French Quarter Journal Home

Everyday life in an extraordinary neighborhood.

Scroll down for our latest in-depth stories by our FQJ team of writers and photographers.

Our digital journal publishes three new stories 46 weeks a year. Subscribe to our weekly newsletter for alerts when new pieces are published.

Like to get in on the ground-floor and become a sponsor? Contact us. Have a story idea? We'd love to hear it. Email our editor, Rheta Grimsley Johnson.

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Rainbow History

The Many Hats of Barbara Scott

Barbara Scott has worn the many hats of her life with both style and grace: politician, restaurateur, hôtelier, artist, preservationist, gerontologist, feminist - and social justice warrior.

- by Frank Perez

The Eyes Have It
photographers loose in the Quarter

Andrew Simoneaux's French Quarter

Photographer Andrew Simoneaux found himself visiting the French Quarter almost every day to seek out shots. Last year, he made life easier by becoming a neighborhood resident.

The images he selected to include in this photo essay were taken from the end of August into the first week of September, during the Southern Decadence festivities.

Balcony View
publisher's notes

Fiesty Forebearers and a Contemporary Challenge

Digging into the history of the French Quarter's indie newspapers, magazines and journals reveals an intriguing past and a few surprises.

-by Ellis Anderson

What's in Store
neighborhood shopping

The Four Aspirations of Sophie Omoro

Before she'd turned twelve, a young girl in a small Kenyan village made an ambitious list of life goals. Becoming a fashion designer was only number two.

-by Ellis Anderson

Boho Back Pages
offbeat history

Genevieve Hooper, AKA Kumi Maitreya. Photo courtesy Douglas Gordon.

The Sound of a Positive Vibration

Was the matronly New Orleans stenographer who founded a French Quarter temple the guru everyone in the 1960s was seeking? At least one follower still believes.

by Michael Warner

Boho Back Pages is sponsored by Hines Hall

Darling...
French Quarter Social Scene with Margarita Bergen

~ The Social Swirl
~ The Fabulous Future
~ Quarter Buzz

New Orleans socialite and long-time French Quarter denizen Margarita Bergen doesn’t miss a beat - or a party - when it comes to the Quarter’s jazzy social scene.

There are three sections to each "Darling" column: Social Swirl (where Margarita's been), The Fabulous Future (what's ahead) and Quarter Buzz (things she knows that we mere mortals aren't privy to).

St. Peter Street Sketchbook
creators to know

The Portraits of Emilie Rhys

The daughter of noted New Orleans painter Noel Rockmore has blazed her own creative trail, yet there's a similar and mysterious depth in the work of both artists.

- by Grace Wilson

It's a Living
unconventional entrepreneurs

On the Frontlines with Badass Uncle Sam

Providing "the neighborhood’s only explicitly political street entertainment," a former liberal named Michael DeBari draws both fans and fire at his outpost near the French Market.

-by Andrew Cominelli

It's a Living is sponsored by a Friend of FQJ

Quarter Notes
guest columnists

The Black Penny

This North Rampart Street bar offers all the elements needed for a great neighborhood hangout according to this month's guest columnist, Konrad Kantor.

Personalities

Living in a Tennessee Williams Play

The man who made the Quarter's literary legacy come alive with his walking tours and Tennessee Williams lore: a visit with Kenneth Holditch on Frenchman Street.

by Rheta Grimsley Johnson

Full Plate
neighborhood restaurants

Manolito: Toasting the Patron Saint of the Cuban Cocktail

Rooted in Cuban traditions, the fledgling neighborhood bar has garnered national recognition and won a loyal local following.

- by Reda Wigle

Quarter Beats
music scene

Swamp Moves on a Summer Night

This jazz duo and their musical guests filled a hidden upstairs bar on Decatur Street with laughter and jazz - and an excellent vibe, even in the thick of summer.

- by Christopher Romaguerez

Passing a Good Time
with Nan Parati

Sweet Tea and Miss Geraldine

A summer afternoon quest for caffeine in the Quarter nets an old book, a new friend, and a gander at 300 naked people riding bicycles.

- by Nan Parati

Behind the Scenes
people who make it all work

The Sticky Business of Carlos Buesos

Long before first light, this eradicator of property defacement begins his hunt through the Quarter, determined to scour graffiti and stickers from public property.

- by Dar Wolnik

Around the Block
longtime Quarterites

Looking for Peace in New Orleans

One of the first Flea Market and Jazz Fest vendors, Cruz Sanchez still works in the Decatur Street store he founded fifty years ago - an island of calm in the midst of the French Quarter's whirl.

- story by Kirsten Reneau

It's a Living
unconventional entrepreneurs

What We Talk About When We Talk About Hustling

Ride along with this award-winning writer to learn a few of the everyday challenges - and unexpected rewards - of making a living as a French Quarter pedicabber.

-by Andrew Cominelli

Boho Back Pages
offbeat history

That Heathen Crowd at the Green Shutter

In the Roaring 20s, feisty Uptown socialite Martha Westfeldt opens a French Quarter bookstore that becomes Bohemia Central.

- by Michael Warner

StarScope
monthly horoscope

September 2019

Virgos - you'll have a period of exceptional clarity and can make decisions more easily this month. If you're a Taurus, there’s no point in stressing over what you can’t control. And Leos, this is a good time to extend the olive branch and make amends.

- by Dina Cavanaugh