Covington is the seat of St. Tammany Parish government and sits north of Lake Pontchartrain in the New Orleans metropolitan area. Records from 1727 show 11 Africans on the north shore. One person of African descent was present at the founding of Covington on July 4, 1813. Most African Americans in antebellum Covington were slaves, with a modest number of free people, all of whom covered nearly every occupation needed for the development and sustenance of a heavily forested region. For more than 200 years in Covington, African Americans transformed their second-class status by grounding themselves in shared religious and social values. They organized churches, schools, civic organizations, benevolent societies, athletic associations, and businesses to address their needs and to celebrate their joys.

Images of America: African Americans in Lafayette and Southwest Louisiana sheds a spotlight on some of the heroes and heroines of Southwest Louisiana. This area of the state is especially diverse and includes people who describe themselves as African Americans, Creoles, mulattoes, and blacks. Many people say they have mixed bloodlines that include Native American, African, and French ancestors. Their arts, culture, food, music, and crafts are distinct and rich with flavors of the past and the present. The Creoles and mulattoes, for example, speak the language of Creole, which is described as broken French.

Enslaved Africans and free people of color of Louisiana deserve the title of "Founding Fathers" just as much as the French, the Spanish, and the Americans. In spite of their subjugated role as slaves, African Americans of Louisiana, and subsequently New Orleans, were contributors to the success of the state and the city far beyond their role within the labor force. Imported into the Louisiana Territory by John Law's Company of the Indies, enslaved Africans, fed on a pound of corn a day, gave birth to American figures of the 19th and 20th centuries. Mahalia Jackson, Louis Armstrong, Homer Plessy, Marie Laveau, Buddy Bolden, Julies Lion, Alice Dunbar-Nelson, the fighting men of the Louisiana Native Guard, Ernest "Dutch" Morial, and many other African Americans contributed to the growth and development of New Orleans. Every African American citizen of New Orleans is intrinsically connected to the city's cultural and political landscape.

On the banks of the Red River, in the heart of Louisiana, is the city of Alexandria. First settled by the French in the mid-1700s, the little Post de Rapides grew to be a thriving trading center. Established in 1805 by Alexander Fulton, a Pennsylvania merchant fleeing from justice after the Whiskey Rebellion, the town of Alexandria flourished when steamboats lined its wharves and cotton was king. Reduced to ashes by Union troops during the Civil War, the town slowly rebuilt itself and, with the coming of the railroads, found new wealth in the timber trade. In 1940 and 1941, Alexandria played host to the US Army as Gen. George Marshall and future heroes of World War II planned a grand strategy in the Hotel Bentley and played war games across central Louisiana. The life and culture of central Louisiana has been captured in Alexandria-native Rebecca Wells’s popular novels Little Altars Everywhere and The Divine Secrets of the Ya-Ya Sisterhood.

The Ebarb and Toledo Bend area of Louisiana has a fascinating and colorful history. Founded in 1716, the French Fort St. Jean Baptiste was the first settlement in the area, followed soon after by the Spanish Fort Los Adaes. Many have called this part of Louisiana home, including invading Spanish conquistadores, French trappers, and both Spanish and French missionaries. The area is also home to many Native American tribes who further contributed to the melting pot of customs, religions, food, and folklore that is so prevalent in the area's history.

In 1699, on a high bluff along the Mississippi River, explorer Pierre Le Moyne, Sieur d'Iberville, found the fabled "Red Stick," a post that marked the line between two Native American nations and gave Baton Rouge, Louisiana, its name. This book chronicles 150 years of the daily activities of Baton Rouge's residents through images of the city's growth and development; life during the Civil War, floods, hurricanes, and economic depressions; and people working, playing, and celebrating.

From the early settlers who developed farming communities to scandalous murderers who committed crimes that devastated residents, Bossier Parish has entertained a unique existence. Within these pages, discover the dying communities of rural Bossier Parish as well as the development of Louisiana's fastest-growing city, Bossier City. Bossier Parish takes readers on a visual journey into the heart and history of this community, with images dating from the 1840s to present day. Included in this engaging photographic history are the businesses, schools, churches, and families that have shaped the history of Bossier over the past 150 years.

Breaux Bridge is one of the first settlements of the Acadians in Louisiana. Founded in 1766, Quartier de la Pointe, the area along the winding and scenic Bayou Teche, was established by Acadians who had been deported from Nova Scotia in 1755. The land that is present-day Breaux Bridge was purchased in 1771 by Firmin Breaux, who built a footbridge across Bayou Teche for the passage of his family and neighbors that was known as Breauxs Bridge. The city was officially incorporated in 1859 and was officially designated in 1959 as la capitale mondiale de lecrevissethe crawfish capital of the worldwhere the Crawfish Festival is celebrated annually. Descendents of the original Cajun settlers still reside in this historic city, whose heritage influences the dialect, folkways, music, and cuisine of Louisiana.

When New Orleanians ask "Where did you go to school?" they aren't asking what university you attended but what high school. That tells a native a lot about you. For over 150 years, the Brothers of the Sacred Heart have educated the young men of New Orleans, giving them the opportunity to answer the question proudly by replying St. Stanislaus, St. Aloysius, Cor Jesu, or Brother Martin. Images of America: Brothers of the Sacred Heart in New Orleans showcases photographs, illustrations, and maps tracing the role of the institute in making New Orleans a vibrant and dynamic city, able to overcome even the worst of adversity. From their roots in the French Quarter, moving to Faubourg Marigny, and finally settling in Gentilly, the Brothers of the Sacred Heart continue to make a major contribution to metro New Orleans and Southeast Louisiana.

