Lauren Rogers Museum of Art

Nestled among century-old oaks in Laurel's charming Historic District is the Lauren Rogers Museum of Art.

Opened in 1923, the Museum draws approximately 32,000 visitors each year from across the nation with its outstanding collections of European and American art, Native American baskets, British Georgian silver, and Japanese woodblock prints, as well as an extensive art history library. The Lauren Rogers Museum of Art offers visitors an enjoyable artistic experience in the Museum Galleries, the Museum Library and the Museum Shop. Visit us soon!

The Lauren Rogers Museum of Art in Laurel, Mississippi, was opened in 1923 as a memorial to Lauren Eastman Rogers, the only son and only grandson of one of the town's founding families. Lauren had died in 1921 from complications of appendicitis at the age of 23. After his death, Lauren's father, Wallace Brown Rogers, and his grandfather, Lauren Chase Eastman, created the Eastman Memorial Foundation "to promote the public welfare by founding, endowing and having maintained a public library, museum, art gallery and educational institution, within the state of Mississippi."

Today, 80 years after its founding, the Lauren Rogers Museum of Art continues as a memorial to a young man who stood at the threshold of his adult life, full of promise and high expectations. In the aftermath of his tragic death, his family determined to create a living monument to his spirit, his ability and the promise of his future. The Museum, they felt, would serve the community in ways that Lauren would have served it, had he lived. Their vision, generosity and commitment have endured in a Museum that opens its collections to the public six days a week, sponsors an extensive educational program and offers exhibitions that expose the members of the community to the best examples of art of its many forms.

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