Stories
New Orleans stories for walks, landmarks, and local context
Short, source-backed reads that explain what you are seeing while you move through the city.
City story
A Literary Landmark
Tucked away at 624 Pirates Alley is a townhouse built in 1837 that serves as a sanctuary for book lovers. Faulkner House Books special…
City story
A Literary Landmark
Tucked away at 624 Pirates Alley is a townhouse built in 1837 that holds a special place in American literature. In the 1920s, this bu…
City story
A Literary Sanctuary
Down a narrow path in Pirates Alley, you'll find a townhouse built in 1837 that served as a sanctuary for a young writer. In the 1920s…
City story
A Literary Sanctuary
Tucked away on Pirates Alley is a townhouse built in 1837 that holds a special place in American literature. In the 1920s, this was th…
City story
A Little Grocery Nostalgia
The name La Petite Grocery is a tribute to the building's past. In the late 1800s, this Creole-style cottage on Magazine Street was bu…
City story
A Museum on the Move
The Backstreet Cultural Museum is a treasure trove of New Orleans' masking and processional traditions, from the vibrant Mardi Gras In…
City story
A Name Reclaimed
Congo Square is more than just a park; it's a site of cultural survival and transformation. Originating in the late 1740s, it served a…
City story
A New Life for an Old Church
In 1853, a grand building was designed by Theodore Giraud to serve as a German Catholic Church in the Faubourg Marigny. For over a cen…
City story
Anne Rice's Garden District and the Mayfair Witches
Anne Rice used her own home at 1239 First Street as the inspiration for the Mayfair Witches' ancestral home in her gothic novels.
City story
A Non-Segregated Rest
Most of the city's early cemeteries were divided by race and religion, but Lafayette Cemetery Number One told a different story. Built…
City story
A Planned Canal
Have you ever wondered why Canal Street is so unusually wide? At 171 feet across, its dimensions aren't an accident. The street's orig…
City story
Architecture for the Heat
Long before air conditioning, New Orleans architects had to outsmart the oppressive humidity. Madame John's Legacy, built in 1788, is…
City story
A Riverfront Nightcap
As the sun sets, the Mississippi Riverfront transforms into a scenic escape from the crowded streets. Imagine the riverfront as it onc…
City story
A Riverfront Stroll
If you're looking for a place to get your steps in, head toward the water. The New Orleans riverfront is designed for movement, featur…
City story
Armstrong's Second Home
Before he was a global icon, a young Louis Armstrong found a second home at 427 South Rampart Street. This was the Karnofsky Shop and…
City story
A Sanctuary for the Arts
Sometimes the most unexpected places hold the most beautiful sounds. On St. Ferdinand Street, there's a building that has lived many l…
City story
A Second Home for Satchmo
Long before he was a global icon, a young Louis Armstrong found a sanctuary at four-twenty-seven South Rampart Street. The Karnofsky S…
City story
A Second Home for Satchmo
Long before he was a global icon, a young Louis Armstrong found a second home at the Karnofsky Shop on South Rampart Street. When Arms…
City story
A Space for the People
In the late 1740s, a space began to emerge as a cultural meeting ground for enslaved African Americans. By 1819, these Sunday gatherin…
City story
A Stage for the Arts
At 725 St. Ferdinand Street, a building with a deep spiritual past has found a new, artistic rhythm. Built in 1853 as a German Catholi…
City story
A Street of Patriots
Frenchmen Street is now famous as one of the city's best spots for live music, but its name carries a darker, more dramatic origin. It…
City story
A Street of Song
If you're looking for the city's best live music, head to Frenchmen Street. While its entertainment district only really developed in…
City story
A Submarine in the City
The National WWII Museum isn't just about archives and photos; it's a campus of massive engineering feats. Among its six soaring pavil…
City story
A Tailor's Influence
Sometimes a city's greatest legends start in the most unlikely places, like a small tailor shop on South Rampart Street. The Karnofsky…