As early as 1765, Acadians began to settle near St. Martinville in the center of an area known as Côte Gelée, or "Frozen Hill," due to seasonal cold temperatures that covered the Mississippi River with ice. These early settlers were exiles from Acadie (now Nova Scotia, Canada). They established farms that, in the early 1800s, became interspersed among expanding sugar plantations. With a motto of "Where our rich culture defines us," Broussard is one of the fastest growing cities in Louisiana today. Embracing its past has made way for Broussard's competitive spirit that positions its leaders in not only the state, but also the world. The Billeaud Sugar Mill, which supported the community for many years, has now diversified into land acquisitions. The St. Julien families, identified for many generations with agricultural, professional, and political interests, have long-standing ties to the community, as do sports figures such as National League umpire Greg Bonin and two Blanchard siblings who competed in the Junior Olympics.

The city of Carencro is nestled in the heart of Cajun country in southern Louisiana. The earliest date in the records of the St. Pierre Genealogical Society is 1765, when exiled Acadians settled in the Attakapas District in an area then known as the Carencro Prairie. Many arrived under a cattle agreement, but settlers also desired to farm the land of the prairie. From the beginning, the area has been rich in faith, strong in personality, and successful from years of surviving the trials of life. The prairie was later called St. Pierre, the French name for St. Peter. Today, St. Peter’s Catholic Church sits in the hub of the city, as it has for decades. As the years have passed, Carencro has stayed true to its founding fathers. It is a place that constantly grew and embraced change while staying steadfast in the faith that was brought by the first settlers.

Located in north-central Louisiana, Claiborne Parish was named for the first American governor, William C. C. Claiborne, and is one of the oldest parishes in the state. The area was settled by English and Scots-Irish, who, with persons of African descent, began arriving as early as 1818. Immigration increased markedly in the 1830s following the removal of the Great Raft of the Red River, making access to the interior of the region less difficult. Between 1840 and 1860, settlers from Mississippi, Alabama, Georgia, the Carolinas, Virginia, Kentucky, and Tennessee poured into the region, establishing farms, villages, churches, and schools. By the 1850s, every trade and industry was represented in the town, bountiful crops were being produced in the countryside, and prosperity was felt throughout the parish.

How do you build a town from scratch? The first ingredient is a dream. W.W. Duson served as the chef with a vision for a new town. With the railroad completed through southwestern Louisiana in 1881, Duson, general manager of the Southwestern Louisiana Land Company, orchestrated the purchase of land along the railroad. Railroader Patrick Crowley moved his "Crowley Switch" house depot to the new townsite as Duson stirred interest through advertisements in Midwestern newspapers. Duson blended the surveying, bringing 100 workers to clear the land, with Duson Brothers' real estate business to help shape the town. Mixed in were special excursion trains that brought in prospective buyers of lots and farmland. Finally, a heaping helping of pioneer adventurers—including merchant Jac Frankel, physician D.P. January, farmer brothers C.J. and Thomas Freeland, attorney James Barry, banker Preston Lovell, and many others—were added to spice up the town.

Located in northwestern Louisiana, DeSoto Parish exemplifies the evolution of the Southern frontier. The parish was an early Louisiana meeting ground of Frenchmen from Natchitoches, who settled along Bayou Pierre and traded with the native Caddo Indians. In the 1840s, subsistence agriculture, cattle, and moderate trade were joined by the agriculture of the cotton kingdom with its flood of new settlers, who built small farms and sizable plantations. In the late 19th century, the economy diversified as the whistle of the railroad echoed against the roar of the lumber mills. Inhabiting new station-stop towns, DeSoto Parish residents built schools, filled churches, and settled their disputes in a fine new courthouse in the parish seat of Mansfield. Comings and goings, frozen by the flash of a camera, are presented in Images of America: DeSoto Parish.

Donaldsonville is a jewel in the crown of Louisiana history. Around 1750, from a small trading post at the fork of the Mississippi River and Bayou Lafourche, the Tchitimacha Indians witnessed the arrival of the French, English, German, Spanish, Jewish, Italian, and Irish settlers. Sugar cane plantations and African slaves came shortly after their arrival. The city has played host to Jean Lafitte, Fort Butler, Rebel forces, Union troops, oyster boats, the first black mayor in America, and scores of stories and characters that are all family, as well as serving as the capital of Louisiana. Donaldsonville was the commercial hub for trade up and down the Mississippi River and into the Gulf of Mexico until Bayou Lafourche was damned in 1903. Today, Donaldsonville is on the threshold of becoming Louisiana's version of Williamsburg, Virginia.

Beginning as a real estate venture on the isolated prairie of southwestern Louisiana in 1894, Eunice is now a progressive small city due to its traditions of volunteerism, community spirit, and resourcefulness. In the late 1980s, the city enjoyed a renaissance when a far-sighted mayor capitalized on the dominant Cajun culture to pull Eunice out of the economic crevasse of the decade's "oil bust." It emerged as a picturesque community with an emphasis on its rich history and its newly recognized heritage tourism. The city's unique Frenchness lures tourists and locals to the live Cajun music shows at the Liberty Center and to experience the joie de vivre at a rural Mardi Gras. The historic images found in Images of America: Eunice feature the day-to-day activities of Eunice's people through good times and lean days from 1894 to the late 1980s.

