Misplaced Pages

#164835

83-835: At that time, levee boards still existing were: Algiers , the East Jefferson (Parish) Levee District, the Lake Borgne Basin Levee District ( St. Bernard Parish ), the St. Tammany (Parish) Levee District, the Tangipihoa (Parish) Levee District, and levee boards for the east banks of St. John the Baptist and St. Charles Parishes. The several pre-existing boards, while subservient to the SLFPA, remained in operation until existing projects, bonds, and tax millage rates either are consolidated under

166-535: A civil engineer , and another member must be a geologist . The enabling statute stipulates that the SLFPA-East Board be composed of eleven members, one from each parish within the territorial jurisdiction of the authority. In February 2014, State Senators Donahue and Nevers, together with State Representatives Cromer, Burns, Hollis, Pearson, Ritchie, and Simon, pre-filed Senate Bill # 342 to make St Tammany Parish independent of SLFPA-East. The SLFPA-West board

249-511: A continuing threat to individual pieces of the levee system. And despite the focus on public reporting, there is no record that the SLFPA alerted the public of the low ranking. Algiers, New Orleans Algiers ( / æ l ˈ dʒ ɪər z / ) is a historic neighborhood of New Orleans and is the only Orleans Parish community located on the West Bank of the Mississippi River . Algiers

332-532: A large mound of sand spanning the width of the river 55 feet below the surface, allowing fresh water and large cargo ships to pass over. Fresh river water flowing from the Mississippi into the Gulf of Mexico does not mix into the salt water immediately. The images from NASA 's MODIS show a large plume of fresh water, which appears as a dark ribbon against the lighter-blue surrounding waters. These images demonstrate that

415-703: A length of 3,710 miles (5,971 km), making it the fourth longest river in the world after the Nile , Amazon , and Yangtze . When measured by the largest stream source (by water volume), the Ohio River , by extension the Allegheny River , would be the source, and the Mississippi would begin in Pennsylvania . At its source at Lake Itasca , the Mississippi River is about 3 feet (0.91 m) deep. The average depth of

498-478: A natural process known as avulsion or delta switching, the lower Mississippi River has shifted its final course to the mouth of the Gulf of Mexico every thousand years or so. This occurs because the deposits of silt and sediment begin to clog its channel, raising the river's level and causing it to eventually find a steeper, more direct route to the Gulf of Mexico. The abandoned distributaries diminish in volume and form what are known as bayous . This process has, over

581-614: A part of Orleans Parrish in 1870, it became the largest populated black community on the West bank of the Mississippi River. Many Jazz artists such as Kid Thomas Valentine , Red Allen , and Papa Celestin all grew up in McDonoghville section in Algiers during the 1910s. Some of the early black neighborhoods included Riverview, Tunisbourg McCLendonville, LeBeoufville, Hendeeville, Oakdale, and Whitney. In 1938, L.B. Landry High School opened as

664-531: A port call for the displaced Cajuns. Developed as a town by Barthelemy Duverjé, Algiers expanded due mainly to the shipbuilding and repair industries of the dry docks and the extensive railroad yards. A large part of the town surrounding the Courthouse was destroyed by fire in 1895 but rose again like a Phoenix from the ashes. In 1870, Algiers was annexed to the city as the 15th Ward, an arrangement which has remained despite repeated discussions of secession . Until

747-645: A vote of 37-0 in the Senate and 93-0 in the House requiring term limits. Rosenthal and the bills's sponsor were invited by Governor John Bel Edwards to the Capitol Press Room for a special signing on June 16, 2017. The current chair of the SLFPA nominating committee stated in an email communication on Nov 17, 2015 that "...the Louisiana legislature created SLFPAE to focus on flood protection across parish boundaries, including

830-399: Is 2.68; the average family size is 3.41. The total number of housing units in Algiers was 12,351; 83.9 per cent were occupied, and 16.1 vacant. 40.6 of those units are owned by homeowners, while 59.4 are rented. Socially speaking, 72.3% are high school graduates, and 14.3% hold at least a bachelor's degree. The married population is 41.2 percent male, and 33.2 are female. Families that are below

