St. Louis Cathedral - New Orleans, LA (The Picturesque Church)

615 Pere Antoine Alley

New Orleans, LA 70116

29.957811,-90.06352

www.stlouiscathedral.org  

            Without a doubt, the single most widely seen building in New Orleans is the St. Louis Cathedral. Well, unless you are a member of the Who-Dat Nation, then your answer would be the Superdome! One glimpse of this beautiful church and you automatically know what city you are looking at. If standing on the roof of the cathedral was possible, one would have an incredible view. Without having to move a muscle, you could see the Cabildo, Presbytere, Jackson Square, Jackson Monument, the Mississippi River, Muriel's, the Place d'Armes Hotel and the Pontalba Building! With the French Quarter as the heart of New Orleans, the St. Louis Cathedral would serve as the blood, spreading its Catholic heritage throughout every facet of the neighborhood. With any settlement, the first structure, other than the basic homes, is normally a church. As old as the city itself, so are the roots of the Cathedral.

Jackson Barracks - New Orleans, LA (The House that Katrina Re-Built)

Photo courtesy of www.gibbsconstruction.com 

6400 St.Claude Ave.

New Orleans, LA 70116

29.958366,-90.007172 

One thing we have learned so far is that New Orleans and the surrounding areas have seen their fair share of war. Dating as far back as 1722 the first rudimentary wooden barracks were erected on St. Peter and St. Anne Streets, fronting the Place d'Armes. After 1727, the barracks were moved to the square on Conde Street, now Chartres Street. These French Quarter barracks housed, in turn, the garrisons (French, Spanish and American troops) for over a century. In 1828, the barracks were used to quarter the United States Garrison for New Orleans. The United States Government sold the property in 1828 and New Orleans was without a garrison or barracks.
After the War of 1812, the U.S. Congress realized coastal cities were not properly defended, so they signed the Federal Fortifications Act in 1832, funding thousands of dollars to purchase land and build new barracks. On December 16, 1833 the original piece of land for this new fortification was purchased from Pierre Cotteret in the area that is now known as the Lower Ninth Ward. Construction was complete in 1836 and the location was officially called the New Orleans Barracks. The name was later changed to the Jackson Barracks, in honor of New Orleans hero, Andrew Jackson. It housed four infantry companies and came equipped with a prison, a storehouse and four 3-story guard towers, all surrounded by the river, levee and a ten foot tall brick wall.

Andrew Jackson Hotel - New Orleans, LA (The Haunted Hotbed of New Orleans)

919 Royal St.

New Orleans, LA 70116

29.96005,-90.062989

www.frenchquarterinns.com/andrewjackson

            With a little under sixty locations covered so far in this blog, we now reach the city of New Orleans, said to be the most haunted city in the United States. This claim may very well be true, as you will see that New Orleans makes up nearly half of the state’s paranormal hot spots. I have always been so fascinated with New Orleans and the plethora of history it contains. It's almost as if New Orleans was founded on the simple goal of becoming a haunted city a century or so later. Settled in 1718, New Orleans literally served as dumping grounds for the worst that society had to offer. Murderers, rapists and thieves from all over the world basically fled to New Orleans as a safe haven. Throw in the fact that the city was already home to clashing cultures such as French, Spanish and Irish; New Orleans was a ticking time bomb.
             As most people know, most of these haunts originate from the French Quarter. What many may not know is that almost every location in the French Quarter is built over something that once stood prior to 1788. It was on Good Friday, March 21, 1788, when the Great New Orleans Fire began, destroying eight hundred and fifty-six of the one thousand one hundred structures in the city! Said to have started at the location that is now 619 Chartres Street, the home of Army Treasurer Don Vincente Jose Nunez, nearly the entire city was destroyed in five hours! Due to this fact, it is often impossible to pinpoint the origin of many of the French Quarter hauntings. Such is the case with our first location, as a building historically known for one event is haunted due to a completely different happening in a building that once stood here.

Chalmette Battlefield - Chalmette, LA (The Battle of New Orleans)

8606 West St Bernard Hwy.
Chalmette, LA 70043

29.945081,-89.986053

            Many military historians will tell you that there is no battle in Louisiana more crucial than the Battle of New Orleans. Taking place on January 8, 1815, this was the final battle of the War of 1812, as United States troops, led by General Andrew Jackson, fought off the British Army, led by General Edward Pakenham. The battle was critical, as it prevented the British from seizing New Orleans as well as the vast amount of land we know as the Louisiana Purchase. One can only imagine how history would have been re-written if we would have lost this intense battle. Let’s face it; we could all be eating tea and crumpets right now, instead of beer and boudin!
           What is believed to be the most ironic part of the battle is that it could have actually been prevented, saving hundreds of lives. On December 24, 1814, the Treaty of Ghent had been signed, placing a truce between both sides. In the days before e-mail and text messages, news took a bit longer to reach its desired source, so while news of the peace treaty was on its way, thousands were still battling for their lives.

Ft. Jackson - Buras, LA (The Failed Fort of the Confederacy)

Fort Jackson/Fort St. Phillip (Buras)

29.356594,-89.454718

            By the early 1800’s, New Orleans and the surrounding areas were no stranger to war and attacks, specifically from Spain and Britain. After several skirmishes and attempts to seize New Orleans, the city’s hero, General Andrew Jackson ordered that a fortification be built to not only protect the city but to secure the river from any future attacks. Construction of Fort Jackson began in 1822 and was completed and occupied in 1832. It was then garrisoned by a small force until February 9, 1842, when it was declared a military reservation by executive order of President John Tyler.


Map of Ft. Jackson

            With the American Civil War now under way, the Union had their eyes set on capturing New Orleans and it would not be long before a deadly attempt would be made. The infamous battle to gain control of New Orleans took place at Fort Jackson and St. Phillip from April 16, 1862 until April 28, 1862. During these tense 13 days, Union soldiers, led by Flag Officer David G. Farragut, commanded naval ships into the murky waters and unleashed a barrage of mortars onto the Confederate forts. For several days, the bombardments continued, with the river obstructions being partially destroyed on the night of April 22^nd. The Union and their firepower was too much for the Confederacy to contend with, as ships pushed through the barricades and made their way to New Orleans, ultimately seizing the city. After putting up a great fight, the forts officially surrendered on April 28^th. The final death toll from the battle was approximately 1,011!