List of tallest buildings in New Orleans facts for kids
New Orleans, a famous city in Louisiana, United States, is home to many tall buildings. There are 106 completed high-rises here, and 45 of them are taller than 250 feet (76 meters). The tallest building in the city is the Hancock Whitney Center. It stands at 697 feet (212 meters) in the New Orleans Central Business District. It was finished in 1972 and is also the tallest building in the entire state of Louisiana!
The second tallest skyscraper in New Orleans is Place St. Charles, which is 645 feet (197 meters) tall. In fact, nine out of the ten tallest buildings in Louisiana are right here in New Orleans.
The story of tall buildings in New Orleans began in 1895 with the Hennan Building. It was 158 feet (48 meters) tall and is often called the city's first skyscraper. Later, the 20-story Hibernia Bank Building, built in 1921, became the tallest at 211 feet (64 meters). It held this title for a very long time – 44 years!
For most of the 1900s, New Orleans didn't have many super tall buildings. Its skyline mostly had shorter and mid-sized structures. This was because the soil in New Orleans is very soft. People weren't sure if it was safe to build really tall skyscrapers there.
But things changed in 1967 with the World Trade Center. Then, the Plaza Tower, finished in 1969, was the first building to go over 500 feet (152 meters). Soon after, in 1972, the Hancock Whitney Center became the city's tallest building.
In the late 1970s and early 1980s, there was an "oil boom" (a time when oil was very important and brought lots of money). This led to many more high-rises being built in New Orleans. Seventeen of the city's 40 tallest buildings were built during this time! Today, most of New Orleans' tall buildings are found along Canal Street and Poydras Street in the Central Business District. Poydras Street has become the main area for these towering structures.
New Orleans is still recovering from Hurricane Katrina. Some new building projects have been planned, but the cost of materials and workers has made some of them too expensive to build. For example, the Trump International Hotel & Tower was planned to be the tallest building at 842 feet (257 meters). But its construction was delayed and then canceled in 2011. Other older buildings in the city center are being updated into apartments, condos, and hotels, like the National American Bank Building.
Contents
New Orleans' Tallest Buildings
This list shows the tallest skyscrapers in New Orleans that are at least 250 feet (76 meters) tall. We measure their height by including spires and cool architectural parts, but not antenna masts. If two buildings have the same height, they share a rank with an equal sign (=). The "Year" column tells you when the building was finished.
| Rank | Name | Image | Height ft (m) |
Floors | Year | Fun Facts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Hancock Whitney Center |  |
697 (212) | 51 | 1972 | Has been the tallest building in New Orleans and Louisiana since 1972. It was also the tallest building in the Southeastern United States when it was finished. |
| 2 | Place St. Charles |  |
645 (197) | 53 | 1984 | Has more floors than any other building in the city! |
| 3 | Plaza Tower |  |
531 (162) | 45 | 1969 | The tallest building built in the city in the 1960s. It has been empty since 2002. |
| 4 | Energy Centre |  |
530 (160) | 39 | 1984 | |
| 5 | BankPlus Tower |  |
481 (147) | 36 | 1987 | |
| 6 | Sheraton New Orleans |  |
479 (146) | 49 | 1982 | The tallest building in New Orleans used only as a hotel. |
| 7 | New Orleans Marriott |  |
449 (137) | 42 | 1972 | |
| 8 | 400 Poydras Tower |  |
442 (135) | 32 | 1983 | |
| 9 | One Canal Place |  |
440 (130) | 32 | 1979 | |
| 10 | 1010 Common |  |
438 (134) | 31 | 1970 | |
| 11 | Four Seasons Hotel and Private Residences New Orleans |  |
407 (124) | 33 | 1967 | |
| 12 | Benson Tower |  |
406 (124) | 26 | 1989 | |
| 13 | JW Marriott Hotel New Orleans |  |
386 (118) | 30 | 1984 | |
| 14 | The Westin New Orleans Canal Place | |
373 (114) | 29 | 1983 | |