913-750: Is 208,200 cu ft/s (5,900 m /s). Thus, by volume, the main branch of the Mississippi River system at Cairo can be considered to be the Ohio River (and the Allegheny River further upstream), rather than the Middle Mississippi. In addition to the Ohio River , the major tributaries of the Lower Mississippi River are the White River , flowing in at the White River National Wildlife Refuge in east-central Arkansas;

SECTION 10

#1732854892165

996-558: Is a meandering river in a broad, flat area, only rarely flowing alongside a bluff (as at Vicksburg, Mississippi ). The Mississippi River is known as the Middle Mississippi from the Upper Mississippi River's confluence with the Missouri River at St. Louis, Missouri , for 190 miles (310 km) to its confluence with the Ohio River at Cairo, Illinois . The Middle Mississippi is relatively free-flowing. From St. Louis to

1079-494: Is called the Lower Mississippi River from its confluence with the Ohio River to its mouth at the Gulf of Mexico, a distance of about 1,000 miles (1,600 km). At the confluence of the Ohio and the Middle Mississippi, the long-term mean discharge of the Ohio at Cairo, Illinois is 281,500 cubic feet per second (7,970 cubic meters per second), while the long-term mean discharge of the Mississippi at Thebes, Illinois (just upriver from Cairo)

1162-629: Is composed of seven members, two from each parish within the territorial jurisdiction of the authority. Members are appointed by the governor from nominations submitted by the nominating committee. Three members are engineers or professionals in related fields such as geotechnical, hydrological, or environmental science. Of those three members, one is a civil engineer and one a geologist or hydrologist . Two members are professionals in other disciplines with at least ten years of professional experience. One member of these must reside in Orleans Parish on

1245-868: Is controlled and managed as a series of pools created by 26 locks and dams. The Upper Mississippi River is joined by the Minnesota River at Fort Snelling in the Twin Cities ; the St. Croix River near Prescott, Wisconsin ; the Cannon River near Red Wing, Minnesota ; the Zumbro River at Wabasha, Minnesota ; the Black , La Crosse , and Root rivers in La Crosse, Wisconsin ; the Wisconsin River at Prairie du Chien, Wisconsin ;

1328-429: Is known as the 15th Ward , one of the 17 Wards of New Orleans . It was once home to many jazz musicians and is also the second oldest neighborhood in the city. Algiers was established in 1719 as a plantation, not a neighborhood. Originally called the "King's Plantation," it was first used as the location for the city's powder magazine, a holding area for the newly arrived enslaved Africans. Decades later, it became

1411-464: Is largely a multi-thread stream with many bars and islands. From its confluence with the St. Croix River downstream to Dubuque, Iowa , the river is entrenched, with high bedrock bluffs lying on either side. The height of these bluffs decreases to the south of Dubuque, though they are still significant through Savanna, Illinois . This topography contrasts strongly with the Lower Mississippi, which

1494-567: Is the primary river of the largest drainage basin in the United States . From its traditional source of Lake Itasca in northern Minnesota , it flows generally south for 2,340 miles (3,766 km) to the Mississippi River Delta in the Gulf of Mexico . With its many tributaries , the Mississippi's watershed drains all or parts of 32 U.S. states and two Canadian provinces between

1577-528: Is the only true waterfall on the entire Mississippi River. The water elevation continues to drop steeply as it passes through the gorge carved by the waterfall. After the completion of the St. Anthony Falls Lock and Dam in 1963, the river's head of navigation moved upstream, to the Coon Rapids Dam . However, the Locks were closed in 2015 to control the spread of invasive Asian carp , making Minneapolis once again

1660-597: Is zoned to schools in the Orleans Parish School Board (OPSB), also known as New Orleans Public Schools (NOPS). The district has its headquarters in the Westbank area of Algiers. The schools include: The InspireNola Charter Schools operate Crescent City Schools include One campus of the International School of Louisiana (ISL) is in Algiers. Mississippi River The Mississippi River

