If you've ever stood in Jackson Square and admired the red brick buildings with intricate cast iron balconies, you were looking at the work of Micaela Almonester, the Baroness de Pontalba, who survived being shot four times by her father-in-law.
Heiress of New Orleans
Born November 6, 1795, in New Orleans, Micaela inherited her father's vast fortune at age two. She was married at 15 to a French cousin and moved to France, where her father-in-law shot her four times in 1834. She survived.
Building the Pontalba Buildings
Starting in 1849, she oversaw construction of two massive buildings flanking Jackson Square. Their ornate cast iron galleries set the architectural standard for the French Quarter. She died in Paris in 1874.
Dirty Coast Connection
Nola Gothic channels the architectural drama Pontalba created. Be A New Orleanian Wherever You Are: she built New Orleans' most iconic space from across an ocean.
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