The Garden District of New Orleans has a little more to it than just a neighborhood filled with really old, massive mansions. When driving through the area, you'll immediately notice the elaborate houses that are both new and old. Originally part of Lafayette and annexed by the city of New Orleans in 1852, this New Orleans gem is rich in history and character, to include a few ghost-inhabited houses here and there.
One of the Garden District's most frequently visited sites is Lafayette Cemetery no. 1. Lafayette Cemetery no. 1 has an entrance on Washington Avenue and another on 6th street, and has been around since 1833. The cemetery currently houses about 7,000 people and multiple family mausoleums. Many locals think the reason for burying above ground is because of the low water tables, which is true, but there is a historical reason as well. Around the 1700s, after a huge fire in the French Quarter that destroyed multiple cemeteries, New Orleans had to ask Spain for money to rebuild them. Spain agreed, but only if New Orleans began their tradition of burying above ground. New Orleans received the money they needed, and learned that burying above ground is the best way to keep bodies from washing away, which is why this is practiced today. Families "pay rent" for their deceased family members to have a spot in the cemetery. If the money stops coming, the deceased get "the shaft," which is a nicer way of saying the bodies get shoved to the back of the crypt. The cemetery's popularity is also drawn from its multiple appearances in television shows and movies, such as "The Originals," "NCIS: New Orleans," "Interview With a Vampire" and "Easy Rider."
A popular house to visit in the Garden District is a white house located on 1410 Jackson Avenue. It was built in 1856 by a cotton magnate named Henry S. Buckner, and is still called the Buckner Mansion today. It is currently a private residence and can be rented for vacation, starting at $20,000. When the Buckner Family still lived in the house, a freed slave named Miss Josephine worked for the family, and chose to protect the house, even until after her death. She remains in the house, cleaning, standing on the stairs, and swinging the chandeliers. Some have claimed to smell her lemon cleaning product and have even seen her standing on the stairs. The Buckner Mansion has gained recent popularity from the show "American Horror Story: Coven," featured as Miss Robicheaux's Academy.
1239 First Street is another important mansion to visit. Once owned by Anne Rice, this mansion is commonly known as the Rosegate House. Anne Rice used the setting of this home for her novel series "The Mayfair Witches," which was first written in the '90s. Although Rice never saw her herself, Miss Pamela Starr Crapp, who lived in the house at the turn of the century, has been spotted in the living room by people who lived in the house before Rice.
If you want to take a look at a mansion fit enough for Mark Twain parties, then visit 1315 First Street. A man named Joseph Carroll used to be known for throwing many lavish parties in 1886, and Mark Twain was one of his frequent guests. This pink mansion is still known as the Joseph Carroll House today.
The Payne-Strachan House, located on 1134 First Street, is the house where the President of the Confederacy, Jefferson Davis passed away. Davis was visiting a friend, and during the visit started to feel poorly, where he ended up dying of double pneumonia. It is reported that he still haunts the house, asking "Where are my boots?" as he walks up and down the halls.
Along with the ghosts, the Garden District also houses multiple celebrities. Sandra Bullock bought herself a house on Coliseum Street, and has since adopted two children from the area and donated to a local school. The Manning House is located on First Street and is where the Manning boys spent most of their childhood. John Goodman also shares a street with Sandra Bullock and has lived in the Garden District since 2005. Most recently, in the beginning of May, Beyoncé and Jay Z purchased La Casa de Castille located on Harmony Street of the Garden District.