1743-604: The American Civil War , the Mississippi's capture by Union forces marked a turning point towards victory , due to the river's strategic importance to the Confederate war effort. Because of the substantial growth of cities and the larger ships and barges that replaced steamboats, the first decades of the 20th century saw the construction of massive engineering works such as levees , locks and dams , often built in combination. A major focus of this work has been to prevent

SECTION 20

#1732854892165

1826-779: The Arkansas River , joining the Mississippi at Arkansas Post ; the Big Black River in Mississippi; and the Yazoo River , meeting the Mississippi at Vicksburg, Mississippi . Deliberate water diversion at the Old River Control Structure in Louisiana allows the Atchafalaya River in Louisiana to be a major distributary of the Mississippi River, with 30% of the combined flow of the Mississippi and Red Rivers flowing to

1909-569: The Gulf of Mexico , part of the Atlantic Ocean. The total catchment of the Mississippi River covers nearly 40% of the landmass of the continental United States. The highest point within the watershed is also the highest point of the Rocky Mountains , Mount Elbert at 14,440 feet (4,400 m). In the United States, the Mississippi River drains the majority of the area between the crest of

1992-582: The Minnesota River , James River , and Milk River valleys. When the ice sheet completely retreated, many of these "temporary" rivers found paths to Hudson Bay or the Arctic Ocean, leaving the Mississippi Basin with many features "over-sized" for the existing rivers to have carved in the same time period. Ice sheets during the Illinoian Stage , about 300,000 to 132,000 years before present, blocked

2075-484: The Mississippi River . It was destroyed in the late 1950s to make room for the Greater New Orleans Bridge . Newton Street became the heart of Algiers's black community as it was once filled with ballrooms, saloons, and Juke joints . Popular hangout spots like Kohlman's Tavern, Ping Pong Club, and Whitney's Ballroom attracted hundreds of people every weekend. The most famous, Greystone Voter's League, became

2158-556: The Ohio and Missouri , formed pathways for the western expansion of the United States. The river also became the subject of American literature , particularly in the writings of Mark Twain . Formed from thick layers of the river's silt deposits, the Mississippi embayment is one of the most fertile regions of the United States; steamboats were widely used in the 19th and early 20th centuries to ship agricultural and industrial goods. During

2241-1226: The Rock River at the Quad Cities ; the Iowa River near Wapello, Iowa ; the Skunk River south of Burlington, Iowa ; and the Des Moines River at Keokuk, Iowa . Other major tributaries of the Upper Mississippi include the Crow River in Minnesota, the Chippewa River in Wisconsin, the Maquoketa River and the Wapsipinicon River in Iowa, and the Illinois River in Illinois. The Upper Mississippi

2324-531: The Rocky and Appalachian mountains. The river either borders or passes through the states of Minnesota , Wisconsin , Iowa , Illinois , Missouri , Kentucky , Tennessee , Arkansas , Mississippi , and Louisiana . The main stem is entirely within the United States; the total drainage basin is 1,151,000 sq mi (2,980,000 km ), of which only about one percent is in Canada. The Mississippi ranks as

2407-836: The Rocky Mountains and the crest of the Appalachian Mountains , except for various regions drained to Hudson Bay by the Red River of the North ; to the Atlantic Ocean by the Great Lakes and the Saint Lawrence River ; and to the Gulf of Mexico by the Rio Grande , the Alabama and Tombigbee rivers, the Chattahoochee and Appalachicola rivers, and various smaller coastal waterways along

2490-429: The headwaters region and serve multiple purposes, including power generation and recreation. The remaining 29 dams, beginning in downtown Minneapolis, all contain locks and were constructed to improve commercial navigation of the upper river. Taken as a whole, these 43 dams significantly shape the geography and influence the ecology of the upper river. Beginning just below Saint Paul, Minnesota , and continuing throughout

2573-483: The most recent Ice Age . The southernmost extent of this enormous glaciation extended well into the present-day United States and Mississippi basin. When the ice sheet began to recede, hundreds of feet of rich sediment were deposited, creating the flat and fertile landscape of the Mississippi Valley. During the melt, giant glacial rivers found drainage paths into the Mississippi watershed, creating such features as

