Suffice it to say that in its 171-year history, 1527 Washington Ave. has seen a microcosm of New Orleans’ history pass through its walls.
It’s a history that Hugh Evans, who owns the home with his wife Sarah, enjoys sharing with the many passersby who stop in front of his house.
“I like to sit on the porch. The corner is the epicenter for tourists to get off the streetcar to go to Commander’s (Palace) or explore Lafayette Cemetery,” he said. “The streetcar lets them off at the (downtown/riverside) corner of St. Charles and Washington. This is the first historic residential structure they see. They stop to read the plaque out front. I fill them in on the rest of the house’s history. It’s a lot of fun if you are an extrovert.”
The raised center hall cottage was built in 1853 for Lothrop Lewis Smith, a commission merchant, in a Greek Revival style adapted by local craftsmen to address the region’s climatic demands.
The house changed hands several times before Col. Isaac Patton of the Confederate Army purchased it in 1873. In 1878, Patton became the mayor of New Orleans. Following his death in 1891, the property was rented by George Soulié, a French national from Paris whom Hugh calls “the Blaine Kern of his time.”
Soulié designed costumes and floats first for the Mystic Krewe of Comus and later for the krewes of Rex, Momus and Proteus. When he died in 1910, the New Orleans Times-Democrat said it was the death of “a boy who lived 74 years without becoming a grown-up.
“Mourners included Comus and his Krewe, Proteus, Rex and his Court, the Knights of Momus, Jack the Giant Killer, Tom Thumb, Cinderella, Prince Charming, Snow White and Rumpelstiltskin,” the newspaper wrote.
By 1911, what would become Tharp-Bultman-Sontheimer Company, a business providing livery, undertaking, and funeral services, had moved into 1527 Washington Ave. The business was best known for employing Viola Corrine Auburtin, a “lady embalmer noted for her delicacy with arteries,” who worked exclusively on women and children, according to a 1915 article by The Times-Picayune.
While serving as a rental property, 1527 Washington Ave. made news again in April 1933 when police raided it and found $20,000 of equipment capable of distilling 500 gallons of high-grade alcohol daily. The hooch was distilled in the basement and stored upstairs. “The ceiling in the kitchen was cut out to provide for five copper columns that extended to the second floor and the attic where 3,500-gallon vats of mash were stored causing visible sagging in the ceilings of the lower rooms,” reported The Times-Picayune. The clandestine plant could easily produce $250,000 worth of alcohol per year.
With this multi-layered history, Sarah and Hugh Evans, natives of New Orleans, fell in love with the 6,500-square-foot house in 2020 after living in Baltimore for nearly 30 years. Both are children of devoted preservationists. Hugh is the son of Sally Reeves, the former archivist of the New Orleans Notarial Archives who co-authored Volumes IV, V and VII, of the “New Orleans Architecture” book series, published by the Friends of the Cabildo, and wrote an essay in PRC’s new book “Painting the Town: The Importance of Color in Historic New Orleans Architecture.” Sarah is the daughter of Monroe Labouisse, Jr., a New Orleans architect intimately involved in the preservation movement.
“My father was an aficionado of old houses,” said Sarah, a writer for the Audubon Nature Institute. “He instilled in his three children a love and admiration of historic homes, no matter how simple or grand. So, it’s an honor to live in a neighborhood like the Garden District and walk around daily admiring the architecture.”
“I used to go with my mother to the old Civil District Courts Building when she was there doing title research for the archives, which was all the time,” Hugh said. “The value of historic architecture was imbued in both of us as children.”
After nearly 30 years away, the couple knew when they moved back to New Orleans that they wanted a “house with character and history,” said Sarah. “We love the porches on our house, both front and back. We wanted a home that would accommodate our four kids and be inviting to out-of-town visitors.” The house has a separate space for visitors downstairs and an inviting patio and pool where the family loves to spend time. “It’s a beautiful house, to be sure, but it’s also a very livable home, not overly fancy, and we like that,” she said.
The Holiday Home Tour is a self-guided walking tour that explores the interiors and grounds of several stunning homes all dressed up for the holidays in the historic Garden District of New Orleans. Festivities also include live musical performances, a festive boutique, and more! This beloved event returns December 14th & 15th for its 49th year. Learn more and get tickets
