Want to eat and party like a local? Favorite Garden District hangouts include Tipitinas, named after the song by Professor Longhair; Jacques-Imos Café for delicious Creole dishes; the Domilise Sandwich Shop and Bar for a great po’boy sandwich; and The Camellia Grill for a quick bite at the counter.
While in this part of the city, a must-see is Audubon Park and Zoo. The 400-acre park named for John James Audubon was originally a plantation owned by Etienne de Boré, who discovered how to create granulated sugar from sugar cane and subsequently made his fortune. His legacy of land is now Audubon Park, Zoo, and Golf Course. Plan to spend the day touring this area along with visiting Loyola and Tulane Universities nearby.
One-way fares on the streetcars for St. Charles, Riverfront, and Canal Street are $1.25. For $5 invest in a one-day pass for the streetcars, and you can ride all the cars all day long. The St. Charles streetcar will take you past the beautiful homes and areas of the Garden District, by Loyola and Tulane Universities, and to the Audubon Zoo and Gardens. Take the Canal Streetcar to visit the French Market at one end of the line, and ride it on the 5-mile route to the other end at Canal Street and City Park Avenue to visit many of the historic cemeteries mentioned in this book. The Riverfront Line is a new addition that will carry you from the French Market to the Aquarium of the Americas and to a variety of places to shop and dine. The streetcars here in New Orleans are so romantic and captivating that Tennessee Williams was inspired to write A Streetcar Named Desire here in the city.
In ancient Greek mythology, there were nine Greek goddesses, called muses, who ruled and provided inspirations over the arts and sciences. These muses were Calliope (epic poetry), Clio (history), Erato (love poetry), Euterpe (music), Melpomene (tragedy), Polyhymnia (sacred hymns), Terpsichore (dance), Thalia (comedy), and Urania (astronomy). In the Garden District of New Orleans, the streets (designed by city planner and architect at the time, Barthelemy Lafon) are named after each of these muses. The muse streets cross Prytania Street, representing the hearth of the goddess Hestia. Dryades is named for the wood nymphs, and two of the three graces—Euphrosine (joy) and Thalia (flowering)—are streets. For some reason, the third grace, Aglaia (Beauty), is not named.
CHAPTER 3
Tread Carefully When Walking Down the Haunted Pirates Alley
“New Orleans life is such a night life. The thing that comes up very often is that our day essentially doesn’t start until midnight or two in the morning.”
—Robert Asprin
LOCATED IN THE FRENCH QUARTER at St. Louis Cathedral in Jackson Square are alleyways that run along the left and right side of the cathedral. On the left side (or as directions are given in New Orleans, the uptown side) is Pirates Alley, which is a one-block cobblestone pedestrian walkway located between St. Louis Cathedral and the Cabildo building. The street is easily marked by one of the landmark New Orleans street signs and is one of the most-photographed street signs in New Orleans.
When walking down the street, you feel as though you might discover a hidden treasure or secret bounty—filled with precious gems and rarely seen antique items—spilling from one of the doors you pass by. During the day, it’s very busy with people passing through on their way to shops and cafés, with local artists lining the streets to showcase their wares and with performing musicians of all kinds, from solo artists on guitar or saxophone to three-piece bands.
The setting is very romantic and has become one of the most popular outdoor locations to get married in New Orleans, right here in the alley rather than inside St. Louis Cathedral. As you walk along Pirates Alley—filled with music, tourists, and artists—it’s difficult to imagine that this alley once led to the old Spanish jail where prisoners were marched down the street.
Corner of Pirates Alley
The area is every bit as busy today as it was during the days when General Andrew Jackson hurried through the streets under threat of war with the British. In 1813, Pierre Lafitte, brother of the legendary pirate Jean Lafitte, was arrested for the crimes of smuggling and piracy and was imprisoned in the Cabildo building, which is located across from this alleyway. Both brothers were equally culpable of the crimes, but most likely there was more direct evidence against Pierre since Jean handled the actual pirating from the ship and Pierre was in charge of dispersing these goods in the port of New Orleans.
This may sound like a very straightforward case. A crime was committed and the guilty party was placed in jail, but this is not a case of black-and-white/right-and-wrong reasoning. Pirating was always an interesting profession, and what many people don’t realize is that it was a very gray area legally, depending on the political climate of the time.
When war began between the American colonies and Britain in 1812, the American government offered legal papers to many pirates—Lafitte’s crew included—giving them the rights and direction to “raid” British ships, the technical term for pirating. The British government also extended this raiding offer to the pirates. This wasn’t the only time governments used pirates and gave them the freedom to do their business. On the Atlantic Coast of the United States, Blackbeard the Pirate and others were also many times given free reign to do likewise by various governments at war.
With this in mind, it’s easy to imagine that a man who built his business and lifestyle as a pirate would see the gray areas between countries and laws, as both countries would often offer him clemency, removal of criminal records, and legal documents granting him the legal right to do the work he did for years at a time. Once wars were over, the governments would then officially pull these rights and again publicly condemn them as criminals. Yet behind closed doors, clandestine meetings would still occur, where government officials would turn a blind eye to the pirate’s activities and provide favors in return for intelligence information against their enemies.
In the case of the arrest of Pierre Lafitte, he and his brother Jean were operating under the permission of the US government to pirate at this time. Somehow this information never seemed to pass far along the chain of command, as the U.S. Navy preferred not to recognize this status of the pirates, creating a double-edged challenge for the pirates, as the enemy of their enemy was never their friend. Complaints by some Navy officials led to laws stating that all contraband obtained by the pirates must be immediately handed over to the US government. Naval officials accused the pirates of keeping treasures and ordered the accused pirates to be arrested on sight. So on a double-cross by the government, both Lafitte brothers were arrested in November 1812. They immediately placed bail and were released until their trial. Not surprisingly, neither brother returned for the trial. In 1813, Pierre, working the risky position of fencing the stolen goods to customers in New Orleans, was an easier target and was captured and placed in jail.
During this time, British intelligence approached Jean Lafitte and asked him to come work for their side. With Jean’s brother back in jail, it would have been easy for Lafitte to take his revenge on the US government and help the British, with the agreement that when the British took over the port of New Orleans, his brother would be freed. To his credit, Jean Lafitte declined the British offer, reportedly based on the business decision that his pirating business ran better under the American government, which was still small in comparison and had fewer available resources to hinder his business.
Legend has it that the daring Jean Lafitte risked his own freedom by meeting with the governor of Louisiana in this very alleyway on a dark and stormy night to negotiate his brother’s freedom in return for the Lafitte brothers offering information and assistance against the British in the upcoming Battle of New Orleans. He explained to the governor that he had received a substantial offer from the British and offered his allegiance to Louisiana instead. The governor reportedly agreed that it would be best for the Lafittes to be friends of Louisiana rather than to work for the British, and it was arranged that Pierre would be allowed to “escape” from jail in the Cabildo so that no official could be publicly blamed.
The legend continues that Jean Lafitte later met