The Canal Street Historic District

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Canal Street, long considered the retail merchandising heart of the city, began its life in the early 19th century. During the period between 1820 and 1850, the street saw a mixture of residential and commercial construction, including several major residences such as the house built in 1844 at 824 Canal for William Newton Mercer, designed by the architect James Gallier Sr. In the years leading up to the Civil War, commercial building intensified, with a number of cast-iron fronted structures rising on both sides of the street. Only one of these antebellum iron facades, 622 Canal , survives today. It was designed by William A. Freret and was built in 1857. By the outbreak of the war, Canal Street had been transformed into a largely commercial area, with several rows of identical multi-story buildings having been built.

After the Civil War, construction continued, with more ornately detailed buildings indicating the popularity of the Italianate style. Both sides of the 600 block of Canal contain examples of this exuberant style. As the 19th century progressed, a new building type was introduced: the tall office building. The Morris building at the uptown lake corner of Camp and Canal, built in 1889 and rebuilt after a fire in 1901, signified a shift away from purely retail business activity on the street. The interest in large scale structures reached its peak with the construction of the Maison Blanche Building at 901-921 Canal in 1909. The largest historic commercial building in the district, the Maison Blanche Building combined a large department store with an office block in a single, classically ornamented design.

As the 20th century progressed, a number of earlier structures were remodeled so as to modernize their exterior appearance. In some cases, this redesign work simply meant the installation of an applied metal sign panel over the original window openings, as is the case with the early structure at 635 Canal. In more recent years, Canal Street has seen large scale hotel construction.
The visual character of the Canal Street Historic District is defined by multi-story structures of masonry or masonry clad steel frame construction. All of the buildings in the district are built on the front property line, creating a uniform wall of building along the sidewalk. With the exception of a handful of large 20th century buildings, most of the structures in the district stand on lots that are between 20 and 40 feet in width.