Where We Practice: The History of New Orleans
Any New Orleans Attorney or Louisiana Attorney that
Practices Law in New Orleans will tell you that
first-time visitors are often struck by the European
flavor of New Orleans, and little wonder. It's
everywhere! Visitors see it in the architecture,
taste it in the food, hear it in the music that
abounds, and experience it in the hospitality and
characteristic accent of our locals.
Louisiana was claimed
for French king Louis XIV in 1699 and is the only
state that was once a French royal colony. "La
Nouvelle Orleans" was founded in 1718 and ruled
by France and then Spain for nearly 100 years. It is
the only U.S. city where French was the predominant
language for more than one century.
The Louisiana
Purchase was signed in New Orleans in 1803. Last
year, 2003, the 200th anniversary of the signing was
commemorated in a year-long, statewide celebration
of activities.
New Orleans depended
for 185 years on a canal system (108 miles) much
more extensive than that of Venice, Italy. By 1914,
Baldwin Wood's mammoth pumping and drainage system
made canals obsolete.
In a unique
partitioning in 1835, the City of New Orleans was
literally split into three separate municipalities,
each with its own mayor and council. After 17 years,
the city was reunited, becoming the third largest
and second richest in the nation.
New Orleans is often
called the "Crescent City" because it was
founded on the bend of the Mississippi River. This
unusual shape causes locals and visitors to become
confused occasionally, as there is no traditional
"north, south, east, or west" mode of
getting around. Some streets in the city begin at
one end parallel, and end up perpendicular.
New Orleans has more
than 35,000 buildings listed on the National
Register of Historic Places, more than any other
U.S. city. Washington, D.C. is the closest contender
with just over 20,000. Many of these architectural
treasures are located in the 120 blocks of the
French Quarter.
St. Louis Cathedral,
located in the historic French Quarter, is the
oldest continuously active Roman Catholic Cathedral
in the United States. It was originally built in
1724 and rebuilt twice after a hurricane and a fire.
The present church overlooks beautiful Jackson
Square and was dedicated in 1794.
The Old Ursuline
Convent, also located in the historic French
Quarter, dates to 1745, and is the oldest building
in the Mississippi River Valley.
As Americans settled
in New Orleans, they built exquisite antebellum
mansions in the Garden District and Uptown. These
architectural gems fill our residential areas.
Locals who recognize their architectural
significance have restored many of these homes in
grand fashion.
Many of the tens of
thousands of live oak trees that line our streets
and boulevards date back to before the Civil War.
They have survived hurricanes, droughts, insects and
fires.
The New Orleans
Streetcar line is the oldest continuously operating
rail system in the world. It currently transports
locals and tourists from uptown to the business
district along St. Charles Avenue. By 2003, the
Streetcar will be brought back to life along Canal
Street, after an absence of several decades.
New Orleans is known
as the birthplace of jazz, and rightfully so. Early
jazz greats like Louis Armstrong, Buddy Bolden,
Jelly Roll Morton and King Oliver got their starts
in the nightclubs of Storyville, a red-light
district that flourished between 1897 and 1917. The
city's musical tradition remains strong with the
Neville Brothers, the Marsalis family, Harry
Connick, Jr., and many others. Events such as the
New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival, the French
Quarter Festival, Satchmo Summer Fest and others
share these gifts with the world.
The Louisiana
Philharmonic Orchestra is the only full-time,
player-managed symphony in the United States.
Musicians from all over the world come to New
Orleans to study the LPO's success.
New Orleans has a
well-deserved reputation for food. There are more
than 3000 restaurants in the city, many of which
have been owned and operated by the same families
for generations. The predominant foods are Creole
and Cajun, but there are many ethnic restaurants
that feature foods from throughout the world. The
city consistently is rated one of the top cities for
food by national and international publications.
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