Evangeline Parish is located near the center of Louisiana, between the prairies and wetlands of the south and the hills and piney woods of the north. Culturally, too, it embraces both the French south and the English north. Evangeline is relatively young among the parishes of Louisiana, having been carved from the western portion of St. Landry in 1910. It is named for Evangeline, the heroine of Longfellow’s epic poem about the exile of the Acadians, many of whose descendants reside in Louisiana. Today, the people of Evangeline Parish remain close to the land, earning their livelihood from agriculture and forestry or small businesses. From outdoor recreation at Chicot State Park to the Courir de Mardi Gras in Mamou and Basile, and all the festivals in between, they know how to pass a good time.

For nearly two centuries, Baton Rouge remained a sleepy little river town. Situated on the first bluffs of the Mississippi River north of the Gulf of Mexico, it was prime real estate for habitation. Images of America: Forgotten Baton Rouge collects a plethora of lost images of this city's greatest period of expansion: from the 1890s to the 1930s. This era began when Louisiana State University moved to the grounds of the old US Army arsenal, followed by a corporate decision from John D. Rockefeller to build a Standard Oil Company refinery at Baton Rouge. These historic decisions, coupled with the forward-thinking actions of bold businessmen and politicians like Robert A. Hart and Huey P. Long, changed the face of the city forever.

Houma is a name derived from a tribe of Native Americans who settled in what is now Terrebonne Parish, or "Good Earth." The town's residents come from French, German, Italian, Scotch, and English ancestry; this mix makes for an interesting cross-section of cultures in a charming Louisiana community. Fifty miles southwest of New Orleans and easily accessible from U.S. Highway 90-"The Old Spanish Trail"-Houma is also bisected by the Intracoastal Waterway. It has been dubbed the "Venice of North America," because it is the epicenter of six bayous, all of which were at one time tributaries of the Mississippi River. Houma and the surrounding communities have become internationally known for an abundance of seafood, including dried shrimp. The process of drying shrimp is truly unique, as it is only done in this area of the country. Indeed, a dried shrimp packing plant still operates on Main Street in downtown Houma. The production of sugar and other agricultural products, and later the oil industry, also played major roles in Houma's rich history. In addition to local industry, the town's homes, churches, schools, events, and people are highlighted within the pages of Images of America: Houma.

Named after the 40th governor of Louisiana, the Huey P. Long Bridge, just outside of New Orleans in Jefferson Parish, is the longest railroad bridge in the United States. For 15 years after it opened in 1935, it was the longest railroad bridge in the world. Initially conceived in 1892, the "Huey P." was the first bridge to span the deep-draft navigation channel of the lower Mississippi River, opening the path for a southern transcontinental railroad. The highway and pedestrian portions of the bridge provided additional transport, which previously had only been available by ferry. New Orleans and its surrounding regions grew in population and economic importance as the publicly owned bridge connected the Port of New Orleans to the rest of the United States through six Class I railroads. The Huey P. continues to function in its original, now undersized, capacity. In April 2006, the state began a widening of the bridge to double its automobile lanes from 18 feet to 43 feet. In September 2012, the American Society of Civil Engineers dedicated the Huey P. Long Bridge as a Historic Civil Engineering Landmark.

In the mid-1700s, the French explored the area that is now Iberia Parish. By 1765, many Acadians arrived, and the Spanish settled along the Bayou Teche in 1779. They named the area Nueva Iberia after the Iberian Peninsula in Spain. Sugarcane plantations along Bayou Teche attracted Anglo-Americans and their slaves. In the mid-19th century, with the second Francophile migrations, French became the dominant language. By the end of Reconstruction, distinctions between Acadians and neighboring groups blurred, giving rise to a new people—the Cajuns. Today, Iberians stay true to their agrarian roots, as evidenced in farming, ranching, fishing, and hunting. Religion remains strong, and the arts are encouraged. Iberia Parish is known as the hottest (Tabasco), sweetest (sugarcane), oiliest (oil drilling), and saltiest (salt mines) place on earth.

An area that was once defined and governed as one large parish, Imperial Calcasieu is now divided into five separate parishes: Calcasieu, Cameron, Allen, Beauregard, and Jefferson Davis. The common history shared by these communities is brought to life through vintage images in this fascinating collection of memories. Included in Imperial Calcasieu are photographs depicting the early railroads built in the area, the development of Sulphur mining, the transporting of lumber along the Calcasieu River, the rich oil fields, and the rice industry that developed on the coastal prairies of Western Louisiana. This volume also recalls several memorable events, such as the hurricane of 1918 and the Great Lake Charles Fire of 1910. The pioneer settlers and community leaders who shaped the identity of Imperial Calcasieu are celebrated within these pages, and both their triumphs and setbacks will continue to teach and inspire future generations.

Between 1850 and 1870, New Orleans boasted the largest Italian-born population of any city in the United States. Its early Italian immigrants included musicians, business leaders, and diplomats. Sadly, in 1891, 11 members of the large Sicilian settlement in New Orleans were victims of the largest mass lynching in American history. However, by 1910, the city's French Quarter was a "Little Palermo" with Italian entrepreneur, laborers, and restauranteurs dominating the scene.

