For the designers who were the inspiration for the name of the musical group, please see Charles and Ray Eames
124-466: The Eames Era were a Baton Rouge , Louisiana based indie pop quintet active from 2003 to 2008. The band first received broad attention when one of its songs was featured in an episode of Grey's Anatomy in 2005. The band released one EP and two full-length albums during its career. The band was founded by New Orleans guitarists Grant Widmer and Ted Joyner. The band started in 2002, Grant and Ted's junior year at Louisiana State University , when
248-656: A slave rebellion that started during the French Revolution of Saint-Domingue in 1791. Over the next decade, thousands of refugees landed in Louisiana from the island, including Europeans, Creoles, and Africans, some of the latter brought in by each free group. They greatly increased the French-speaking population in New Orleans and Louisiana, as well as the number of Africans, and the slaves reinforced African culture in
372-664: A 2019 study by Sperling's BestPlaces , other notable Christian bodies in the area include Anglicans or Episcopalians , Pentecostals , Presbyterians , Latter-Day Saints , and Lutherans . Christians including Jehovah's Witnesses , the Metropolitan Community Church , Christian Unitarians , and the Eastern Orthodox among others collectively made up 14% of the Sperling's study other Christian demographic. Notable Anglican or Episcopalian jurisdictions operating throughout
496-584: A 2020 study by the Association of Religion Data Archives , Christianity is the most-practiced religion for the Baton Rouge area, being influenced by Catholicism and Protestantism . In 2020, ARDA reported there were 61 congregations and 174,410 Catholics within the metropolitan area. The Catholic population is primarily served by the Latin Church 's Roman Catholic Diocese of Baton Rouge —a suffragan diocese of
620-504: A 3-track demo in Grant's garage. Later that year the band signed on to the C Student Records label to release their first single "Could Be Anything" April 2004. After winning an award at the university's annual independent film festival they embarked on their first tour along the East Coast. Upon returning the band released " The Second EP " on the C Student label. The album's lead track on
744-606: A Spanish expedition led by Pánfilo de Narváez located the mouth of the Mississippi River. In 1542, Hernando de Soto 's expedition skirted to the north and west of the state (encountering Caddo and Tunica groups) and then followed the Mississippi River down to the Gulf of Mexico in 1543. Spanish interest in Louisiana faded away for a century and a half. In the late 17th century, French and French Canadian expeditions, which included sovereign, religious and commercial aims, established
868-536: A bluff above the Mississippi". In the 1950s and 1960s, the petrochemical industry boomed in Baton Rouge, stimulating the city's expansion beyond its original center. The changing market in the oil business has produced fluctuations in the industry, affecting employment in the city and area. In 1953, there was a bus boycott by black riders who were forbidden to occupy seats reserved for whites, leading eventually to some improvement of their rights. On January 10, 1972,
992-580: A capitol in Neo-Gothic style, complete with turrets and crenellations, and stained glass; it overlooks the Mississippi. It has been described as the "most distinguished example of Gothic Revival" architecture in the state and has been designated as a National Historic Landmark . By the outbreak of the American Civil War , the population of Baton Rouge was nearly 5,500. The war nearly halted economic progress, except for businesses associated with supplying
1116-593: A distinct culture for centuries. From 1763 to 1783, Baton Rouge was part of the British North American colony of West Florida , though it was captured by Spanish forces in in September 1779 . During the first half of the 19th century, Baton Rouge grew steadily as the result of steamboat trade and transportation. Baton Rouge was incorporated in 1817. In 1822, the Pentagon Barracks complex of buildings
1240-543: A foothold on the Mississippi River and Gulf Coast. With its first settlements, France laid claim to a vast region of North America and set out to establish a commercial empire and French nation stretching from the Gulf of Mexico to Canada. In 1682, the French explorer Robert Cavelier de La Salle named the region Louisiana to honor King Louis XIV of France. The first permanent settlement, Fort Maurepas (now Ocean Springs, Mississippi ),
1364-490: A growing town. This became a pattern repeated in New Orleans and other places, although the commodity crop in the south was primarily sugar cane. Louisiana's French settlements contributed to further exploration and outposts, concentrated along the banks of the Mississippi and its major tributaries, from Louisiana to as far north as the region called the Illinois Country , around present-day St. Louis, Missouri . The latter
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#17328874728251488-466: A large plant in Iberville Parish near Plaquemine , 17 miles (27 km) south of Baton Rouge. Shaw Construction , Turner, and Harmony all started with performing construction work at these plants. In addition to being the state capital and parish seat, the city is the home of Louisiana State University , which employs over 5,000 academic staff. One of the largest single employers in Baton Rouge
1612-619: A military and trading post. Since then, Baton Rouge has been governed by France, Britain, Spain, Louisiana, the Republic of West Florida , the United States, the Confederate States , and the United States again. In 1755, when French settlers in the colony of Acadia (known as Acadians ) were deported from there by British authorities, many took up residence in rural Louisiana, including Baton Rouge. Popularly known as Cajuns they maintained
1736-508: A military truck on the way home from a photo shoot, thus cancelling a tour booked for November that year. The military truck was only in the area for providing Hurricane Katrina aid. In 2007, the Eames Era won $ 2500 in the Yaris SXSW band video contest . In April 2007, the band released its second full-length album, "Heroes and Sheroes." The song "When You Were a Millionaire" from that album
1860-524: A multicultural region practicing many religious traditions from Catholicism to Protestantism and Louisiana Voodoo . Baton Rouge is a major, growing industrial, petrochemical , medical, research, motion picture, and technology center of the American South . It is the location of Louisiana State University —the LSU system 's flagship university and the state's largest institution of higher education. It
1984-470: A presence in the area. The Muslim population has grown out of Middle Eastern immigration and African American Muslim missionary work. The first Islamic private school in Baton Rouge was established in 2019. In 2019, Orthodox Jews made up 0.2% of Baton Rouge's religious population. 0.6% of the population identified with eastern faiths. including Buddhism and Hinduism . New religious movements including contemporary paganism have small communities in
