The Poydras Playground [top left], opened on May 16, 1908 by the Outdoor Art Association, was located on the site of the old Pilie Market, bounded by North and South Poydras, South Rampart and South Basin (now Loyola Avenue) streets. The Poydras Market (on Poydras Street between Baronne and South Rampart), which was completed in 1837 on ground ceded by the Carrollton Railroad Company, can be seen in the background.  Maylies Restaurant was opened originally as a coffee shop in the Poydras Market by Madame Esparbe. In 1876, it moved to a larger building across the street, noted for the wisteria vine that coiled about its facade. It soon became a famous restaurant around the world, and remained a New Orleans favorite until its closing in 1986. The Maylie's building was, prior to Hurricane Katrina, a Smith & Wollensky steakhouse. It now houses Walk-On's Bistreaux & Bar.

The St. Roch Playground (bottom left) at St. Roch and Roman was the third oldest of the city playgrounds, opening on June 26, 1910. The Cleveland Playground at Tulane and South Claiborne opened on September 26, 1909, and the Taylor Playground (bottom right) at Washington and Derbigny, on November 3, 1911.

The caption under this collage from the 1912 Report reads:

Top left, Group at Poydras; Top right, Using the slide at Cleveland; Center, Girls playing Basketball at St. Roch; Bottom left, Football at St. Roch; Center, Mrs. Mary Buckley, Supervisor at Poydras; Bottom right, Flag Raising at Taylor.

[Report of the New Orleans Playgrounds Commission for Nineteen Hundred and Twelve]

Photo from from the New Orleans Public Library.