2000 Franklin - Historic St. Roch

The house at 2000-02 Franklin Avenue, built by Victor Mallu in 1906-07, goes to Sheriff Sale on September 6th due to a code enforcement lien.  Our House Stories continues its commitment to highlight vacant and blighted historic properties going through the city auction processes to save them from further neglect.

Like nearly every property in New Orleans, we can trace the history of the lot back much farther than the house itself.  The square of ground was among the first laid off into lots during the initial subdivision of Faubourg Franklin in 1836.  The oversize map of eleven lots in the new faubourg, drawn by the engineer Schreiber, is now at the Notarial Archives.  The size, condition, and age of that map made it difficult to photograph.  The image at left, however, taken from an act recording the sale of the lot from Theodore Seghers to Thomas Kavanaugh contains a copy of the relevant section of the older map [Lisbony, J. Vol. 12, Act 392, Dec. 29, 1853].  Kavanaugh paid a grand total of $61.25 for the entire square, including a paltry $9.50 for the lot where 2000-02 Franklin stands today, labeled #24 on the map, forming the corner of Promenade Franklin and Rue Celestine (now Franklin Avenue and North Johnson).

Times-Picayune October 3, 1906, p. 10.

Between that 1853 sale and Victor Mallu's purchase of the property in 1906, the property changed hands eight times.  Mallu paid $300 for two lots, now labeled lots 10 & 11 on square 1017, in October, 1906.  Whether or not any of the previous owners intended to build on the corner, they had failed to do so.  Mallu, however, had the building permit in hand before he even signed the papers to purchase the land.  According to the report of the City Engineer, the construction cost $1200.

Times-Picayune, July 12, 1917

Mallu doubled his initial investment when he sold the new building to Louis Artigue on March 3, 1911, for $3200.  Artigue, it seems, had a string of rotten luck during his ownership of the corner lot.  He operated a grocery out of the left side for many years, apparently choosing to lease the space once he purchased the building.  The City Directories list him living elsewhere while a succession of grocers and other merchants occupied the building at 2000 Franklin Avenue.  An article reporting the death of Louis Artigues son, George, on November 15, 1912, states, "Mr.[Louis] Artigue until recently kept a grocery store at Franklin and Johnson streets...The family is well known and respected in the city, especially in the lower district, where Mr. Artigue, the senior, has spent a great portion of his life" [Times Picayune, November 15, 1912, p. 6].  A fire in the rear warehouse that served the grocery store at 2000 Franklin undoubtedly caused Louis Artigues a great deal of grief, as well.  Luckily, the warehouse at the time sat at the very rear of the property, a safe distance away from the house itself.  Finally, in April 1918, the property went to Sheriff Sale for the first time, a process that ended with the auction of the building and its contents in 1920.  [Blueprint at right by Gilbert & Kelly, Surveyors, rev'd 1950, from act before John H. hammel, Jr,, 2/10/1950, New Orleans Notarial Archives].

Times-Picayune, December 19, 1920.

The house saw brighter days in the 1920s and 1930s, when its owners and tenants played host to the polling stations for its precinct of the Eighth Ward.  Ward politics in those days involved many of the same issues we face today, while the politicians themselves seem to have altered their approach to campaigning.  John Fahey, an Eighth Ward leader during the 1920s, discussed the politics of housing issues in the Times-Picayune column, dated August 17, 1922, shown at right.  Then, as now, accusations flew between candidates, though Fahey's frank statement, "I admit I have sold some whisky since Prohibition went into effect, but I am not the only one who has done this," surprises modern ears for its bluntness.  Politicians, like Fahey, and droves of people from the community would have surrounded the house at 2000 Franklin on Election Day.


For a time in the 1950s, the home was owned by Michelina Brocato, widow of Angelo Brocato, they of ice cream fame.  Mrs. Brocato's purchase of the property caused another survey to be drawn, showing that the rear addition shown on earlier maps had been removed entirely by 1954.  Today, a new shed stands, attached to the house.

