 |
|
The University of New Orleans is planning to renovate the old 'Lighthouse at Pontchartrain Beach' now owned by the university.
|
Hey Blake,
I recently read or saw something about the "Pontchartrain Lighthouse." Where is it located and how can I contact the agency that might be responsible for it? As a former member of the U.S. Coast Guard, I think it would make a great project to rehabilitate and want to see what can be done.
Phil Casper
Dear Phil,
Let me assure you, the Pontchartrain Lighthouse -- also known as the Milneburg Lighthouse -- is in good hands. It is owned by the University of New Orleans and is located at the end of Elysian Fields Avenue at the Research and Technology Park. The university has plans to refurbish the old lighthouse, which at one time was a part of the Pontchartrain Beach Amusement Park.
Milneburg's Port Pontchartrain was the lake's first artificial harbor. Alexander Milne, the Scot who settled here and grew rich, built, along with other investors, the Pontchartrain Railroad in 1831 that ran down Elysian Fields from the Mississippi River. People could then take a boat across to the Northshore. The group of investors built its first lighthouse in 1832, an odd device that resembled a French Revolution guillotine about 50 feet high.
In 1834, Congress appropriated money for a replacement, but it was not completed until 1839. It was an octagonal wood tower with a flashing light, but stood only 28 feet high.
In 1852, Congress voted $25,000 for harbor protection and $6,000 for a new lighthouse, which was begun and finished in 1855. The apparatus from the old tower was placed in the new tower and then replaced by a more powerful lens in 1857.
The shape of the lighthouse was changed when the top of the brick tower was flared out and the height increased by 7 feet to make room for the installation of a new lantern in 1880. At one time the lighthouse was 2,100 feet offshore, but as a result of landfill projects it now stands on dry land
An especially interesting fact about the last years of the lighthouse is that its last three keepers were women. Often the keepers' wives would help their husbands, learning the trade at the same time. When widowed, the women would take over the job. From 1882 until 1929, when the lighthouse was deactivated and turned over to the New Orleans Levee Board, Ellen Wilson, Margaret Norvell, and Mrs. W. E. Coteron were in charge. Norvell received public recognition for providing shelter in the lighthouse for about 200 storm refugees during a 1903 hurricane.
Hey Blake,
I was wondering if you know the name of the old plantation home in Arabi on Friscoville Avenue and River Road. Have there been any plans to restore it? Who owns it? It just seems strange that such a beautiful old house would be left to ruin.
Jeffrey Kruebbe
Dear Jeffrey,
In 1967 the house you are asking about -- the Le Beau House -- was bought by Joseph Meraux of St. Bernard Parish. He died in 1992, leaving the house -- part of an estimated $50 million fortune -- to Arlene Soper, his sole heir and companion of 23 years. Preservationists, of course, are deeply troubled over the slowly decaying home that is the last grand River Road plantation within the New Orleans vicinity.
It is believed that the Le Beau House was built in 1854 by Francois Barthelemy Le Beau in the Greek Revival style. From the cupola he could see his entire plantation, the Mississippi River and the city of New Orleans. After acquiring the property in 1850, Le Beau built the mansion that was obviously designed for lavish entertaining. But, unfortunately, he died shortly after the fine house was finished.
The house remained in the family until 1905, when Louis Edouard Le Beau sold it to the Friscoville Realty Company. This was the last time the house would be used for a home. The company renamed it the Friscoville Hotel, and it remained so until 1926. Then, as if adding insult to injury, the once-splendid plantation home was used in the 1940s as part of the Jai Alai Casino Complex.
We can only hope that someone will save it from total destruction.
