Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
10 GARDEN DISTRICT: MANSION
MAGNIFICENCE
BOUNDARIES: St. Charles Ave., Washington Ave., Coliseum St., Jackson Ave.
DISTANCE: 1.14 miles
PARKING: Free parking on street, but some neighborhood parking is limited to 2 hours.
Check for signs.
PUBLIC TRANSIT: St. Charles Ave. Streetcar
In a city where elegance and wealth define many a neighborhood, the Garden District may
well be the most enviable part of town. It includes a stretch of stately—and busy—St.
Charles Avenue, but it is mostly the district's quieter and equally breathtaking interior
streets that make it such an appealing place to live, or at least visit.
Listed on the National Register of Historic Places, the Garden District was developed in the
early 19th century on what was once the Livaudais Plantation and several other plantations.
Property was sold in parcels to wealthy Americans (specifically, WASPs) who did not want
to associate with the Creoles living in the French Quarter.
The Garden District is known for its opulent Greek Revival and Italianate mansions, oak-
lined streets, and, of course, magnificent gardens. It's also the neighborhood of choice for
such Hollywood celebrities as John Goodman and Sandra Bullock and local luminaries
such as former New Orleans Saints quarterback Archie Manning.
Most of the homes remain private residences and are therefore closed to the public. But
every year, the Preservation Resource Center, a nonprofit dedicated to preserving the archi-
tecture of New Orleans, presents a self-guided holiday tour, giving the curious a chance to
see up close the insides of some of the city's most beautiful homes.
Begin on the south side of St. Charles Avenue at Washington Avenue. Walk
one block down Washington to Prytania Street. At the corner to your left is
The Rink, a mini-shopping mall that includes Still Perkin', a coffeehouse;
Judy at the Rink, a gift and home-decor shop; Garden District Books, one of
the city's few remaining independent bookstores; and Mignon, a high-end
children's clothing store. The mall gets its name from the roller-skating rink
that occupied the property for the 1884 World's Fair.
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