French Quarter in New Orleans in Orleans Parish, Louisiana — The American South (West South Central)
UpStairs Lounge Memorial
Photographed by Lea Pearl, June 24, 2025
1. UpStairs Lounge Memorial Marker
At this site on June 24, 1973, an arsonist set fire to the UpStairs Lounge, a gay bar located on the second floor. Thirty-two people perished, and the fire remains the deadliest in New Orleans history. The arsonist was never arrested, the citys reaction was unsympathetic, and the remains of several victims were not claimed. Inscribed here are the names of the thirty-two lost but not forgotten.
Joseph Henry Adams Reginald E. Adams Guy O. Andersen Joe William Bailey Luther Boggs Louis Horace Broussard Herbert Dean Cooley Donald Walter Dunbar Adam Roland Fontenot David Stuart Gary Horace Skip Getchell John Thomas Golding, Sr. Gerald Hoyt Gordon Glenn Richard Dick Green James Walls Hambrick Kenneth Paul Harrington Rev. William R. Larson Ferris LeBlanc Robert Bob Lumpkin Leon Richard Maples George Stephen Bud Matyi Clarence Joseph McCloskey, Jr. Duane George Mitch Michell Larry Stratton Eddie Hosea Warren James Curtis Warren Willie Inex Warren Dr. Perry Lane Waters, Jr. Douglas Maxwell Williams Unidentified White Male (Believed to be Larry Norman Frost) Unidentified White Male Unidentified White Male
Erected 2025.
Topics. This historical
this page online
Location. 29° 57.214′ N, 90° 4.053′ W. Marker is in New Orleans, Louisiana, in Orleans Parish. It is in the French Quarter. It is on Iberville Street west of Chartres Street, on the right when traveling east. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 605 Iberville St, New Orleans LA 70130, United States of America. Touch for directions.
Regionally, this marker and memorial is in Louisiana’s River Parishes. It is also in the American South, specifically in the Deep South, on the Gulf Coast, and in the Great River Road Region. Globally, it is in North America, a Gulf of Mexico state, the Western Hemisphere, the Western World, and the Anglosphere. Historically, it finds itself in what was once New Spain, the Viceroyalty of New France, the territory of the Mississippian Culture, the Louisiana Purchase, one of the Confederate States of America, and the Antebellum South.
Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this marker: The Birthplace of Dixie (within shouting distance of this marker); Louis Andrι Martinet / Office of L.A. Martinet, The Crusader & Comitι Des Citoyens (about 400 feet away, measured in a direct line); U.S. Branch Bank (about 400 feet away); America's First Movie Theater / Vitascope Hall (about 400 feet away); Site of Kolly Townhouse (about 400 feet away); Conways Court (about 400 feet away); Calle de Bienville (about 400 feet away); Edgar Degas House (about 500 feet away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in New Orleans.
Also see . . . UpStairs Lounge arson attack. Wikipedia
The UpStairs Lounge arson attack, sometimes(Submitted on June 26, 2025, by James Hulse of Medina, Texas.)called the UpStairs Lounge Fire, occurred on June 24, 1973, at a gay bar called the UpStairs (or Up Stairs) Lounge located on the 2nd floor of the 3-story building at 604 Iberville Street in New Orleans, Louisiana, in the United States. Thirty-two people died and 15 were injured as a result of fire or smoke inhalation. The official cause is still listed as "undetermined origin". The primary suspect, a gay man with a history of psychiatric impairment named Roger Dale Nunez who had been ejected from the bar earlier in the day, was never charged and died by suicide in November 1974.Photographed by Lea Pearl, July 17, 20252. UpStairs Lounge Memorial
Additional keywords. LGBT, LGBTQ, 🏳️🌈
Credits. This page was last revised on January 5, 2026. It was originally submitted on June 25, 2025, by Lea Pearl of New Orleans, Louisiana. This page has been viewed 487 times since then and 34 times this year. Last updated on June 26, 2025, by Lea Pearl of New Orleans, Louisiana. Photos: 1. submitted on June 25, 2025, by Lea Pearl of New Orleans, Louisiana. 2. submitted on July 18, 2025, by Lea Pearl of New Orleans, Louisiana. • Devry Becker Jones was the editor who published this page.
