House of Patterns - Original Plans for First Street

"Be very careful.  It's old and it's gloomy and it's...it's not perhaps what it seems...It's not a grand house at all.  It's some sort of domicile for something.  It's a trap, you might say.  It's made up of all sorts of patterns.  And the patterns form a sort of trap." Gerald Mayfair's words of warning to Rowan, WH pg. 805

While browsing, I came across these plans for the First Street house in Lives of the Mayfair Witches.  It is known in New Orleans as the Brevard-Clapp-Rice house and is about as old in real life as it is in the books.  Take a look...and scroll to the bottom of the page for a new link to an excellent resource!

The Front of First Street

 

The house is sometimes called "Rosegate", supposedly for the rose patterns worked into the iron curlicues in the gate.  A fitting name for such a beautiful home, I think.

 

Southwest Elevation

The Keyhole Doorway

It is here, at the keyhole doorway, that a vital clue to Lasher and the true legacy of the Mayfair Witches lies.  Rowan is the key and the house is the doorway through which Lasher will "come through", making his goal of being in the flesh a reality.  Michael Curry is puzzled by the bas-relief of this same door way on the Mayfair Crypt and realizes, perhaps too late, that the twelve crypts with the doorway as the thirteenth portal, is a symbol of Rowan's twelve ancestresses and of Rowan as the thirteenth witch, the Doorway of Lasher.

Keyhole Doorway

The Garden Side of First Street

The side facing the garden where Antha "jumped" to her death, but we now know she was pushed by Carlotta in a desperate attempt to stop Lasher. 

Side Porch, Kitchen and Servant's Quarters of First Street Garden Side

Floor Plan of first floor at First Street

Authentic New Orleans

Anne Rice bought the Brevard-Clapp house, reputed to be haunted, upon her return to New Orleans in the late 1980's.  The house that was initially to be the setting for The Witching Hour was originally blocks away, but upon Rice's taking up residence at First Street, this changed.  The house, in its real history, has changed owners throughout the years, but during Rice's residence, it was featured in Lee Bailey's New Orleans, a cookbook of recipes that are part of what makes New Orleans famous for its cuisine and entertainment.

The Brevard House

Here is an older document I found on the Internet after a Google search on 1239 First Street.  It contains historical, architectural and landscaping data on the First Street house and was compiled in 1964 at the time Judge Wisdom and his family owned the house.  It is an interesting read.  Take a look!

Click Here to Download 1964 Historical File on 1239 First Street

NEW!  The link below will take you to the Library of Congress Public Domain Archive, where you may view (and zoom in on) both the plans and historic photos of the house's interior!

Albert Hamilton Brevard House, 1239 First Street, New Orleans, Orleans Parish, LA