On August 16 four members of the Board of Directors of the Foundation for Historical Louisiana drove from FHL headquarters at the Old Governor’s Mansion in Baton Rouge on a historic preservation mission. Sandra Stokes, Jill Rehn, Ory Poret, and Carolyn Bennett had arranged through correspondence with Jerry Jones, Director of Facility Planning in the State Division of Administration, for a first look at the 20 story Art Deco landmark, Charity Hospital, since the doors were shut in September 2005.
Senior Project Manager Mark Moses serving as our liaison with the state and Bob Arnold, LSU Medical Center, would be meeting us the emergency room entrance ramp. We were joined by Dr. Dwayne Thomas, CEO of the University Hospital and Medical Center of NO and Dr. James Moises, a former Charity Hospital Physician. Dr. Moises was standing in for Representative Kenneth L. Odinet, Democrat, District 103. FHL had invited Walter Gallas, Director, New Orleans Field Office, National Trust for Historic Preservation and Crystal Kelly, a Board member from the Preservation Resource Center. The Louisiana Trust for Historic Preservation was invited but due to a scheduling conflict unable to attend. Marvin McGraw, director of communications and media relations for LSU Health Care Services Division appeared as well. Glade Bilby, a professional photographer from New Orleans, was contracted by FHL to document the inspection, especially the “bricks and mortar”—the massive Alabama limestone exterior, the terrazzo floors, the art deco motifs, the countless windows, the miles of hallway and tiles.
The temperature reached surely reach 100 that day and our walk through was set for 1:00 p.m. Preservation, they say, is not for the faint of heart. But we certainly didn’t need face masks, white zip suits, or hard hats. We carried with us the persevering, eyes open attitude of realistic preservationists—we want to see the worst of the building, the best of the building, and we want to use this visit to come up with a plan for the next steps in bringing this structure (which represents so much human energy along with natural resources) back into commerce and for the good of the community.
The Foundation for Historical Louisiana’s involvement came early on after the storms. It was a natural mission-driven fit. Preserving the cultural and architectural heritage of Louisiana is the benchmark of the 1963 incorporated FHL. Additionally, the 1938 Charity structure was designed by the firm of Weiss, Dreyfous, and Seiferth. This same group of architects had created our White House look-alike Old Governor’s Mansion in 1930, the 450 foot high Louisiana State Capitol, the chateau like 1935 LSU French House, and the 1934 jewel box Shushan Lakefront Airport and hangars. PRC was on the front line and working around the clock on behalf of the historic neighborhoods, their residents and residences. FHL was going to make Charity (and Shushan) a priority.
Then in April 2006 FHL leadership learned that the organization had been named in House Concurrent Resolution 89 as a partner to carry out the resolution’s various charges. Namely, “that an independent group shall be assembled to assess the condition of the facility . . . with such group being assembled by the Foundation for Historical Louisiana through its national resources and contacts with architects and those professionals who evaluate historical structures to determine their viability.” Representative Odinet authored this resolution and it received unanimous approval from both House and Senate.
A Historic Structures Assessment is the first step and FHL’s Board will be calling for proposals from qualified firms. Additionally FHL has a set-up a special restricted fund to receive tax-deductible donations obviously needed in order to accomplish the mandate of HCR 89 which interestingly calls for both a report “to examine and evaluate the entire Big Charity structure to determine the advisability of repairing or restructuring the entire facility” and it additionally calls for a specialized report on floors one through three “to determine their viability for interim use to provide medical services including emergency services, psychiatric services, and establishment of clinics and subspecialty clinics.”
FHL has since nominated Charity Hospital (and Shushan Lakefront Airport) to the Louisiana Landmarks Society New Orleans’ Endangered List as well as that of the Louisiana Trust. Both buildings are eminently eligible for listing on the National Register of Historic Places. It’s only the paperwork that needs to be done and the routine procedure on the State and Federal levels that needs to be completed. Unquestionably both of these edifices should be recorded by the Historic American Buildings survey that is administered by the National Parks Service and the Library of Congress.
When President Richard Moe, National Trust for Historic Preservation, addressed PRC members at its May Annual Meeting he referred to the importance of safeguarding these two “treasures in trouble.” A similar situation shaped up in 2004 when Chicago’s Cook County Hospital (of “ER” television notoriety) was placed on the National Trust’s annual America’s 11 Most Endangered List. What a difference three years can make. It is now reported that the Cook Country Board Commissioners have done a prudent and tax-payer-saving about face and are set to preserve and rehab this venerable 250,000 and two block long National Register structure.
After the August 16th visit Mr. Gallas had this to say, “"Charity Hospital is a monumental Art Deco presence in our city. We have to be sure that we have made every effort to fairly assess its structural condition and architectural merits and then engage in a broad-based discussion examining options for its use." The Trust through its Southern Regional Office and the Winifred Evans Byrd Fund for Louisiana contributed a $2,500 grant for this “important historic preservation project” as stated in a letter from John B. Hildreth, Director, to the Foundation.
Frankly Big Charity is a monument that can leave one speechless. Its sheer size, rumored to be one million square feet, is almost incomprehensible and we were surprisingly only permitted in the basement and first three floors. Historic plaques and dedication memorials line its walls and one is overwhelmed by the realization that perhaps there is no other building with such a presence and unique heritage in our state. This patrimony dating back to 1735 when Jean Louis in his last will and testament wrote: “I bequeath to serve in perpetuity to the founding of a hospital for the sick of the City of New Orleans, without anyone being able to change my purpose, and to secure the things necessary to succor the sick.”
This quote comes from the appendix in John Salvaggio, M.D.’s history book entitled, New Orleans’ Charity Hospital: A Story of Physicians, Politics, and Poverty. Now we add Preservation.
Carolyn Bennett
Executive Director
Foundation for Historical Louisiana
A portion of this is in the current issue of Preservation In Print.