Exploring New Orleans Part II of III: A Visit to Pitot House

Pitot House was designed by architect and builder Hilaire Boutté in 1799
Photo: Chronica Domus

Of all the historic house museums located in New Orleans, it was Pitot House that I was most looking forward to visiting.  Perhaps not such an obvious choice for most visitors of this fair city - a streetcar up to City Park will take you there from the French Quarter - it was a house I had longed to see for myself.  I first read about Pitot House in Vance Muse's 'Old New Orleans, Great American Homes', a book I discovered at a public library early in the 1990s when I first arrived on these shores from England.  A copy of the book now sits on the shelves of my own library.

Photo: Chronica Domus

What drew me to Pitot House was the fact that it looks like no other dwelling I have stumbled across in my new country of residence.  Certainly, one would expect to see such houses in the tropical climes of the West Indies, but here in America?   With its stucco-covered brick and post construction, wide loggia, colonnettes, shutters, and cooling brick floors, this house happens to be perfectly suited to New Orleans' subtropical humid weather.

Although Pitot House is not a grand house, having been built as a family home - it's first resident, Madame Rillieux, was Edgar Degas' maternal great-grandmother - its intimate scale and architectural vernacular make it an endearing one.  Sitting prettily within its lush gardens along the banks of picturesque Bayou St. John, one could happily spend hours sitting idly on the gallery, gazing out at the watery view, or passing the time downstairs picking grapefruits from the garden, or perhaps clipping flowers to bring indoors.  Someone, please, wake me up, I have a blog post to write!

Photo: Chronica Domus

The garden is delineated from the street by rugged old cypress pieux fencing, seen in the first photograph of this post.  Cypress wood is often referred to in these parts as 'eternal wood' because of its rot-resistant qualities.  It does, after all, grow submerged within the swampy environs of the bayou.  Brick walkways, citrus trees, Amethyst beautyberry, as well as a host of other shrubs and trees (Cypress and Magnolia specimens) happily co-exist in the well-tended garden.

Brick paths beckon one to explore the lush gardens
Photo: Chronica Domus

Built as a country retreat in 1799 on a thirty acre plot of land,  Pitot House is the only Creole colonial country house open to the public in New Orleans.   James Pitot and his family lived there from 1810 to 1819.  He was the first mayor of the newly incorporated American city of New Orleans.

Our guide, Ms. Hallie Borstel, points out the position of Pitot House in relation 

to New Orleans on an old map of Louisiana above the fireplace in the dining room

Photo: Chronica Domus

In 1963 Pitot House was moved two-hundred feet east to its present location in an effort to save it from demolition by the Louisiana Landmarks Society.  Since then, the society has done an admirable job of restoring and preserving the house and its grounds for the visiting public to enjoy.

Here's an image of the house in 1965 in the midst of reconstruction
(notice the dormer windows in the roof, now removed, features not original to the house)
Photo: Chronica Domus

Throughout the house are dozens of french doors and windows that catch the cross-breezes when opened, helping to cool the house and its occupants.

Photo: Chronica Domus

The brick-floored rooms and 'cabinets' on the ground floor of Pitot House are multi-purpose rooms where furniture would be moved around according to the family's needs.  The rooms were also used for storage.  

Photo: Chronica Domus

There are no hallways in the house (upstairs one can come and go between rooms using the French doors on the gallery) and the only starcase in the house is located outside.

I love how the handrail curves on this outdoor staircase
Photo: Chronica Domus

Let's look around upstairs
Photo: Chronica Domus

Ascending the staircase one lands at the shuttered gallery.  I loved the colonnettes between the shutters, a detail I don't recall seeing anywhere else prior to my visit to Pitot House.

Shutters help keep the gallery upstairs cool and the rains at bay
Photo: Chronica Domus

A detailed view of the colonnettes that are placed between the shutters
Photo: Chronica Domus

Photo: Chronica Domus

The photograph above shows the French door that leads into a small bedroom.  The room is modestly furnished with an armoire, a few chairs, and a bed.