Southeast Louisiana Flood Protection Authority - Misplaced Pages Continue

2656-511: The 1920s referred to Algiers as the "Brooklyn of the South", the latter for its proximity to New Orleans as compared to New York and Brooklyn , both separated by a river. Algiers also has a long history of Brass bands . The most notable is the Algiers Brass Band , one of the oldest traditional brass bands still active in the city. There were several social halls, including Algiers Masonic Hall,

2739-561: The Earth's mantle (specifically, the Bermuda hotspot ) that was undergoing a period of intense activity. The upwelling of magma from the hotspot forced the further uplift to a height of perhaps 2–3 km of part of the Appalachian-Ouachita range, forming an arch that blocked southbound water flows. The uplifted land quickly eroded and, as North America moved away from the hot spot and as

2822-601: The Elks Hall, and the Ladies of Hope Benevolent Hall, where early jazz was played. There is some jazz parading in the neighborhood today. Algiers has many nicknames such as A.L.G. and 1.5 but most commonly refer to as the Westside of New Orleans or simply "Westside" by locals. Algiers is predominantly African American , with 89.4% of residents identifying as such in the 2000 Census. Algiers' total population pre- Katrina , according to

2905-400: The French rendering of the Anishinaabe ( Ojibwe or Algonquin ) name for the river, Misi-ziibi (Great River). In the 18th century, the river was set by the Treaty of Paris as, for the most part, the western border of the new United States. With the Louisiana Purchase and the country's westward expansion, it became a convenient boundary line between the western and eastern halves of

2988-588: The Gulf of Mexico by this route, rather than continuing down the Mississippi's current channel past Baton Rouge and New Orleans on a longer route to the Gulf. Although the Red River was once an additional tributary, its water now flows separately into the Gulf of Mexico through the Atchafalaya River. The Mississippi River has the world's fourth-largest drainage basin ("watershed" or "catchment"). The basin covers more than 1,245,000 square miles (3,220,000 km ), including all or parts of 32 U.S. states and two Canadian provinces. The drainage basin empties into

3071-409: The Gulf. The Mississippi River empties into the Gulf of Mexico about 100 miles (160 km) downstream from New Orleans. Measurements of the length of the Mississippi from Lake Itasca to the Gulf of Mexico vary somewhat, but the United States Geological Survey 's number is 2,340 miles (3,766 km). The retention time from Lake Itasca to the Gulf is typically about 90 days; while speed varies along

3154-483: The Housing Authority of New Orleans opened the Christopher Park Homes for low-income black families. The building of public housing led to White flight . The White flight resulted in a major decline as many businesses left Algiers for more sustainable neighborhoods in the neighboring Jefferson Parish . Algiers was home to various jazz pioneers such as Red Allen , Peter Bocage , George Lewis , Papa Celestin , Kid Thomas Valentine and many others. Jazz musicians of

3237-404: The Illinoian Stage. Timeline of outflow course changes In March 1876, the Mississippi suddenly changed course near the settlement of Reverie, Tennessee , leaving a small part of Tipton County, Tennessee , attached to Arkansas and separated from the rest of Tennessee by the new river channel. Since this event was an avulsion , rather than the effect of incremental erosion and deposition,

3320-408: The Midwestern and eastern U.S. These earthquakes created Reelfoot Lake in Tennessee from the altered landscape near the river. When measured from its traditional source at Lake Itasca , the Mississippi has a length of 2,340 miles (3,766 km). When measured from its longest stream source (most distant source from the sea), Brower's Spring in Montana , the source of the Missouri River , it has

3403-416: The Mississippi River between Saint Paul and Saint Louis is between 9 and 12 feet (2.7–3.7 m) deep, the deepest part being Lake Pepin , which averages 20–32 feet (6–10 m) deep and has a maximum depth of 60 feet (18 m). Between where the Missouri River joins the Mississippi at Saint Louis, Missouri, and Cairo, Illinois, the depth averages 30 feet (9 m). Below Cairo, where the Ohio River joins,