2108-461: A result of suburbanization in 2019, to an estimated 854,884. In 2020, the metropolitan statistical area's population increased to 870,569 residents, reflecting southern Louisiana's population growth in contrast with northern Louisiana's stagnation and decline. In 2019, the city of Baton Rouge had a population density of 2,982.5 people per square mile. With the population growth of European and African-descended peoples in present-day Baton Rouge,
2232-505: A rich southern biota , including birds such as ibises and egrets , many species of tree frogs —such as the state-recognized American green tree frog —and fish such as sturgeon and paddlefish . More elevated areas, particularly in the north, contain a wide variety of ecosystems such as tallgrass prairie , longleaf pine forest and wet savannas ; these support an exceptionally large number of plant species, including many species of terrestrial orchids and carnivorous plants . Over half
2356-604: A sizable international population of over 11,300 as of 2008, the largest groups were people of Hispanic and Latino, or Vietnamese descent. This contributes to Baton Rouge's unique culture and diversity. Baton Rouge has an expanding visual arts scene, which is centered downtown. Professional performing arts organizations include Theatre Baton Rouge, the Baton Rouge Symphony Orchestra, Baton Rouge Ballet Theatre, Opera Louisiane and Playmakers—a professional Children's Theatre. This increasing collection of venues includes
2480-543: A special envoy to Napoleon, to assist in obtaining New Orleans for the United States. Jefferson also raised the authorized expenditure to $ 10 million. However, on April 11, 1803, French foreign minister Talleyrand surprised Livingston by asking how much the United States was prepared to pay for the entirety of Louisiana, not just New Orleans and the surrounding area (as Livingston's instructions covered). Monroe agreed with Livingston that Napoleon might withdraw this offer at any time (leaving them with no ability to obtain
2604-636: A violent shootout between members of the Nation of Islam (NOI) and the police ensued, which left two sheriff's deputies and two black males dead at the scene. 31 individuals were injured, including 14 police officers. In response, then-Louisiana Governor John McKeithen ordered 700 members of the Louisiana National Guard to patrol the streets to tamp down further intercity violence. Baton Rouge Mayor-President Woodrow Wilson "W. W." Dumas subsequently imposed an evening to early-morning curfew. On January 14,
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#17328874728252728-518: A war or the loss of a single American life, and set a precedent for the purchase of territory. It opened the way for the eventual expansion of the United States across the continent to the Pacific Ocean. Shortly after the United States took possession, the area was divided into two territories along the 33rd parallel north on March 26, 1804, thereby organizing the Territory of Orleans to the south and
2852-419: A while. Grant Widmer and Ted Joyner subsequently formed a new band, Generationals , whose debut album 'Con Law' was released on July 21, 2009. Baton Rouge, Louisiana Baton Rouge ( / ˌ b æ t ən ˈ r uː ʒ / BAT -ən ROOZH ; French : Baton Rouge or Bâton-Rouge , pronounced [bɑtɔ̃ ʁuʒ] ; Louisiana Creole : Batonrouj ) is the capital city of
2976-408: Is 68.4 °F (20.2 °C). The average temperature for January is 51.7 °F (10.9 °C) and July is 83.0 °F (28.3 °C). The area is usually free from extremes in temperature, with some cold winter fronts, but those are usually brief. Baton Rouge's proximity to the Gulf of Mexico exposes the city and metropolitan area to hurricanes. On September 1, 2008, Hurricane Gustav struck
3100-624: Is a Latin suffix that can refer to "information relating to a particular individual, subject, or place." Thus, roughly, Louis + ana carries the idea of "related to Louis." Once part of the French colonial empire , the Louisiana Territory stretched from present-day Mobile Bay to just north of the present-day Canada–United States border , including a small part of what are now the Canadian provinces of Alberta and Saskatchewan . The area of Louisiana
3224-624: Is a post painted red that the savages have sunk there to mark the land line between the two nations, namely: the land of the Bayagoulas which they were leaving and the land of another nation—thirty leagues upstream from the baton rouge —named the Oumas. The red pole was presumably at Scott's Bluff, on what is now the campus of Southern University. It was reportedly a 30-foot-high (9.1 m) painted pole adorned with fish bones. European settlement of Baton Rouge began in 1721 when French colonists established
3348-404: Is about 79 miles (127 km) from New Orleans , 126 miles (203 km) from Alexandria , 56 miles (90 km) from Lafayette and 250 miles (400 km) from Shreveport . It is also 173 miles (278 km) from Jackson , Mississippi and 272 miles (438 km) from Houston , Texas . Baton Rouge lies on a low elevation of 56 to a little over 62 feet above sea level . Baton Rouge
3472-735: Is also the location of Southern University , the flagship institution of the Southern University System —the nation's only historically black college system. The Port of Greater Baton Rouge is the tenth-largest in the U.S. by tonnage shipped, and it is the farthest upstream Mississippi River port capable of handling Panamax ships. Major corporations participating in the Baton Rouge metropolitan statistical area's economy include Amazon , Lamar Advertising Company , BBQGuys , Marucci Sports , Piccadilly Restaurants , Raising Cane's Chicken Fingers , ExxonMobil , Brown & Root , Shell , and Dow Chemical Company . Human habitation in
3596-548: Is developing a medical district expected to be similar to the Texas Medical Center . LSU and Tulane University have both announced plans to construct satellite medical campuses in Baton Rouge to partner with Our Lady of the Lake Medical Center and Baton Rouge General Medical Center , respectively. Southeastern Louisiana University and Franciscan Missionaries of Our Lady University both have nursing schools in
3720-534: Is estimated to have had a population of more than 20,000. The Plaquemine culture is considered ancestral to the historic Natchez and Taensa peoples, whose descendants encountered Europeans in the colonial era. By 1000 in the northwestern part of the state, the Fourche Maline culture had evolved into the Caddoan Mississippian culture. The Caddoan Mississippians occupied a large territory, including what
