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In 1846 Mrs. Eliza Ducros Marsoudet, a free woman of color, contracted with builders "in a separate capacity from her marital community" for $5,800 to construct a large residence for her. Mrs. Marsoudet retained this property until 1875 when it was sold. (Partially summarized from New Orleans Architecture Volume V: The Esplanade Ridge (Gretna, LA: Pelican Publishing Company, 1977), 83. By Christovich, Evans and Toledano.)
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The main house and slave quarters are built using chain-wall construction using bricks made of Mississippi River clay. The house is a center-hall layout which consists of a wide gallery passing through the center of the house, along with spacious living rooms on either side, tall ceilings, and over-sized doors and windows all designed to improve ventilation. As you enter the house, on the left-hand side is a double parlor with a small room to the rear. There are two large rooms on the right side of the center hall, also with a small room in the rear. The second floor of the house consists of one large room running across the width of the house. Separated from the main house is a two-story slaves’ quarters which also contained the kitchen. A large room connecting the main house and slaves' quarters was constructed some decades after the Civil War.
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In 2010, St. Anna's Episcopal Church entered into a lease-purchase agreement for the property. The goal: create a community center that embraced and brought together diverse communities under one roof to be a beacon of hope and a cultural bridge making real our Christian idea, "Love each other". The name was chosen to honor the Rev. Robert J. Dodwell, a former Rector of 25 years, and his wife, Mary King Dodwell, who is still a parishioner of St. Anna's.
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The property had been neglected for years, missing parts or all of the flooring in several rooms, the roof was in poor shape, there were broken walls, ceilings, windows and doors, and it contained tons of trash and debris. Much has been done -- there are now sturdy floors in all rooms, walls and windows have been stabilized, the slaves' quarters have been renovated and are housing two of our Anna's Place staff. We are eager for our program, Anna's Place, to move into their new home and to open our doors to the community, but there is still much to do.
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