Jackson Square was originally known in the 18th century as
"Place d'Armes." It was then renamed to honor Andrew Jackson, a war
hero. Jackson square is located in the French quarter facing the Mississippi
River; it is also surrounded by other historic buildings such as the St. Louis
Cathedral. Jackson square is a huge attraction for artist. People come there to
paint or draw portraits or caricatures and hang their work on the iron fence.
What is interesting is some of those paintings have been there for generations.
Jackson square is a popular site amongst locals and tourist.
City Park
City Park was founded in 1854 and is one of the oldest urban parks in the country. The park is 1,300 acres and receives millions of visitors annually. The park offers so much such as the Botanical Garden, Besthoff Sculpture Garden, biking and walking paths, tennis courts, and even an 18 hole gulf course. City Park is also a place for families because of the Carousel Gardens Amusement Park. Something significant this park holds is the worlds largest stand of mature live oaks. One of the oaks dates back 800 years.
City Park was shaped by two major events, The great Depression and Hurricane Katrina. During the Great Depression the Roosevelt Administration $12 million in developing the park which was apart of the Work Progress Administration. Hurricane Katrina left the park under flood water for weeks which caused approximately $43 million in damages to the park. Since the catastrophe the public support was phenomenal and funded significant progress towards repairing and improving the park.
Picture retrieved from Google
Picture retrieved from Google
Tours
- Swamp Tours: Not far outside of New Orleans are a number of Louisiana Swamps and tours that travelers can take and see endless waterways, beautiful nature, and swamp wildlife including alligator and hundreds of different bird species. Travelers will learn about pirates and hear stories of Big Foot.
- Cemetery Tours: New Orleans is known for their above ground tombs which are referred to as "cities of the dead." The reason New Orleans has many above ground tombs is because the water table is very high. If you try and dig a few feet into the ground then the grave will become wet and filled with water, the caskets will eventually begin to float to the top. Still today after a flood, coffins are still coming above ground because of the high water table. One the cemetery tours travelers can visit some historic grave sites such as Marie Laveau.
- Plantations Tours: Just outside New Orleans are some historic plantations. Travelers on these tours will hear the unique story of each plantation and see historic sugarcane fields and ancient oak.
(Photo taken during cemetery tour)
(Picture taken during Whitney plantation tour)
Picture retrieved from Google
Picture retrieved from Google
Picture retrieved from Google
Work Cited
"Experience New Orleans." Experience New Orleans. 2015. Web. 13 Dec. 2015.
"City Park New Orleans." New Orleans City Park. 2015. Web. 13 Dec. 2015.
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