Tivoli Circle (formerly Lee Circle)
location
Tivoli Circle, New Orleans, LA 70130
Venue hours
Accessible 24/7
parking & Accessibility
Paid street parking is available on Howard Avenue and Andrew Higgins Boulevard as well as throughout the Central Business District
There is some wheelchair accessible parking available along the street and there is a crosswalk on the river side of St. Charles Avenue that provides access to the park at the center of the circle
Prospect.5 locations in venue
The base of the pedestal faces the downtown side of St Charles
Prospect.5 Artists
About Tivoli Circle (formerly Robert E. Lee Circle)
More commonly known as Lee Circle, Tivoli Circle, the circular park that connected New Orleans’s Central Business District and the Lower Garden District, was consecrated as a park in 1807. Also known also as Tivoli Gardens or Tivoli Circle, the park’s name derives from the legendary beauty of the centuries-old gardens in Lazio, Italy and is usually associated with public garden parks in Europe.
In 1884, a monument was erected to Confederate General Robert E. Lee by the Robert E. Lee Monumental Association and the location’s name was changed to Lee Circle. Then in 2017, Mayor Mitch Landreau ordered the removal of the monument, along with three other Confederate monuments across the city, from the 60 foot tall pedestal that now stands vacant.
A new name for the site is currently being considered by the New Orleans Street Renaming Commission. Egalité Circle—the French word for equality—has been voted as the replacement title. The name Égalité Circle was aimed at capturing the spirit of equality that inspired the French and Haitian revolutions, both of which influenced New Orleans, and the civil rights movement in New Orleans and throughout the U.S.
