Paris History of our Streets

19/11/2024

Porte Saint Denis Paris 75010

This morning when I passed this stately edifice built in 1672 by Nicolas Francois Blondel, I thought to myself, what does LUDOVICO MAGNO mean?

A quick google research revealed TO LOUIS THE GREAT (duh..!)

Bold? Yes! Arrogant? Oh yeah… But you gotta give credit where it’s due..

When King Louis XIV ordered the demolition of Charles the V’s medieval fortification that had surrounded and protected Paris since the 14th century, he was basically flexing France’s recent warmongering success by saying his city no longer needed such old school protection. Instead of reinforcing Paris, he opened it; sticking two triumphal arches along the same fortification route that is today part of les grands boulevards.

Standing there looking up at this exaggerated doorway , I had this image as Louis reincarnated as Gaston from Beauty and the Beast boldly declaring « So you wanna wager war on Louis the Great do ya?! Well go ahead Holland, give us your best shot! The door(s) are open! »

Do you see the resemblance ?

11/11/2024

100 Years of the Bibliotheque « Heure Joyeuse »
6 Rue des Prêtres Saint Severin 75005 Paris

While Happy Hour is usually synonymous with adult entertainment, the Heure Joyeuse library is entirely dedicated to children and is the first of its kind in France.

Founded in the aftermath of WWI on 12 November 1924, the library was rather experimental and based on successful American models with the goal of encouraging children to read without discrimination of gender or class.

Supported by librarian and advocate for child literacy France Eugène Morel, the project was approved by the city of Paris and provided children a safe place to go and read books in the company of other children at no cost.

As the first director Claire Huchet said “It’s more of a reading room, a friendly home than a place where books are kept. Shelves accessible to a ten-year-old with flowers, curtains, a lot of calm and serene joy”. Claire with her colleagues Marguerite Gruny and Mathilde Leriche (see photo) were the first librarians and remained with the library until 1968.

The name “Heure Joyeuse” / “Happy Hour” is said to come from the reading hour given to the children by veteran soldiers, especially treasured by the many little ones who lost their fathers to the brutality of WWI. (Historians have estimated that 1.3–1.5 million French soldiers died in combat, representing between 16% and 18% of the male population).

The original location was at 3 rue Boutebrie until moving in 1974 to celebrate its 50th anniversary to the current location at 6 rue des Prêtres-Saint-Séverin.

Not only can you go there to read and borrow books, but they also have an extensive collection of games and host monthly workshops and activities.

The library will be celebrating their 100 year anniversary next weekend with a special kermesse/festival on Saturday 16 November.

Black and white photos courtesy of paris

19/10/2024

Short Post about a Short Street (the shortest in Paris!)
Rue des Degrés Paris 75002

3.3 metres wide
5.75 metres long
300+ years old

03/10/2024

1st Eiffel Tower Slinky?!

Last week we took the stairs instead of the elevator to summit the Iron Lady (much easier to get a reservation, also significantly cheaper!) with the intention of putting the stairs to the slinky test.. did we succeed ?

Mostly no, turns out the stairs are too wide to support Slinky Aerodynamics. However we did find a small portion of a staircase that allowed our sad slinky to slink down a few steps.

Not sure when exactly the Eiffel Tower stair evolution occurred (certainly before the price for a coupe de champagne rose from 10€ (2013) to the current rate of 19€) but I feel like we would have had more successful slinky action on the original staircase still on display. (See comments below)

Can you guess (without cheating!) how many stairs there are to the 1st floor?

It was surprisingly easy to take the stairs, probably because you can take your time and enjoy the increasingly expansive view of Paris below your feet as you climb!

Tour Eiffel
📸

22/09/2024

The Frenchiest crêperie that I ever did see

20/09/2024

Tomorrow begins my favorite weekend of the year in Paris - Les Journées du Patrimoine/Heritage Days!

Stop by the Association Paris Historique at 44, rue Francois Miron in the 4th to check out the 13th century gothic cellar and admire the vaulted arches I once assisted in restoring!

12/09/2024

La Porte Saint Denis, through the ages..

This medieval fortification wall that was built to surround and protect Paris in the 14th century may no longer exist, but there are still bits and pieces of it to remind you of its existence hidden around the city.

On Rive Droit, the Saint Denis “doorway” still exists here on Les Grands Boulevards, the lively and wide street which follows the traces of the old wall.

