6018 Benjamin St
New Orleans, LA 70118, USA

Pessou House (Clement House) - National Register of Historic Places

Statement of Significance:

The Clement House Is locally significant in the area of architecture as an Important example of an Italianate residence. It Is typical in many respects— I.e., a five-bay Doric post gallery, a large central dormer, oiel-de-boeuf motifs, a central hall plan, decorated aedicule motif mantels, and shiplap siding. In many ways It represents a humble version of the classic New Orleans raised villa. It Is of a type, however, which Is unusual in the "uptown" Audubon Park area of New Orleans, most of which Is characterized by the Queen Anne Revival or later styles, and very unusual within the subdivision of Bloomingdale.

According to the New Orleans Preservation Resource Center, the Clement House Is the only noted raised cottage or "villa" style house in the subdivision of Bloomingdale. Bloomingdale was the narrowest of a series of subdivisions laid out In the mid-nineteenth century by speculators and developers like Dominique Francois Burthe, Cornelius Hurst, Francois Robert Avart and John Green. Green was responsible for the subdivision of Bloomingdale, which had a single street. State, running from the river to Claiborne. It Is shown on an 1860 surveyor's map as a series of thirty-four half squares running on each side of State between the river and St. Charles. Nothing had been laid out beyond St. Charles.

Although these subdivisions which became uptown New Orleans were laid out beginning in the mid-nineteenth century, almost nothing was built for over 40 years. With a few exceptions, the lots which were bought were held as Investment property and not built upon until the turn-of-the-century when the uptown area was Intensively developed with builder vernacular Queen Anne Revival row houses, shotgun houses, etc. Prior to that time, the uptown area was regarded as the "country" and suburban or country type houses were built there. These Included a handful of Italianate raised villas. Today this pre-Queen Anne Revival house type Is unusual in the uptown area. Thus, the Clement House stands as a rare architectural survivor of the first phase of development in the uptown area and is consequently one of the area's landmark structures.

NB: The "uptown" Audubon Park area of New Orleans Is an area of approximately 180 square blocks bounded by Jefferson Avenue, St. Charles Avenue, Broadway, and the Mississippi River, and encompassing Audubon Park.

The above assessment was based upon a windshield survey of the area by the Preservation Resource Center.

Photo by Mr. & Mrs Rutledge C. Clement Jr.