The Presbytère is an architecturally important building in the

French Quarter The French Quarter, also known as the , is the oldest neighborhood in the city of New Orleans. After New Orleans (french: La Nouvelle-Orléans) was founded in 1718 by Jean-Baptiste Le Moyne de Bienville, the city developed around the ("Old Sq ...

New Orleans, Louisiana New Orleans ( , ,New Orleans

. It stands facing Jackson Square, adjacent to the St. Louis Cathedral. Built in 1813 as a matching structure for

the Cabildo The Cabildo was the seat of Spanish colonial city hall of New Orleans, Louisiana, and is now the Louisiana State Museum Cabildo. It is located along Jackson Square, adjacent to St. Louis Cathedral. History The original Cabildo was destroyed ...

, which flanks the cathedral on the other side, it is one of the nation's best examples of formal colonial Spanish architecture (with many

neo-Renaissance Renaissance Revival architecture (sometimes referred to as "Neo-Renaissance") is a group of 19th century architectural revival styles which were neither Greek Revival nor Gothic Revival but which instead drew inspiration from a wide range ...

elements). It was designated a

National Historic Landmark A National Historic Landmark (NHL) is a building, district, object, site, or structure that is officially recognized by the United States government for its outstanding historical significance. Only some 2,500 (~3%) of over 90,000 places listed ...

in 1970, and is now a property of the

Louisiana State Museum The Louisiana State Museum (LSM), founded in New Orleans in 1906, is a statewide system of National Historic Landmarks and modern structures across Louisiana, housing thousands of artifacts and works of art reflecting Louisiana's legacy of historic ...

Description

The Presbytère is located on the northeast side of Jackson Square, between the cathedral and St. Ann Street. It is a two-story brick building, originally built with a flat roof that had a balustrade topped by urns. Its ground floor has a nine- bay open

arcade Arcade most often refers to: * Arcade game, a coin-operated game machine ** Arcade cabinet, housing which holds an arcade game's hardware ** Arcade system board, a standardized printed circuit board * Amusement arcade, a place with arcade games * ...

of elliptical arches, with

pilaster In classical architecture, a pilaster is an architectural element used to give the appearance of a supporting column and to articulate an extent of wall, with only an ornamental function. It consists of a flat surface raised from the main wal ...

ed corners. The upper level also has arched openings, all articulated by pilasters, with multipane windows. The center three bays on both levels have engaged columns on either side, and are topped as a group by a gabled

pediment Pediments are gables, usually of a triangular shape. Pediments are placed above the horizontal structure of the lintel, or entablature, if supported by columns. Pediments can contain an overdoor and are usually topped by hood moulds. A pedim ...

. A dormered mansard roof was added in 1847, which is topped by a

louver A louver (American English) or louvre (British English; see spelling differences) is a window blind or shutter with horizontal slats that are angled to admit light and air, but to keep out rain and direct sunshine. The angle of the sla ...

ed cupola.

History

The Presbytère was designed in 1791 by the French-born Gilberto Guillemard to match

, or Town Hall, on the other side of St. Louis Cathedral. By 1798, only the first floor had been completed, and its second floor was not completed until 1813. Originally called the (‘Ecclesiastical House’), its name derives from the fact that it was built on the former site of the residence of the

Capuchin monks The capuchin monkeys () are New World monkeys of the subfamily Cebinae. They are readily identified as the "organ grinder" monkey, and have been used in many movies and television shows. The range of capuchin monkeys includes some tropical forest ...

and presbytery (rectory, ' in French). While intended to house clergy, it was never used as a religious residence.New Orleans ''Times-Picayune'', Jun 24, 2005 The building initially was used for commercial purposes until 1834, when it was used by the Louisiana Supreme Court. In 1853, cathedral officials sold the Presbytère to the city, and in 1908 the city sold it to the state. In 1911 it became part of the

. It was declared a

in 1970. and In 2005, the

cupola In architecture, a cupola () is a relatively small, most often dome-like, tall structure on top of a building. Often used to provide a lookout or to admit light and air, it usually crowns a larger roof or dome. The word derives, via Italian, fro ...

was replaced atop the Presbytère. The cupola had been missing since the

New Orleans Hurricane of 1915 The New Orleans Hurricane of 1915 was an intense Category 4 hurricane that made landfall near Grand Isle, Louisiana, and the most intense tropical cyclone during the 1915 Atlantic hurricane season. The storm formed in late September when it moved ...

References

External links

The Presbytère on the Louisiana State Museum website

Friends of the Cabildo website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Presbytere French Quarter National Historic Landmarks in Louisiana Museums in New Orleans Commercial buildings completed in 1813 History museums in Louisiana Buildings and structures in New Orleans Louisiana State Museum National Register of Historic Places in New Orleans Individually listed contributing properties to historic districts on the National Register in Louisiana

Description

History

See also

References

External links