The original gate was more imposing and less decorative, but it was rebuilt with this Triumphal Arch you see today on the command of King Louis XIV in the 1670’s by architect Francois Blondel.

According to legend, the Sun King liked to play the 17th century version of Ding D**g Ditch here, pi***ng off the guards who had to lower the drawbridge each time he would ring the giant bell before running away with glee. 😆

📷 1. 1889, Léon and Lévy
📷 2. 1955, Janine Nièpce
📷 3. 2020, Paris History of our Streets

07/09/2024

The Home of Lucile Desmoilins
22 rue de Condé 75006

“In this house lived Lucille Duplessis; guillotined April 13, 1794, before her marriage with Camille Desmoulins.”

After a long summer hiatus , .history.of.our.streets is back to busting out our favourite French Historical Rhapsody’s!

What better way to kick off the season than to share my very first post from way back when in 2018. I rode my bike down Rue Condé often and it always amazed me that the same view I had was more or less the same as what Lucile had 200+ years prior. What also intrigued me was that at the time, I had no idea who she was.

And I’m sure most of you don’t either, although you might recognise the name of her husband Camille Desmoulins, who was a journalist and well known French Revolutionary. Childhood friend of Robespierre and close friend of Danton, Camille was passionately committed to his Republican beliefs and these many- among many others, stoked the flames that ignited the French Revolution.

Unfortunately as those flames grew uncontrollably to become the Reign of Terror, Camille felt Robespierre was talking things too far so he changed his alliances and distanced himself from the powerful Robespierre.

Which is what led to his downfall, taking his loving wife with him.

Their marriage was known to be a strong one and the letters we still have today are a bittersweet testimony of their commitment to each other, and also their political beliefs.

Camille was arrested in early 1794 and sentenced to be guillotined on April 15th. En route to the scaffold Camille learned that Lucile had also been arrested and knowing they would likely share a similar fate - went mad with grief just before his death.

Lucile was guillotined April 13th. She was 24.

The Desmoulins were condemned by Robespierre himself, who was a witness at their wedding and Godfather to their son.

🖼️ Portrait of Lucile Desmoulins by Louis-Léopold Boilly

🖼️ Portrait of Camille and Lucile with their son Horace by Jacques-Louis David

05/09/2024

Elementary School Damesme Paris 75013
Back to School/La Rentrée
Today vs 1956

It’s that time of year again! Back to school/La Rentrée!

When I came across this lesser known Doisneau photo a few years ago during Covid I immediately knew I had to do a comparison shot.

What I came back with was more powerful than I intended and I love analysing the changes!

Aside from Covid mask (thank god those days are mostly behind us), the addition of lush greenery, and the School Crossing sign being swapped for a Don't Enter one, what are the noticeable differences between these two photographs for you?

I love the contrast between the smiling boy's short shorts and the stoic pose of this masked little girl in her athletic tracksuit. I bet that little boy and his buddies would be tickled to know their school would be “mixte” (boys AND girls) in the future!

Times have certainly changed in 65+ years. But for most places in the world, the first day of school remains the same..

My daughter started CE2 this year in a new school and the mayor of our arrondissement Florence Berthout (who often shows up at schools to greet les inhabitants du 5ème) kindly agreed to take a photo with her which made Jayce’s first day of school even better!

📷 Robert Doisneau "Les écoliers de la rue Damesme" 1956

Mairie du 5e Paris
Ville de Paris

04/09/2024

Updated: GOT SOME!
Paris friends! Anyone have leads on Paralympic tickets? Looking to get 2 tickets to anything just so my daughter and I can have the experience. I’m checking ticket platforms (including resell) too.. thanks!

27/06/2024

The Archeological Crypt of Notre Dame Cathedral

Notre Dame Cathedral is the most visited monument in Europe, receiving about 12 million visitors annually (in contrast to the Eiffel Tower, which receives about half that) and as many as 30,000 people per day. If you’ve ever walked past the parvis mid-day (the open area directly in front of the cathedral doors), you know this isn’t an exaggeration; the notoriously long, snaking line to enter seems to have a life of its own as it twists and turns with no formal line boundaries to accommodate everyone waiting to get in.

The funny thing is that as these people gaze up towards the 850+ year old towers, an entire museum lays right under their feet.