3844-967: Is now eastern Oklahoma, western Arkansas, northeast Texas , and northwest Louisiana. Archaeological evidence has demonstrated that the cultural continuity is unbroken from prehistory to the present. The Caddo and related Caddo-language speakers in prehistoric times and at first European contact were the direct ancestors of the modern Caddo Nation of Oklahoma of today. Significant Caddoan Mississippian archaeological sites in Louisiana include Belcher Mound Site in Caddo Parish and Gahagan Mounds Site in Red River Parish. Many current place names in Louisiana, including Atchafalaya , Natchitouches (now spelled Natchitoches ), Caddo, Houma , Tangipahoa , and Avoyel (as Avoyelles ), are transliterations of those used in various Native American languages. The first European explorers to visit Louisiana came in 1528 when
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3968-544: Is strong evidence of a growing cultural and political complexity. Many Coles Creek sites were erected over earlier Woodland period mortuary mounds. Scholars have speculated that emerging elites were symbolically and physically appropriating dead ancestors to emphasize and project their own authority. The Mississippian period in Louisiana was when the Plaquemine and the Caddoan Mississippian cultures developed, and
4092-545: Is syncretized with the African American Baptist culture of the Florida Parishes and South Mississippi . The city of Baton Rouge is a "college town" with Baton Rouge Community College , Louisiana State University , Franciscan Missionaries of Our Lady University , and Southern University located throughout the city limits; the students of Louisiana State University alone make up 20% of the city population. In
4216-587: Is the capital of Louisiana and the parish seat of East Baton Rouge Parish . According to the United States Census Bureau , the city has an area of 79.15 square miles (205.0 km ), of which 76.95 square miles (199.3 km ) are land and 2.2 square miles (5.7 km ) (2.81%) are covered by water. Baton Rouge is on the first set of bluffs north of the Mississippi River Delta 's coastal plains. Because of its prominent location along
4340-571: Is the place of origin of the Mound Builders culture during the Middle Archaic period , in the 4th millennium BC . The sites of Caney and Frenchman's Bend have been securely dated to 5600–5000 BP (about 3700–3100 BC), demonstrating that seasonal hunter-gatherers from around this time organized to build complex earthwork constructions in what is now northern Louisiana. The Watson Brake site near present-day Monroe has an eleven-mound complex; it
4464-678: Is the state government, which consolidated all branches of state government downtown at the Capitol Park complex. The city has a substantial medical research and clinical presence. Research hospitals have included Our Lady of the Lake , Our Lady of the Lake Children's Hospital (affiliated with St. Jude Children's Research Hospital ), Mary Bird Perkins Cancer Center , and Earl K. Long (closed 2013). Together with an emerging medical corridor at Essen Lane, Summa Avenue and Bluebonnet Boulevard, Baton Rouge
4588-516: Is the state's capital, and New Orleans , a French Louisiana region, is its largest city with a population of about 383,000 people. Louisiana has a coastline with the Gulf of Mexico to the south; a large part of its eastern boundary is demarcated by the Mississippi River . Much of Louisiana's lands were formed from sediment washed down the Mississippi River, leaving enormous deltas and vast areas of coastal marsh and swamp . These contain
4712-596: The Baton Rouge Gallery , offering a range of local art, are scattered throughout the city. Louisiana Louisiana (French: Louisiane [lwizjan] ; Spanish: Luisiana [lwiˈsjana] ; Louisiana Creole : Lwizyàn ) is a state in the Deep South and South Central regions of the United States . It borders Texas to the west, Arkansas to the north, and Mississippi to
4836-609: The Black Warrior River began to appear between about 1200 BC and 500 BC—a period called the Middle "Gulf Formational Stage". The Eastern Muskogean language began to diversify internally in the first half of the first millennium AD. The early Muskogean societies were the bearers of the Mississippian culture , which formed around 800 AD and extended in a vast network across the Mississippi and Ohio valleys, with numerous chiefdoms in
4960-491: The Brookings Institution . In 2009, the city was ranked by CNN as the 9th-best place in the country to start a new business. Lamar Advertising Company has its headquarters in Baton Rouge. Other notable companies headquartered in the city include BBQGuys , Marucci Sports , Piccadilly Restaurants , and Raising Cane's Chicken Fingers . Notable corporations which have established offices or distribution centers in
5084-637: The Church of God in Christ . Presbyterians are mainly members of the Presbyterian Church (USA) . In 2020, the Church of God in Christ was the area's largest Pentecostal denomination by membership. In 2019, the second-largest religion in Baton Rouge and its metropolitan area was Islam . In 2020, there were over six mosques in the Baton Rouge area, primarily affiliated with Sunni Islam . The Nation of Islam also has
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5208-658: The Du Maine and the Aurore , arrived in New Orleans carrying more than 500 black slaves coming from Africa. Previous slaves in Louisiana had been transported from French colonies in the West Indies. By the end of 1721, New Orleans counted 1,256 inhabitants, of whom about half were slaves. In 1724, the French government issued a law called the Code Noir ("Black Code" in English) which regulated
5332-644: The Louisiana Public Service Commission in December 2022, many Baton Rougeans helped elect Davante Lewis —the first openly LGBT politician to the state government. On 28 April 2024, the Louisiana State Supreme Court gave the city of St. George the right to secede from Baton Rouge, in a 4–3 decision. The city of Baton Rouge lies on the banks of the Mississippi River in southeastern Louisiana's Florida Parishes region. The city
5456-528: The Old Huey Long Bridge because the clearance is insufficient. In addition, the river depth decreases significantly just to the north, near Port Hudson . Baton Rouge's largest industry is petrochemical production and manufacturing. ExxonMobil 's Baton Rouge Refinery complex is the fifth-largest oil refinery in the country; it is the world's tenth largest. Baton Rouge also has rail, highway, pipeline, and deep-water access. Dow Chemical Company has
5580-481: The Roman Catholic Metropolitan Archdiocese of New Orleans . The Southern Baptist Convention was the second largest individual Christian denomination with 208 congregations and 91,293 members. The United Methodists had 28,924 members. The National Baptist Convention had 15,532 adherents in 25 churches. Non-denominational Protestants were spread out in 270 churches numbering 102,500. In
5704-757: The Shaw Center for the Arts . Opened in 2005, the facility houses the Brunner Gallery, LSU Museum of Art ; the Manship Theatre; a contemporary art gallery; traveling exhibits; and several eateries. Another prominent facility is the Louisiana Art and Science Museum , which contains the Irene W. Pennington Planetarium, traveling art exhibits, space displays, and an ancient Egyptian section. Several smaller art galleries, including
