Even today these Greek revival rowhouses exude an exclusive air, which was precisely the intent of their builder, the Baroness Pontalba. Inspired by her apartments of Paris, they were conceived as part of the Baroness’s plan to create a neighbourhood of upwardly mobile New Orleanians that might serve as a gentrified rampart against the swelling American presence in the commercial district across Canal Street.

Three years of construction, completed in 1851, produced these high-style residences and ground-level shops in a pair of block-long redbrick structures designed to give Jackson Square an architectural unity.

Complete with period furnishings, decorative artefacts, and art of the era, the 1850 House re-creates upper-middle-class family life during the city’s most prosperous period. There are tours, but you are welcome to explore on your own.