Fifteen years and 38 million dollars later, The Historic New Orleans Collection unveiled a glorious new addition to their galleries on April 6th at 520 Royal St. in the heart of the French Quarter.
The Seignouret-Brulatour mansion was built in 1816 by Francois Seignouret who emigrated from France in 1808 and established a successful furniture business. He fought in the 1815 Battle of New Orleans and wanted to live in the Quarter. He envisioned a business on the first floor with a versatile courtyard and a terraced roof for his family to enjoy. The balcony is decorated with the extensive ironwork emboldened with an “S” for Seignouret. Later he developed a wine importing business from his native Bordeaux and sold the building in 1865.
Pierre Brulatour, another wine merchant, purchased the property in 1870 and owned it until 1887. Afterwards William Ratcliffe Irby, a tobacco magnate, completed some extensive renovations and the site housed the New Orleans Arts & Crafts Club from 1922 to 1933. Station WDSU, the city’s first TV station after World War II, operated out of the building from 1950 to 1997 and it has remained relatively vacant since the purchase by the Collection in 2006. An Aeolian pipe organ that Irby installed on the third floor has been restored and will be functional for many events.
The Sei
