Archaeology
Plaquemine Culture
This entry covers the Plaquemine culture in the Lower Mississippi River Valley during the Mississippi period, 1200 to 1700 BCE
Encyclopedia
Entry IndexArchaeology
Archaeology Index
Archaeology
Coles Creek Culture
Once covering most of Louisiana, the Coles Creek culture is known for its distinctive ceremonial mound sites
Archaeology
Troyville Earthworks
Located near Jonesville, the Troyville earthworks are a Baytown period Native American archaeological site that dates from 400 to 700 CE.
Archaeology
Troyville Culture
Dating to the Late Woodland Period, from 400 to 700 CE, the Troyville Culture is named for an archaeological site in Catahoula Parish
Architecture
Architecture IndexArchitecture
Greenwood Plantation
The massive Greek Revival plantation house is a modern replica of the original structure at Greenwood which burned to the ground in 1960.
Architecture
Southeastern Louisiana University
Southeastern Louisiana University, founded in 1925 as Hammond Junior College, was brought into the state system of higher education in 1928.
Architecture
Magnolia Mound Plantation
The antebellum Magnolia Mound plantation in Baton Rouge, Louisiana was constructed in the 1790s.
Architecture
Samuel Wilson Jr.
Samuel Wilson Jr., an architect and preservationist, is often referred to as the "Dean of Historic Preservation" in New Orleans.
Art
Art IndexArt
Judy Cooper
Judy Cooper is a New Orleans photographer best known for her vivid portrait work.
Art
John James Audubon
Artist John James Audubon completed some of his most notable paintings for "The Birds of America" while in Louisiana.
Art
Paul Ninas
Paul Ninas, often described as the "Dean of Modern Art" in New Orleans, lived and worked in the city from 1932 until his death in 1964.
Art
Xavier Gonzalez
Artist Xavier Gonzalez's Depression-era murals continue to ornament buildings across the state.
Business and Industry
Business and Industry IndexBusiness and Industry
Oil and Gas Industry in Louisiana
The oil and gas industry has been a dominant economic engine in Louisiana for well over a century
Business and Industry
First Louisiana Oil Well
Exploitable petroleum deposits were found in Louisiana in 1901, changing the state's economy and landscape forever.
Business and Industry
Standard Oil
In the early 1900s, the Standard Oil Company of Louisiana built one of the largest refineries in the world in Baton Rouge.
Business and Industry
Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill
One of the worst environmental disasters in US history
Disasters
Disasters IndexDisasters
Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill
One of the worst environmental disasters in US history
Disasters
Grand 16 Theater Shooting
The Grand 16 Theater Shooting was a 2015 mass shooting in Lafayette that left three dead and injured nine, catapulting the city into a national discussion about gun control.
Disasters
Yellow Fever in Louisiana
The last known epidemic of yellow fever in the United States occurred in Louisiana in 1905. Due to the intensity and frequency of these epidemics, it was often referred to as the "saffron scourge."
Disasters
Cheniere Caminada Hurricane
A late-season hurricane struck Cheniere Caminada in early October 1893, becoming one of Louisiana’s deadliest hurricanes.
Folklife
Folklife IndexFolklife
Marc Savoy
Marc Savoy is a Cajun folklorist, musician, and master accordion maker in Eunice.
Folklife
Blues Music
Of the 119 musicians inducted into the national Blues Hall of Fame, roughly twenty percent are from Louisiana.
Folklife
New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival
Founded in 1970, the New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival, known as Jazz Fest, draws hundreds of thousands of visitors a year to experience the music, cuisine, and cultural heritage of Louisiana.
Folklife
Herbert Singleton
Self-taught artist Herbert Singleton created dramatic scenes of the rough New Orleans environment into which he was born, using found objects such as salvaged doors, driftwood, and discarded furniture.
Foodways
Foodways IndexFoodways
Lucky Dogs
The weiner-shaped Lucky Dog hot dog pushcarts in New Orleans's French Quarter were the inspiration for the fictional Paradise Vendors in John Kennedy Toole's novel "A Confederacy of Dunces."
Foodways
Crawfish Boils
Crawfish boils are a springtime ritual in Louisiana.
Foodways
Muffuletta Sandwich
The muffuletta–a mammoth sandwich of round sesame bread layered with Genoa salami, ham, mortadella, cheese, and olive salad–is a signature dish of New Orleans.
Foodways
Po-Boy Sandwich
The so-called poor boy (po-boy) sandwich originated from the Martin Brothers' French Market Restaurant and Coffee Stand in New Orleans during the 1929 streetcar strike.
