Louis Armstrong House Museum

Louis Armstrong House Museum, a tax-exempt nonprofit based in Corona, Queens, New York, is a federal grant recipient that produces museum exhibitions, public programming, archival preservation, and digital media projects centered on the cultural and historical legacy of Louis Armstrong and jazz music in Queens. The museum operates exclusively as a prime recipient across five federal agencies — it holds no federal contracts, appears on no IDVs or BPAs, and does not subcontract federal work.

The museum's federal footprint is concentrated in cultural heritage and humanities funding. The Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS) is the dominant funder, accounting for seven of fifteen awards. Recent IMLS grants include a $275,834 Project Grant under the Save America's Treasures program (October 2022 through September 2023) to stabilize and preserve 77 of Armstrong's 700 collages; a $100,000 Museum Grants for African American History and Culture award (CFDA 45.309, July 2024 through October 2025) to solicit, record, and digitize oral histories from local community members about Armstrong's life and impact; and a $500,000 award supporting expanded public programming, archival work, and capacity-building for the museum's new Armstrong Center. The National Endowment for the Humanities has funded two major digital media initiatives: a $30,000 discovery phase grant (March 2022 through May 2023) for the "Mapping Jazz and Hip-Hop in Queens" project, followed by a $100,000 prototyping-phase Digital Projects for the Public grant (February 2024 through July 2024); the museum is now in a full-scale implementation phase under a NEH Project Grant (February 2025 through February 2028) for the same interactive website exploring the interconnected histories of jazz and hip-hop in Queens.

The National Park Service has awarded two preservation grants totaling roughly $800,000 under the Historic Preservation Fund Grants-in-Aid program (CFDA 15.904 and 15.966). One $800,000 award under the African American Civil Rights program (June 2024 through May 2027) funds architectural services, historic structure reports, and physical rehabilitation of the Armstrong House. A second $500,000 congressionally directed spending award (December 2024 through September 2028) targets repairs to floors, walls, ceilings, wallpaper, and cabinetry. The National Endowment for the Arts has provided two smaller grants supporting the Armstrong Now! and Hot Jazz/Cool Garden concert series (January 2024 through December 2024) and outdoor jazz concerts (January 2023 through December 2023). Activity has grown to six awards in 2024, with two awards reaching ultimate completion inside the next twenty-four months. The museum has never held a federal contract or served as a subcontractor; its federal revenue derives entirely from competitive and congressionally directed grants in the humanities, arts, and cultural preservation space.