Africatown & Africatown Heritage House
Africatown
A community founded in 1860 by survivors of the Clotilda, the last ship known to have brought enslaved Africans to the United States; its heritage house displays artifacts from the wreck.
Africatown lies about 5 km north of downtown Mobile. It was founded after the Civil War by West African survivors of the Clotilda, the last known slave ship to illegally reach the United States, in 1860, and the community has kept a distinctive cultural identity ever since. After the wreck was confirmed in the Mobile River in 2019, the Africatown Heritage House opened in 2023 to display artifacts recovered from the ship and oral histories from the survivors' descendants, making it an important site for understanding the history of the American slave trade. Entry to the heritage house is by ticket with advance reservation. The community also has the United Missionary Baptist Church, a memorial park and a cemetery. Driving is recommended.
Opening hours
Heritage house Tue–Sat 10:00 am–4:00 pm (reservation required; check the official website)
Nearby sights
- Richards DAR House
- Bienville Square
- Lower Dauphin Street Historic District
- Cathedral Basilica of the Immaculate Conception
- Mobile Carnival Museum
- Gulf Coast Exploreum Science Center
- History Museum of Mobile
- GulfQuest National Maritime Museum of the Gulf of Mexico