Forty four years ago, the Palm Sunday Tour of Homes was envisioned and begun by three individuals—assisted by many others of course—but essentially the “baby” of Ann Rosteet Hurley, Reid Tyler, and Bill Terry.

At Bill Terry’s memorial service, stories were recounted of how the three “conspired” to showcase houses in what was then called “the Garden District”.   Ann and Reid were locally born and bred, Bill was from Houston.

The three saw that this area had an immense inventory of older houses that could be wonderful homes for couples and families.  They saw the beauty and charm in real craftsmanship, front porches, mature plantings, and sidewalks.  They also knew the lure of the new subdivisions drawing people away from traditional neighborhoods.  

They concocted a tour in spring, on Palm Sunday when the azaleas would be in bloom, to encourage the public to re-think old houses and prove that they had charm and worth.