5828-419: The U.S. state of Louisiana . Located on the western bank of the Mississippi River , it had a population of 227,470 as of 2020 ; it is the seat of Louisiana's most populous parish (county-equivalent), East Baton Rouge Parish , and the center of Louisiana's second-largest metropolitan area and city, Greater Baton Rouge . The Baton Rouge area owes its historical importance to its strategic site upon
5952-522: The Union Army occupation of the city, which began in the spring of 1862 and lasted for the duration of the war. The Confederates at first consolidated their forces elsewhere, during which time the state government moved to Opelousas and later Shreveport . In the summer of 1862, about 2,600 Confederate troops under generals John C. Breckinridge (the former Vice President of the United States ) and Daniel Ruggles attempted to recapture Baton Rouge. After
6076-473: The 2010 U.S. census. After the extensive damage in New Orleans and along the coast from Hurricane Katrina on August 29, 2005, the city took in as many as 200,000 displaced residents. In 2010, Baton Rouge started a market push to become a test city for Google 's new super high speed fiber optic line known as GeauxFiBR. In July 2016, the Greater Baton Rouge metropolitan area was heavily affected by
6200-593: The 2020 United States census, Black or African Americans made up 53.55% of the city-proper's population. In 2021 census estimates, Black or African Americans made up the largest share of youths. The remaining racial and ethnic makeup for the city in 2020 was 34.22% non-Hispanic white , 0.17% American Indian and Alaska Native , 3.21% Asian , 0.03% Native Hawaiian or other Pacific Islander , 2.55% two or more races , and 5.94% Hispanic and Latino American of any race. The growing Hispanic and Latino population reflected increasing trends of nationwide diversification. Among
6324-622: The Acadians, who became the ancestors of Louisiana's Cajuns . Spanish Canary Islanders, called Isleños , emigrated from the Canary Islands of Spain to Louisiana under the Spanish crown between 1778 and 1783. In 1800, France's Napoleon Bonaparte reacquired Louisiana from Spain in the Treaty of San Ildefonso , an arrangement kept secret for two years. Jean-Baptiste Le Moyne, Sieur de Bienville brought
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#17328874728256448-465: The American Indian population declined to one of the smallest minority groups in the area. With the increase among people of color during the 20th century, Baton Rouge has also declined as a predominantly non-Hispanic white city, hastened by suburbanization, aging out, and white flight . In 1970, non-Hispanic whites were 70.5% of the population. In 2020, they were 34.2% of the total population. In
6572-547: The Baton Rouge area has been dated to 12000–6500 BC , based on evidence found along the Mississippi, Comite , and Amite rivers. Earthwork mounds were built by hunter-gatherer societies in the Middle Archaic period , from roughly the fourth millennium BC. The speakers of the Proto- Muskogean language divided into its descendant languages by about 1000 BC; and a cultural boundary between either side of Mobile Bay and
6696-538: The Baton Rouge area have included Amazon in 2021, and Microsoft . Chicago Bridge & Iron Company had an office in Baton Rouge before being sold in 2017. In 2023, Aldi established a presence in Baton Rouge. Baton Rouge is the farthest inland port on the Mississippi River that can accommodate ocean-going tankers and cargo carriers . The ships transfer their cargo (grain, oil, cars, containers) at Baton Rouge onto rails and pipelines (to travel east–west) or barges (to travel north). Deep-draft vessels cannot pass
6820-502: The Capital City Alliance. The area has grown a sizeable LGBT community, holding festivals such as Baton Rouge Pride. Native American religions and Afrodiasporic religions were commonplace alongside Christianity in Baton Rouge's early history. Due to French, Spanish, and British colonization and missionary efforts, in addition to American settlement, Baton Rouge became a predominantly Christian city and metropolitan area. In
6944-636: The Crown's transfer of the Illinois Country 's governance from Canada to Louisiana—may have featured the broadest definition of Louisiana: all land claimed by France south of the Great Lakes between the Rocky Mountains and the Alleghenies . A generation later, trade conflicts between Canada and Louisiana led to a more defined boundary between the French colonies; in 1745, Louisiana governor general Vaudreuil set
7068-427: The EP, "Could Be Anything", was featured on the Abercrombie & Fitch website and two television shows ( Grey's Anatomy and Falcon Beach ), and received major airplay on college radio stations nationwide. In October 2005, shortly after graduating from Louisiana State University , the band released their full-length debut " Double Dutch ". The week of the album's release, the band's tour bus got in an accident with
7192-402: The Greater Baton Rouge area include the Episcopal Diocese of Louisiana aligned with the Protestant Episcopal Church of the United States ; and the Reformed Episcopal Diocese of Mid-America and the Anglican Diocese of the Western Gulf Coast aligned with the Anglican Church in North America . Baton Rouge's Pentecostal communities are mainly affiliated with the Assemblies of God USA and
7316-525: The Istrouma Bluff, the first natural bluff upriver from the Mississippi River Delta at the Gulf of Mexico . This allowed development of a business quarter safe from seasonal flooding. In addition, it built a levee system stretching from the bluff southward to protect the riverfront and low-lying agricultural areas. Baton Rouge has developed as a culturally rich center, with settlement by immigrants from numerous European nations and African peoples brought to North America as slaves or indentured servants. It
7440-436: The Seven Years' War (generally referred to in North America as the French and Indian War ). This included the lands along the Gulf Coast and north of Lake Pontchartrain to the Mississippi River, which became known as British West Florida. The rest of Louisiana west of the Mississippi, as well as the "isle of New Orleans", had become a colony of Spain by the Treaty of Fontainebleau (1762) . The transfer of power on either side of
7564-488: The Southeast, as well. By the time the Spanish made their first forays inland from the shores of the Gulf of Mexico in the early 16th century, by some evidence many political centers of the Mississippians were already in decline, or abandoned. At the time, this region appeared to have been occupied by a collection of moderately sized native chiefdoms, interspersed with autonomous villages and tribal groups. Other evidence indicates these Mississippian settlements were thriving at
