Flashlight to Streetlight
Freret Street, New Orleans, LA.
Named for the antebellum New Orleans mayor and cotton magnate William Freret, the street has had a long history as a commercial corridor. A streetcar track was installed in the 1920s, and many Jewish and Italian merchants opened here, swelling the number of businesses from just six in 1909 to 80 by the 1930s, according to the Preservation Resource Center. As early as the 1950s, however, the familiar story of white flight to the suburbs and the rise of larger retailers elsewhere in the metro area began to take its toll. The corridor lost 20 businesses between 1952 and 1972. In recent years new development has seen the rise of privately owned businesses and a resurgence of new home owners in the area.
Freret Street, New Orleans, LA.
Named for the antebellum New Orleans mayor and cotton magnate William Freret, the street has had a long history as a commercial corridor. A streetcar track was installed in the 1920s, and many Jewish and Italian merchants opened here, swelling the number of businesses from just six in 1909 to 80 by the 1930s, according to the Preservation Resource Center. As early as the 1950s, however, the familiar story of white flight to the suburbs and the rise of larger retailers elsewhere in the metro area began to take its toll. The corridor lost 20 businesses between 1952 and 1972. In recent years new development has seen the rise of privately owned businesses and a resurgence of new home owners in the area.