Considering the local political history that took place at 2000 Franklin, it is altogether fitting that even today campaign signs hang on the front of the house.  We can certainly attest to the liveliness of the neighborhood.  Two separate groups of neighbors approached us as we took our photographs, expressing hope that someone would restore the property soon.  Some remnant of the civic spirit of the 1920s must survive in the area today.  From its origins in the 1830s subdivision of Faubourg Franklin to its present position in the middle of St. Roch, 2000 Franklin has contributed positively and repeatedly to the history of New Orleans.  We hope it survives to preserve its legacy.

939-41 Piety - A House Speaks Out

939-41 Piety, corner of N. Rampart, currently being restored by local realtor Nicholas Scapin.

We confess - we were pretty excited when our good friend Nicholas Scapin asked OHS to research the history of his new restoration project at 939-41 Piety.  Scapin, the mastermind behind "The Crook at Camp & Calliope," had heard rumors about his new home but wanted to get the facts [click the link and turn to page 14 to read about another of Scapin's restoration endeavors].  As you'll see, we were unprepared for the richness of what we discovered!  Since the building is a classic New Orleans corner store, we knew that we'd find more tenants than owners.  Indeed, the storefront has housed a fruit vendor, an ice dealer, a grocery, a shoe repair shop, and most famously, the Crescent Star Bar.  When applying a new coat of bright orange paint, Scapin chose to preserve the white star on a blue background that shines from the Rampart Street side of the building, a constant reminder of the history of his building.

Antonio DeLucca, a fruit vendor, erected the structure in 1894 after purchasing the vacant lot from John Henry Helmke for $400 in January of the same year.  DeLucca, his wife, Catherine Genova, and their seven children moved in shortly thereafter, establishing the storefront for the family business.  Antonio died in 1909, though the family remained in the residential side while leasing the storefront to a succession of small businesses.

While many will remember the corner as the longtime home to the Crescent Star Bar, the Soards' City Directories from the first decades of the 20th century show that the place was not a bar until well into its fifth decade of existence.  The DeLucca's sold the building in 1921 to John Mumesci for $3000.  Click on the image at right to peruse a sample of historic city directories showing the store's tenants!


Those businesses most likely benefited from the august presence of the Piety Theater, across the street at 938 Piety.  The benefits turned to danger, however, on the night of January 29, 1940.  At the time, the residential side of 939-41 Piety was home to the Zanca family.  Mrs. Mary Zanca, the Times-Picayune tells us, was "kneeling in prayer near a window in the bedroom of her home...[when] she saw flames spurting from the roof of the two-story theater building" [Times-Picayune, January 30, 1940 p. 9].  Fearing for the safety of her family, house, and neighborhood, Zanca hurried her daughters, Grace and Providence, to the safety of the street.  In the photo, you can see the immense damage caused by the blaze.  If you look closely, you can also see the edge of our corner store on the left side of the image.

Our research into the history of 939-41 Piety yielded one of the most unexpected pieces of history we've encountered to date.  Mind you, the historians at OHS have over 50 years combined experience writing histories that span the world over, from prehistoric Pacific Island cultures to the 17th century Netherlands, from 19th century Arkansas to 20th century China.  None of that prepared us for the discovery we pulled out of the archives and are now sharing with you.  At left is a newspaper column written by a house.  A corner store/bar/house, to be exact.  Even though the article appeared under the byline of Clarence Doucet, make no mistake - 941 Piety deserves the credit.  The story began in July 1945, when Mrs. Angelina Constanza, wife of Joseph Kirsch, purchased the property for $6000.  She and her husband quickly established the Crescent Star Bar as a popular neighborhood watering hole.  Fast forward to July 1973, when we find the Kirsch's understandably sick and tired of automobiles driving through their front door.  They tried to get the city to put in a stop sign.  When their efforts failed, the house took to print, pleading its case.  The article [left] and its follow up [right], became a landmark in the struggle for house civil rights [Times-Picayune, July 3 & 18, 1973].

Threatened by fire, automobiles, and governmental inaction, the corner store at 939-41 Piety still stands.  Now celebrating its 118th birthday with a restoration from a new generation, its future is no longer in question!

UPDATE 8/9/2012:  A commenter on the OHS Facebook page posted the photo below, taken in the weeks after Hurricane Katrina and the Federal Flood, in 2005.

"You Enter You Will Die" http://www.flickr.com/photos/infrogmation/3198010166/