Jackson Parish was formed in 1845, and settlers traversed treacherous territories, thick brush, and waterways to take advantage of cheap government land. The pioneers—mostly farmers—transformed a vastly forested area into several thriving communities. The Tremont Lumber Company founded the mill towns of Eros and Chatham in the early 20th century. Simultaneously, the Arkansas Southern Railroad's arrival brought settlements to Quitman and Ansley. In 1903, Jonesboro was officially declared a town after it reached 1,000 residents; eight years later, it claimed the parish seat from Vernon, which had held that title since 1846. A new courthouse was built in Jonesboro the following year. Weston, Stovall, Walker, and Midway provided churches and schools for a growing population. Hodge staked claim in the paper and packaging industries by the 1920s, and the 1940 song "You Are My Sunshine" by Jimmie Davis, a Beech Springs native and Louisiana's "Singing Governor," forever changed the way Jackson Parish would be remembered. These memories, and more, are chronicled in Images of America: Jackson Parish.

New Orleans is not a typical Southern city. The Jews who have settled in New Orleans from 1757 to the present have had a very different experience than others in the South. New Orleans was a wide-open frontier that attracted gamblers, sailors, con artists, planters, and merchants. Most early Jewish immigrants were bachelors who took Catholic wives, if they married at all. The first congregation, Gates of Mercy, was founded in 1827, and by 1860, four congregations represented Sephardic, French and German, and Polish Jewry. The reform movement, the largest denomination today, took hold after the Civil War with the founding of Temple Sinai. Small as it is in proportion to the population of New Orleans, the Jewish community has made contributions that far exceed their numbers in cultural, educational, and philanthropic gifts to the city.

The Jewish presence in northwest Louisiana actually predates the establishment of Shreveport in 1836. From the very beginning, Jews have been part of the city's civic, social, and mercantile life. Pioneer settlers began holding services in private homes in the 1840s, and by 1858 the community was sufficiently large enough to consecrate a Jewish cemetery and the first Jewish benevolent association, a forerunner of today's North Louisiana Jewish Federation. In 1859, the first congregation was founded. In The Jewish Community of Shreveport the rich history of this influential and vibrant citizenry is chronicled by well-known Louisiana historian Eric J. Brock, archivist of Shreveport's B'nai Zion Temple. Nearly 18 decades of Jewish life in Shreveport are depicted in over 200 vintage images, many of which are previously unpublished. Both of the city's synagogues, B'nai Zion and Agudath Achim, are represented, as are many of the rabbis, business leaders, political leaders (including three mayors), and laypeople from the community's long history.

Sydney J. Besthoff III, past president and owner of K&B Drug Stores and grandson of Sydney J. Besthoff (founder with Gustave Katz of Katz & Besthoff Drug Store), is a meticulous keeper of records. The photographs found in this book are from his personal collection, covering the 92-year life span of Katz & Besthoff and K&B Drug Stores. This is a rare opportunity to see these photographs, which chronicle a piece of New Orleans history, during which time the store became a part of the community. K&B Drug Store grew from a local pharmacy with more than 50 locations in the New Orleans area to 186 stores in six states while remaining based in New Orleans. Fondly remembered as the “purple dragon,” K&B is greatly missed by all those who passed through its purple doors and were rung up on its purple cash registers. Come sit inside a Katz & Besthoff location one last time and have a Nectar soda—and don’t forget to pick up half a gallon of K&B ice cream on your way home.

Lafayette was founded as Vermilionville in 1822 by Jean Mouton, a prosperous landowner of Acadian descent whose donations of land for a Catholic church and the parish courthouse ensured the town's future. The arrival of the railroad in 1880, the founding of Southwestern Louisiana Industrial Institute in 1900, and the growth of the oil industry in the 20th century further contributed to the city's prosperity. Lafayette experienced its share of hard times brought on by the Civil War, regional flooding, hurricanes, and economic depressions, but survived on the strength and generosity of its close-knit citizens. Lafayette has long been known as the Hub City of Acadiana, the economic and cultural center of southwest Louisiana. Today it is widely known for its food, music, and festivals that celebrate not only its Cajun and Creole heritage, but also its many other European, Middle Eastern, and African cultural roots.

Engulfed by the bayou, Lafourche is a parish rich in history and culture known for its close-knit, family-centered communities. The parish was originally inhabited by Native American tribes and later by European, African, and English settlers, and many of the residents of Lafourche can trace their ancestry back to these early settlers, strengthening the sense of community that is distinctive to southern Louisiana. The fertile bayou delta fostered small vegetable farms as well as large sugarcane plantations that continue to thrive. The numerous waterways and marshes of the parish produce bountiful catches of fish, seafood, and other wildlife, giving rise to its reputation as a sportsmen's paradise. The parish's economy is also made up of a shipbuilding industry as well as the oil industry, and because of the continuous pattern of homes and businesses that sprung up organically along the bayou, many refer to the town as the "Longest Street in the World."

Native Americans used Okwata, meaning "wide water," as a shortcut for inland trade between the Gulf of Mexico and the Mississippi River. When the Europeans arrived, the original inhabitants showed them the route—the settlement near the river became the city of New Orleans, other lakeshore communities grew, and Lake Pontchartrain continued to be a vital waterway well into the 20th century. Aside from its economic value, Lake Pontchartrain was a cultural mecca: Mark Twain wrote about it and jazz sprang from its shores; locals and visitors traveled out to the amusement parks and opera pavilions, simple fishing villages and swanky yacht clubs, forts and lighthouses; and majestic hotels and camps perched precariously over the water. In Images of America: Lake Pontchartrain, photographs document memories of a time that not even Hurricane Katrina could erase.