Southeast Louisiana Flood Protection Authority - Misplaced Pages Continue

3486-411: The Mississippi River has experienced numerous large and small changes to its main course, as well as additions, deletions, and other changes among its numerous tributaries, and the lower Mississippi River has used different pathways as its main channel to the Gulf of Mexico across the delta region. As Pangaea began to break up about 95 million years ago, North America passed over a volcanic " hotspot " in

3569-415: The Mississippi River near New Madrid, Missouri , between Memphis and St. Louis, is related to an aulacogen (failed rift) that formed at the same time as the Gulf of Mexico. This area is still quite active seismically. Four great earthquakes in 1811 and 1812 , estimated at 8 on the Richter magnitude scale , had tremendous local effects in the then sparsely settled area, and were felt in many other places in

3652-404: The Mississippi near Rock Island, Illinois, diverting it to its present channel farther to the west, the current western border of Illinois. The Hennepin Canal roughly follows the ancient channel of the Mississippi downstream from Rock Island to Hennepin, Illinois . South of Hennepin, to Alton, Illinois , the current Illinois River follows the ancient channel used by the Mississippi River before

3735-529: The Missouri River; the Middle Mississippi, which is downriver from the Missouri to the Ohio River; and the Lower Mississippi , which flows from the Ohio to the Gulf of Mexico. The Upper Mississippi runs from its headwaters to its confluence with the Missouri River at St. Louis, Missouri. It is divided into two sections: The source of the Upper Mississippi branch is traditionally accepted as Lake Itasca , 1,475 feet (450 m) above sea level in Itasca State Park in Clearwater County, Minnesota . The name Itasca

3818-470: The Nominating Committee have no defined term limits. In the spring of 2017, state representative Patrick Connick agreed to file a bill requiring term limits for the nominating committee at the urging of Sandy Rosenthal founder of Levees.org. The rationale was that this relatively small group of people decides who will spend upward of $ 60 million of taxpayer money annually and provided an opportunity for corruption. The state legislature agreed and passed HB266 by

3901-443: The Ohio River confluence, the Middle Mississippi falls 220 feet (67 m) over 180 miles (290 km) for an average rate of 1.2 feet per mile (23 cm/km). At its confluence with the Ohio River, the Middle Mississippi is 315 feet (96 m) above sea level. Apart from the Missouri and Meramec rivers of Missouri and the Kaskaskia River of Illinois, no major tributaries enter the Middle Mississippi River. The Mississippi River

3984-430: The Upper Mississippi River is the Upper St. Anthony Falls Lock and Dam in Minneapolis. Above the dam, the river's elevation is 799 feet (244 m). Below the dam, the river's elevation is 750 feet (230 m). This 49-foot (15 m) drop is the largest of all the Mississippi River locks and dams. The origin of the dramatic drop is a waterfall preserved adjacent to the lock under an apron of concrete. Saint Anthony Falls

4067-426: The Upper Mississippi is a simple steel culvert, through which the river (locally named "Nicolet Creek") flows north from Lake Nicolet under "Wilderness Road" to the West Arm of Lake Itasca, within Itasca State Park . The earliest bridge across the Mississippi River was built in 1855. It spanned the river in Minneapolis where the current Hennepin Avenue Bridge is located. No highway or railroad tunnels cross under

4150-555: The areas drained by them. Denser salt water from the Gulf of Mexico forms a salt wedge along the river bottom near the mouth of the river, while fresh water flows near the surface. In drought years, with less fresh water to push it out, salt water can travel many miles upstream—64 miles (103 km) in 2022—contaminating drinking water supplies and requiring the use of desalination . The United States Army Corps of Engineers constructed "saltwater sills" or "underwater levees" to contain this in 1988, 1999, 2012, and 2022. This consists of

4233-427: The biggest increase in gun homicides. Algiers made national headlines during 1981 with the "Algiers 7" case in which seven officers were indicted for killing and torturing black families in revenge for the slaying of NOPD officer Gregory Newport in 1980. Throughout the 1990s, homicides were the only violent crime that remained high in the district, reaching 29 in 1995 which was a slight decrease from 1991. In 2015,

