New Orleans Garden District Architecture Tour TripShock

Prepare to be wowed by the breathtaking transformation of Hotel Saint Vincent. Originally built in 1861, this historic gem was lovingly restored in 2021 into a lavish 75-room escape. But the story begins even earlier, with the remarkable Margaret Haughery, born in Ireland in 1813. Despite starting life as an orphan, Margaret found her way to New Orleans in 1835, earning the title "Our Margaret" for her tireless community work and philanthropy. She even founded The Saint Vincent Infant Asylum, a haven for the young and old alike. Fast forward to today, and you can bask in the luxury of the pool bar and courtyard, indulge in culinary delights at San Lorenzo, The Paradise Lounge, or Chapel Club, and even treat yourself to some upscale shopping at the onsite boutique, ByGeorge. It's a true feast for the senses and a sight to behold!

7. Coliseum Square Park

Looking to soak up some outdoor vibes or admire the historic homes that grace the area? Coliseum Square Park is your spot! After the Louisiana Purchase of 1803, waves of newcomers flooded into New Orleans, shaping its character. The park's name harks back to a planned, yet never-built, Roman-style Collese, or coliseum. Today, it's a lush three-acre oasis dotted with water oaks, tallow, and China trees, perfect for a leisurely stroll.

8. Haus of Hoodoo

Seeking indoor adventures? Make your way to Haus of Hoodoo, where magic and mystique await. Step into this apothecary and botanica offering spiritual services, intricate jewelry, fragrant incense, spell work, and so much more.

Buckner Mansion - 1410 Jackson Ave.

The first house is, according to local tour guides and travel sites alike, one of the most popular sites to see in the Garden District; just at a glance, its not very surprising to see why. Fans of American Horror Story will recognize it from seasons three and eight of the series, and the house itself owes its construction to a bit of the friendly rivalry so common among the students at Miss Robichauxs Academy for Exceptional Young Ladies.

In 1856, Kentucky-born cotton factor Henry Sullivan Buckner officially became business partners with prominent Irish-born cotton broker and plantation owner Frederick Stanton. In his chosen hometown of Natchez, Mississippi, Stanton was mid-construction on his grand estate and future National Historic Landmark: Stanton Hall, an opulent Greek Revival-style manor that encompasses an entire city block that he would later die in after only three years in residence. Despite already owning several other impressive homes in New Orleans, Buckner hired Lewis E. Reynolds, Stantons architect, to design another mansion in 1857 to rival that of his business partner. Situated on the corner of Jackson Avenue and Coliseum Street, the grand, two-story structure includes a basement, the regal stone and cast-iron front gate (with lanterns), and a wide wrap-around balcony and veranda sporting Corinthian and Ionic columns respectively.

When they moved into their newest, most opulent home in 1860, the Buckners numbered seven in total: Henry, his wife Catherine, and their five children ranging from 23 to 5 years old. By 1880, the eldest Buckner daughters were married, though Laura, the second daughter, her husband Cartwright Eustis, and their own five children joined Mr. and Mrs. Buckner and the familys one live-in maid Sally. By 1883, both Buckners had died, and the Eustis family purchased the home from the remaining Buckner siblings. In the next seven years, Laura had another five children, and she and multiple children and grandchildren continued living in the home until 1920. Laura sold her home of 60 years to Albert and Edward Soul who moved their business schoolstarted the same year Buckner was inspired to create the estateinto the Buckner Mansion. They added a brick classroom building to the back of the property in later years, holding classes until the school closed its doors in 1983. In 1990, Sandra and Norman King purchased the building and began a series of major restorations that were continued in 1997 by the current owners Susan and Charles Zambito.

Monroe Adams House - 1331 Philip St.

The Monroe Adams House is something of a novelty among the strictly Greek Revival and Italianate-style homes in the surrounding neighborhood. It blends Italianate and French Second Empire-style elements with the Federal or Adam-style architecture most characteristic of the early days of the United States (1780 to around 1840)making the style most common in the original thirteen colony states including Woodlawn Plantation, Tudor Place, and Decatur House, all located in the greater Washington, D.C. area. These buildings are most defined by their simple, symmetrical box shape, are between two and three stories, and are two rooms deep. This house and others in the Garden District with similar architectural influences usually feature box columns, roof cresting, a cast-iron gallery rail, and a simple cornice with paired brackets.