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#17328874728257688-609: The Spanish "cimarron", meaning which means "fierce" or "unruly." In the late 18th century, the last Spanish governor of the Louisiana territory wrote: Truly, it is impossible for lower Louisiana to get along without slaves and with the use of slaves, the colony had been making great strides toward prosperity and wealth. When the United States purchased Louisiana in 1803, it was soon accepted that slaves could be brought to Louisiana as easily as they were brought to neighboring Mississippi , though it violated U.S. law to do so. Despite demands by United States Rep. James Hillhouse and by
7812-418: The United States acquired the territory in the Louisiana Purchase of 1803, France and Spain jockeyed for control of New Orleans and the lands west of the Mississippi. In the 1720s, German immigrants settled along the Mississippi River, in a region referred to as the German Coast . France ceded most of its territory east of the Mississippi to Great Britain in 1763, in the aftermath of Britain's victory in
7936-463: The United States in 1803 was a catalyst for increased Anglo-American settlement, especially in the northern part of the state. In 1846, the state legislature designated Baton Rouge as Louisiana's new capital to replace "sinful" New Orleans . The architect James Dakin was hired to design the old Louisiana State Capitol , with construction beginning in late 1847. Rather than mimic the United States Capitol , as many other states had done, he designed
8060-403: The United States, was disturbed by Napoleon's plans to re-establish French colonies in North America. With the possession of New Orleans, Napoleon could close the Mississippi to U.S. commerce at any time. Jefferson authorized Robert R. Livingston , U.S. minister to France, to negotiate for the purchase of the city of New Orleans, portions of the east bank of the Mississippi, and free navigation of
8184-419: The United States. The payment was made in United States bonds , which Napoleon sold at face value to the Dutch firm of Hope and Company , and the British banking house of Baring , at a discount of 87 + 1 ⁄ 2 per each $ 100 unit. As a result, France received only $ 8,831,250 in cash for Louisiana. English banker Alexander Baring conferred with Marbois in Paris, shuttled to the United States to pick up
8308-421: The United States. The closure of this vital port to the United States caused anger and consternation. Commerce in the west was virtually blockaded. Historians believe the revocation of the right of deposit was prompted by abuses by the Americans, particularly smuggling, and not by French intrigues as was believed at the time. President Jefferson ignored public pressure for war with France, and appointed James Monroe
8432-535: The Upper South or transported to New Orleans and other coastal markets by ship in the coastwise slave trade . After sales in New Orleans, steamboats operating on the Mississippi transported slaves upstream to markets or plantation destinations at Natchez and Memphis. Unusually for a slave-state, Louisiana harbored escaped Filipino slaves from the Manila Galleons . The members of the Filipino community were then commonly referred to as Manila men, or Manilamen, and later Tagalas , as they were free when they created
8556-409: The Upper South to the Deep South, two thirds of them in the slave trade. Others were transported by their owners as slaveholders moved west for new lands. With changing agriculture in the Upper South as planters shifted from tobacco to less labor-intensive mixed agriculture, planters had excess laborers. Many sold slaves to traders to take to the Deep South. Slaves were driven by traders overland from
8680-436: The West Indies, Germany, and Ireland. It experienced an agricultural boom, particularly in cotton and sugarcane, which were cultivated primarily by slaves from Africa. As a slave state, Louisiana was one of the original seven members of the Confederate States of America during the American Civil War . Louisiana's unique French heritage is reflected in its toponyms, dialects, customs, demographics, and legal system. Relative to
8804-428: The area, and a minority practice Haitian Vodou , Louisiana Voodoo , and Hoodoo . In Sperling's 2019 study, 31.9% of the population identified as either spiritual but not religious , agnostic , or atheist Baton Rouge enjoys a strong economy that has helped the city be ranked as one of the "Top 10 Places for Young Adults" in 2010 by portfolio.com and one of the top 20 cities in North America for economic strength by
8928-577: The biggest slave market in the United States, which contributed greatly to the economy of the city and of the state. New Orleans had become one of the wealthiest cities, and the third largest city, in the nation. The ban on the African slave trade and importation of slaves had increased demand in the domestic market. During the decades after the American Revolutionary War, more than one million enslaved African Americans underwent forced migration from
9052-406: The bonds, took them to Britain, and returned to France with the money—which Napoleon used to wage war against Baring's own country. When news of the purchase reached the United States, Jefferson was surprised. He had authorized the expenditure of $ 10 million for a port city, and instead received treaties committing the government to spend $ 15 million on a land package which would double
9176-710: The boundary between the Houma and Bayagoula tribal hunting grounds. The French name le bâton rouge ("the red stick") is the translation of a native term rendered as Istrouma , possibly a corruption of the Choctaw iti humma ("red pole"); André-Joseph Pénicaut—a carpenter traveling with d'Iberville—published the first full-length account of the expedition in 1723. According to Pénicaut: From there [ Manchacq ] we went five leagues higher and found very high banks called écorts in that region, and in savage called Istrouma which means red stick [ bâton rouge ], as at this place there
9300-575: The city and became the worst hurricane ever to hit the Baton Rouge area. Winds topped 100 miles per hour (160 km/h), knocking down trees and powerlines and making roads impassable. The roofs of many buildings suffered tree damage, especially in the Highland Road, Garden District, and Goodwood areas. The city was shut down for five days and a curfew was put in effect. Rooftop shingles were ripped off, signs blew down, and minor structural damage occurred. Prior to colonization, American Indians were once
9424-602: The city-proper's third historic high in 2010, to 227,470 at the 2020 census . The black population increased in Baton Rouge after the Civil War. Including the consolidated city–parish of Baton Rouge in 2019 ( East Baton Rouge Parish ), the American Community Survey estimated 443,763 people lived in the area. In 2020, the U.S. Census Bureau determined 456,781 people lived in the consolidated city–parish. The metropolitan population of Baton Rouge increased to 3.6% as
9548-614: The city. Anglo-American officials initially made attempts to keep out the additional Creoles of color , but the Louisiana Creoles wanted to increase the Creole population: more than half of the refugees eventually settled in Louisiana, and the majority remained in New Orleans . Pierre Clément de Laussat ( Governor , 1803) said: "Saint-Domingue was, of all our colonies in the Antilles,
