Pontchartrain Park, built between 1955 and 1961, was one of the first suburban-style subdivisions developed for African Americans in the segregated South. Located in the Gentilly neighborhood, where many affluent white residents were moving at the time, Pontchartrain Park attracted middle- and upper-class African American residents and became a symbol that the American Dream could be a reality for everyone.
The neighborhood, situated around the Joseph M. Bartholomew Sr. Golf Course, features winding residential streets with ranch-style homes. “Growing up here was like being in Mayberry,” said early resident Dwight Richards.
The neighborhood suffered catastrophic flooding from the levee failures after Hurricane Katrina, but residents’ tireless efforts restored many of the homes, and the family-friendly neighborhood continues to attract new families today. The Preservation Resource Center partnered with the Pontchartrain Park Neighborhood Association to nominate the neighborhood to the National Register of Historic Places in 2020.