Minden has transformed quite a bit since Charles Vedeer founded it in 1835. The town has suffered damages of the Civil War and Reconstruction and between 1872 and 1933 the devastation of five fires and a killer tornado. Despite disaster, Minden continues to progress, but adaptation and rebuilding have caused many familiar landmarks to vanish from the local landscape. The 1902 fire led to the enactment of a city ordinance banning wooden structures downtown; as a result, many edifices were reconstructed. Today, not a single building in the business district predates the 1870s, and the roles of those still standing—such as the First National Bank, which is expected to reopen as a restaurant—are continually changing. In 1918, another fire destroyed the Minden Lumber Mill, the town's largest industry. Later in the 20th century, the development of a city government complex demolished an entire shopping district, the 1905 Webster Parish Courthouse, and Minden City Hall. Lost Minden captures catastrophes, celebrations, storefronts, and back streets that otherwise only remain in memories. John Agan is a lifelong Minden resident who has been actively involved in local history writing and research for more than 30 years. In the course of these activities, he accumulated most of the vintage photographs in this volume that depict the Minden that has since been "lost."

Rayne has always had the distinction of being a very progressive city. Once a building was worn or considered no longer modern, it was torn down, making way for a new structure to be raised in its place. Images of Lost Rayne has taken on the monumental task of preserving images of buildings, whether businesses or residences, that will allow future generations to see Rayne as it has changed during its 132-year history. Readers can almost smell bread baking at Privat's Bakery while sipping French drip coffee nearby at Paco's. Just around the corner, blocks of ice can be heard falling down their chutes at Jacque Weil's, along with the unmistakable sounds of the Lamson tubes at Mervine Kahn's. These landmarks may be long gone, but the memories will be forever etched in our minds.

The bayou sings and the trees sway with the untold stories of many unsung heroes, including Louisiana's amazing Zydeco musicians. The music is an extraordinary blend of the accordion, the bass and electric guitars, the drums, the rub or scrub board, and other instruments. It tells stories about finding and losing love, life lessons, and other revelatory events that rise from the skillful hands of musicians playing the diatonic and piano accordions. The diverse population of Louisiana creates a rich culture with Zydeco festivals, Creole foods, and the unique music that fills the air with a foot-stomping beat like no other. Louisiana's Zydeco is a snapshot of some of the many musicians who live and play the homegrown music known as Zydeco.

Founded in 1838 and located in extreme northeastern Louisiana, Madison Parish has a rich and colorful history. It is the setting of Kate Stone's best-selling Civil War diary, Brokenburn, and played an important role during that era-Generals Grant, Sherman, and McClernan assembled their troops in Madison Parish months before their assault on Vicksburg. Sarah Breedlove, better known as Madam C.J. Walker, was born in Madison Parish and ultimately rose from a lowly washerwoman to the first black female millionaire in the United States. Images of America: Madison Parish, containing over 200 black-and-white images, highlights the history of this fascinating community through photographs, drawings, and maps. Included are Civil War scenes, the 1907 bear hunt by President Theodore Roosevelt, and numerous professional photographs of the disastrous 1927 flood that paralyzed the parish and surrounding areas for several months.

Metairie was the first suburb of New Orleans; an outgrowth to the west by young families seeking larger lots, open air, and affordable new housing. Those suburbanites shared much in common with previous generations of New Orleanians who had migrated westward from the original town (now the French Quarter) to high land along the Mississippi River and the Metairie Ridge. When Jefferson Parish was established in 1825, it included all New Orleans faubourgs west of Felicity Street—what we now know as Uptown New Orleans. These would become the first cities in Jefferson Parish: Carrolton, Jefferson, and Lafayette. By the early 1900s, the westward expansion continued into what we now call Old Metairie and Bucktown. During the mid-20th century, Metairie boomed and is now one of the largest communities in Louisiana. While many residents consider themselves New Orleanians, even those born generations after their families moved to the suburb, Metairie has its own unique history.

Founded in 1835, Minden, Louisiana, quickly developed a reputation as a pioneering force in education and culture in the formerly untamed frontier of Northwestern Louisiana. The early settlers of Minden and their contributions to the rich history of the community are the subject of this engaging pictorial retrospective. Included in this volume are rarely seen images of leaders of the antebellum era, such as John and Christopher Chaffe, and prominent figures from the Reconstruction period, such as John Sidney Killen, the state representative from Minden when it became the seat of the newly-created Webster Parish in 1871. Also included are photographs of Mayor Robert Floyd Kennon, twenty-five years before he became the governor of Louisiana; the three Webster Parish courthouses; and the Minden Male Academy and the Minden Female College, both constructed in the early 1850s. A series of photographs shows the 1916 post office under construction, in operation, and being replaced by the People’s Bank and Trust. Rare images of the Minden Lumber Company, one of the country’s largest before it was destroyed by a fire in 1918, and pictures of the devastating 1933 tornado are included as well.

