Africatown Heritage House in Mobile, Alabama, gains national accolades
Africatown Heritage House. (Tiffany Pogue)
Africatown Heritage House in Mobile has been named among the top 10 best new museums to visit in the country. The 2024 ranking is based on USA TODAY’s 10 Best Reader’s Choice awards. The museum took the ninth spot based on feedback by an expert panel and votes from readers.
Africatown Heritage House. (Tiffany Pogue)
Africatown Heritage House opened last July with “Clotilda: The Exhibition.” The Clotilda is the last known ship to arrive in the United States illegally carrying enslaved Africans.
The exhibit tells the story of how 110 Africans survived the last journey of the transatlantic slave trade. It features artifacts, a memorial wall, a West African art collection and more.
Africatown Heritage House and Clotilda exhibition Memorial Wall. (Visit Mobile)
Since its opening, Heritage House and the exhibit have drawn visitors from across the nation and beyond. And USA Today isn’t the only major publication to give it rave reviews. National Geographic named the Heritage House among the six best new museums in the U.S. for 2023.
The Mobile County Commission and the city of Mobile funded construction of the Africatown Heritage House building, and the History Museum of Mobile curated, constructed and funded the exhibition. The Alabama Power Foundation is among the supporters of the project.
To learn more about the Clotilda and its descendants, visit the Clotilda Descendants Association website at theclotildastory.com.
Visitors to the Africatown Heritage House and the exhibit should secure tickets in advance online. Mobile County residents and History Museum of Mobile members can visit without charge, although donations are encouraged. For others, the adult admission price is $15; the price for seniors age 65 or older, active or retired military with ID and students with ID is $9. Children ages 6-18 can enter for $8. Children 5 and under are free.
