Travel Oracles 50 States: Louisiana
As part of my summer series - Travel Oracles 50 States - I am revisiting each os the fifty American states as an overview on travel culture and history. Today: Louisiana
Joined: Became the 18th state on April 30, 1812. When Louisiana separated from the Union in 1861, it brought to the Confederacy the largest city in the South that also had direct access to the Mississippi River. Lincoln called the Mississippi the “backbone of the Rebellion,” and New Orleans was a prized target for the Union Army very early on in the war.
Original Indigenous Peoples: The original inhabitants of the land that New Orleans sits on were the Chitimacha, with the Atakapa, Caddo, Choctaw, Houma, Natchez, and Tunica inhabiting other areas throughout what is now Louisiana.
First Settlers: The French explorer Robert Cavelier de La Salle named the region Louisiana in 1682 to honor France's King Louis XIV. The first permanent settlement, Fort Maurepas (at what is now Ocean Springs, Mississippi, near Biloxi), was founded in 1699 by Pierre Le Moyne d'Iberville, a French military officer from Canada.
History moment: In 1803, Thomas Jefferson doubled the size of the United States by purchasing the Louisiana Territory—828,000 square miles of land between the Mississippi River and the Rocky Mountains—from France. Louisiana was the first of 13 states, or parts of states, to be carved out of the territory in 1812.
Known for: New Orleans, Cajun and Creole cuisine, Mardi Gras celebrations, diverse cultural heritage, bayous, jazz music, and as the birthplace of American blues. The state also has strong French colonial influences.
Places: New Orleans, Baton rouge
Movie setting: Eve’s Bayou, Divine secrets of the ya-ya sisterhood, The Pelican Brief, Skeleton Key, 12 years a slave, Girls Trip
Musicians from: Louis Armstrong, Fats Domino, Slim Harpo, Louis Prima, Wynton Marsellies, Jerry Lee Lewis, Master P, Lil Wayne. Harry Connick Jr, Britney Spears, Jon Baptiste, and so many more - this is music central!
Surprising facts: Louisiana is the only state in the country with "parishes" instead of counties, it was named after King Louis XIV of France., and Mardi Gras, in New Orleans, Louisiana, is a world famous event
Bordered to the south by the Gulf of Mexico, Louisiana is a mix of swampland and farm country as well as a melting pot of French, African and American cultures. Its capital, Baton Rouge, is home to the USS Kidd Navy destroyer, while its largest city, New Orleans, is famous for its colonial-era French Quarter and festive Mardi Gras, a raucous, city-wide party celebrated with a colorful parades, loud music and outlandish floats. Louisianans share an appreciation for the good things in life as well as an outspoken enthusiasm for their state’s Creole heritage. Let’s Travel to Louisiana
My Experience: I have travelled many times to New Orleans and loved it each time - there is no place like it, from the music, food, architecture, and just all-around unique culture. Walking or bike tours are a must (especially around the graveyards) , as are day trips to plantations for history tours get more insight into a complicated past. Swamp tours are popular too but I have never been,
New Orleans: The historic city is a vibrant, bursting-at-the-seams melting pot of a city that famously inspires indulgence. This is the place to eat, drink, listen to jazz or R&B, take part in a parade, and immerse yourself in the atmosphere. Whether you come for Mardi Gras or the New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival or any other reason, a visit to this unique destination is never the same trip twice, but always memorable. Sugar-dusted beignets are a must, cocktail hour is anytime you want it, and the street musicians will have you dancing on the sidewalk. Lafayette and Baton rouge are also city stops, but NOLA is the big international draw. Things to do
Nature: There are six national parks in Louisiana, including national service sites recognized by the US National Park Service. these include Cane River Creole National Historical Park., Jean Lafitte National Historical Park & Preserve, New Orleans Jazz National Historical Park, Poverty Point National Monument., Vicksburg National Military Park
Ranking in US: Per the annual US News report, Louisiana is currently ranked #50 out of 50 in 2021.