Jackson Square
نيو أورلينز
Jackson Square is the historic square of New Orleans, in the heart of the old Quarter. Around it stand St. Louis Cathedral, the Cabildo, the Presbytère and the Pontalba Buildings.
The city's square
In 1721 the colony's engineers laid out the city with this square at its center. On three sides stood the church and government offices; from the fourth you could see the river. The Presbytère, to the right of the cathedral, was built to match the Cabildo. Today the square is a National Historic Landmark.
A cathedral reborn
A first church was destroyed by a hurricane, and the second was lost in 1788. The new cathedral was finished in 1794. In 1850 it was almost completely rebuilt. It was blessed again in 1851.
The Cabildo
The Cabildo was the city hall. In 1803 it hosted the ceremony that handed Louisiana over to the United States. It has arches on the ground floor and a tall roof, added in the mid-1800s. Today it is a history museum.
The baroness of the red buildings
Baroness de Pontalba had the two red buildings built between 1849 and 1851. In the 1850s the garden was made more beautiful too. Their lacy iron balconies made iron balconies fashionable all over the city.