Geography
Geography IndexGeography
Fontainebleau State Park
The Fontainebleau State Park bears the name of Bernard de Marigny's sugar plantation, which formerly occupied this site and was itself named after the estate of the French king Francois I.
Geography
Red River Raft
The Great Raft was a thousand-year-old logjam in the Red River that prevented transportation downriver to New Orleans.
Geography
Slidell
Surveyed and platted in 1883 for the New Orleans and Northeastern Railroad, Slidell was named for John Slidell, Confederate ambassador to France and U.S. congressman.
Geography
Florida Parishes of Louisiana
A portion of Louisiana was once the western extremity of colonial Florida
Government & Politics
Government & Politics IndexGovernment & Politics
Henry Watkins Allen
Inaugurated as governor of Confederate Louisiana on January 25, 1864, Henry Allen presided over the parts of the state controlled by the Confederates until June 2, 1865.
Government & Politics
George Eustis
George Eustis served as the Chief Justice of the Louisiana Supreme Court from 1846 to 1853.
Government & Politics
Thomas C. Manning
Thomas C. Manning served as the chief justice of the Louisiana Supreme Court from 1877 to 1880.
Government & Politics
Charles A. O'Niell
Charles A. O'Niell served as the chief justice of the Louisiana Supreme Court from 1922 to 1949.
History
History IndexHistory
Ben Lilly
Louisiana hunter Ben Lilly was President Teddy Roosevelt's chief guide during his noted black bear hunt in 1907.
History
New Orleans Blue Books
Blue Books is the common name given to the various published directories of female prostitutes and houses of prostitution in Storyville, New Orleans' legally designated red-light district.
History
Laurel Valley Plantation
In the early twentieth century, Thibodaux's Laurel Valley Plantation was the largest sugar producer in the region and employed as many as 450 workers.
History
Marie Tranchepain
Marie Tranchepain was the first Mother Superior of New Orleans’s Ursulines and an early female diarist.
Literature
Literature IndexLiterature
Creoles in Literature
Representations of Louisiana’s Creole population are as varied and complex as the definition of the term itself.
Literature
Federal Writers Project
The Federal Writers Project in Louisiana produced oral histories, local guidebooks, and other writings between 1935 and 1939.
Literature
Cleanth Brooks
Cleanth Brooks, one of the foremost American literary critics of the twentieth century, spent fifteen years as a professor in the English Department at Louisiana State University (LSU).
Literature
Ruth McEnery Stuart
Ruth McEnery Stuart was one of the most prominent Louisiana writers of short stories and poetry in the late nineteenth century.
Music
Music IndexMusic
Hackberry Ramblers
From 1933 to 2005, the Hackberry Ramblers played a blend of Cajun music, western swing, Gulf Coast swamp-pop, early rock and roll, and classic country.
Music
New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival
Founded in 1970, the New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival, known as Jazz Fest, draws hundreds of thousands of visitors a year to experience the music, cuisine, and cultural heritage of Louisiana.
Music
Ellis Marsalis
Modern jazz pianist and leading jazz educator Ellis Marsalis was the patriarch of the musical New Orleans family that includes his sons trumpeter Wynton Marsalis and saxophonist Branford Marsalis, both internationally acclaimed modern jazz artists.
Music
Cleoma Breaux Falcon
Musician and singer Cléoma Breaux Falcon recorded the first Cajun record with her husband, Joseph Falcon.
Religion & Spirituality
Religion & Spirituality IndexReligion & Spirituality
All Saints Day
All Saints Day or All Hallows Day is a Catholic tradition honoring the saints and also deceased family members each November 1.
Religion & Spirituality
Ascension of Our Lord Catholic Church Cemetery
This Catholic cemetery in Donaldsonville was laid out in a grid plan shortly after the church parish was founded in 1772.
Religion & Spirituality
White Gospel Music
White gospel music, also known as Southern gospel, represents a widespread aspect of US culture.
Religion & Spirituality
Sister Helen Prejean
Sister Helen Prejean is an anti-death penalty advocate in New Orleans and the author of "Dead Man Walking."
Sports & Recreation
Sports & Recreation IndexSports & Recreation
Joe Martina
In 1924 New Orleans pitcher Oyster Joe Martina led the Washington Senators baseball team against the New York Giants to win the World Series.
Sports & Recreation
John Franks
John Franks dominated the sport of horse racing for over twenty years and became one of the leading stable owners and breeders in the country.
Sports & Recreation
Vida Blue
Louisiana pitcher Vida Blue became an award-winning baseball player for the Oakland Athletics.
Sports & Recreation
Willie Pastrano
Willie Pastrano made his professional boxing debut in 1951 after lying about his age to secure a license.
