Confederate Memorial Hall Victim Of Fire Bombing

By Joseph A. Ricci · Originally published January 2017 · pp. 1–3

Confederate Memorial Hall Victim Of Fire Bombing By Joseph A. Ricci NEW ORLEANS, LA.—New Orleans hidden gem, Confederate Memorial Hall, was recently the victim of a crude firebomb attempt on November 9. The two perpetrators, possibly expressing dismay over the national election outcome or hoping to tie the 125-year-old museum to the current monument dispute in the Crescent City, breached a security gate at approximately 1:48 a.m. CST. Once over the gate, one of them unsuccessfully attempted to break into the building using a pair of bolt cutters on a security door padlock. With one man acting as a lookout, the other sprayed some form of an accelerant inside an old tire. He then lit a piece of what appeared to be paper (possibly treated with a chemical) and placed it in the tire which was laid against the locked steel front doors. The two quickly made their getaway as the fire soon erupted into a small but impressive conflagration belching smoke and flame from under the iconic terracotta and granite porch structure. The heat from the burning tire was so intense that it succeeded in cracking one of the granite steps clean through, charring the wooden door sill and scorching the paint

Firemen at the scene of the fire at the front door of Confederate Memorial Hall. from the iron front door. Smoke and soot got into the building, requiring all museum display cases to be cleaned the following day. Amazingly, security camera footage showed numerous cars driving through the Museum District (Memorial Hall is bounded on two sides by the Ogden Museum of Southern Art and is across the street from the National World War II Museum) while smoke billowed from the porch. Approximately 15 minutes later, a passerby stopped his car in front of the Camp Street structure and phoned in the fire to the New Orleans Fire Department. The Fire Department arrived on the scene at 2:14 a.m. The museum’s security monitoring service notified the Director, Patricia Ricci, at 2:35 a.m. Ricci arrived at 2:45 to find that the firemen had extinguished the fire. She then inspected the damage with NOFD and NOPD investigators. A shredded steel belt was all that remained of the tire as it lay on the cracked, scorched granite. A review of security camera footage revealed that the fire had indeed been intentionally set by two individuals who attempted to conceal their identities with baseball caps, hoodies and gloves. They moved quickly and deliberately as if they had previously staked out the museum and rehearsed what they were going to do. While there is no current known connection to the monument controversy, it should be noted that the Robert E. Lee Monument around the corner from Memorial Hall, was vandalized with spray paint the same night. The Museum fire is being actively investigated by the New Orleans Police Department, the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms (ATF). Even though the museum building did take in some smoke, the invaluable collection of Confederate memorabilia was intact and undisturbed. The fire resulted in the Museum closing its doors for one and a half days so the staff could conduct thorough cleaning and erect safety barricades for guests. The foyer between the security doors and the glass entrance doors had to be scrubbed numerous times to remove the soot that had accumulated in the small enclosure immediately behind the doors that the tire was laid against. Members of the Museum Interior view of the smoke with no evident damage to the priceless artifacts. Board of Directors were notified later that morning, and an email notification was sent to Memorial Hall Foundation Board members. The Memorial Hall Board of Directors met in an emergency meeting to discuss steps to be taken to preclude a recurrence and to discuss funding options for procedures and equipment that will enhance security. The decision was made to increase after hours building security, with the knowledge that a significant expense will be incurred by the small museum. In the subsequent weeks since the fire, an after-hours security force has been enlisted to inspect the building at night. The building’s security perimeter is also being fortified with a temporary 6-foot exclusion fence and gate, to be followed by more permanent iron work. (The permanent iron work must first be approved by the City of New Orleans Historic District Landmarks Commission, a lengthy and uncertain process.) The design of the iron work will better fit the period of the structure while providing the desired increased security. More and newer security cameras are being deployed around the building to eliminate all blind spots. Additional fire detectors and heat sensors were also installed throughout the museum and on the exterior of the building.

Damage to the front door from the burning tire. Remains of the tire can be seen burned into the door step. The fire received some local media coverage, and the story even appeared on a nationwide “underground” style website sympathetic to the perpetrators. That website stated, anonymously of course, that the artifacts within “should have been in the fire” too. All of these enhancements, not to mention the repair of the granite steps, will cost a significant amount of money. Memorial Hall is actively soliciting contributions from anyone who would like to see the nation’s second largest Confederate artifact collection survive these perilous times. The Museum receives no state or Federal funds. It operates solely on admissions, donations, and support from the Memorial Hall Foundation. Memberships in the Memorial Hall Foundation will aid the museum in its current efforts to increase security. Memberships in the Foundation, as well as one-time contributions can be made through PayPal, via the museum website at www.confederatemuseum.com, or by mail at Memorial Hall Museum, 929 Camp Street, New Orleans, LA 70130.