tours of the Pitot House

Our 45-minute tour leads visitors through The Pitot House which was restored to the period when James Pitot and his family lived here, 1810-1819. Our knowledgeable docents tell stories of colonial life from the area’s earliest residents, Native American tribes and European settlers, highlighting several owners, from a Spanish merchant to a devout religious order. One of the house’s most prominent residents was James Pitot, born in Normandy , France, who was appointed by Gov. Claiborne to the municipal council and named New Orleans’ first mayor after the city’s incorporation in 1804.

The signing of the treaty between United States and Spain, signed at San Lorenzo in October 1795 retroceded Louisiana from Spain to France for a period of three years, creating excellent commercial opportunities and allowing, for a period of three years, American citizens to deposit merchandise in the port of New Orleans and export them duty-free. Navigation of the Mississippi River from its source to the Gulf, was then open to U.S. citizens for trade.

After becoming a naturalized U.S. citizen in Philadelphia in 1796, Jacques-Francois Pitot Americanized his name as James Francis Pitot. Arriving in New Orleans with his compatriot, Jean Lanthois, the partners established the mercantile firm of Lanthois & Pitot.