5. Louis Armstrong lived in the Neighborhood
Corona was the residence of the jazz trumpeter Louis Armstrong, one of the most beloved 20th-century American musicians. Originally from New Orleans, he had a career spanning over five decades and was influential in developing the solo free-styling that is now a core feature of jazz music. While he was musical as a child, his career began in Chicago in the 1920s as a trumpet player and vocalist. Louis Armstrong moved to 34-56 107th Street in Corona, Queens in 1943 and lived there until his death in 1971. While living in Queens, Armstrong recorded the hit 1964 song “Hello, Dollie!” Within days of its release, the song hit number one on the Hot 100, making Armstrong, at the age of 62, the oldest person to accomplish that feat.
Today, Armstrong’s house is a museum dedicated to his life and jazz at large. The Louis Armstrong House Museum is a treasure trove of recordings, historic photographs, written documents, and musical instruments all available to the public on-site. A few of their most impressive records are Louis and Lucille Armstrong’s collection of over “5,000 photographs, 270 sets of band parts, 12 linear feet of papers, letters and manuscripts, five trumpets, 14 mouthpieces, 120 awards and plaques, and much more.”
