Arthur Hardy makes major Carnival donation

Arthur Hardy, a premiere authority on Mardi Gras in New Orleans, has donated to Tulane University Special Collections (TUSC) Carnival ball invitations and programs for more than eighty krewes. Ranging from Achaeans to Zeus, the donation is a major addition to TUSC's Carnival collection.

Tulane University Special Collections preserves one of the world’s largest Carnival collections with materials documenting more than 300 krewes. “Arthur’s donation is a tremendous help in making our collection more complete,” said Leon Miller, curator of the Louisiana Research Collection. “In particular, the donation’s focus on smaller krewes,  neighborhood krewes, and krewes that were only briefly in existence will be invaluable in helping scholars extend Carnival research to broad facets of New Orleans society and culture.”

Included in Hardy’s donation are programs and invitations from fifteen LGBTQ krewes. “Materials from these krewes are becoming increasingly difficult to obtain,” said Hardy.

In addition to krewe invitations, programs, dance cards, and call out cards, TUSC preserves one of the world’s larger collections of original carnival float and costume designs, including possibly the largest collection of pre-WWII designs in the world. They are stunningly beautiful and TUSC has put almost 6,000 of them online here:

https://digitallibrary.tulane.edu/islandora/object/tulane:p15140coll40

Please help us preserve the history and heritage of Carnival in Louisiana by saving and donating to Tulane University Special Collections any Carnival materials you may acquire. In addition to invitations and programs, TUSC also preserves krewe minutes, committee reports, forms, membership rosters, and more. If you have Carnival materials, please contact Leon Miller, curator of the Louisiana Research Collection, lmiller@tulane.edu, 504-314-7833.