SECTION 50

#1732854892165

4316-485: The census, was 28,385 of whom 45.9 were male and 54.1 female. The average age is 29.6, while the population for children under 5 was 2,515. Aged 18 and over was 19,204, while 65 and over were a total of 2,839. Whites make up 21.8 per cent of the population in Algiers Point , while African-Americans make up 73.6. Native Americans and Alaskan Natives are 0.2 per cent of the population. Hawaiians barely registered, and Latino /as make up 4.3 percent. The average household size

4399-411: The country. This is reflected in the Gateway Arch in St. Louis, which was designed to symbolize the opening of the West, and the focus on the " Trans-Mississippi " region in the Trans-Mississippi Exposition . Regional landmarks are often classified in relation to the river, such as "the highest peak east of the Mississippi " or "the oldest city west of the Mississippi". The FCC also uses it as

4482-427: The course of the river, this gives an overall average of around 26 mi (42 km) per day, or 1 mi (1.6 km) per hour. The stream gradient of the entire river is 0.01%, a drop of 450 m over 3,766 km. The Mississippi River discharges at an annual average rate of between 200 and 700 thousand cubic feet per second (6,000 and 20,000 m /s). The Mississippi is the fourteenth largest river in

4565-403: The delta of the Chippewa River of Wisconsin as it enters the Upper Mississippi, is more than 2 miles (3.2 km) wide. By the time the Upper Mississippi reaches Saint Paul , Minnesota, below Lock and Dam No. 1, it has dropped more than half its original elevation and is 687 feet (209 m) above sea level. From St. Paul to St. Louis, Missouri, the river elevation falls much more slowly and

4648-532: The depth averages 50–100 feet (15–30 m) deep. The deepest part of the river is in New Orleans, where it reaches 200 feet (61 m) deep. The Mississippi River runs through or along 10 states, from Minnesota to Louisiana , and is used to define portions of these states' borders, with Wisconsin , Illinois , Kentucky , Tennessee , and Mississippi along the east side of the river, and Iowa , Missouri , and Arkansas along its west side. Substantial parts of both Minnesota and Louisiana are on either side of

4731-753: The district tallied 25 homicides, 26 in 2021. In 2022, the district was second in homicides behind Eastern New Orleans, with 38 homicides. In 2017, 4th district teamed with the NOPD's street-gang unit to quell gun battles spurred by conflicts between neighborhood groups. The groups were formed of loose associations among people, not stable enough to be considered traditional gangs, and had "some very petty, petty beefs that led to very violent encounters," he said. To reduce crime, law enforcement installed 13 crime surveillance cameras, including ten fixed cameras and three mobile cameras, along with five license-plate readers, including three fixed readers and two mobile readers. Algiers contains many neighborhoods, such as Algiers

4814-405: The dividing line for broadcast call-signs , which begin with W to the east and K to the west, overlapping in media markets along the river. Due to its size and importance, it has been nicknamed The Mighty Mississippi River or simply The Mighty Mississippi . The Mississippi River can be divided into three sections: the Upper Mississippi , the river from its headwaters to the confluence with

4897-452: The first all-black school in Algiers. The school was named after Dr. Lord Beaconsfield Landry, who lived in the area and died in 1934. It was also one of the first schools in New Orleans to serve African Americans. Around the 1930s and early 1940s, several other schools and neighborhoods were built for blacks, including Peter S. Lawton School and Oakdale. Oakdale once stood on the edge of Jefferson Parish and stretched from Whitney Avenue to

4980-458: The first racially integrated community. Aurora and Walnut Bend subdivisions remained white. The oil industry provided many jobs and sustained the growth of commerce. In 1970, New Orleans Public Schools opened a second high school, O. Perry Walker. O. Perry Walker was named after former New Orleans Public Schools superintendent Oliver Perry Walker, who supported segregation. During the early 1970s, Whites had begun to move out of Behrman Heights after

5063-441: The hotspot's activity declined, the crust beneath the embayment region cooled, contracted and subsided to a depth of 2.6 km, and around 80 million years ago the Reelfoot Rift formed a trough that was flooded by the Gulf of Mexico . As sea levels dropped, the Mississippi and other rivers extended their courses into the embayment , which gradually became filled with sediment with the Mississippi River at its center. Through

