"Former kings and queens of Rex and Comus have lived there," said Mardi Gras Guide publisher Arthur Hardy. "I spoke to Bill Grace and his wife Anne, who lived there, and they happily got out safely."
Hardy says there were a lot of one-of-a-kind pieces of Mardi Gras art and other memorabilia inside.
"There was a lot of memorabilia in there, whether any of it can be saved, it certainly doesn't look good," said Hardy.
An interior file photo of historic St. Charles Ave. home, built in 1888. Fire chief calls today's fire a "catastrophic loss." Photo by Sara Essex Bradley. pic.twitter.com/rcauEZr48d
— Dominic Massa (@DMassaWWL) February 20, 2019Every year, Rex would stop his float and enjoy a toast with the families that lived there, dating back to 1906.
"They actually changed the route of the parade to cross over for a couple of blocks of St. Charles Avenue to that side just to do a toast," Hardy explained.
Hardy believes it's likely Rex will stop this year, too, even with the home in ruins, to at least toast to its memory.
"Just in memory of the building and the family...but it certainly won't be the same."
A file photo of the historic Downman-Morris mansion at 2525 St. Charles, site of this morning's 6-alarm fire.Photo by Sara Essex Bradley pic.twitter.com/xrDEYCAKYY
— Dominic Massa (@DMassaWWL) February 20, 2019The home was built in 1888 for John Morris, according to the Preservation Resource Center, and sold to Robert Downman in 1906. Ownership has passed along to Downman's descendents ever since.
