New Orleans daily crescent., 1866-03-26
T,. rnx,rou. of new orleans.
MEMBER THIRTY -FOUR.

French barracks, which WeEe Aoiis'..S - -,
road we mentioned that the street caiiea nosp.,a'
street. now running from Rampant TOWARDS ae
r;var was at the time of our arrival IN ioie sun
,,nnnened. Its name arose from the puiialhg then
snciosr within the walls Of the garrison quarters
servine for the military hospital, standing exactly
,,,o tls site of the opening of that thoroughfare
Hence. when in 1S20or '22 the government decided
mon transferring the garrison quarters outside OF
the city Of New Orleans, which had always been
reputed more or less unhealthy for the stay Of
masses of Federal soldiers this build
ms, the military hospital, was demolished, and
he opening of this street thus effected. At this
same time, the adjoining corporation Of the ursn-
inc nuns resolved to transport their establish
ment to new locality, which had been selected
by them at small distance from the city,a little
lower down the river, below the different suburban
outskirts and this change of the religious estab-
lishment also Afforded an opportunity for opening
the cross streets Of Conde and Royal, through the
vast gardens of the convent, which had been COM
prised within the enclosures of the Ursuhne Sisters
real estate. By the breaking up Of these two pub
lie properties the United States barracks and the
vast enclosures Of the convent, serving as play
grounds for the pupils, as fruit and yegeaple
gradens- the square proper Of the guy VIZ III.
siderably improved, the more so as these elpsy
vacant lots were afterwards sold at ane1ion y ~
respective parties, and built upon " hunoel "
individuals who were but too eager ~ -. s,s
eligible sites for private residences fisns ~ Wv
midst Of The most frequented part OF .ne
We ought. here, to mention that Wnen 'he ohiteu
States property was sold at ancton' ne y ~
one way or another, II SO happened that NO otner
bidder yentured upon the acquisition than old Mr.
Jobn McDonogh, who would always be found
where good bargain in real estate could be driven
Indeed Ne cannot recall to our memory what the
narticular reasons were which prevented our
other city capitalists from making this purchase J;
suffce to say, the millionaire McDonogh got
What. in common parlance, is named real bargain
N this adjudication, for the sum was trifins in
comparison to the extent of property. But, what
had been expected by every one who knew the
disposition Of this peculiar man, became soon
manifest; for, instead of improving the vacant
lots OF taking down the old barrack buildings
which could hardly serve even for warehouses, in
the state of dilapidation in which they had been
left, under the fully formed perspective Of their
ultimate abandonment by the United States gov
say, instead Of beginning even to fill
M the lots, which were full of holes and water
fakes, this place continued under the ownership
of McDonogh as thongh no change were contem-
plated by its actual possessor.
y Under these circumstances it became question
of what should be done with this piece of ground,
and the neighbors all beginning to grulnbe about
such a singular procedure on the part OF real
estate owner, who was known topossess the means
of erecting fine dwellings thereon if SO disposed,
but whom no consideration could prevail to swerye
from his iyariable rule, that of acquiring old pro-
psrties and leaving them to be improved or to be-
come valuable by the surrounding improvements
fthe neighborhood I've say, the complaints about
such conduct became almost general aud were
formed matters for debate in our city council.
Now this was Just what our millionaire undoubtedly
had expected and now came forward with the
liberal proposition to recede his bargain to the
city Of New Orleans ut something like ten for one
that isto say, the property which had cost him il
the neighborhood of some $4,000, he resold t.
the corporation for 100000. Well, we presun'
the city fathers foresaw that there was no othe
way to get the improvements which other citizen
were willing to undertake, and therefore no doubt
closed the bargain. It may also be that even a
| that time MeDenogh had already intimated t
solne of the influential members of the council
that what thee city was then paying him, woul,
Zone day be returned to the citizens, in as much a
he intended leaving his vast estates to the public
on the poor of the country. 8 e9zasT
But supposfng this really to have been the case
think that stili the cityconncl acted wrongfnlly
in making such a bargain, upon which the city
actually lost at least two-thirds of the purchase
money. BY decision of the Supreme Court, th'
untoward contract Of the council was, however
confirmed, ard thus the heavy loss entaisd upol
the community. We say, the heavy loss, Tor whei
we come to compute all the expenses and Law
syitswhich the McDonogh succession has occa
stoned to our city, andswhengwe ,noreover, forsee
that there hardly will be an end to the litigation
which this estate will perpetuate among our com
munity, we think it would have been better t
| have repudiated the whole Of this enormous bur
then of landed estates and disputed title claims o
linterminabie, territorial domains. As it is, par
of tile property has been divided with the city 0
| Baltimore, which now, no, doubt, owes or pays
considerable amount of city and State taxes; an
other parts must haye been assigned to the ya
rous other Interested parties such as the Africa
colonization society, the model farming school Q
the young mechanic institution, and yariouso othe
economical establishments, which the testator
fancy had created in his last will, when executio
Of which was LETT to double set of executors
say sorae twenty-four in number. a u 9las'a
Besides the vast buildings of the barracks pr
per and the military hospital, there were yarior
other outbuildings still existing when these PR
perties were thus brought under the hammer
the public auctioneer. Weffound upon the iopenc
ground, after the enclosures had been taken dow
several brick buildings that had served as militar
bakeries; other erections, in half state Of ruiz
were, no doubt, for public forges or making (
carriages all these denoted the most remot
origin, and may have dated from the very begil
ning Of the city foundation. This we infer fro
the nasare of the material of which they WEI
formed, the bricks, sand and mortar being indee
of the time when the first of the manufai
ture of these articles must have been made upo
the shores of our river, Whilst thus treating {
the ancient military establishments in the city {
New Orleans iii 1916, we will remind the reade
what in former numbers we had occasion to stat
to-wit: that we ourselves, found no other yestige
of the fortitications with which our city had one
been surrounded than the little Fort st. Charles
at the site of the present United States Min
There was at tie fft Of Canal street. not far frol
the isaiated United 'rites Customhouse, then OF
cupyiIg a small pl.se In the middle of q partl
enclosed space, (ne@ built upon by the preser
granite structure, ssysing for United States Gu
tomhouse. postoffiee, Federal courts, etc.,) Sol
Of small earthw6rk fronting the river, whic
might have been stand for q signal gun or son
military outpost, to match, perhaps, the upper pa
- 4y. .+rao,,, III An lfsf,t kent from view by the a.