Photo: Chronica Domus

Beneath the bedspread is a Spanish-moss stuffed mattress that rests upon a rope bed

Photo: Chronica Domus

Another bedroom in the house is set up as the family had it during the hot summer months.  The headboard has been removed and the bed sits forward of the wall to allow for air circulation.  The gauzy canopy helps keep the insects at bay.  Vetiver, a natural insect repellant, was also employed.

This bedroom is set up for the summer season where mosquitoes and insects are at their worst
Photo: Chronica Domus

Evidence of the oft-present need to cool down was everywhere in the house
Photo: Chronica Domus

The view from the upstairs gallery which overlooks Bayou St. John
Photo: Chronica Domus

The French doors on the gallery are used to gain access into and egress from the upstairs rooms
Photo: Chronica Domus

By far the most formal room in the house is the parlor where James Pitot and his family entertained visiting dignitaries, friends, writers, and polititians.  

Pitot favored American Federal furniture when furnishing the rooms of Pitot House
Photo: Chronica Domus

Photo: Chronica Domus

One of the few imported pieces in the house is this French pianoforte, a belated wedding
present to Genevieve-Sophie, Mr. Pitot's second wife (the first, Marie-Jeanne, died during
childbirth) - the portrait is of James Pitot
Photo: Chronica Domus

The elaborately carved fireplace lends an air of formality to the room
(of interest to film buffs: the upper panel's floral decoration was done for the filming of
Interview With A Vampire and has yet to be removed)
Photo: Chronica Domus

A final bedroom completes the tour of the upstairs of Pitot House.  The portrait over the fireplace, which is not original to the house, is of Genevieve-Sophie Pitot.

Photo: Chronica Domus

A portrait of Genevieve-Sophie Pitot hangs over the bedroom fireplace
Photo: Chronica Domus

In 1819 James Pitot's finances forced him to leave his West Indies inspired country retreat on the bayou and return to New Orleans.  He lived there until his death in 1831.  I am thankful to the Louisiana Landmarks Society for having the foresight to save this handsome house and James Pitot's legacy so that we fortunate visitors are able to enjoy it today.

Thanks to Ms. Hallie Borstel's enthusiasm for architectural preservation, our visit to
Pitot House was a fact-filled and enjoyable one
Photo: Chronica Domus

I highly encourage visitors to New Orleans - too many of whom never explore much beyond the French Quarter - to ride the streetcar up to City Park and walk the few minutes it takes to reach Pitot House.  A tour of  this Creole country abode set upon the waters of picturesque Bayou St. John is a real treat indeed and could, possibly, be the highlight of their visit to New Orleans.  It certainly was for me.

Photo: Chronica Domus

Pitot House is located at 1440, Moss Street, New Orleans, LA 70119.  Please check the website for opening hours.


Nota bene: I am neither paid nor do I receive recompense in exchange for applauding products or services within my blog.  I do so because I enjoy them.  If you are a kindred spirit, you too enjoy recommending nice things to fellow good eggs.

A Visit to Gore Place

Nota bene: While poking around the back-of-house section of my blog recently, I was surprised to discover an unpublished post I wrote last summer following my visit to Boston and upstate New York.  Here is that post today for your reading pleasure.


I can't recall which book it was that I first saw an interior photograph of Gore Place, the 1806 Federal-era grand country estate in Waltham, Massachusetts.  Since that first sighting, the house has been on my "must see" list.  As luck would have it, Gore Place is just a stone's throw from Boston so I took the opportunity to visit with my family on our way to upstate New York back in late-June.

Photo: Chronica Domus

Upon arrival, we were enthusiastically herded greeted by Rocket, the resident Border Collie dog.  Rocket forms part of Gore Place's welcoming committee along with this gentleman:

Please meet Mr. Thom Roach

Photo: Chronica Domus

Our tour of the house and sprawling grounds was patiently and knowledgeably orchestrated by Mr. Thom Roach who delighted in the fact that we were an eager bunch bursting with questions about the house and its contents.  As the sole participants of his tour, we were fortunate indeed to have Mr. Roach's undivided attention.  "For a historic house", he tells us "Gore Place happens to be a little under the radar".  Perhaps by writing about it here on Chronica Domus, all that might one day change.

