Celebrating Country & Culture

We have an amazing French Quarter triple-header coming up!

Museum Night: Thursday, July 2

First Friday Artwalk on Royal: Friday, July 3

Decatur on the River + Fireworks: Saturday, July 4

Scroll down for details about this weekend and other fun Special Events in the Quarter, or just go straight to our FQ Curated Special Events page for the full shebang!

Photo above: Fireworks on the river, 2024 by Ellis Anderson for FQJ

FQJ has created a sister to our wildly-popular Special Events feature: Weekly Happenings - regularly scheduled tours, talks, live music performances, cooking demos and more!

It’s all sorted by days of the week and categorized to make finding info easy. Plus, there’s an interactive map with cultural hotspots and a button that shows your location!

A one-stop shop for cultural happenings:

• Live locally and want to see some music next Wednesday?

• Visiting friends want to explore the Quarter on a Monday or Tuesday?

• Wanna catch a free cooking demo?

• Have a business in the Quarter and your customers always want suggestions on what to do next?

You’re going to love our Weekly Happenings!

Thanks to all FQJ;s Annual Community Partners who help us launch projects like this – and keep the good ship FQJ afloat and moving right along!

Eric Clapton & Alicia Renee, aka Blue Eyes

Meet Our New Community Partner!

Catherine Whitney, author of Painting Catherine

Catherine Whitney is a generational French Quarter resident - her grandfather, Dan Whitney, was a noted painter and art teacher in the Roaring ‘20s, hanging out with the likes of William Faulkner, Sherwood Anderson and Elizabeth Werlein.

Painting Catherine is a thinly veiled historical novel, based on years of research and interviews. The book follows her grandfather and his brilliant, Bohemian circle of friends who helped save the Quarter from destruction and made it a haven for creatives.

On the Painting Catherine website, you can order the book from Amazon and discover Catherine’s amazing personal backstory. You’ll also find photos, documents and more about the most pivotal people and time in the neighborhood’s history.

BONUS: One of our stories in this issue, “Larger than Life: Bohemian Women of the Quarter,” by John Shelton Reed, looks at several of the women who were part of Dan Whitney’s circle in the 1920s – and beyond!

Dan Whitney portrait, photographer unknown (perhaps “Pops” Whitesell), from the collection of Catherine Whitney

French Quarter Museum Night

Thursday, July 2, 4–8pm

French Quarter Museum Association Museums‍ ‍

A free, after-hours museum evening that brings together several museums for a shared celebration of history, culture, and community in advance of America’s 250th anniversary!

Photo: courtesy HNOC

Find more information here on our curated FQ Special Events page!

First Friday on Royal

Friday, July 3, 5–8pm

Artwalk in the lower blocks of Royal Street

Get out for this monthly artwalk in the lower blocks of Royal Street!

Participating locations stay open late, offering a special opportunity to meet artists, view and purchase art, and enjoy wine, conversation, and even live music at select venues.

Find more information here on our curated FQ Speical Events page!

Go 4th on the River & Decatur on the River

Saturday, July 4

French Quarter Riverfront parks

It’s time for fireworks on the river at 9 pm, with lots of special ways to mark the USA’s 250th birthday celebration.

It includes the new addition, Decatur on the River, from 4pm - 9:30pm at the new Riverfront park (at Gov. Nicholls Street) designed to help businesses most hurt by the “forever fence” on the street. Please stop by and support these local businesses!

*Read our story on restaurants struggling while trapped Behind the Barricades amid a grueling, year-long construction.

Find more information here on our curated FQ Special Events page!