New Orleans, Louisiana (LA), United States

Facts & Statistics
Place Name	New Orleans
Pronunciation	OR-lee-uhnz
Place Status (Type)	city
Population	496,938 (1990)
Location	Orleans parish, Louisiana (LA), United States, North America
Latitude	30°04'N
Longitude	89°56'W

New Orleans (OR-lee-uhnz), city (1990 pop. 496,938), coextensive with Orleans parish, SE La., bet. the Mississippi R. (SW), L. Pontchartrain (N), and L. Borgne (SE), 107 mi/172 km by water from the river mouth; 30°04'N 89°56'W. City is c.32 mi/51 km long, reaching NE to the Rigolets Channel, only 4 mi/6 km W of Miss. state line. Chef Menteur Pass bisects city in E. Parts of the city/parish are undeveloped. It was built within a great bend of the Mississippi (and is therefore called the Crescent City) on subtropical lowlands, now protected from flooding by levees and by spillways located upstream, notably the Morganza and Bonnet Carre spillways. Level of Mississippi R. is higher than the city, but levees have been built for protection. The river is crossed here by the Algiers Bridge (completed 1991), the Huey P. Long Bridge (completed 1935), and the Greater New Orleans Bridge (completed 1958), which is one of the largest cantilever bridges in the country. There are also 3 toll ferries operating within the city. L. Pontchartrain is spanned by a 24-mi/39-km double causeway (opened 1957; longest bridge in world). The largest city in La. and one of the largest in the South, New Orleans is a major U.S. port of entry. It has long been one of the busiest and most efficient internatl. ports in the country, leading the nation in tonnage of goods conveyed. Coffee, sugar, and bananas are among its imports (the coffee and banana wharves are tourist attractions); exports include oil, petrochemicals, rice, cotton, and corn. Mfg. (wood prods., paper prods., consumer goods, fabricated metal prods., food and beverages, marble, granite, slate, medical equip., boats, concrete, communication systems, bldg. equip., apparel, aircraft parts, printing and publishing). Coastwise traffic is heavy (the city is at the junction of the Intracoastal Waterway and the Mississippi R.), and New Orleans is a major hub for RR, highway, air, river, and ocean transportation. New Orlean Internatl. Airport is 10 mi/16 km W, at Kenner. Its fine port accommodates ship and barge traffic, helping to make the New Orleans area one of the leading industrial transportation centers in the South. The region has extensive shipbuilding and repair yards as well as plants mfg. a wide variety of prods. A long corridor of oil and chemical plants lines the Mississippi R. between New Orleans and Baton Rouge. Although most of the larger industries have been developed recently, it was soon after the sieur de Bienville had the city plotted in 1718 it took prominence as a port, and in 1722 it became the capital of the Fr. colony. In the late 1700s thousands of Fr. settlers arrived from Acadia, N.S., after being expelled by British. The transfer of La. to Spain by the secret Treaty of Fontainebleau (1762) was confirmed by the Treaty of Paris (1763). New Orleans—deeply involved in the struggle for control of the Mississippi—was returned to Fr. hands only briefly before passing to the U.S. with the Louisiana Purchase (1803). Nevertheless, the tone of the city's life was dominated by Creole culture until late in the 19th cent., and the Fr. influence is still seen today. After Andrew Jackson's victory over the British at New Orleans (Jan. 8, 1815) had written a postscript to the War of 1812, the W movement in the U.S. carried the “Queen City of the Mississippi” to almost fabulous heights as a port and market for cotton and slaves. New Orleans then was stamped with its lasting reputation for glamour, extravagant living, elegance, and wickedness. Then, as now, Afr.-Americans were a large element in the pop., and they contributed to the exotic flavor of the city. Jazz had its origin in the late 19th cent. among the black musicians of New Orleans. The quadroon balls—sumptuous affairs attended by rich whites and their quadroon mistresses—disappeared with the Civil War, but Afr. folkways and stories of voodoo magic persist into the 20th cent. The golden era ended when in the Civil War the city fell (1862) to Admiral David G. Farragut and suffered under the occupation of Union troops led by Benjamin F. Butler. New Orleans recovered from Reconstruction and passed through the end of the river-steamboat era to emerge as a modern city. Its past, however, is perhaps a greater factor than the warm, damp climate in attracting visitors and artists and writers. The unusual life and history of the city have produced a literature, including the works of George W. Cable, Lafcadio Hearn, Grace Elizabeth King, Charles Gayarre, and Alcee Fortier. The picturesque Fr. Quarter (Vieux Carre) of the old city, N of broad Canal St., is a major tourist attraction. In the heart of the quarter is Jackson Square (the former Place d'Armes); fronting on the square are the Cabildo (1795; formerly the govt. bldg., it now houses part of the La. state mus.); St. Louis Cathedral (1794); and other 18th- and 19th-cent. structures. Known for its music and world-famous restaurants, specializing in seafood and spicy Cajun and Creole cooking, which uphold the New Orleans tradition of good living. The annual Mardi Gras on Shrove Tuesday is perhaps the best-known festival in the U.S. Also adding to the color of the city are the many parks, museums (including a voodoo mus. and the New Orleans Mus. of Art), and gardens. The metropolitan area has 2 racetracks. Jean Lafitte Natl. Historic Park includes a 33-block sect. of New Orleans' Fr. Quarter, Chalmette Battlefield and Cemetery to E, and a large natural area in the swamps of Jefferson parish to S. The Superdome, home of the Natl. Football League's New Orleans Saints, is also the site of the annual Sugar Bowl football game. New Orleans is also an educational center, the seat of Dillard Univ., Loyola Univ., Tulane Univ., Univ. of New Orleans, Southern Univ. in New Orleans, La. State Univ. Medical Center, Delgado Community Col., Our Lady of Holy Cross Col., New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary and several other theological seminaries. The 1st attempts to integrate New Orleans public schools aroused a great deal of controversy in 1960. Since then, blacks have come to comprise the large majority of students and teachers in the school system, as many whites have moved from the city to the suburbs. Many deaths and much property damage resulted from Hurricane Camille, which swept through the region in 1969. Since the 1960s, the pop. of the metropolitan area has risen at a rate slightly higher than that at which the pop. of the city has declined, reflecting the trend toward suburbanization that has left the inner city increasingly troubled by poverty and crime. Attempts have been made at urban revitalization; in the 1970s many new bldgs. were erected as the city benefited from high oil prices. In the 1980s, however, the economy suffered as oil prices fell and the state's energy industry floundered. In 1983 New Orleans hosted a world's fair, but the attention it attracted and its contribution to the local economy fell far below expectations. In response to rising crime rates, the police dept. has introduced many innovations and encouraged the formation of citizen patrols. The legalization of gambling in 1992 is expected to have a major impact and may transform the character of the Fr. Quarter. Points of interest include La. Nature and Science Center, an art mus., the Aquarium of the Americas with an IMAX theater, and the fairgrounds. Algiers U.S. Naval Station and U.S. Quarantine Station are here. L. St. Catherine is in NE, Bayou Savage State Wildlife Area is near center, Fort Pike State Commemorative Area is in NE, Fort Macomb State Commemorative Area is in SE, and Bayou Segnette State Park is to SW (Jefferson parish). Founded 1718 by the sieur de Bienville; inc. 1805.