Wednesday morning (1/9) at 11 AM, the Jefferson Parish Historical Commission, Jefferson Parish Officials, and the Marsalis Family will dedicate the Marsalis Mansion Motel with a Louisiana Highway Marker. The marker will be placed on River Road at Shrewsbury Road close to the former location of historic business.
Operated by the father of pianist and educator Ellis Marsalis, Jr. and the grandfather of New Orleans musicians, Branford, Wynton, Delfeayo, and Jason, the hotel was known, according to the Amistad Research Center at Tulane, by various names from 1944-1986 and served a vital purpose in the Civil Rights movement. Many well-known black dignitaries including Martin Luther King, Jr. stayed at the establishment.
JP spokesperson, Karen Fortunato said, “Proprietor Ellis L. Marsalis, Sr., was patriarch of the jazz musician family and was a civil rights pioneer. Because of his concern for his community, encompassing a period of time in excess of 50 years, the black citizens of Jefferson and New Orleans enjoy unprecedented input into the political processes that affect their lives.”
