St. Louis Cathedral
Three churches have stood on this spot since 1718 — the second burned to the ground on Good Friday 1788, and the one standing today has been in use for over 230 years.
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One of the oldest cathedrals in continuous use in the United States (alongside the Royal Presidio Chapel in Monterey, California), it started as a crude wooden structure in a French colonial outpost and survived a catastrophic fire before the Spanish rebuilt it in 1794. It anchors Jackson Square between two historic civic buildings, the Cabildo and the Presbytère, facing the Mississippi River — a site that has been the religious and civic center of New Orleans since the city's founding.
What to look for
- The central tower added in 1819, designed by architect Benjamin Henry Latrobe, which gave the facade its clock and bell
- The bell itself, embossed with the word 'Victoire' to commemorate the Battle of New Orleans
- The flanking Cabildo and Presbytère on either side — together with the cathedral they form the defining colonial-era wall of Jackson Square
On the promenaded block of Chartres Street between St. Peter and St. Ann Streets in the French Quarter, next to Jackson Square and facing the Mississippi River.
St. Louis Cathedral is one of 5 sights worth the detour in New Orleans, all bundled offline in Voyage GO — download the New Orleans pack and it sits on your map with no signal, filling your travel passport the moment you walk past.
More to see in New Orleans
- Tulane UniversityFounded in 1834 to train doctors during yellow fever and cholera outbreaks — the South's second medical school, still standing.
- Caesars SuperdomeEight Super Bowls, one hurricane shelter, and the largest fixed dome on Earth — all in one building.
- Smoothie King CenterLocals call it The Blender — a $114 million NBA arena that became a field hospital when the Superdome next door couldn't cope after Katrina.
- Bourbon StreetA French name on a Spanish street — three empires compressed into twelve blocks.