The Archeological Crypt of the Parvis of Notre-Dame Paris is my favorite under-rated Paris attraction that doesn’t even make a bleep on most tourist radar; its overlooked entry sits just beyond the parvis.

Which is disappointing, because here under the cathedral beats the historical heart of Paris, and walking through it brings you back through 2,000 years of history to a time when Paris was known as the Gallo-Roman city of Lutecia.

Throughout Paris and especially on the île de la Cité (the small island where Notre Dame sits and the very center of the city) the history of the city remains underground and built up in layers, with entire time periods superimposed on each other.

You do some serious digging around here and would be bound to hit a goldmine of history. Which is exactly what happened here in 1965 when construction crews discovered vestiges dating as far back as antiquity while they began work for an underground parking garage (which never happened thank god).

Over the next 15 years, excavation teams uncovered the foundations (dating as far back as the first century AD) of entire neighborhoods as well as a shipping port, sections of former ramparts, wells, even Roman baths where a sub-ground heating system can still be seen.

Incredibly, with the help of historical records researchers were even able to identify the owners of medieval cellars uncovered here!

Over time, these were covered and new homes were built on top of the old ones, slowly raising the ground level and modifying the shape of the island as time went on. When they were rediscovered, instead of covering them up to be forgotten; they were carefully unearthed and studied, then transformed into this fabulous, interactive museum which opened in 1980.

I highly recommend anyone interested in Paris history and archeology to check out this museum, (tickets are only 5 euro!) which is always free of lines and crowds unlike other popular tourist attractions.

Its not huge but if you want in-depth information of how Paris has transformed itself through the past two millennia you could easily spent an hour or two here. It's also a great place to escape heat!

Have you visited the crypt? If so, what did you think?

16/06/2024

Beautiful rainbow tonight at 🌈

06/06/2024

D-Day Anniversary

Today is the 80th anniversary of D-Day and I wanted to share a picture of my grandfather Russel Walesh, who was drafted into the Navy during WWII as a senior in high school and arrived on Utah beach the day after D-Day.

I don't have any connections to France like genealogy or Francophiles in my family that sparked a love for this country- but I do have this inexplicably special connection knowing my grandfather was here for the aftermath of this historic battle that still unites Americans and the French decades later.

I was one of the first in my family to visit these beaches in 2013 and in October of 2022 I got to take my dad, who knows more about WWII than anyone I know. Throughout my whole life, this guy put up with family vacations to Disney and water parks always saying his dream vacation was to visit the WWII sites and Normandy beaches. It was so special to share that experience with him.

My grandpa didn't talk much about his WWII experiences, but he did write a letter detailing this time later in life to one of his daughters (he had 14 children, one of which is my dad) saying briefly that he "saw action, dead Americans, Germans, all kids and a few old men"

I think about that sentence a lot, so matter of fact and without unnecessary detail- but very powerful considering he describes these dead soldiers not as enemies, but as nothing more than kids- when he was still a kid himself.

He died when I was still very young and I often wonder what he thought about France during his time here.

I'd love to hear if any of you have family who were present for DDay.

04/06/2024

Happy 118th birthday to my historical Girl Crush and female idol: Josephine Baker.
You know whem people ask that question about who you'd choose, living or dead, to have a dinner party with? She'd be my choice, and we would likely make fools of ourselves drinking too much champagne.
But we wouldn't care!

There's something about the way she seemed to never take herself too seriously, which is a quality I greatly admire 😉

So much more than an entertainer, Josephine was also a member of the French Resistance, political rights activist, and mother to 12 children she adopted.

As of November 30, 2021 she became the 5th woman, and first woman of color, to be interred in the Pantheon for her work with the French Resistance during World War II, as well as her post-war work on civil rights both in France and the US

Does anyone else think she needs a biopic film about her fascinating life?
Who would play her? Samira Wiley has my vote!

01/06/2024

King Louix XIV and the Poison Affair
23 rue Beauregard Paris 75002

Witches? Curses? Poisons, Black Masses, and Baby Sacrifice?

No its not Halloween, what I’m talking about is 17th century France and the true spooky scandal that rocked the court of the Sun King Himself!

At this time, witchcraft was sooo like old school 15th century and generally considered harmless or just nonsense for women to seek the help of a bit of black magic to concoct love potions or have their fortunes told.

But things got out of control in the 1670’s when numerous nobles of the King’s court were implicated with some pretty gruesome acts of sorcery.

