NEW ORLEANS

city, state of Louisiana, southeastern United States. Unquestionably one of the most distinctive cities of the New World, New Orleans was established at great cost in an environment of conflict. Its strategic position, commanding the mouth of the great MississippiMissouri river system, which drains the rich interior of North America, made it a pawn in the struggles of Europeans for the control of North America. As a result, the peoples of New Orleans evolved a unique culture and society, while at the same time blending many heritages. Its citizens of African descent provided a special contribution in making New Orleans the birthplace of jazz. New Orleans is a city of paradox and contrast: while it shares the urban problems afflicting other U.S. cities, it has nevertheless preserved an exuberant and uninhibited spirit, perhaps best exemplified by its carnival season, which culminates in the famous annual Mardi Gras, when more than 1,000,000 people throng the streets. The city also has a solid economic base: it is the largest city in Louisiana, the second port of the United States in tonnage handled, a major tourist resort, and a medical, industrial, and educational centre. city, state of Louisiana, southeastern U.S. The state's largest city, New Orleans commands the mouth of the great MississippiMissouri river system; it has developed a solid economic base as a major port, tourist resort, and industrial, educational, and medical centre. New Orleans is coextensive with Orleans parish (county) and is the core of an expanding metropolitan area defined by the parishes of Orleans, St. Bernard, Jefferson, and St. Tammany. The city is divided by the Mississippi River, which flows from the west to its mouth 110 miles (180 km) southeast in the Gulf of Mexico; the principal settlement is on the east (left) bank. Lake Pontchartrain borders the city to the north. Because the city's terrain lies as low as 5 feet (1.5 m) below sea level and has an average rainfall of 57 inches (1,425 mm), a levee system and proper drainage have been important. New Orleans has a moderate climate, with an average summer temperature of 77 F (25 C) and a winter average of 60 F (16 C). New Orleans is primarily a commercial centre, with manufacturing playing a secondary role in its economic life. The busy harbour is the foundation of the metropolitan economy. A 30-year plan (19702000), called Centroport U.S.A., is attempting to switch much of the port's activities from the Mississippi River to wharves and industrial complexes along the Gulf, thereby freeing river frontage for residential and recreational development. The New Orleans metropolitan area is a fast-growing industrial region. Major manufactures include food products; clothing and accessories; stone, clay, and glass articles; primary metal and fabricated metal items; and transportation equipment. In recent years the petrochemical industry has become important, but it has also been the source of serious water pollution. Major exports include grains, agricultural products, fabricated metals, chemicals, textiles, oils, petroleum products, tobacco, and paperboard. The decision to found New Orleans was made in 1717, and work began the next year. The original city was located on the east bank of the Mississippi along a sharp bend of the river. On the west bank a section called Algiers arose, linked since 1958 to the east bank by the Greater New Orleans Bridge. The Creole architecture of the Vieux Carr (French: Old Square), or French Quarter, creates the atmosphere of a foreign city, combining native architectural ingenuity with adaptations of French colonial traditions and West Indian Spanish colonial styles. Important sites include Jackson Square, the French Market, Royal Street, Bourbon Street, Preservation Hall, and Dixieland Hall. World-renowned Creole cuisine is featured in many of the city's restaurants. The cultural life of New Orleans is a synthesis of contributions by both whites (of French, Spanish, Irish, German, and Italian descent) and blacks, who constitute nearly equal parts of the population. The black heritage is particularly rich; it was here that black musicians gave birth to a fusion of blues, dance tunes, and hymns that became known as New Orleans jazz. Another major attraction of the city is the festive celebrations of its winter carnival and Mardi Gras. Among New Orleans' institutions of higher learning are Tulane University (1834) and its affiliated institutions. The Mississippi RiverGulf Outlet, part of a system of channels and passages between the river and the Gulf, has shortened ship passage to the Gulf by 40 miles (64 km). Several railways operate out of New Orleans with direct connections to many cities. The international airport is located 12 miles (19 km) from the city. Area city, 199 square miles (516 square km); metropolitan area, 1,907 square miles (4,939 square km). Pop. (1992 est.) city, 505,008; New Orleans MSA, 1,258,657. Additional reading Old but reliable general histories are Will H. Coleman (comp.), Historical Sketch Book and Guide to New Orleans and Environs (1885, reprinted 1973); Henry Rightor (ed.), Standard History of New Orleans, Louisiana (1900); and Grace E. King, New Orleans: The Place and the People (1895, reprinted 1968). Popular general histories that include photographs are Walter G. Cowan et al., New Orleans: Yesterday and Today (1983); Leonard V. Huber, New Orleans: A Pictorial History (1971, reissued 1981); and Deirdre Stanforth, Romantic New Orleans (1977, reprinted 1979). Architecture is discussed in Mary L. Christovich et al. (eds. and comps.), New Orleans Architecture, 5 vol. (197177), a scholarly study. Detailed period studies are John G. Clark, New Orleans, 17181812: An Economic History (1970); Robert C. Reinders, End of an Era: New Orleans, 18501860 (1964); Gerald M. Capers, Occupied City: New Orleans Under the Federals, 18621865 (1965); and Joy J. Jackson, New Orleans in the Gilded Age: Politics and Urban Progress, 18801896 (1969). Port history and activity is discussed in Alexander I. Warrington, Economic Geography of New Orleans and the Middle South (1952); and Louisiana. Board Of Commissioners Of The Port Of New Orleans, Report (annual). For politics and government, see John R. Kemp (ed.), Martin Behrman of New Orleans: Memoirs of a City Boss (1977); Edward F. Haas, DeLesseps S. Morrison and the Image of Reform (1974); and L. Vaughan Howard and Robert S. Friedman, Government in Metropolitan New Orleans (1959). The best sources for detailed descriptions of historic places in the Vieux Carr are Stanley C. Arthur, Old New Orleans, 6th rev. ed. (1944); and Federal Writers' Project. New Orleans, New Orleans City Guide (1938, reissued 1972). The conflict between preservationists and advocates of a proposed elevated expressway through the Vieux Carr is discussed in Richard O. Baumbach, Jr., and William E. Borah, The Second Battle of New Orleans (1981). Detailed statistical information on New Orleans is found in the Louisiana Almanac (irregular); Statistical Abstract of Louisiana (triennial); and New Orleans. Police Department, Annual Report. Joy Juanita Jackson