The white building
Twin stairs.
Bencas1 — CC0 · Rachad sanoussi — CC BY-SA 4.0 · Rachad sanoussi — CC BY-SA 4.0 · Rachad sanoussi — CC BY-SA 4.0 · Rachad sanoussi — CC BY-SA 4.0
The Ouidah Museum of History is in the coastal town of Ouidah in southern Benin, inside the Portuguese fort of São João Baptista de Ajudá. It holds around 700 pieces on the archaeology, arts and history of Ouidah, including the slave trade and the town's ties with Brazil. It is a good starting point before walking the Slave Route to the beach. The fort was built in 1721 and served as a fortified trading post until 1816, then as a Catholic mission until 1865, then as a small Portuguese seat. In 1961 the Republic of Dahomey annexed it, and its occupants set fire to the building before leaving. It was declared a historic monument in 1964, restored with international support, and the museum opened on 6 September 1967. You see a white two-storey building with a brown tiled roof and wooden shutters, and twin stairs rising to the veranda. A low red wall with rounded corners and a garden with palm trees surround it. Its eleven rooms hold maps, carvings, old pictures and objects from the Kingdom of Dahomey. The Door of No Return is about 4 km away in a straight line, and central Ouidah about 1 km. Visits usually go with a guide. Ask about photo rules, and combine it with the Slave Route on the same day.
Twin stairs.
Rounded corners.
Ouidah's story.
Between Rue des Esclaves and Rue van Vollenhoven, Ouidah, Benin
On 6 September 1967, after the fort was restored.
Yes, it is about four kilometres along the Slave Route.