9672-951: The culture, the Atchafalaya Basin Mounds in St. Mary Parish, the Fitzhugh Mounds in Madison Parish, the Scott Place Mounds in Union Parish, and the Sims site in St. Charles Parish. Plaquemine culture was contemporaneous with the Middle Mississippian culture that is represented by its largest settlement, the Cahokia site in Illinois east of St. Louis, Missouri . At its peak Cahokia
9796-468: The curfew was lifted. A building boom began in the city in the 1990s and continued into the 2000s, during which Baton Rouge became one of the fastest-growing cities in the Southern United States in terms of technology. Metropolitan Baton Rouge was ranked as one of the fastest-growing metropolitan areas in the U.S. (with a population under 1 million), with 602,894 in 2000 and 802,484 people as of
9920-436: The desired New Orleans area), and that approval from President Jefferson might take months, so Livingston and Monroe decided to open negotiations immediately. By April 30, they closed a deal for the purchase of the entire Louisiana territory of 828,000 square miles (2,100,000 km ) for sixty million Francs (approximately $ 15 million). Part of this sum, $ 3.5 million, was used to forgive debts owed by France to
10044-406: The east. Of the 50 U.S. states , it ranks 20th in land area and the 25th in population , with roughly 4.6 million residents. Reflecting its French heritage , Louisiana is the only U.S. state with political subdivisions termed parishes , which are equivalent to counties , making it one of only two U.S. states not subdivided into counties (the other being Alaska and its boroughs ). Baton Rouge
10168-756: The first platform mounds at ritual centers were constructed for the developing hereditary political and religious leadership. By 400 the Late Woodland period had begun with the Baytown culture , Troyville culture , and Coastal Troyville during the Baytown period and were succeeded by the Coles Creek cultures . Where the Baytown peoples built dispersed settlements, the Troyville people instead continued building major earthwork centers. Population increased dramatically and there
10292-507: The first people in the area of Louisiana to make large amounts of pottery. These cultures lasted until 200 AD. The Middle Woodland period started in Louisiana with the Marksville culture in the southern and eastern part of the state, reaching across the Mississippi River to the east around Natchez, and the Fourche Maline culture in the northwestern part of the state. The Marksville culture
10416-534: The first two African slaves to Louisiana in 1708, transporting them from a French colony in the West Indies. In 1709, French financier Antoine Crozat obtained a monopoly of commerce in La Louisiane , which extended from the Gulf of Mexico to what is now Illinois . According to historian Hugh Thomas , "that concession allowed him to bring in a cargo of blacks from Africa every year". Starting in 1719, traders began to import slaves in higher numbers; two French ships,
10540-474: The influence of New England Federalists in national affairs. President Jefferson was an enthusiastic supporter of westward expansion, and held firm in his support for the treaty. Despite Federalist objections, the U.S. Senate ratified the Louisiana treaty on October 20, 1803. By statute enacted on October 31, 1803, President Thomas Jefferson was authorized to take possession of the territories ceded by France and provide for initial governance. A transfer ceremony
10664-471: The interaction of whites (blancs) and blacks (noirs) in its colony of Louisiana (which was much larger than the current state of Louisiana). After the Sale of Louisiana , French Law survived in the Louisiana, such as the prohibition and outlaw of any cruel punishment. Fugitive slaves, called maroons , could easily hide in the backcountry of the bayous and survive in small settlements. The word "maroon" comes from
10788-520: The islands of Martinique and Guadeloupe to the French. Napoleon looked upon Louisiana as a depot for these sugar islands, and as a buffer to U.S. settlement. In October 1801 he sent a large military force to take back Saint-Domingue, then under control of Toussaint Louverture after the Haitian Revolution . When the army led by Napoleon's brother-in-law Leclerc was defeated, Napoleon decided to sell Louisiana. Thomas Jefferson , third president of
10912-405: The medical district off Essen Lane. Louisiana State University's Pennington Biomedical Research Center , which conducts clinical and biological research, also contributes to research-related employment in the area around the Baton Rouge medical district. The film industry in Louisiana has increased dramatically since the beginning of the 21st century, aided by generous tax incentives adopted by
11036-540: The modern state of Louisiana. The French settlement had two purposes: to establish trade with the Spanish in Texas via the Old San Antonio Road, and to deter Spanish advances into Louisiana. The settlement soon became a flourishing river port and crossroads, giving rise to vast cotton kingdoms along the river that were worked by imported African slaves. Over time, planters developed large plantations and built fine homes in
11160-623: The northern and eastern bounds of his domain as the Wabash valley up to the mouth of the Vermilion River (near present-day Danville, Illinois ); from there, northwest to le Rocher on the Illinois River , and from there west to the mouth of the Rock River (at present day Rock Island, Illinois ). Thus, Vincennes and Peoria were the limit of Louisiana's reach; the outposts at Ouiatenon (on
11284-615: The oldest settlement of Asians in the United States in the village of Saint Malo, Louisiana , the inhabitants of which, even joined the United States in the War of 1812 against the British Empire while they were being led by the French-American Jean Lafitte . Spanish occupation of Louisiana lasted from 1769 to 1800. Beginning in the 1790s, waves of immigration took place from Saint-Domingue as refugees poured over following
11408-504: The one whose mentality and customs influenced Louisiana the most." When the United States won its independence from Great Britain in 1783, one of its major concerns was having a European power on its western boundary, and the need for unrestricted access to the Mississippi River. As American settlers pushed west, they found that the Appalachian Mountains provided a barrier to shipping goods eastward. The easiest way to ship produce
11532-559: The pamphleteer Thomas Paine to enforce existing federal law against slavery in the newly acquired territory, slavery prevailed because it was the source of great profits and the lowest-cost labor. At the start of the 19th century, Louisiana was a small producer of sugar with a relatively small number of slaves, compared to Saint-Domingue and the West Indies. It soon thereafter became a major sugar producer as new settlers arrived to develop plantations. William C. C. Claiborne , Louisiana's first United States governor, said African slave labor
