BACKSTORY: For the first half of the 19th century, the portion of St. Charles above Lee Circle (then "Tivoli Circle") was known as "Nyades Street". The lower portion, below the circle, was and is an important corridor through downtown; buildings include Gallier Hall, City Hall for a century until the 1950s.
The street was laid out atop a slight rise, the remains of an old natural levee, in connection with the construction of the New Orleans & Carrollton Railway, which became the St. Charles Streetcar line.
