Inside New Orleans’ Iconic Skeleton House, A Garden District Halloween Tradition

(NEW ORLEANS, La) - There are people who like to decorate their homes for Halloween, and then there's Louellen Berger. Her creativity and volume of decorations makes her house a must-see when visiting New Orleans. Located in the Garden District at 6000 St. Charles looks like this on a normal day:

How the Skeleton House in New Orleans Began

But beginning in September, the scene changes as Halloween approaches. In a recent interview with WWLTV in New Orleans, she says it all started with a single skeleton leaning on a tree branch in her front yard. A few years later, the New Orleans Advocate named the skeleton 'Lazy Bones' which inspired Berger, who had a career in marketing to take things to the next level.

Over the past two decades her menagerie of skeletons has grown, with new members being added periodically. What started with Lazy Bones has now come to include standards like Pelvis Costello, TromBONE Shorty, and Mourning Call (holding coffee and beignets). One of the newest additions is Chappell Bone (an homage to music celebrity Chappell Roan)

How the Skeleton House is Designed Each Year

Berger does all the crafting herself, using glue guns, decorations and zip ties to hold everything together. Skeletons are named by Berger herself, her family and even ideas from a suggestion box from the public. Last year, she went all out for Taylor Swift's 'Eras' Tour and put her own unique spin on the characters filling her yard. In fact, Swifties routinely left their friendship bracelets on the fence which were collected by Berger's grandchildren, which moved her to know that her decorations had that much of an effect on her community.

Read More: Skeleton House Celebrates 20 Years in New Orleans

Get our free mobile app

From a personal standpoint, I admire Berger's creativity and efforts to put together such an amazing display each year. Having only three skeletons as part of my family's decorations, it's a bit overwhelming to imagine the storage space required to keep her collection in the off-season as well as the drive to assemble her displays each year. It's free to check out, and if you miss it this year, rest assured that Louellen Berger will raise her skeletons for years to come.