SECTION 60

#1732854892165

5146-402: The last two decades, this number was only 160 million short tons (145 million metric tons) per year. The reduction in sediment transported down the Mississippi River is the result of engineering modification of the Mississippi, Missouri, and Ohio rivers and their tributaries by dams, meander cutoffs , river-training structures, and bank revetments and soil erosion control programs in

5229-414: The latter 1930s, rail yards housed large amounts of freight and rolling stock , which was brought back and forth across the Mississippi River by barge . Then, the Huey P. Long Bridge , which included a railway bridge, was built upriver at Bridge City , Louisiana. The largest railroad presence had been the Southern Pacific yard. That location is still known to Algerines as "the SP yard." For decades, it

5312-437: The lower 10 miles (16 km) of the Kaskaskia River, forming a new Mississippi channel and cutting off the town from the rest of the state. Later flooding destroyed most of the remaining town, including the original State House. Today, the remaining 2,300 acres (930 ha) island and community of 14 residents is known as an enclave of Illinois and is accessible only from the Missouri side. The New Madrid Seismic Zone , along

5395-415: The lower Mississippi from shifting into the channel of the Atchafalaya River and bypassing New Orleans . Since the 20th century, the Mississippi River has also experienced major pollution and environmental problems — most notably elevated nutrient and chemical levels from agricultural runoff, the primary contributor to the Gulf of Mexico dead zone . The word Mississippi itself comes from Misi zipi ,

5478-440: The native way of life as first explorers, then settlers, ventured into the basin in increasing numbers. The river served sometimes as a barrier, forming borders for New Spain , New France , and the early United States, and throughout as a vital transportation artery and communications link. In the 19th century, during the height of the ideology of manifest destiny , the Mississippi and several tributaries, most notably its largest,

5561-466: The new board or expire. The SLFPA-East consists of nine members, all of whom are appointed by the Governor of Louisiana from nominations provided by a blue-ribbon nominating committee. The nominating committee by statute consists of representatives of universities, national professional associations, and local civic groups. At least five members of the board are required to be engineers in geologically-relevant fields, such as hydrology . One member must be

5644-449: The new river channel, contiguous with the adjacent state. Also, due to a meander in the river, a small part of western Kentucky is contiguous with Tennessee but isolated from the rest of its state. Many of the communities along the Mississippi River are listed below; most have either historic significance or cultural lore connecting them to the river. They are sequenced from the source of the river to its end. The road crossing highest on

5727-432: The oversight of the Corps of Engineers that OLD claimed to provide. Note that "oversight" includes independent inspection, analysis, and public reporting...." Despite this focus, the corps gave all parts of the system a ranking of "minimally acceptable" and repeatedly warned the Southeast Louisiana Flood Protection Authority-East and -West and the state's Coastal Protection and Restoration Authority that maintenance issues pose

5810-425: The past 5,000 years, caused the coastline of south Louisiana to advance toward the Gulf from 15 to 50 miles (24 to 80 km). The currently active delta lobe is called the Birdfoot Delta, after its shape, or the Balize Delta , after La Balize, Louisiana , the first French settlement at the mouth of the Mississippi. The current form of the Mississippi River basin was largely shaped by the Laurentide Ice Sheet of

5893-508: The place for Rhythm & Blues shows and great singers such as Ray Charles , Son House , and B. B. King , who all played there. Most of the jazz venues in Algiers closed by the 1970s. Algiers slowly declined after suburban neighborhoods were developed and expanded along Gen. Meyer and Gen. De Gaulle. Many white families from the older parts of the city began moving into the newly built sections of Algiers. Behrman Heights , initially built to house military families regardless of race, became

5976-538: The plume did not mix with the surrounding sea water immediately. Instead, it stayed intact as it flowed through the Gulf of Mexico, into the Straits of Florida , and entered the Gulf Stream . The Mississippi River water rounded the tip of Florida and traveled up the southeast coast to the latitude of Georgia before finally mixing in so thoroughly with the ocean that it could no longer be detected by MODIS. Over geologic time,

