landmark
A landmark is a recognizable natural or artificial feature used for navigation, a feature that stands out from its near environment and is often visible from long distances.
In modern use, the term can also be applied to smaller structures or f ...
colonial
Colonial or The Colonial may refer to:
* Colonial, of, relating to, or characteristic of a colony or colony (biology)
Architecture
* American colonial architecture
* French Colonial
* Spanish Colonial architecture
Automobiles
* Colonial (1920 a ...
country home located at 1440 Moss Street in New Orleans, Louisiana. The Pitot House is currently owned by the Louisiana Landmark Society, which uses the building as its
headquarters
Headquarters (commonly referred to as HQ) denotes the location where most, if not all, of the important functions of an organization are coordinated. In the United States, the corporate headquarters represents the entity at the center or the to ...
. The house is situated on Bayou St. John and was moved several blocks from its original site in order to prevent its demolition.
History
The Pitot House was initially constructed in 1799 by Don Bartólome Bosque as a country retreat along Bayou St. John. It is speculated that Bosque's house was a
raised cottage
Raise may refer to:
Music
*''Raise!'', the name of a 1981 album by Earth, Wind, and Fire
* '' Raise'' (album), the name of a 1991 album by Swervedriver
Place names
*Raise, Cumbria, England
*Raise (Lake District), the name of the 12th highest ...
on brick pillars. Bosque was a Spanish colonial official, whose daughter Suzette married Louisiana Governor William C.C. Claiborne.
NOTE: The
1790 in architecture
The year 1790 in architecture involved some significant architectural events and new buildings.
Events
* ''date unknown'' – Work begins on the East India Company's Plantation House in Saint Helena, which remains the official residence of the Gov ...
article states that the house was finished in 1790 and was built by Don Santiago Lorreins.
It is also believed that during the ownership of Madame Rillieux (1805–1810),
Edgar Degas
Edgar Degas (, ; born Hilaire-Germain-Edgar De Gas, ; 19 July 183427 September 1917) was a French Impressionist artist famous for his pastel drawings and oil paintings.
Degas also produced bronze sculptures, prints and drawings. Degas is es ...
' great-grandmother, the ground floor was enclosed with masonry walls of soft brick. Rillieux was also responsible for adding the southern gallery and several outbuildings, which are no longer extant.
The house is named for James Pitot, the fourth owner of the house who resided there from 1810 to 1819. Pitot is considered to be the first "American" mayor of New Orleans (1804–1805); for although he was a native of France, he became a
naturalized
Naturalization (or naturalisation) is the legal act or process by which a non-citizen of a country may acquire citizenship or nationality of that country. It may be done automatically by a statute, i.e., without any effort on the part of the in ...
American citizen before arriving in New Orleans in 1796. Inside are American and Louisiana antiques from the early 19th century, but the antiques are not original to the home. A portrait of Sophie Gabrielle, James Pitot's daughter, is the only artifact owned by any past resident of the house.
Other notable owners of the house include Felix Ducayet and
Mother Cabrini
Frances Xavier Cabrini ( it, Francesca Saverio Cabrini; July 15, 1850 – December 22, 1917), also called Mother Cabrini, was an Italian-American Catholic religious sister. She founded the Missionary Sisters of the Sacred Heart of Jesus, ...
, America's first named
saint
In religious belief, a saint is a person who is recognized as having an exceptional degree of Q-D-Š, holiness, likeness, or closeness to God. However, the use of the term ''saint'' depends on the context and Christian denomination, denominat ...
.
House
The home is within yards of the site of the "bayou bridge" which Governor Claiborne ordered the military "to permit no Negroes to pass or repass the same" during the events known as the 1811 German Coast Uprising. This event, said by some historians to be the largest slave uprising on American soil (a theory not recognized by all)See, e.g., Eaton, Fernin, (7 November 2011). ''1811 Slave Uprising; Governor on Trial: Claiborne in His Own Words, A salon publique'', Pitot House, New Orleans. https://www.academia.edu/1910804/Gov._Claiborne_in_his_own_words--a_salon_publique_at_Pitot_House_Bayou_St._John Retrieved 06/18/2013 caused white families living upriver in January 1811 to stream into New Orleans along Metairie Road. That road was the "highland" road which crossed the bridge at Bayou St. John, providing access to the traditional "back of town" entrance along Bayou Road into the city.
The house was saved from destruction by the Louisiana Landmarks Society in 1964 and restored to its original splendor, showing the double-pitched hipped roof, and the plaster-covered brick-between-post ( ''briquette-entre-poteaux'') construction. The wooden posts act as structural support, the brick offers thermal insulation, and the plaster protects this medley from dampness and rot.
The style of the Pitot House is '' ensuite''—with no hallways and an outdoor stairway. The house was designed with hot summers and insects in mind. The doors were positioned across from each other to keep cool air moving. The extended galleries on both the bottom and top levels of the house keep the sun off the walls and offer outdoor
breezeway
A breezeway is an architectural feature similar to a hallway that allows the passage of a breeze between structures to accommodate high winds, allow aeration, or provide aesthetic design variation. It is a pedestrian walkway because it is intende ...
s.
The Pitot House was also designed to withstand floods and was able to survive the floods of Hurricane Katrina due to brick floors on the bottom level of the house which would have originally been caulked with a dry mix of sand and lime, allowing flood waters to drain through. The gallery, back loggia, and
sleeping porch
A sleeping porch is a deck or balcony, sometimes screened or otherwise enclosed with screened windows,shutters to provide relief from the intense Louisiana sun.
Garden
The garden at the Pitot House grows plants traditional to the time period when the Pitot House was built. These plants include indigenous flowers, citrus trees, perennials, bulbs, antique roses, camellias,
herbs
In general use, herbs are a widely distributed and widespread group of plants, excluding vegetables and other plants consumed for macronutrients, with savory or aromatic properties that are used for flavoring and garnishing food, for medicinal ...
, and vegetables. The garden is a traditional '' parterre'' garden, designed to be viewed from the above gallery, with the boxwoodhedges recently restored.
A native plants garden showcases Louisiana wildflowers and shrubs along the perimeter of the parterre. Next to the house is a yard, where parties and events are held.