11656-542: The past few months and they are on to other things. Ted, Brian and I have also moved to New Orleans and we are hard at work on a new album. As I said before, Brian got married this week and his life has been very busy so it's still unclear what kind of role he'll have in the new group. But Ted and I have been traveling to record with Daniel Black, the producer of our last album, in D.C. since January. We are about 1/3 finished and hope to be all done in May. Then it will be time to tour for
11780-576: The peoples adopted extensive maize agriculture, cultivating different strains of the plant by saving seeds, selecting for certain characteristics, etc. The Plaquemine culture in the lower Mississippi River Valley in western Mississippi and eastern Louisiana began in 1200 and continued to about 1600. Examples in Louisiana include the Medora site , the archaeological type site for the culture in West Baton Rouge Parish whose characteristics helped define
11904-583: The population of the city and metropolitan area, a substantial number identify as Cajun or Louisiana Creole . During the middle of the 20th century, The Advocate and other region-wide newspapers discriminated against the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender community. In 1969, the Krewe of Apollo—an LGBT social club originating from nearby New Orleans—developed a sister branch for Baton Rouge. Its annual drag balls were targets of further discrimination. Since then, other organizations have been established, such as
12028-560: The possibility of damaging winds and tornadoes yearlong. The area's average precipitation is 61.94 inches (141.1 cm) of rain and 0.1 inches (0.25 cm) of snow annually. With ample precipitation, Baton Rouge is fifth on the list of wettest cities in the United States. Snow in the Baton Rouge area is usually rare, although it snowed in three consecutive years at the first decade of the 21st century: December 11, 2008, December 4, 2009, and February 12, 2010. In 2017, Baton Rouge received snow again. The yearly average temperature for Baton Rouge
12152-585: The pressure for Anglicization , and in 1921, English was shortly made the sole language of instruction in Louisiana schools before a policy of multilingualism was revived in 1974. Louisiana has never had an official language, and the state constitution enumerates "the right of the people to preserve, foster, and promote their respective historic, linguistic, and cultural origins." Based on national averages, Louisiana frequently ranks low among U.S. states in terms of health, education, and development, with high rates of poverty and homicide . In 2018, Louisiana
12276-590: The primary residents of present-day Baton Rouge. With the coming of European colonization , and the migration of American settlers after the Louisiana Purchase , European and African-descended peoples became the predominant groups in the area by birth rates and immigration to a 1860 population of 5,428. Since reaching its first historic high of 220,394 residents at the 1980 U.S. census , the city's population has expanded and contracted twice: from 219,531 in 1990, to 227,818 in 2000—the second historic high—and 229,493,
12400-447: The rest of the southern U.S., Louisiana is multilingual and multicultural, reflecting an admixture of Louisiana French ( Cajun , Creole ), Spanish , French Canadian , Acadian , Saint-Domingue Creole , Native American , and West African cultures (generally the descendants of slaves stolen in the 18th century); more recent migrants include Filipinos and Vietnamese. In the post–Civil War environment , Anglo-Americans increased
12524-525: The river and on the bluffs, which prevents flooding, the French built a fort in the city in 1719. Baton Rouge is the third-southernmost capital city in the continental United States, after Austin, Texas , and Tallahassee, Florida . It is the cultural and economic center of the Greater Baton Rouge metropolitan area. Baton Rouge has a humid subtropical climate ( Köppen Cfa ). It has mild winters, hot and humid summers, moderate to heavy rainfall, and
12648-429: The river for U.S. commerce. Livingston was authorized to pay up to $ 2 million. An official transfer of Louisiana to French ownership had not yet taken place, and Napoleon's deal with the Spanish was a poorly kept secret on the frontier. On October 18, 1802, however, Juan Ventura Morales, acting intendant of Louisiana, made public the intention of Spain to revoke the right of deposit at New Orleans for all cargo from
12772-550: The river would be delayed until later in the decade. In 1765, during Spanish rule, several thousand Acadians from the French colony of Acadia (now Nova Scotia , New Brunswick, and Prince Edward Island ) made their way to Louisiana after having been expelled from Acadia by the British government after the French and Indian War. They settled chiefly in the southwestern Louisiana region now called Acadiana . The governor Luis de Unzaga y Amézaga , eager to gain more settlers, welcomed
12896-413: The shooting of Alton Sterling . His death led to multiple protests and the shooting of police officers . President Barack Obama also made remarks on the shooting of Alton Sterling. By February 2021, Sterling's family was given a $ 4.5 million settlement to settle a wrongful death lawsuit. In August 2016, the city and metropolitan area were severely flooded . During the runoff for District 3 of
13020-549: The size of the country. Jefferson's political opponents in the Federalist Party argued the Louisiana purchase was a worthless desert, and that the U.S. constitution did not provide for the acquisition of new land or negotiating treaties without the consent of the federal legislature. What really worried the opposition was the new states which would inevitably be carved from the Louisiana territory, strengthening western and southern interests in U.S. Congress , and further reducing
13144-634: The state in 2002. In September 2013, the Baton Rouge Film Commission reported that the industry had brought more than $ 90 million into the local economy in 2013. Baton Rouge's largest production facility is the Celtic Media Centre, opened in 2006 by a local group in collaboration with Raleigh Studios of Los Angeles. Raleigh dropped its involvement in 2014. Baton Rouge is a culturally distinct area of Louisiana, where Cajun and Creole Catholic culture from Greater New Orleans and Acadiana
13268-472: The state is forested. Louisiana is situated at the confluence of the Mississippi river system and the Gulf of Mexico. Its location and biodiversity attracted various indigenous groups thousands of years before Europeans arrived in the 17th century. Louisiana has eighteen Native American tribes—the most of any southern state—of which four are federally recognized and ten are state-recognized. The French claimed
