NEW ORLEANS From Bienville to Bourbon Street to bounce. 300 moments that make New Orleans unique. WHAT HAPPENED The Cabildo 1718 ~ 2018 was declared a National Historic Landmark 300 in 1960. TRICENTENNIAL THE HISTORIC NEW ORLEANS COLLECTION The Cabildo was built between 1794 and A postcard showing the Cabildo, The Cabildo in 1799 to replace the center of government that with cupola on the left, and the 1904, after it had Presbytere, on the right, been transferred was heavily damaged in the fire of 1788. framing St. Louis Cathedral to the state to become a The matching Presbytere, completed in museum 1813, was built downriver from the church to serve as a religious center for the neighboring cathedral, but never fulfilled that purpose. Financing for both buildings was provided by Don Andres Almonaster y Rojas on the Admired as much for their symmetry as their purpose, the Cabildo and the Presbytere have framed St. Louis Cathedral for more than two centuries. condition their designs matched. The buildings were de- signed by French-born Gilberto Guillemard. Dormered mansard roofs and cupolas were added to the buildings CHARLES L. FRANCK STUDIO COLLECTION THE AT HISTORIC NEW ORLEANS COLLECTION in the middle of the 1800s. The Presbytere was originally called the Casa Curial, or Ecclesiastical House, and was The Cabildo served as the center of New Orleans gov- built on the site of the residence of the Capuchin ernment until 1853. The Presbytere housed shops and resi- monks. The building, however, was never used for religious purposes. dences and later the district and the state supreme courts. The Catholic Church sold the building to the city in 1853. By the late 19th century, the buildings were in such disrepair that the Cabildo was condemned. The City Council proposed demolishing both buildings to build a new state supreme and district courts. A public outcry led the city to preserve the Spanish colonial buildings. They were transferred to the Louisiana State Museum in 1908 and opened to the public in 1911, with natural history and historical exhibits. The buildings have endured hurricanes and fires, in- cluding a 1988 fire that destroyed the Cabildo’s roof and A devastating fire in 1988 destroyed the Cabildo’s roof cupola. Those were replaced and the museum was re- and cupola. It took six years for the building to be re- opened in 1994. paired and reopened..