6059-476: The poverty level are at 30.3%; individuals below the poverty level are 35.3%. Algiers lies within NOPD 's 4th District jurisdiction of Orleans Parish . The 4th District violent crime rate in low-income neighborhoods has been high since the late 1980s. These areas include the notorious Fischer Projects , Whitney, and Behrman Heights neighborhoods. Between 1987 and 1988, 4th District's violent crime rate doubled with

6142-479: The river, although the Mississippi defines part of the boundary of each of these states. In all of these cases, the middle of the riverbed at the time the borders were established was used as the line to define the borders between adjacent states. In various areas, the river has since shifted, but the state borders have not changed, still following the former bed of the Mississippi River as of their establishment, leaving several small isolated areas of one state across

6225-400: The site of the head of navigation of the river. The Upper Mississippi has a number of natural and artificial lakes, with its widest point being Lake Winnibigoshish , near Grand Rapids, Minnesota , over 11 miles (18 km) across. Lake Onalaska , created by Lock and Dam No. 7 , near La Crosse, Wisconsin , is more than 4 miles (6.4 km) wide. Lake Pepin , a natural lake formed behind

6308-524: The state line still follows the old channel. The town of Kaskaskia, Illinois once stood on a peninsula at the confluence of the Mississippi and Kaskaskia (Okaw) Rivers . Founded as a French colonial community, it later became the capital of the Illinois Territory and was the first state capital of Illinois until 1819. Beginning in 1844, successive flooding caused the Mississippi River to slowly encroach east. A major flood in 1881 caused it to overtake

6391-567: The upper and lower river, the Mississippi is further controlled by thousands of wing dikes that moderate the river's flow in order to maintain an open navigation channel and prevent the river from eroding its banks. The head of navigation on the Mississippi is the St. Anthony Falls Lock. Before the Coon Rapids Dam in Coon Rapids, Minnesota , was built in 1913, steamboats could occasionally go upstream as far as Saint Cloud, Minnesota , depending on river conditions. The uppermost lock and dam on

6474-479: The west side of the Mississippi River. There are two members-at-large, one of whom must reside on the west side of the Mississippi River. The SLFPA Nominating Committee consists of eleven members. Four are deans of various universities and the remainder is members of various engineering and good government organizations. This committee nominates individuals to the SLFPA East and West when there are vacancies. Members of

6557-473: The world by volume. On average, the Mississippi has 8% the flow of the Amazon River , which moves nearly 7 million cubic feet per second (200,000 m /s) during wet seasons. Before 1900, the Mississippi River transported an estimated 440 million short tons (400 million metric tons) of sediment per year from the interior of the United States to coastal Louisiana and the Gulf of Mexico. During

6640-513: The world's tenth-largest river by discharge flow, and the largest in North America. Native Americans have lived along the Mississippi River and its tributaries for thousands of years. Many were hunter-gatherers , but some, such as the Mound Builders , formed prolific agricultural and urban civilizations, and some practiced aquaculture . The arrival of Europeans in the 16th century changed

6723-496: Was chosen to designate the "true head" of the Mississippi River as a combination of the last four letters of the Latin word for truth ( ver itas ) and the first two letters of the Latin word for head ( ca put ). However, the lake is in turn fed by a number of smaller streams. From its origin at Lake Itasca to St. Louis, Missouri , the waterway's flow is moderated by 43 dams. Fourteen of these dams are located above Minneapolis in

6806-672: Was largely a vacant strip. Portions of the tract were redeveloped for housing in the early 21st century. In the yard's active days, a steam-powered Southern Pacific train ferry brought railroad cars from there across the Mississippi River. In 1901, the U.S. Navy established a naval station in Algiers. During the early 20th century, Algiers was segregated due to the Jim Crow Laws of the Southern United States. Under Jim Crow, blacks were not allowed to live in Algiers Point , which

6889-459: Was tended for whites or Creoles of color who passed as white. Blacks occupied the area downriver from Algiers Point called McDonoghville (locals refer to it as "Over the Hump"). The neighborhood was named after John McDonogh . Before his death in 1850, McDonogh established "Freetown" for formerly enslaved people and other people of color. Freetown was renamed McDonoghville in 1815. When Algiers became

#164835