St. Frances Xavier Cabrini Catholic Church, New Orleans, LA.

MEMORIES OF
SAINT FRANCES XAVIER CABRINI CATHOLIC CHURCH
5500 Paris Avenue, New Orleans, LA.

NOTE: THIS CHURCH WAS DESTROYED IN HURRICANE KATRINA AND NO LONGER EXISTS

Before the construction of the church that was destroyed by Hurricane Katrina, the parish met in a previous church building which resembled a World War II Quonset hut. The photo above shows the inside of that building. The old church remained on the property for several years after the new church was constructed, and it was used as a parish hall.

The church building was severely damaged in 2005 by the flood that resulted when the London Avenue Canal levee failed following Hurricane Katrina. After a long battle to save the unique structure, led by Arthur Q. Davis the original architect of the building, the church was demolished to make way for redevelopment of the land. The site is now the home of Holy Cross High School which was formerly located on the banks of the Mississippi river just below the Industrial Canal.

In addition to the loss of the building and numerous works of art that it housed, the church's pipe organ, (three manual Möller Opus 9632 built in 1962) was also destroyed.