Guided Tour Booking Required
Daytime Guided House Tour
Docent-led tour of the 1831 Federal-style townhouse including the only extant horse stable and 1830s open-hearth kitchen in the French Quarter.
- Duration:
- 1 hr
Museum / Historical Site
Hermann-Grima House
1831 Federal-style mansion in the French Quarter, built for German-Jewish immigrant merchant Samuel Hermann; visitors report well-mannered apparitions, lavender scents, and fireplaces lit by unseen hands.
820 Saint Louis Street, New Orleans, LA 70112
Age
All Ages
Cost
$$
General-admission museum tour pricing; check site for current rates.
Access
Limited Access
Historic structure with stairs and uneven surfaces; limited accessibility.
Equipment
Photos OK
Est. 1831 · National Historic Landmark (1974) · Only extant horse stable and 1830s open-hearth kitchen in the French Quarter · Rare American Federal-style residence in a predominantly Creole district · Operated as house museum since 1975
The Hermann-Grima House at 820 St. Louis Street was completed in 1831 for Samuel Hermann, a Jewish immigrant who had arrived in Louisiana from Germany in 1804 and built a fortune brokering cotton between New Orleans merchants and European buyers. Architect William Brand designed the Federal-style townhouse with restrained brick facades, a center-hall plan, and a rear courtyard featuring detached service buildings—an arrangement common to the French Quarter but executed here in a notably American architectural vocabulary.
Hermann's prosperity collapsed in the cotton panic of 1837. After filing bankruptcy, he was forced to sell the home in 1844 to Felix Grima, a prominent judge and notary, who lived in the house with his wife Adelaide and their nine children. The Grima family sided with the Confederacy during the Civil War and remained in the residence until 1921.
In the 1920s, the property was acquired by the Christian Woman's Exchange, which operated it as a boarding house for single women until 1975. Following extensive archaeological and archival research, the building was restored to its antebellum appearance and reopened as a historic house museum.
The Hermann-Grima House was designated a National Historic Landmark on May 30, 1974. It preserves the only extant horse stable and 1830s open-hearth kitchen in the French Quarter, both of which feature in regular cooking demonstrations and interpretive programming. Today the museum is operated by The Woman's Exchange and remains a key stop on French Quarter historical tours.
Sources
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hermann%E2%80%93Grima_House
- https://www.hgghh.org/
- https://neworleanshistorical.org/items/show/1385
Apparitions of a 19th-century couplePhantom scents of roses and lavenderFireplaces igniting without sourceCold spots near the wine cellar
The Hermann-Grima House is widely described in regional ghost-tour literature as one of the friendliest haunted houses in New Orleans. According to Ghost City Tours and Nola Ghosts, the most commonly reported phenomena include the scent of roses or lavender (often attributed to a Grima family matriarch), fires that appear to ignite themselves in the parlor and bedroom fireplaces during winter, and apparitions of a couple in 19th-century attire moving through the public rooms.
Some accounts describe a less hospitable atmosphere near the wine cellar, where staff have reported cold spots and a brooding presence. Tour operators sometimes attribute these reports to Union soldiers who occupied the home during the Civil War occupation of New Orleans, though this attribution rests on tour-operator tradition rather than primary documentation.
Multiple regional sources note that the spirits described here are consistently characterized as polite and unobtrusive—what Ghost City Tours calls 'some of the friendliest souls in the city.' No injuries, malevolent encounters, or formal paranormal investigations are documented in the available record.
Notable Entities
The 'Widow Grima' (Adelaide Grima or another family matriarch, per tour-operator tradition)A male presence in 19th-century attire
Plan Your Visit
1 way to experienceSources & Further Reading
Every HauntBound history is researched from documented sources. We clearly separate verified historical fact from paranormal folklore.
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Frequently Asked Questions
Is Hermann-Grima House family-friendly?
History-museum format with mild-mannered ghost lore; appropriate for school-age children and older. Overall family fit: High.
How much does it cost to visit Hermann-Grima House?
General-admission museum tour pricing; check site for current rates.
Do I need to book in advance?
No advance booking is required, but checking availability is recommended.
Is Hermann-Grima House wheelchair accessible?
Hermann-Grima House has limited wheelchair accessibility. Terrain: Historic structure with stairs and uneven surfaces; limited accessibility..