The city of Monroe, Louisiana originated in the late 1700s with The official beginning of the Ouachita Post. French settlers, including Don Juan Filhiol with his land grant of 1,680 acres from the King of Spain, came to this region and laid the foundations for a community once known as Fort Miro but incorporated as Monroe in 1820. West Monroe (formerly Trenton) would follow in 1889 and today the two towns are separated by a river but connected in preserving their shared history. "Silver sparkling water" and "Silver River" defined Ouachita to the early Native American tribes in Northwestern Louisiana. The Ouachita tribe members were indeed the earliest known inhabitants, living on the land before the establishment of Fort Miro and the bustling villages of the 1790s. Such growth and progress led to the appearance of railroads and plantation systems in the 19th century along with showboats and the adoption of Monroe's Charter. The 20th century brought the Ouachita Parish Library in 1916; the arrival of Delta Airlines in 1927; the first radio station, KMLB, in 1930; the opening of Louisiana Junior College, now University of Louisiana at Monroe, in 1931; the organization of the Little Theatre in 1932; and a wide variety of civic, cultural, and social opportunities for the residents of Monroe and West Monroe. Memories of such grand events are coupled alongside the fond recollections of everyday life in this unprecedented volume of vintage photographs.

Nestled between stately live oaks, magnolia trees, and Cane River is the beautiful old town of Natchitoches. The oldest settlement in the Louisiana Purchase and the third-oldest town in the United States, Natchitoches was founded in 1714 by Louis Juchereau de St. Denis, who was sent by the French governor to establish a colony in Louisiana. In Images of America: Natchitoches see the town as the backdrop for such movies as Steel Magnolias and view rare vintage photographs of plantation homes, the laying of bricks on Front Street, and the development of Northwestern State University.

Few cities boast a heritage as rich and a local color as dynamic as that of New Orleans. Known the world round for its unique architecture, exquisite cuisine, flamboyant celebrations, and exotic peoples, New Orleans is a place where many cultures met and harmonized to create a city, and a lifestyle, unlike any other in America. Founded in 1718 as a backwater outpost of France, New Orleans was the catalyst for the greatest land deal in the history of the world, the Louisiana Purchase. Discover in these pages what made one city so appealing that a third of the continental United States was purchased in order to obtain it. Images of the old city streets and such well-known districts as the French Quarter reveal the charm and mystery of New Orleans, and are complimented by informative, historical captions. A virtual tour of the city, New Orleans provides readers with a glimpse into the past and preserves the images of landmarks that have vanished. A scrapbook of memories for longtime residents of the city, this unique pictorial history will also be embraced by the millions of visitors who are captivated by the Crescent City.

City Park's 1,300 acres cradle the largest collection of mature live oaks in the nation. Established in 1854, it is one of the country's largest urban parks (457 acres larger than New York's City's Central Park and two years older) and contains the highest earthen elevation in New Orleans. City Park has welcomed as many as 11 million visitors per year who walk among 50 species of trees, including bald cypress, southern magnolia, and pine, and the thousands of ancient southern live oaks. At one mile wide and three miles long, the park's 11 miles of lagoons (the largest in the shape of Lake Pontchartrain) are stocked with a variety of fish. Neoclassical, Art Nouveau, Art Deco, Arts and Crafts, Mission, and modern architecture complete City Park. It is a precious and beloved jewel.

From humble beginnings in a physics lab on the campus of Loyola University came the sounds of the first radio station in the lower Mississippi River Valley when WWL Radio signed on in 1922. The little station would grow into a national powerhouse, with its morning Dawnbusters show and nightly broadcasts from the Blue Room of the Roosevelt Hotel. The city’s second oldest station, WSMB, with studios in the Maison Blanche Building, developed its own cast of favorites, including “Nut and Jeff.” Later, in the city known as the birthplace of jazz, radio played a key role in popularizing early rock and roll. Disc jockeys at leading stations WTIX and WNOE helped develop the Crescent City sound, along with local personalities with colorful names like “Poppa Stoppa,” “Jack the Cat,” and “Dr. Daddy-O.”

More than 50 years ago, with the flip of a switch and the turn of a dial, local television became an unforgettable part of New Orleans culture. For many viewers, the memories remain vivid, even if much of what they saw was in black and white. This collection of vintage photographs highlights the history of popular programs and personalities, beginning with the city's first station, WDSU-TV. After signing on the air in 1948, Channel 6 introduced favorites like Mrs. Muffin, The Great MacNutt, and Midday while building a news team that included local icons Mel Leavitt, Nash Roberts, and Alec Gifford. In 1957, WWL-TV took to the airwaves, developing a reputation for quality local programming and dominant news coverage. Channel 4 made household names out of Morgus the Magnificent, Hap Glaudi, John Pela, Phil Johnson, Bill Elder, and Angela Hill.

Pierre Part and Belle River rest in an area once known as the Atchafalaya Basin. Between 1770 and 1773, a young Canadian named Pierre Part set foot on the banks of what he called La Bay de Lac Verret. He was with the Spanish colonial militia under the command of Commandant Nicholas Verret Sr., a French Canadian. Part considered this place a beautiful wilderness and asked his superior for permission to establish a settlement—his request was not granted. The military returned Part to the Spanish military post at Valenzuela, and although he never made this area his home, his name remains. Other French explorers came much earlier than Part, and some of the area's waterways bear French Le Belle Rivere, Le Lac de Natchez, Bayou de Magazille, Bayou de Lantania (Palmetto), Bayou de Postillion, Le Lac de Palourde, and Le Bayou Milhomme. In 1780, Acadian French-speaking people moved to Pierre Part from Burlie des Olivers and Burlie Saint Vincent. Small groups came and settled together at various places within sight of each other. In 1803, a small settlement of families, which is believed to have included the Solors and Berthelots and later the Heberts and the Pipsairs, settled on the banks of Lake Verret, where Bayou Pierre Part flows into the lake.