The bucolic fifty acre estate belonged to Christopher Gore, a prominent lawyer and politician, and his wife Rebecca.  Mrs. Gore was very influential in the design of the house and worked with Jacques Guillaume Legrand, a Parisian architect, to realize her dream of creating a stylish and comfortable country retreat. Much of Gore Place's furniture was made locally and remains in the house today. Visitors can identify these pieces by the informational tags attached to them.

Entering the house through the east door, we step into an inviting entrance space complete with an elegant curved cantilevered staircase. Mr. Roach points out evidence of an early version of a central heating vent tucked beneath the staircase.

Gore family portraits line the staircase walls

Photo: Chronica Domus

We are then ushered into the Great Hall.  This is the space I had seen photographed in a book long ago, and which had stirred my desire to one day make a pilgrimage to Gore Place.  In that photograph, the hall was set up as a dining space, complete with a Chinese export porcelain laden table, klismos chairs, and French Empire candelabra atop twin pier tables positioned in front of mirrors to capture the glow of candlelight.  Stepping into the Great Hall today, I was somewhat taken aback by its eye-popping transformation.  Save for the distinctive floor pattern, I barely recognized the place!  Here is the hall today ...

One of two fireplaces that heats Gore Place's Great Hall during cooler weather
Photo: Chronica Domus

... and this is how it looked around the time I saw it photographed in a book many years earlier:

Photo: Damie Stillman
Source

The Great Hall set up as a dining space much as it looked when I first
espied it in a book long ago
Source

The Great Hall has metamorphosed into a far more vibrant space due to the recent addition of the bold pink and blue block-printed French wallpaper and border, recreated from a document found in the house.  The hall, I learned, now appears as it did shortly after the house was built in 1806.

The Great Hall's floor is made of cooling Pennsylvania King of Prussia marble

Photo: Chronica Domus

If I am perfectly honest, I much prefer the soothing tone of the painted walls, as historically inaccurate as that may be.  Those Federal-era decorators were no shrinking violets, that's for sure!

Next, we enter the oval-shaped drawing room.  The triple-hung windows, when not shuttered as on the day we visited, reveal south-facing views of verdant lawns beyond.

This is one of two handsome Federal mahogany sofas gracing the oval drawing room

Photo: Chronica Domus

Mr. Roach delighted in revealing to us Mrs. Gore's china closet, ingeniously situated between the oval walls shared by the Great Hall and the drawing room.  If that's not an efficient use of an awkwardly-shaped space, I don't know what is.

Tucked between the drawing room and the Great Hall is a small china closet whose shelves groan with Chinese Export and Old Paris Porcelain - Mrs. Gore placed the closet there for efficiency and for its proximity to the basement kitchen

Photo: Chronica Domus

The library is located in the east wing of the mansion and is a particularly comfortable room in which to study.  This is due to the plentiful natural light that streams in through four large windows.  The handsome fireplace was carved by Samuel McIntire.

The nine foot round mahogany library table dominates the room and provides
ample space for studious pursuits

Photo: Chronica Domus

A pair of silhouettes hang on the library's walls - might they 

possibly be Mr. and Mrs. Gore?

Photo: Chronica Domus

In a nearby small parlor, a table is set with seasonal ingredients available to the family in 1806.  This is the salad course.

Photo: Chronica Domus

If only every slab of fresh creamy butter was such a work of art!

Notice how the bread roll is tucked into the napkin, exactly as Mr. Gore's butler,
Mr. Robert Roberts, would have placed it

Photo: Chronica Domus

When we first arrived at Gore Place, Mr. Roach ushered us into the house through the east door.  We now stand at the west entry of the house which was primarily used by Gore Place's visiting tradesmen.  The room is sparsely but beautifully decorated with silver candle sconces, Windsor chairs, two clocks, and few other embellishments.  I rather liked this unfussy space.  The flooring is constructed of the same King of Prussia marble as is found in the Great Hall.

