White mobs and police attack a Black-and-Republican convention in New Orleans, killing dozens of Black delegates and supporters.
At a Glance
- Date
- 30 July 1866
- Location
- New Orleans, Louisiana
- Category
- Civil Unrest & Racial Violence
- Source
- Congressional investigation (1867) · Library of Congress
What It Meant Then
The massacre helped turn Northern opinion toward Radical Reconstruction.
What It Means Now
It exposed the violent resistance to Black political rights after the war.
Cite this page
- MLA
- “The New Orleans Massacre of 1866.” Black-History.com, 30 Sept. 2026, https://black-history.com/on-this-day/the-new-orleans-massacre-of-1866/.
- APA
- Black-History.com Editors. (2026, September 30). The New Orleans Massacre of 1866. Black-History.com. https://black-history.com/on-this-day/the-new-orleans-massacre-of-1866/
- Chicago
- Black-History.com Editors. “The New Orleans Massacre of 1866.” Black-History.com. September 30, 2026. https://black-history.com/on-this-day/the-new-orleans-massacre-of-1866/.
Editorial Note
By the Black-History.com editors. Last reviewed 30 September 2026. To suggest a primary source or a correction, write to editors@black-history.com or use our corrections form.