Was New Orleans' French Quarter ever surrounded by a wall?

The French Quarter is known for its architecture, where layers of history and different Spanish, French, Creole and other influences coalesce into a unique style.

One reader was curious about the streets that serve as boundaries of the French Quarter. They wanted to know whether Rampart Street marked the site of a literal wall. Did the French Quarter once have ramparts, or walls, around it?

Jason Wiese, chief curator for The Historic New Orleans Collection, pointed to the era when the city was governed by Spain in answering the question.

"The colonial city was at one point enclosed by fortifications — during the Spanish colonial period,” Wiese said.

The French Quarter, New Orleans’ oldest neighborhood, was first constructed under French rule. French authority waned after the Seven Year