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Designed by architect Lewis E. Reynolds and built in 1869 on St. Charles Avenue, The Van Benthuysen-Elms Mansion is an elegant menagerie of European styles. It reigns with splendor, Southern charm and tradition in the heart of the Garden District. The Garden District is known for its beautiful mansions, historic landmarks and original streetcars.

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As you enter the Mansion you will be impressed by the splendor of the "Grand Foyer". The Foyer is beautifully lit with an authentic copper wind chimer which once hung from the ceiling of a Chinese Temple during the Boxer Rebellion. The Mansion is exquisitely decorated with period furnishings imported from Europe.	As you pass through the Grand Foyer, on the left you will find the "Louis XVI Room", which has a mantle of hand-carved Carrara marble designed around the French consoles and mirrors.
Across the Grand Foyer from the Louis XVI room is the remarkable "Empire Room." The Empire Room has woodwork in rich mahogany with moldings and sconces of 24-karat gold dore', an oil painting of John Elms rests above a Verde marble fireplace. The original walling hangings are hand-stenciled and hand-painted canvas with the Bonaparte Bee.	You can walk from the Empire Room into the magnificence of the Elms Mansion Dining Room. Of British Jacobean design in oak, it has an elaborate mantle with hand-carved panels of the different foods we eat. The crystal chandelier is an exact replica of the one hanging in the Napoleon room of the Grand Trianon in Paris France.
As you exit the Dining Room back into the Grand Foyer you will be dazzled by the Grand Staircase. The Staircase, with its Flemished oak hand carved free standing hand rail, has an unusual newel post. The Grand Staircase leads up to a stunning stained glass window. Click on the stained glass to see a close-up of its detail. Just past the Grand Stairs you will find the entrance to the "Grand Ballroom."	The Grand Ballroom is 18' x 58' and has a ceiling supported by Doric columns that is an exact replica of the Town Hall in Brussels Belgium. The Irish linen wall hangings, built-in bookcases, Italian sandstone fireplace and unique chaperon's alcove accent this room that was originally the Mansion's library.
The Garden Room is our next stop, the perfect room for seated dinners which can accommodate up to 100 people.	The Mansion surrounds itself with carefully groomed gardens and patios. A fountain and a gazebo accent the grounds with grace and serenity.