| 15 | 225 Baronne Street |  |
362 (110) | 29 | 1965 | |
| 16 | Hyatt Regency New Orleans |  |
361 (110) | 32 | 1976 | |
| 17 | Entergy Tower |  |
360 (110) | 28 | 1983 | |
| 18 | Hibernia Bank Building |  |
355 (108) | 20 | 1921 | The tallest building built in New Orleans in the 1920s. |
| 19 | 1250 Poydras Plaza |  |
342 (104) | 24 | 1979 | |
| 20 | The Odeon at South Market |  |
342 (104) | 29 | 2020 | The tallest building built in the city in the 2020s. |
| 21= | Hilton New Orleans Riverside |  |
341 (104) | 29 | 1977 | |
| 21= | 1515 Poydras |  |
341 (104) | 29 | 1984 | |
| 23 | National American Bank Building |  |
330 (100) | 23 | 1929 | |
| 24 | Harrah's New Orleans - Poydras Street Hotel |  |
327 (100) | 26 | 2006 | The tallest building built in the city in the 2000s. |
| 25 | Pan American Life Center |  |
322 (98) | 27 | 1980 | |
| 26 | Poydras Center |  |
300 (91) | 28 | 1983 | |
| 27 | 1440 Canal |  |
288 (88) | 21 | 1972 | |
| 28 | Orleans Tower |  |
280 (85) | 20 | 1977 | |
| 29= | Charity Hospital |  |
279 (85) | 20 | 1939 | The tallest building built in the city in the 1930s. It's also the tallest hospital in New Orleans. |
| 29= | Le Méridien New Orleans |  |
279 (85) | 23 | 1984 | |
| 31= | Loews New Orleans Hotel |  |
276 (84) | 22 | 1972 | |
| 31= | Freeport McMoRan Building | Upload image | 276 (84) | 23 | 1984 | |
| 33 | Caesars Superdome |  |
273 (83) | — | 1972 | |
| 34= | 930 Poydras |  |
270 (82) | 21 | 2010 | The tallest building built in the city in the 2010s. |
| 35= | Four Winds |  |
270 (82) | 19 | 1927 | |
| 36 | 1555 Poydras |  |
262 (80) | 22 | 1984 | |
| 37 | Windsor Court Hotel | Upload image | 253 (77) | 22 | 1984 | |
| 38 | First National Bank of Commerce Building | Upload image | 252 (77) | 19 | 1927 | |
| 39= | New Orleans Exchange Centre |  |
250 (76) | 22 | 1981 | |
| 39= | AT&T Building | Upload image | 250 (76) | 16 | 1983 | Used to be called the BellSouth Building. |
Who Was the Tallest? A Timeline
This list shows which buildings were once the tallest in New Orleans. It also includes the current tallest building, the Hancock Whitney Center.
| Name | Street Address | Years as Tallest | Height ft (m) |
Floors | More Info |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Best Western St. Christopher Hotel | 114 Magazine Street | 1893–1895 | 117 (36) | 8 | |
| Hennen Building | 203 Carondelet Street | 1895–1904 | 158 (48) | 11 | |
| Hampton Inn New Orleans Downtown | 226 Carondelet Street | 1904–1907 | 190 (58) | 14 | |
| The Roosevelt New Orleans | 123 Baronne Street | 1907–1921 | 211 (64) | 15 | |
| Hibernia Bank Building | 812 Gravier Street | 1921–1965 | 355 (108) | 20 | |
| 225 Baronne Street | 225 Baronne Street | 1965–1967 | 362 (110) | 29 | |
| World Trade Center New Orleans | 2 Canal Street | 1967–1969 | 407 (124) | 33 | |
| Plaza Tower | 1001 Howard Avenue | 1969–1972 | 531 (162) | 45 | |
| Hancock Whitney Center | 701 Poydras Street | 1972–present | 697 (212) | 51 |
Tall Buildings in Metairie
This list ranks buildings in Metairie that are at least 190 feet (58 meters) tall. Metairie is a large area in Jefferson Parish that is very close to New Orleans.
| Rank | Name | Location | Height ft (m) |
Floors | Year | Fun Facts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Three Lakeway Center | Metairie | 403 (123) | 34 | 1987 | The tallest building in Metairie and Jefferson Parish. It's also the tallest building in Louisiana outside of New Orleans and Baton Rouge. |
| 2 | The Galleria | Metairie | 269 (82) | 21 | 1986 | |
| 3 | Two Lakeway Center | Metairie | 259 (79) | 19 | 1983 | |
| 4 | Heritage Plaza | Metairie | 245 (75) | 18 | 1983 | |
| 5 | Executive Tower One | Metairie | 204 (62) | 14 | 1972 | |
| 6 | One Lakeway Center | Metairie | 193 (59) | 14 | 1982 |
Images for kids
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Skyline of New Orleans with the Mississippi River in the foreground
See also
In Spanish: Anexo:Edificios más altos de Nueva Orleans para niños
- Buildings and architecture of New Orleans
- List of tallest buildings in Metairie
- List of tallest buildings in Louisiana