 Photo: Chronica Domus

Keys found around the property hang on what appears to be a decorative, and
covetable, brass George Washington curtain tie back

Photo: Chronica Domus

Below shows the small room that Mr. Gore utilized as his office.  With its cheery apricot colored walls and the four windows filling the room with light, I can well understand Mr. Gore's desire to spend time here.  Tackling the business of bill paying and other administrative tasks would certainly become a more pleasurable undertaking when conducted from the confines of this cozy and well appointed office.  

Mr. Gore's comfortably furnished office

Photo: Chronica Domus

Below shows yet another dining table.  This room is where the family ate their breakfasts.  Boiled eggs are on this morning's menu.  Interestingly, when the Gores lived in the house, eggs were a seasonal food item and unavailable during the winter months.  

A striking floorcloth is placed atop the gray painted floorboards in the breakfast room
Photo: Chronica Domus

Time to go upstairs

Photo: Chronica Domus

With all the setting of tables, stoking of fires, and running up and down flights of stairs, is it any wonder that the poor butler was so exhausted!  Fear not, for he enjoyed his own special place to sooth his weary feet upstairs on the mezzanine level in the butler's chamber.

A foot bath at the ready to receive the aching feet of Mr. Robert Roberts, Mr. Gore's trusty butler

Photo: Chronica Domus

Every butler's duty revolves around his master and attending to his wardrobe needs.  Below is a corner of Mr. Gore's dressing room.  It is here that Robert Roberts assisted Mr. Gore with his daily dress and with the care of his master's wardrobe.

Mr. Gore's dressing room 

Photo: Chronica Domus

An early-nineteenth century popcorn maker at the ready in one of the upstairs rooms

Photo: Chronica Domus

It's all fun and games as we walk into the oval billiards room, situated directly above the downstairs oval drawing room.  The room happens to hold the second oldest surviving billiards table in the United States.

The billiards table fills almost the entire oval room and looks particularly smart
with its epaulet-like pockets

Photo: Chronica Domus

Mr. Gore purchased the billiards table in 1805 and it remained in this room
until 1910 when it was sold to a local family for $15 - it returned home in
1935 when the house became a museum

Photo: Chronica Domus

A tranquil corner of the guest bed chamber with a beautiful painted wallpaper that
would not look so out of place in a modern interior
Photo: Chronica Domus

Making our way through the remainder of the upstairs bed chambers and sitting room, we again find our way downstairs via the main staircase.

Although not so obvious in this photograph, the stair treads are painted to resemble the gray 

and white marble of the entrance hall's floor which was quarried in Pennsylvania

Photo: Chronica Domus

Once outside the house, Mr. Roach walks us over to the immaculately restored carriage house.  Built in 1793, the structure housed wagons and horse-drawn carriages.

Photo: Chronica Domus

The carriage house is divided into four sections; a tack room, a harness room, the horse stalls, and a carriage room.  Believe it or not, the structure has endured two moves in its long history and is now, thankfully, back in its original spot on the property.

The tack room is as neat as a pin
Photo: Chronica Domus

Any horse would be delighted to be put up in these stalls

Photo: Chronica Domus 

Photo: Chronica Domus

A country carriage, along with the Gore's city carriage sit in the carriage house today
Photo: Chronica Domus

Mr. Roach's pride in showing us around Gore Place was more than evident, and his enthusiasm was contagious.  We thoroughly enjoyed our visit thanks to him and left with a better understanding of how life was lived in this marvelous Federal-era country estate.  Our only regret was not setting aside enough time to explore the remainder of the property and farm.  There is always next time I suppose.

Borrowing ideas from the English landscape style of Humphry Repton, the Gore's
planted broad lawns and many trees on the property
Photo: Chronica Domus

Please do make it a point to visit Gore Place when you next find yourself in nearby Boston.  It is a mere thirty minute car ride from the bustle of the city and well-worth your time.

Gore Place & Farm
52 Gore Street
Waltham, Massachusetts
Tel: 1 781 894 2798
https://goreplace.org/