The city of Rayne has become a popular tourist stop for thousands of travelers each year who pause on their sojourns along Interstate 10 across South Louisiana. As visitors wind their way through the downtown area and neighborhoods, they are treated to picturesque murals and whimsical painted tree frogs, all honoring the frog industry that put Rayne on the map, menu, and palates of people across the country. For those that call the one of the oldest settlements in Acadia Parish home, there is so much more to the community than meets the eye. The development of Rayne as it grew from Pouppeville to Rayne Station to an important hub for the frog, rice, and cotton markets played an important role in establishing a very unique cultural foundation. Influences of a multitude of heritages, including French and German, have driven Rayne's evolution in economics, politics, and architecture, as well as its its rich musical roots.

Many people who visit Rayne to enjoy its charming murals and picturesque streets know the community as a quaint city along their vacation's journey. However, Rayne is more than just a pleasant stopover for tourists and passersby; it is a destination in its own right–a multicultural, historic community that has enjoyed a vibrant and interesting past. Rayne's People and Places provides insight into the heritage and cultural lifestyles of its citizens–like some who jitterbugged at the old Hollywood Club, drank peach nectars at People's Drug Store, and ate biscuits at Paco's–by showing their families, homes, and workplaces.

Known by the French settlers of the eighteenth century as the Fleuve Rouge, the Red River boasts a fascinating history in Louisiana. It is the state's historic highway along which plantations were built, and upon which their wares went to the great markets of New Orleans and the rest of the world. In this captivating collection of vintage images, the history of navigation on the Red River unfolds. Flowing some 1,300 miles through four states, the Red River is the eighth-longest river in the continental United States. Despite numerous disasters, regular navigation occurred on the river for over a century. Huge craft loaded with North Louisiana cotton plied the river between Shreveport and New Orleans, and packet steamers carried mail and passengers to dozens of stops along the river's path. The showboats traveling along the river brought a new form of entertainment to the cities and towns that lined its banks. Included in this volume are views spanning the Great Raft, the opening of the river to navigation and commerce, the role the river played in the Civil War, and the twilight of commercial steam navigation. The first photographic tribute to the river ever published, Red River Steamboats captures a bygone era in Louisiana's history.

Once a thriving center of sugar production on the east bank of the Mississippi River, Reserve has matured into one of America's quintessential small towns. Settled by members of Louisiana's expanding German Coast, Reserve has grown from an agrarian economy to one of global industry, trade, and resource development. Born under the name Bonnet Carre and later raised as St. Peter's, after the church at the center of its life, the term Reserve was adopted from the name of the plantation that had essentially started it all. Nestled between Baton Rouge and New Orleans, Reserve has offered its hospitality to weary travelers and visitors alike for 150 years. An integral part in the history of St. John the Baptist Parish, Reserve has retained its charm and warmth through a long-standing tradition of faith and family, where its sons and daughters may venture out onto the world stage but always call Reserve home. Strolling through Reserve today, one can enjoy a community steeped in German, French, and African roots.

In 1884, the Vicksburg, Shreveport & Pacific Railroad put a line across north Louisiana, and the town of Ruston was born. The first settlers came from nearby Vienna—literally bringing their homes with them—to establish a community that would become a major cotton shipping point and an educational center for the region. In this captivating study of Ruston’s storied past, historic images shed light upon the town’s beginnings, its enterprising leaders, and the institution for which it is best known, Louisiana Tech University. The photographs within these pages reflect all aspects of life in Ruston, from the community’s involvement during the war years to the businesses established by early residents, and from the building of the university to the influence of the railroad and the cotton industry. The collections of local photographers Bob Pfister, Colonel Marbury, John Green Davis, and Edwin “Red” Woodward are all featured in this unique pictorial retrospective; many of these rarely seen images came from a collection of glassplate negatives stored for over thirty years in shoeboxes in a backyard shed. Although some were forever lost to the forces of nature, what remains is a treasured glimpse of days gone by that will find a special place in the hearts of those who call Ruston home.

A rural village that was once the entry point for the slave trade and home to a cotton plantation, Scotlandville became the largest majority African American town in Louisiana. Located in the northern part of East Baton Rouge Parish, Scotlandville's history is intricately tied to Southern University and A&M College System, the only historically black university system in the United States. Southern University relocated from New Orleans to the bluff of the Mississippi River on the western edge of Scotlandville in 1914. The story of the university and town is a tale of triumph and struggle in the midst of racism, inequality, and oppression. Presented through the theme of firsts in businesses, churches, schools, residential developments, environmental issues, politics, social organizations, and community service, Images of Scotlandville focuses on the people who shaped the community economically, politically, socially, and culturally.

Shreveport, Louisiana, is a town with a history as fascinating as it is long. From the settlement of the area at the start of the nineteenth century, through the city's founding in 1836, to Shreveport's role as state capital during the Civil War, up until its present-day role as one of Louisiana's leading cities, figures ranging from snagboat operators to Huey P. Long have worked, lived, and played in this city by the Red River.