13392-607: The state. The city of modern–day Epps developed near it. The Poverty Point culture may have reached its peak around 1500 BC, making it the first complex culture, and possibly the first tribal culture in North America. It lasted until approximately 700 BC. The Poverty Point culture was followed by the Tchefuncte and Lake Cormorant cultures of the Tchula period , local manifestations of Early Woodland period . The Tchefuncte culture were
13516-477: The territory in 1682, and it became the political, commercial, and population center of the larger colony of New France . From 1762 to 1801 Louisiana was under Spanish rule, briefly returning to French rule before being sold by Napoleon to the U.S. in 1803. It was admitted to the Union in 1812 as the 18th state. Following statehood, Louisiana saw an influx of settlers from the eastern U.S. as well as immigrants from
13640-400: The time of the first Spanish contact. Later Spanish expeditions encountered the remains of groups who had lost many people and been disrupted in the aftermath of infectious diseases, chronic among Europeans, unknowingly introduced by the first expedition. French explorer Pierre Le Moyne d'Iberville led an exploration party up the Mississippi River in 1698. The explorers saw a red pole marking
13764-456: The two former high school friends enlisted drummer Greg Gauthreaux and bass player Brian Waits to form "The Double Zeros". Singer Ashlin Phillips auditioned for the band in December 2002, after work had begun writing and practicing for the band's first gig. The band's name honors famed designers Charles and Ray Eames . By 2003 the now complete lineup became "The Eames Era" and had begun recording
13888-451: The upper Wabash near present-day Lafayette, Indiana ), Chicago, Fort Miamis (near present-day Fort Wayne, Indiana ), and Prairie du Chien, Wisconsin , operated as dependencies of Canada. The settlement of Natchitoches (along the Red River in present-day northwest Louisiana) was established in 1714 by Louis Juchereau de St. Denis , making it the oldest permanent European settlement in
14012-609: The war, New Orleans temporarily served as the seat of the Reconstruction era state government. When the Bourbon Democrats regained power in 1882, after considerable intimidation and voter suppression of black Republicans, they returned the state government to Baton Rouge, where it has since remained. In his 1893 guidebook, Karl Baedeker described Baton Rouge as "the Capital of Louisiana, a quaint old place with 10,378 inhabitants, on
14136-477: Was built about 5400 BP (3500 BC). These discoveries overturned previous assumptions in archaeology that such complex mounds were built only by cultures of more settled peoples who were dependent on maize cultivation. The Hedgepeth Site in Lincoln Parish is more recent, dated to 5200–4500 BP (3300–2600 BC). Nearly 2,000 years later, Poverty Point was built; it is the largest and best-known Late Archaic site in
14260-532: Was completed. The site was used by Spanish, French, and British authorities and was occupied by both the Confederate States Army and United States Army . It was also part of the short-lived Republic of West Florida. In 1951, ownership of the barracks was transferred to the state of Louisiana. In 1976, the complex was listed on the National Register of Historic Places . Acquisition of Louisiana by
14384-422: Was featured on MTV's new reality show "I'm from Rolling Stone," running at the beginning and end of each of the ten episodes. That song as well as "Watson On Your Side" have videos made by Untucked Films . In April 2008, Grant Widmer wrote music blog The Rockist Society to let them know the band had decided to go their separate ways: That's right, The Eames Era are no more. Ashlin and Greg moved to Chicago in
14508-403: Was founded in 1699 by Pierre Le Moyne d'Iberville , a French military officer from New France . By then the French had also built a small fort at the mouth of the Mississippi at a settlement they named La Balise (or La Balize) , " seamark " in French. By 1721, they built a 62-foot (19 m) wooden lighthouse-type structure here to guide ships on the river. A royal ordinance of 1722—following
14632-422: Was held in New Orleans on November 29, 1803. Since the Louisiana territory had never officially been turned over to the French, the Spanish took down their flag, and the French raised theirs. The following day, General James Wilkinson accepted possession of New Orleans for the United States. The Louisiana Territory, purchased for less than three cents an acre, doubled the size of the United States overnight, without
14756-652: Was named after the Marksville Prehistoric Indian Site in Avoyelles Parish . These cultures were contemporaneous with the Hopewell cultures of present-day Ohio and Illinois , and participated in the Hopewell Exchange Network. Trade with peoples to the southwest brought the bow and arrow . The first burial mounds were built at this time. Political power began to be consolidated, as
14880-553: Was needed because white laborers "cannot be had in this unhealthy climate." Hugh Thomas wrote that Claiborne was unable to enforce the abolition of the Atlantic slave trade, which the U.S. and Great Britain enacted in 1807. The United States continued to protect the domestic slave trade, including the coastwise trade—the transport of slaves by ship along the Atlantic Coast and to New Orleans and other Gulf ports. By 1840, New Orleans had
15004-437: Was ranked as the least healthy state in the country, with high levels of drug-related deaths . It also has had the highest homicide rate in the United States since at least the 1990s. Louisiana was named after Louis XIV , King of France from 1643 to 1715. When René-Robert Cavelier, Sieur de La Salle claimed the territory drained by the Mississippi River for France, he named it La Louisiane . The suffix –ana (or –ane)
15128-428: Was ruled by seven different nations: the French, Spanish and British in the colonial era; briefly the Republic of West Florida ; the United States as a territory and a state; the Confederate States of America ; and the United States again since the end of the American Civil War . Throughout the governance of these various occupying national governments of Baton Rouge, the city and its metropolitan area have developed as
15252-457: Was settled by French colonists from Illinois. Initially, Mobile and then Biloxi served as the capital of La Louisiane. Recognizing the importance of the Mississippi River to trade and military interests, and wanting to protect the capital from severe coastal storms, France developed New Orleans from 1722 as the seat of civilian and military authority south of the Great Lakes. From then until
15376-549: Was to use a flatboat to float it down the Ohio and Mississippi rivers to the port of New Orleans, where goods could be put on ocean-going vessels. The problem with this route was that the Spanish owned both sides of the Mississippi below Natchez . Napoleon's ambitions in Louisiana involved the creation of a new empire centered on the Caribbean sugar trade . By the terms of the Treaty of Amiens of 1802, Great Britain returned control of
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