It was decided from the beginning that the festival would be centered at an area of the park called Congo Square.

FORBES: New Orleans Jazz Fest Comes Full Circle With Its Mission

Slaves were allowed to gather each Sunday in Congo Square, an old slave market in Louis Armstrong Park, to drum and practise their music.

BBC: New Orleans outside of the French Quarter

On April 30th the focus switches to New Orleans, the birthplace of jazz, where a special concert will take place in Congo Square just after sunrise.

UNESCO: OFFICE IN DHAKA

The lighted entrance of Louis Armstrong Park was shining on Rampart Street for the first time since Hurricane Katrina dimmed the neighborhood, and historic Congo Square was just a heartbeat away from us.

NPR: Danza Quartet Welcomes 2009, Bayou Style

While the site of the festival has grown exponentially and moved to the New Orleans Fairgrounds, Congo Square and Stage is still geographically positioned in the center of the festival, further instilling that first festival decision.

FORBES: New Orleans Jazz Fest Comes Full Circle With Its Mission