It all started in 1670 when the Marquise of Brinvilliers was found guilty of poisoning her father and brothers so she could inherit the family fortune and live happily ever after with her lover. Confessing under torture we fondly recognize today as waterboarding; she was burned at the stake and then beheaded.

Around the same time, the Duchess of Orléan (sister in law to King Louis) Henriette also died suddenly under suspicious circumstances. Whispers began to turn into rumor and the police rounded up many alchemists and fortune tellers who were known to practice the dark arts. Looking for people to blame, the accused were tortured and sang like birds when names were demanded. Unfortunately for the King, this backfired because the names included many prominent members of his court, including his long-time official mistress Athénaïs, the Marquise de Montespan.

According to testimony, she sought out the magic services of the notorious Midwife turned Occultist Catherine “Lavoisin” Deshayes (see photo). On several occasions, Montespan was said to have performed Black Masses with Lavoisin at her evil Baby Killing Poison Factory home and other secret locations. Hoping to revive the King’s fading interest in her, it was claimed that during these ceremonies she would act as an alter; lying naked on a table with a bowl on her stomach, where blood from a murdered baby would be collected. This would then be secretly given to the King to consume, acting as an aphrodisiac.

Allegedly.

Many of the accused claimed to have spoken out falsely during torture, or gave names to avoid a worse fate. In addition, all court documents were eventually destroyed. When everything started to go B-A-N-A-N-S, the King created a special court to expedite the trial and sweep the whole scandal under a rug. Of the 400 people accused, 23 would be banished and 36 executed for witchcraft and murder.

On the 22nd of February 1680 at the Place de Grève (Hotel de Ville today) Catherine Lavoisin was burned alive to the delight of a roaring public. Found guilty for practicing black magic and murder, it was said the bodies of more than 2,000 babies were buried in her garden at her home formerly located on 23 rue Beauregard, (see photo) where she performed abortions and her infamous black masses.

And since nothing cools off an already compromised relationship like rumors of murder conspiracy and Baby Blood Soup, the Affaire des Poisons would mark the end of Madame de Montespan’s reign as the King’s VIP Mistress.

27/05/2024

Check out the podcast I recently had the pleasure of doing with The Earful Tower about the less picture perfect side of Paris that I've grown to love during my 10 years in Franceland.
Fun Fact - The Earful Tower was the first podcast I started listening to 8 years ago and at the time Oliver had 10K followers. I thought that was admirable so when I started Paris History of our Streets not long after, I had 10K followers as my goal, and I'm currently not that far off! So if you haven't already done so, please follow, like, and share!

Let's take a deeper dive into Paris with Morgan Walesh from "Paris history of our Streets".

14/05/2024

The Real FIRST Photo of a Human?
First of all..

Can I just say how much my mind is blown when I read into little historical details?

I lost myself over two hours hunting through online archives of Louis Daguerre, the Father of Modern Photography- and I'm thoroughly tickled.

Here is allegedly the FIRST photo of not one but TWO humans, and how perfect is it that the first outdoor picture in Paris also is on the city's oldest bridge, The Pont Neuf?

Can you spot the people?

Sprawled out on the steps leading up to the famous statue of King Henry IV appears to be a couple dry hu***ng but is more likely maintenance workers taking a break with a few PBR Tall Boys after working on the statue.

You can see their work bench behind them and upon closer inspection, there are no ladies present.
(Damn You Patriarchy)

But there's more magic!

You can see the coupole of the Bibliothèque Mazarine on the left, and the Grande Gallerie of the Louvre on the right- just like we see them today.

The original 9 arched metallic Pont des Arts rises almost alien-like in the distance; the one we know today was built in the 1980s.
Is anyone else geeking out that this photo is from nearly 200 years ago??

It's like Inception Style Photography. We can almost see the eyes of people that might have seen the French Revolution which happened only 50 some years prior, with their eyes!

(Unlikely yes, but lets take it back another level to their parents' eyes! Or their grandparents! Ok ok I'm reactivating my totem before my imagination traps me into 18th century France)

While there are controversies regarding the validity of the date, (it's current home at the Musée des Arts et Metiers dates it from 1836-1839) based upon its reference in letters written by Daguerre in January 1838- recent studies agree its very likely this "photo" was done before the famous Boulevard du Temple one in spring of 1838.

MIND BLOWN 🤯