New Orleans, Stage Live Cam

The world famous city of romance and revelry, where one can experience intermingling cultures, diverse architecture, the world's finest cuisine and unique entertainment guaranteed to leave you enchanted. This diverse city will delight any age and background and will leave something special in your soul which will guarantee your return and for that, we thank you and hope you truly enjoy this visit.

This visitor and information guide will be your "key" to recommended and selected attractions, restaurants, shopping ideas, musical trips and many interesting offerings only New Orleans can provide. You can easily find the things to do, the places to see, where to stay and, of course, where and what to eat. These selections are carefully screened by knowledgeable locals, born and raised in this great city, important since the true New Orleans doesn't speak too loud and wants to be discovered. We'll discover her with you.

The Indians were the first to discover this special territory, long before there was a New Orleans, and recognized the importance of such a fine site located between the mighty Mississippi River and Lake Pontchartrain, In the years to follow, many others sailed by going to Mexico but the French explorer Robert Cavelier, in 1682, stopped and claimed for France all the land drained by the river, and called it Louisiane, in honor of his king, Louis XIV.

Not until 1718, however, did Jean-Baptiste Le Moyne, Sieur De Bienvil1e, on orders from the king, establish the site for what became the French Quarter of New Orleans. Survival was difficult because of the epidemics, hostile Indians, constant battles among leaders and the ravages of nature but survive it did, until a Scotsman named John Law was awarded a charter to exploit the territory. That he did and bankrupted France in the process, but actually succeeded in populating New Orleans with substantial colonists.

In 1762, Louis XV gave Louisiana to his cousin Charles III of Spain, and in 1769, the first Spaniard, Don Alexandro O'Reilly, became governor. Under the Spanish rule, the city took on an international flair when the Acadians arrived from Nova Scotia, Spanish settlers flocked in as well as American traders from up-river.

The city started to grow when Napoleon Bonaparte convinced Spain to give the territory back to France, which he then sold to the United States for a mere $15 million. In 1805, New Orleans was incorporated as a city and admitted into the Union in 1812. The great Battle of 1812 followed when the British launched several attempts to seize New Orleans and eventually was defeated by General Andrew Jackson in 1815. This remains the final battle ever fought between the United States and Great Britain.

Prosperity then reigned during the steamboat era, making this flourishing city the second wealthiest in the United States behind New York and the fourth largest. Another time of trial followed when the Civil War broke out and the city fell to the Union fleet of David Farragut in 1862. Defeat was followed by occupation and then came reconstruction until home rule was again restored in 1877, not without severe economic and psychological damage from years of war and corruption.

The city survived again only to be knocked to it's knees by a devastating hurricane in 1915 and another epidemic in 1918. The spirit again proved too large to be overcome by these and went on to establish itself as a prominent city of the world with a history of grandeur and tragedy, uniqueness and poise and very special favor. New Orleans is different, a mix of cultures, beliefs, atmosphere and customs which sets it apart from its American sister cities. New Orleans is a state of mind.

The Faubourg Marigny was founded by one of New Orleans' most colorful figures, Bernard Xavier Philippe de Marigny de Mandeville. In 1806, he divided his plantation and this became the triangle-shaped region of the Marigny. During the second half of the 19th century, the area was called "Little Saxony" because of the great number of Germans who settled there.

The Marigny area is bounded by Esplanade Street, Press St. St. Claude Avenue, and the Mississippi River (see map). The early suburb has a surprising variety of one-story houses -- late Georgian, Creole and Greek Revival homes nestle closely together forming a cozy street pattern.

The nearby Bywater area spans several blocks adjacent to the Mississippi River. The Mississippi River has swallowed lost most of North Peters Street. Originally an area of cotton presses, vegetable gardens, and orange groves, the Bywater was settled by Germans, Irishmen and Slavs whose descendants still live there. Most of the one-story shotgun houses were originally constructed in 1870-1890, and whole neighborhoods from the late 19th century still survive today.

The intersection of Esplanade Ave. at Bayou St. John and City Park Ave. is one of the points of higher elevation in the city, raised perhaps a dozen feet above sea level. Much of the area’s history centers on Bayou St. John, which borders City Park today. The bayou was an important second water access to New Orleans throughout the 18th and 19th centuries. In 1718, a Frenchman named Sieur de Bienville was working for the Company of the West and contacted an Indian village called Tchou-Tchouma (where the Esplanade Avenue bridge is currently located). A Spanish fort protected the mouth of the bayou at Lake Pontchartrain. Ocean-going vessels were able to travel as far as the present end of the bayou. From this point goods were carried to and from the city by portage during the 18th century.

City Park is a beautiful and well maintained urban park and the fifth largest municipal park in the United States. In 1854 the first section of the park was acquired by the city from the Allard Plantation. The land runs from Bayou St. John to City Park Ave. The park is laced with lagoons, which are part of old Bayou Metairie. Magnolias and oaks dot the landscape. The famous Dueling Oaks are named for the duels that took place from 1804 to 1830. (Americans would duel here, while the French dueled in the park behind St. Louis Cathedral).

City Park has facilities for tennis, boating, bass fishing in the lagoons, bicycling, concerts, horseback riding and picnicking. The amusement park area has a functioning antique carousel from 1904. The old Casino, dating from about 1914 is the center for information, rentals, and refreshments (the domed band shell and Beaux Art style pavilion were built in the 1930s). The park has three 18-hole golf courses. Major restorations such as the roadways, bridges, drainage and sewer systems were built under the Works Progress Administration (WPA) in the late 1930s.

Esplanade Avenue stretches from the river to Bayou St. John and connects the French Quarter to City Park. Sycamores and oaks cover the avenue, which was the site of the Creole promenades in the 1830's. Many French families built on the street and Degas lived here while he visited the city in 1872.

The Westbank refers to the area directly across the Mississippi River from New Orleans. The historical center of the Westbank is Algiers, which also has a ferry that runs directly to the French Quarter.

Old Algiers (aka: Algiers Point) is a quiet river town separated from Canal Street and the Vieux Carre by the Mississippi River. The first sketch of the town site was drawn in 1719 by M. de Serigay. The basis for the town comes from the Duverje Plantation, which was sold into lots in 1842. Fire destroyed the upper section of Algiers in 1895, and most buildings in this area date from just after the fire.

The area is very accessible from the French Quarter via ferry, and makes a great daytime tour. Any tour of the area must include Mardi Gras World, which is where floats for Mardi Gras are constructed and many past floats are on display.