This cottage, completed in 1880, was commissioned by Thomas D. Miller, then-director of Crescent City Oil. Miller owned the house for nine years before selling it to John and Lilia Kennard, who then sold the house in 1916 to Frank Adair and Alice Blanc Monroe for $7500, the equivalent of about $188,700 in 2021this same year, the houses estimated value is around $2.1 million. At the time, the Monroes were prominent lawyers, judges, and politicians in Louisiana, especially patriarch Frank who served on the Louisiana Supreme Court for just under 23 years and as Chief Justice for eight. The Monroe heirs sold the home again in 1936 to Roger Thayer Stone, the namesake of Tulane Universitys Center for Latin American Studies. After another handful of owners in the mid-20th century, Theresa McAlister and Jesse R. Adams acquired the home in 1979. They made many major updates and renovations in their 22 years of ownership which were continued by Klaus-Peter Schrieber and his wife Dianne Anderson. The Schriebers spent 16 years at 1331 Philip St. until the current owners, Drs. Miranda and Paul Celesire purchased the property for their family in 2018.

The Seven Sisters/Brides Row - 2329 Coliseum #5768

To start: both names for this next entry are misleading. The first is obvious when you get there; this row of homes beginning at the corner of Coliseum and Phillip Streets is made of eight houses, not seven. The second name stems from a heartwarming local legenda local father was said to have built the homes as gifts, one for each of his daughters to receive on their wedding day.

The true story: in 1867, a builder commissioned Henry Howardthe architect behind almost 300 buildings in Louisiana, including the famous Pontalba buildings and more than a few homes on this listto design the row. Howard designated a 30-foot lot for each house, alternating between Greek Revival- and Italianate-style facades while using the same side-gallery shotgun floorplan. This little row is the closest New Orleans gets to cookie-cutter suburban homes.

Pritchard-Pigot House - 1407 First St.

The first difference between this house and the others on this list is a simple one: neither Pritchard nor Pigot were surnames of any of the propertys notable owners. The second: the grandiose Neoclassical Revival architecture came from renovations made 37 years after the building was completed. The original owners, Virginian merchant Marshall J. Smith Sr. and his wife Mary, had built a double-gallery side-hall townhome in 1867 to house their three children along with two school-aged boarders and two live-in maids. In this case, the resident of renown was actually the Smiths then-adolescent son Marshall Jr., who would go on to become a celebrated Louisiana landscape painter. Only two years later, the Smiths were forced to sell the property due to financial trouble, though they continued to live there as renters until 1876. The new owner James Jennings McComb, a self-made millionaire due to his invention of the arrow tie buckle, continued to rent the house to a few prominent residents until he sold it to New York sugar refiner Mark Spelman in 1891.

The owners who made 1407 First St. the marvel it is today were lumberman John H. Hinton and his wife Emmet who bought the home as a winter getaway from their home in, coincidentally, McComb, Mississippi (no relation between the two McCombs). In their mere six years of ownership, the Hintons transformed their home entirely, adding two additional bays on the homes left side to center the front door, a wide staircase with a landing supposedly to hold a quartet to entertain as guests entered the newly-expanded foyerand of course, the tetrastyle portico with its enormous Doric columns and entablature. And yet, after all of these alterations, the Hintons sold the house to Emmets brother in 1910, and it once again fell into life as a rental property.

Twenty-eight years later, George Hitchings Terriberry, who served as King of Carnival in 1940, purchased the house and, due to his ties to the New Orleans Symphony Orchestra, filled the halls with events and musical recitals until his death in 1948. He left the home to his niece Anne Devall Mays, who owned the home until the 1980s and was followed by a string of subsequent owners who added their own renovations. After years of admiring the home on walks from their Philip Street home with their young sons, the current owners say they couldnt pass up the opportunity when the house went up for sale in 2013.