterwards, he began writing about New Orleans and the American Civil War, which he hopes to get into print, late this summer.
 
Married to Paula, his wife of more than 54 years, they reside with their two rescue dogs, in Old Metairie.