Louisiana State Museum at The Cabildo

Located next to St. Louis Cathedral and facing Jackson Square, the Cabildo was built under Spanish rule in 1795-1799 and named after the municipal governing body that was located there. Before the transfer of the building to the state museum in 1908, the Cabildo served as a city hall, a courthouse and a prison. The site of the Louisiana Purchase Transfer and the flagship building of the Louisiana State Museum historical museum complex. The name of the governing body who met there was the "Illustrious Cabildo" or city council. Over the years, the building also served as the home of the Louisiana Supreme Court; it was here that decisions in the nationally significant Slaughterhouse and Plessy vs. Ferguson cases were handed down. It was established as the home of the Louisiana State Museum in 1911. In 1988 the Cabildo was severely damaged by fire. Over the next five years, the landmark was authentically restored using 600-year-old French timber framing technology. It reopened to the public in 1994 with a comprehensive exhibit focusing on Louisiana's early history.