Louisiana Sports Hall of Fame, Natchitoches, Louisiana

The Louisiana Sports Hall of Fame is located in the Louisiana Sports Hall of Fame & Northwest Louisiana History Museum – Natchitoches in a new facility in the downtown historic district in

Natchitoches, Louisiana Natchitoches ( ; french: link=no, Les Natchitoches) is a small city and the parish seat of Natchitoches Parish, Louisiana, United States. Established in 1714 by Louis Juchereau de St. Denis as part of French Louisiana, the community was named ...

. After years of planning and construction, the LHOF opened on June 28, 2013. Lieutenant Governor

Jay Dardenne John Leigh "Jay" Dardenne, Jr. (born February 6, 1954) is an American lawyer and politician from Baton Rouge, Louisiana, who is serving as commissioner of administration for Democratic Governor John Bel Edwards. A Republican, Dardenne served as ...

, whose office handles state tourism matters, was on hand for the grand opening. The museum had been fifty-five years in search of a permanent home. Many of the artifacts had previously been stored at

Prather Coliseum Prather Coliseum is a 3,900-seat multi-purpose arena in Natchitoches, Louisiana, United States. It opened in 1964 and is home to the Northwestern State University Demons basketball team.

on the campus of

Northwestern State University Northwestern State University of Louisiana (NSU) is a public university primarily situated in Natchitoches, Louisiana, with a nursing campus in Shreveport and general campuses in Leesville/Fort Polk and Alexandria. It is a part of the Univer ...

in Natchitoches. Because of

Hurricane Katrina Hurricane Katrina was a destructive Category 5 Atlantic hurricane that caused over 1,800 fatalities and $125 billion in damage in late August 2005, especially in the city of New Orleans and the surrounding areas. It was at the time the cost ...

there had been fear that the proposed museum would be deleted from approved projects in 2005 by the Louisiana Bond Commission. Then State Representative

Taylor Townsend Taylor Townsend (born April 16, 1996) is an American professional tennis player. She reached career-high WTA rankings of world No. 61 in singles (July 2018) and No. 31 in doubles (December 2022). She also reached the doubles final of the 2022 ...

, however, informed Hall of Fame executive director Doug Ireland that the sports museum, unlike other similar proposals, had survived the vetting process. Natchitoches Mayor Lee Posey said the museum is a "tremendous" boost to Natchitoches-area tourism.

Inductees

The first inductees were named to the Hall of Fame in 1958.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Louisiana Sports Hall Of Fame Halls of fame in Louisiana State sports halls of fame in the United States All-sports halls of fame Sports hall of fame inductees Sports in Louisiana Museums in Natchitoches Parish, Louisiana Sports in Natchitoches, Louisiana Awards established in 1958 1958 establishments in Louisiana