Slidell's first settlement was established on Bayou Bonfouca in 1852, and by 1883, when the railroad was completed and the town was named, it already was dubbed "the industrial capital of the South." Slidell's port was busy with 314 sailing vessels per year traveling to the Port of New Orleans carrying lumber, bricks, and food. The train brought workers, settlers, and, in later years, tourists to the area. Nestled in the "Ozone Belt," the fresh air and water had a healing power that attracted people from all over to bathe in and drink it. Shipbuilding began as early as the first settlers and continued until 1993. With the arrival of the space program, Slidell grew rapidly from a small town to a city of over 6,000. Located three miles from Lake Pontchartrain and minutes away from New Orleans, it is a quiet community on the north shore today.

Situated where the rugged Tunica Hills skirt the Mississippi River, St. Francisville began as part of Spanish West Florida in the early 1800s. The first settlers were adventurous Anglos who rebelled against Spain, established a short-lived independent republic, stopped the Civil War to bury a Union officer, and planted vast acres of indigo, cotton, and cane. In the 1900s, St. Francisville became the cultural and commercial center of the surrounding plantation country. Today, overlooking the river from atop a high, narrow ridge "two miles long and two yards wide," it remains the West Feliciana parish seat. Tourists visit its picturesque downtown, a lively Main Street Community and National Register Historic District. Antebellum plantations and gardens draw tourists year-round, and the unique hilly terrain provides unsurpassed recreational opportunities for hiking, bicycling, birding, hunting, and nature studies. Ever since John James Audubon painted dozens of his birds in West Feliciana in 1821, artists, writers, and other visitors have found inspiration in this scenic, unspoiled spot.

St. Landry Parish, one of the oldest European settlements in Louisiana, has a fascinating history and culture. By the 15th century, the Appalousa Indians were known to be in residence. In 1720, the French established le Poste des Opelousas. Traditionally an area of settlement by French Creoles and Acadians, the parish was named for St. Landry, an early bishop of Paris. In the late 1700s, les gens de couleur libres (free people of color) began arriving to take advantage of Spanish land grants. Soon, the government post developed into a commercial center. In the present-day parish, Native American, European, African, and Acadian cultures have melded for almost three centuries to produce world-famous zydeco music, great food, and welcoming people. It celebrates its heritage at the Creole Heritage Folklife Center, one of the destinations on the Louisiana African American Heritage Trail.

Along the bayous of south Louisiana, with its majestic oak trees draped in Spanish moss, open prairies teeming with wildlife, and lush primeval forest, the Chitimacha lived long before the first white settlers arrived in the Attakapas District around 1746. The newcomers would travel by oxcart and boat along waterways lined in flowering magnolias, pecan trees, and grapevines to establish new homesteads. In April 1811, a territorial act that divided Attakapas County created St. Mary Parish. Sugarcane plantations with idyllic names such as Idlewild and Shady Side were established, and timber, trapping, fishing, and agriculture prospered. Later, oil and gas with its many support industries became part of the rich heritage of south Louisiana. The first settlers endured many hardships: floods, storms, outbreaks of yellow fever, and the challenges of the Civil War. St. Mary Parish has seen its share of changes over the centuries, but the tenacity, resourcefulness, and pride of the people remain as constant and endless as the slowly flowing waters of the bayous to the Gulf of Mexico.

Vermilion Parish is a region with fascinating history and culture. From the settlement of the area—beginning as early as 1757, predominately by French, German, English, Spanish, Italian, and Acadian colonists and the native Attapakas people—Vermilion Parish has evolved to become recognized as "the most Cajun place on earth," as noted by its motto. Today it is still common to hear Cajun French spoken on the streets of its villages, towns, and hamlets. Vermilion Parish people are a lively multicultural blend marinated in history and infused with a unique joie de vivre. Cajuns make up a significant portion of its population and exert a huge impact on its culture. They are family-friendly, predominantly Catholic, and known far and wide for their lively Cajun music—as well as their spicy Cajun cuisine using local ingredients, such as okra, rice, pecans, seafood, and wild game.

Although Webster Parish was not founded until 1871, the settlement of the area began as early as 1818 in southern parts of the parish as well as in areas east of the parish’s lifeline, Dorcheat Bayou. The town of Minden had been the economic center of the old Claiborne Parish since the 1840s and would go on to become the seat of Webster Parish. While Minden and the southern part of the parish had a varied economic base and a relatively slow and steady growth, the northern end of the parish experienced a much different pattern of expansion. Settlement in the areas of Springhill and Cotton Valley did not begin in large scale until the arrival of the railroad around 1900, but the timber industry and the oil boom caused these areas to develop rapidly. Pictures of the growth emerging from the Cotton Valley Oil Field and the presence of International Paper in Springhill give the reader a glimpse of how northern Webster Parish emerged during the twentieth century. Additional photographs of people, homes, and businesses throughout the parish complete the story of life in a long-ago era, a time marked by a growing prosperity in a young and optimistic America.

The uniqueness of Winn Parish is its vast history not only of deep-rooted politics, but also of scattered communities that once prospered on its timber, railroads, salt mine, and rock quarry. The arrival of railroads more than a century ago opened virgin pine forests to commercial logging, and timber mills sprang up, flourished, and then disappeared as resources were depleted. Centuries' use of a saltworks foretold development of a successful salt mine, but the discovery of a nearby rock quarry was an accident. Winn was carved from the north-central Louisiana parishes of Natchitoches, Catahoula, and Rapides by an 1852 legislative act. Parish seat Winnfield is readily known as the birthplace of populist demagogue Huey P. Long, and it was also home to two other governors, brother Earl K. Long and handpicked successor O.K. Allen. The parish had its dark side, too, as bandits like the West and Kimbrell Clan roamed the southern regions.