Gracious Center Hall Cottages

by Clint LaCour

Common throughout the American South, the Center Hall Cottage style is one of the most gracious in New Orleans. Built during the mid-1800s, its characteristic feature is its namesake: a long, interior center hallway that runs the entire length of the home, from front to back. Often substantial in scale, many generous center hallways have the airy width to accommodate sideboards, armoires, artwork and more — with ease and beauty. Some can be 50 feet long, making them rooms unto themselves. Helping with ventilation, the Center Hall style encourages air to flow in, down the hall, and then back out.

The front façade of a Center Hall Cottage often boasts grand stairs leading to a deep front porch that spans the width of the home, featuring columns and symmetrical windows on either side of the front door. Center Hall Cottages also tend to feature side gabled roofs with dormer windows. They can be raised two to eight feet off the ground, and stand more than 1.5 stories high.

Usually made of wood, Center Hall Cottages can be found all around the city, from the Garden District to the Carrollton area to Bayou St. John. Often built in the Greek Revival and Italianate styles, as well as Victorian, many Center Hall Cottages have been beautifully restored and renovated, enjoyed by their owners and appreciated by passers-by.

See this historic Center Hall Cottage listing in the Bywater: