City Archives
New Orleans Public Library
Date range: 1930-2001
Size of collection:24 volumes and 21 boxes
Transferred to the City Archives: March 2000 and May 2002
Terms of Access: Available to registered researchers by appointment
The Parkway and Park Commission was established by city ordinance #17703 (Commission Council Series) on November 4, 1949. Earlier bodies with similar authority had been created in 1909, 1914 (ordinance #1945, CCS), and 1934 (ordinance #14098, CCS).
The Commission had general authority to plant, maintain, protect, and care for trees, shrubs, and other plants in all of the public highways, public squares, and other public places of the city. It also established and maintained a nursery for raising trees and plants, employed gardners and laborers, and directed the work of a professional superintendent. The Commission also had duties and responsibilities relating to interactions with private citizens and local businesses on matters involving trees, shrubs, plants, etc.
The Commission passed out of existence with its meeting of July 9, 1996 following adoption of a new city charter in 1995. The new charter provided for a Department of Parks and Parkways that continues the work of the Commission, but is directly responsible to the Mayor and Chief Administrative Officer.
The 2000 accession includes seven bound volumes containing the official minutes of Commission meetings; various documents relating to Commissioners, their terms of office, and their activities; photographs of Commissioners and Commission activities; and other materials. The records document the functions of the Commission and its members, not of the administration and staff working under the body's direction.
The 2002 accession came to the Archives as part of outgoing Mayor Marc Morial's "Legacy Project." It includes twelve boxes of correspondence/subject files, four boxes of publication collected by the Commission and its staff from various sources, two boxes of motion picture films, and seventeen volumes of manuscript records. Included in this accession were some records from the predecessor agencies to the Park and Parkway Commission, records of the Superintendent and staff of the agency, and records of the later Department of Parks and Parkways. Many of the extant records date from the Superintendency of Florence Schornstein. The records filed under Ms. Schornstein's name include materials relating directly to her work with Parkways but also included are documents concerning her involvement in local and national civic, political, and religious organizations. The Commission minutes included with the correspondence/subject files were retained because they include superintendent's monthly reports and monthly financial statements that are not part of the official minute books.
The Archives also holds other Parkway and Park material as follows (see the City Archives card catalog and the Library's automated catalog for detailed holdings):
Box 1
Folder Title | Date(s) | Comments |
---|---|---|
Box 2 | ||
Acreage | 1984 | |
Airline Highway Beautification | 1983-1992 | |
American Golf | 1987 | |
Audubon Boulevard Association | 1983-1984 | |
Audubon Park Commission | 1989-1991 | |
Awards | 1985-1986 | |
Azalea Plants Moved from the Streets to the Nursery, etc. | 1940 | |
Bayou St. John Task Force | 1989-1991 | |
Beautification Task Force | 1984 | |
Blight Strike Force | 1992 | |
Board of City Trusts | 1984 | |
Brechtel Park Advisory Committee | 1983-1984 | |
Bridge Lights | 1989 | |
Budget, Capital (1980-1984) | 1979 | |
Budget, Capital (1982-1986) | 1981 | |
Budget, Capital (1983-1987) | 1982 | |
Budget, Capital (1984-1988) | 1983 | |
Budget, Capital (1985) | 1983-1985 | |
Budget, Capital (1986) | 1985 | |
Budget, Capital (1987) | 1986-1988 | |
Budget, Operating (1971) | 1970 | |
Budget, Operating (1971) | 1970 | |
Budget, Operating (1972) | 1971 | |
Budget, Operating (1973) | 1972 | |
Budget, Operating (1973) | 1972 | |
Budget, Operating (1974) | 1973 | |
Budget, Operating (1975) | 1974 | |
Budget, Operating (1975) | 1974 | |
Box 3 | ||
Budget, Operating (1976) | 1975 | |
Budget, Operating (1984) | 1983 | |
Budget, Operating (1985) | 1985 | |
Budget, Operating (1986) | 1984-1986 | |
Budget, Operating (1987) | 1986 | |
Budget, Operating (1988) | 1987-1988 | |
Budget, Operating (1989) | 1988 | |
Budget, Operating (1989) | 1988 | |
Budget, Operating (1990) | 1989 | |
Budget, Operating (1991) | 1990 | |
Budget, Operating (1992) | 1991-1992 | |
Bywater Neighborhood Association | 1984 | |
Canal Boulevard Neutral Ground | 1985-1986 | |
Canal Boulevard Sunken Gardens | 1984-1990 | |
Capital Projects | 1984 | |
Carrollton Presbyterian School | 1984 | |
Caterpillars | 1985-1993 | |
Celebrate Spring | 1994 | |
Chief Administrative Officer | 1978 | |
Chief Administrative Officer | 1979 | |
Chief Administrative Officer | 1984-1986 | |
Chief Administrative Officer | 1987-1988 | |
Chief Administrative Officer | 1989-1993 | |
Chief Administrative Officer | 1994-1996 | |
Child Care Action Campaign | 1988 | Florence Schornstein was a member of the Louisiana National Advisory Panel |
Box 4 | ||
Christmas in New Orleans | 1990-1991 | |
Christmas Trees, Pointsettias, Gifts, etc. | 1984-1993 | |
City Attorney | 1974-1976 | |
City Attorney | 1977 | |
City Attorney | 1978 | |
City Attorney | 1984-1985 | |
City Council Requests | 1985 | 10% sample |
City Council Requests | 1987 | 20% sample |
City Council Requests | 1989-1990 | 20% sample |
City Council Requests | 1991-1993 | 20% sample |
City Council, Miscellaneous | 1995-1996 | Routine items were discarded |
City Council, Miscellaneous Requests | 1986 | |
Civil Service | 1985-1987 | |
Claiborne Avenue | 1984 | |
Coliseum Square | 1972-1975 | |
Coliseum Square | 1975 | Re: federal grant for upgrade |
Coliseum Square | 1976 | |
Coliseum Square Fountains, Operations Manual | 1976 | |
Coliseum Square Renovations, Operating and Maintaining Manual, Sprinkler System | 1977 | |
Colors of Flowers of Louisiana Iris | 1930 | "Plants collected in Spring 1930, now growing in the New York Botanical Garden" |
Community Development | 1986 | |
Contracts/Concession Committee | 1984-1994 | |
Correspondence | 1987-1991 | |
Correspondence, Miscellaneous | 1979 | |
Democratic Site Selection Committee | 1990 | |
Desire/Florida Area Community Council, Inc. | 1995 | |
District 99 Enhancement Program | 1987 | |
Dragline | 1976 | |
Dryades YMCA | 1984-1985 | |
Duncan Plaza | 1986-1988 | |
East New Orleans Summer Festival | 1985 | |
Edward Wisner Fund | 1984-1989 | |
Empowerment Zone Plan | 1994 | |
Environment | 1992 | |
Equipment Inventory | 1968 | |
Equipment Inventory | 1969 | |
Box 5 | ||
Excursion Streetcar | 1984 | |
Fact Sheet | undated | |
Federated Council of New Orleans Gardening Clubs, Inc. | 1984 | |
Floodwall (Riverfront) | 1984-1989 | |
Floral Clock (Loyola Avenue) | 1964-1970 | |
Fountains | 1984-1985 | |
Freezes | 1984-1990 | |
French Quarter Festival | 1985-1987 | |
French Quarter Mall | 1983-1984 | The mall on Bourbon and Royal Streets |
French Quarter Task Force | 1982-1983 | |
Gautreau's Restaurant | 1991 | Re: neighborhood concerns |
Golf Course Contracts | 1989-1990 | |
Golf Course Income Statements | 1974 | |
Golf Courses | 1986 | |
Governor's Commission on International Trade, Industry, and Tourism | 1987-1988 | Florence Schornstein was a member |
Greenhouse | 1986-1991 | 10% sample |
Grounds Maintenance, Algiers/Central Business District | ??? | 20% sample |
Grounds Maintenance, Algiers/Central Business District | 1984-1985 | |
Grounds Maintenance, Algiers/Central Business District | 1986-1992 | 10% sample |
Grounds Maintenance, Downtown | 1984-1985 | |
Grounds Maintenance, Downtown | 1986-1992 | 10% sample |
Grounds Maintenance, Downtown | 1993-1996 | 10% sample |
Grounds Maintenance, Uptown | 1984-1985 | |
Grounds Maintenance, Uptown | 1986-1990 | |
Grounds Maintenance, Uptown | 1991-1992 | 10% sample |
Grounds Maintenance, Uptown | 1993-1996 | 10% sample |
Housing Authority of New Orleans | 1988 | |
Human Relations Committee | 1990 | |
Hurricane Andrew | 1992-1993 | |
I-10 Maintenance (Morrison Road-St. Tammany Parish) | 1984 | |
Italian & Jewish Renaissance Committee | 1988 | Florence Schornstein was a member |
Jackson Barracks | 1984-1994 | |
Jackson Square | 1984 | |
Jackson Square | 1985 | |
Jackson Square | 1986 | Includes documents relative to motion picture filming in the Square |
Jackson Square | 1987 | 20% sample |
Jackson Square | 1988 | |
Jackson Square | 1989 | |
Jax Brewery | 1987 | |
Joe Brown Park | 1985-1986 | Mostly regarding use of the Park; 20% sample |
Joe Brown Park | 1987-1988 | |
Joe Brown Park | 1989-1990 | 10 % sample |
Joe Brown Park | 1991-1992 | |
Box 6 | ||
Joe Brown Park Ampitheatre | 1983-1985 | |
Kingswood Playground Plan | 1983 | Dumas & Associates, Inc. |
Lafayette Square | 1981-1985 | |
Lafitte Area | 1985 | |
Landscaping Plans for Various Parks and Public Spaces | undated | Palmer Park, Lawrence Square, Annunciation Square, Liberty Place, Margaret Place, Tulane Place, Fischer Park, Zacharie Place, Gilmore Place, Beauregard Square, Samuel Square, Wilson School, McDonogh Place, and other unnamed spaces |
Larkin Playground | 1986 | |
Latter Library Landscaping Proposal | 1985 | Includes snapshots of the building and grounds |
Lee Circle | 1983-1984 | |
Legislature/Congress | 1989 | |
Lighting of the Mississippi River Bridge Project, "Bridge Lights" | 1989 | Request for project participation |
Lot Maintenance | 1984-1985 | Monthly reports and 10% sample retained |
Lot Maintenance | 1984-1986 | Mostly monthly reports |
Lot Maintenance | 1984-1991 | Monthly report for December of each year plus a 10% sample |
Lot Maintenance | 1992-1993 | Mostly monthly reports; other material heavily weeded |
Lot Maintenance | 1992-1995 | Requests to cut individual lots were discarded |
Lot Maintenance | 1996 | Requests to cut individual lots were discarded |
Lots, Liens | 1997-1999 | |
Louisiana Association of Contractors | 1991 | |
Louisiana Nature Center | 1976-1985 | Mildred Fossier/Florence Schornstein were on the LNC Board and the Center occupied space in Joe Brown Park |
Louisiana Nature Center | 1985-1986 | Florence Schornstein was a member of the Board of Trustees and the Center existed on Parkway property (Joe Brown Park) |
Louisiana Nature Center | 1987-1994 | Florence Schornstein was a member of the Board of Trustees and the Center existed on Parkway property (Joe Brown Park) |
Louisiana Philharmonic Orchestra | 1992-1993 | Florence Schornstein was a member of the LPO Advisory Committee |
Maintenance and Service Data for the Spanish Plaza, City of New Orleans | 1978 | |
Maintenance of Park Lighting | 1984 | |
Mardi Gras | 1984 | |
Mardi Gras | 1986 | |
Mardi Gras | 1987-1988 | |
Box 7 | ||
Mardi Gras | 1989-1995 | 20% of routine requests retained |
Mardi Gras Litter Barrels | 1984 | |
Mayor's Budget Priorities | 1988 | |
Mayor's Office | 1985 | |
Mayor's Office | 1986-1988 | |
Mayor's Office | 1989-1992 | |
Memorandums (Lawrence Kuhn) | 1973-1978 | |
Merger of Parkway and Park Commission with the New Orleans Recreation Department | 1985 | |
MetLife Healthcare Advisory Board | 1991 | Florence Schornstein was a member |
Mid-Term Report | 1984 | |
Minutes of Commission Meetings | 1954-1955 | Includes Superintendent's reports and financial statements |
Minutes of Commission Meetings | 1956-1958 | Includes Superintendent's reports and financial statements |
Minutes of Commission Meetings | 1959-1961 | Includes Superintendent's reports and financial statements |
Minutes of Commission Meetings | 1967-1969 | Includes Superintendent's reports and financial statements |
Minutes of Commission Meetings | 1970-1971 | Includes Superintendent's reports and financial statements |
Minutes of Commission Meetings | 1972 | Includes Superintendent's reports and financial statements |
Minutes of Commission Meetings | 1973 | Includes Superintendent's reports and financial statements |
Box 8 | ||
Minutes of Commission Meetings | 1974 | Includes Superintendent's reports and financial statements |
Minutes of Commission Meetings | 1975 | Includes Superintendent's reports and financial statements |
Minutes of Commission Meetings | 1976 | |
Minutes of Commission Meetings | 1977 | Includes Superintendent's reports and financial statements |
Minutes of Commission Meetings | 1978 | Includes Superintendent's reports and financial statements |
Miscellaneous Statistics and Reports | 1931-1943 | |
National Association for Olmsted Parks | 1987 | Annual conference in New Orleans |
National Civic League | 1994 | |
National League of Cities | 1988 | |
National Recreation and Park Association | 1986 | |
National Recreation and Parks Association | 1987 | NRPA's annual conference took place in New Orleans that year |
Native Iris in the Gulf States | 1930 | John K. Small |
Neutral Grounds | 1976-1977 | |
Neutral Grounds and Flooding Committee | 1983-1985 | |
New Orleans East Anti-Littering | 1991 | |
New Orleans East Cleanup | 1984-1986 | |
New Orleans Neighborhood Development Foundation | 1986 | |
New Orleans Recreation Department | 1983-1985 | |
New Orleans Statue of Liberty Centennial Committee | 1983-1986 | Florence Schornstein was an incorporator and member |
New Orleans Town Gardeners | 1985 | |
New Partnerships, Inc. | 1986 | A coalition of business and political women |
Newcomb Boulevard Association | 1984 | |
Nursery Improvements | 1990-1995 | To the Parkway and Park Commission facility in Gentilly |
Nursery inventory | 1941 | |
Office of Employment Training and Development | 1989-1990 | |
Box 9 | ||
Office of Housing and Urban Affairs | 1992-1993 | |
Olympic Torch Relay | 1995-1996 | |
Operating Instructions for Water Spray Fountain at the Spanish Plaza, City of New Orleans | 1978 | |
Operations | 1984-1985 | Mostly reports of scheduled overtime |
Operations | 1986 | Mostly reports of scheduled overtime |
Operations | 1987 | Mostly reports of scheduled overtime |
Operations | 1988-1990 | Mostly reports of scheduled overtime (10% sample) |
Operations | 1991-1992 | Mostly reports of scheduled overtime |
Orleans Avenue Canal Project | 1991 | |
Palmer Park | 1977-1984 | |
Palms | 1984 | |
Papal Visit (1987) | 1986-1987 | |
Park Lighting | 1984 | |
Parkway Partners | 1984 | |
Parkway Partners | 1985-1986 | |
Parkway Partners | 1987 | |
Parkway Partners | 1988 | |
Parkway Partners | 1989 | |
Parkway Partners | 1990 | |
Perceptions of the Jackson Square Complex Using Visitor Employed Photography | 1987/May | Ann Barrett Kennedy (Thesis, LSU Department of Landscape Architecture) |
Planning and Design | 1985 | |
Plant-A-Tree Fund | 1984-1985 | |
Plant-A-Tree Fund | 1986-1992 | |
Planting | 1984 | |
Box 10 | ||
Planting | 1984-2001 | |
Poll--Quality of Life and Government Services in Orleans and Jefferson Parishes | 1986/July | By Dr. Susan E. Howell, University of New Orleans |
Potential Recreational Use of the Mississippi River East Levee Corridor from Baton Rouge to New Orleans, Louisiana | 1980 | Henry Milton Alinger (LSU Thesis, Master of Landscape Architecture) |
Pow Wow | 1993 | |
Poydras Street Beautification | 1984-1988 | |
Press Releases | 1984-1992 | |
Private Lot Maintenance | 1977 | Monthly reports |
Private Lot Maintenance | 1987 | |
Private Lot Maintenance | 1988 | |
Private Lots, Internal Audit | 1992-1997 | |
Privatization | 1993-1995 | |
Productivity Studies | 1984 | |
Professor Longhair Memorial | 1986-1987 | |
Record of Plantings and Costs | 1941 | |
Record of Trees Trimmed and Removed | 1940-1941 | Includes separate record of trees removed by the WPA |
Recreation Policy Advisory Committee | 1987 | |
Recreation Sites and Facilities | 1980-1982 | |
Removal of Dead Trees | 1962-1963 | Following the deep freeze of January 1962 |
Reorganization (Proposed) | 1983 | |
Reports, Superintendent and Treasurer | 1962-1964 | |
Reports, Superintendent and Treasurer | 1965-1966 | |
Republican National Convention | 1987-1988 | |
Samuel Square | 1984-1991 | |
Save Our Trees | 1989-1993 | Re: Buck Moth Caterpillar prevention |
Schornstein, Florence | 1984 | |
Schornstein, Florence | 1985 | |
Box 11 | ||
Schornstein, Florence | 1986 | |
Schornstein, Florence | 1987 | |
Schornstein, Florence | 1988 | |
Schornstein, Florence | 1989 | |
Schornstein, Florence | 1991 | |
Schornstein, Florence | 1992 | |
Shadowbrook Apartments | 1984 | Re: waterscape at Westbend Parkway and General DeGaulle Drive |
Small Business Administration Tree Planting Grant | 1992-1994 | |
South Claiborne Avenue Business Men's Association | 1984 | |
Southern University in New Orleans (SUNO) | 1982-1985 | |
Spanish Plaza | 1984-1985 | |
Special Events | 1987-1989 | |
Spring Fiesta | 1985 | |
Square 26 | 1994 | Warehouse District park |
St. Bernard Triangle | 1985 | |
St. Charles Avenue Committee | 1983 | |
St. Charles Business Association | 1984-1985 | |
St. Charles Streetcar | 1985-1989 | |
Stables | 1984 | |
Streets Department | 1976 | |
Streets Department | 1977 | |
Box 12 | ||
Streets Department | 1984-1987 | |
Teamsters Union Contract | 1970-1971 | |
Three Median Parks: Amelia Park, Hastings Place, Sophie Wright Place, The Garden District of New Orleans | 1975 | Stephen Forrest Finnegan (LSU Bachelor's Thesis, Department of Landscape Architecture) |
Today Show (NBC) | 1985 | |
Town of Carrollton Marker | 1984 | |
Tree Appeal Committee | 1984-1985 | |
Tree Appeal Committee | 1986 | |
Tree Bids | 1994 | |
Tree Contract | 1984-1995 | |
Tree Damage | 1983-1986 | 10% sample |
Tree Department Monthly Reports | 1984-1987 | |
Tree Inventory | 1984-1993 | Proposals/projects--not an actual inventory of existing trees |
Tree Maintenance Requests, City Council Members | 1991-1996 | 20% sample |
Tree Planting Policy Committee | 1987-1990 | |
Tree Stumps | 1985-1992 | |
Tree Trimming Requests | 1985 | 10% sample |
Tree Trimming Requests | 1986-1987 | 10% sample |
Tree Trimming Requests | 1988 | |
Tree Trimming Requests | 1989-1991 | 10% sample |
Tree Trimming Requests | 1992-1996 | 20% sample |
Trees (Damaged) | 1987-1991 | |
United Way | 1984-1986 | |
United Way | 1988-1990 | Florence Schornstein was a member of the Board of Trustees |
Urban Open Space Planning: A Case Study of Four New Orleans Spaces | 1983 | Moira A. Carr (UNO Thesis, Master of Urban and Regional Planning) |
Urban Parks and Recreation Alliance (UPRA) | 1984-1986 | |
Urban Parks and Recreation Alliance (UPRA) | 1987-1994 | Florence Schornstein was a member |
Vehicles | 1986 | Re: take-home vehicles |
Veterans Boulevard Beautification | 1982-1984 | |
Vieux Carre Task Force | 1992-1993 | Florence Schornstein was a member |
Volunteer and Information Agency, Corporate Relations Committee | 1988 | Florence Schornstein was a member |
Washington Square | 1984-1985 | |
Washington Square | 1986-1991 | |
West End Park Rentals | 1985-1989 | 10% sample |
Box 13 | ||
West End Park, Parking Lot | 1984-1989 | |
West End/Pontchartrain Boulevard Neutral Ground | 1978-1989 | |
White House | 1991 | Re: Florence Schornstein being awarded a President's Volunteer Action Award for the Parkway Partners Program |
Wildlife and Fisheries Building | 1988 | |
Women for a Better Louisiana | 1989 | |
Women's Corporate Board Resource Task Force | 1988 | |
Women's Office Advisory Committee | 1984-1985 | |
Work Program for New Orleans Area Recreation and Beautification Survey and Plan | 1967 | Dan S. Martin and Associated, Inc. |
Working Papers (Financial) | 1939 | Monthly balance sheets, statements of income & expense, etc. |
Working Papers (Financial) | 1940 | Monthly balance sheets, statements of income & expense, etc. |
World's Fair | 1980-1985 | |
YMCA | 1984, 1986 |
Back to New Orleans City Archives Finding Aids and Inventories
coded: 4/11/2001
coded by: we
revised: 6/1/2010