Mapping the Mid-Century CBD

With so much development underway in the Central Business District, it seemed the right time to mention R. Johnston Riker's mid-century map. Referring to the area as the "Coeur d'Or" -- the Golden Heart -- Riker mapped New Orleans from the Mississippi River to Loyola Avenue and from Canal Street to Poydras. By indicating banking institutions, jewelers, realtors, department stores, trade organizations and petroleum interests numerically in relationship to one another, Riker established the thematic clustering of these enterprises.

The map also included the ill-fated Riverfront Expressway tunnel between the Rivergate ["Exhibit Hall"] and the World Trade Center ["Trade Mart"].

Image above:  R. Johnston Riker. Golden Heart/Coeur d'Or District: Financial Business Professional Wholesale Center. New Orleans, undated. Toledano, Wogan and Bernard Office Records. Box 7. Folder 13. Southeastern Architectural Archive, Special Collections Division, Tulane University Libraries.