Vanished Ports … Forgotten Channels
People think of the Port of New Orleans as the docks and facilities along the mighty Mississippi , but this has not always been the case. From the late 1700s until well into the 20 th Century, two other waterways and “ports” rivaled the river docks in their importance to the economy of the Queen City of the South. The Bayou St. John/Carondelet Canal and the New Basin Canal led deep into the City's commercial center and were the principal routes used by maritime traffic coming from the Gulf of Mexico through passes leading into Lakes Borgne and Pontchartrain, as well as for trading with the north shore. Bayou St. John played an even a greater role in the City's, and world, history because its strategic location led to New Orleans being located where it is. In an exhibit entitled Vanished Ports … Forgotten Channels , the Lake Pontchartrain Basin Maritime Museum brings these historically important channels and ports back to life.
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Early settlers to southeastern Louisiana found themselves in an alien environment of thick forests, lakes, rivers, bayous, and marshes that presented them with enormous challenges and opportunities. How they, their descendents, and new arrivals interacted with this environment defined, and continues to define, the unique culture and economy of the area today. In an exhibit entitled Wood & Water , the Lake Pontchartrain Basin Maritime Museum captures the essence of this environment and the rich local history that was shaped by it. Particular emphasis is given to the locally developed watercrafts that have been most important to everyday life and commerce in the area. |
In our Rural Life on the Bayou Exhibit you will see how a thriving port community sprang from a lonely swamp settlement. Louisiana is blessed with natural highways in the form of our rivers, lakes, and bayous. When Robert Cavalier, Sieur de LaSalle, reached the Mississippi River and claimed the territory drained by the Father of Waters for the French Crown, an opportunity for European settlement on our continent appeared.
To survive, newcomers would need to learn to navigate the only path nature offered: water. In an engaging diorama the museum presents a glimpse into the world of the pioneers along our waterways and how they learned to survive in our rich, yet challenging, natural environment.
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Colonial LA - LOUISIANA PURCHASE Won with Words Not a Sword |
The Sands of the Tchefuncte River bank cemented the expansion of New Orleans in the final quarter of the 1800s.
In 1872 an enterprising German immigrant by the name of Fritz Jahncke began a cement and concrete business to serve the needs of New Orleans contractors. Using a rented steam dredge, he joined brick makers in harvesting raw material from waterways on the north shore of Lake Pontchartrain . The white sand that he dredged on theTchefuncte River was shipped back to New Orleans to bond bricks into buildings.
Many of those bricks were made of clay from the same river source.
Together they are responsible for a large percentage of the construction Crescent city from that era. Like many turn of the 20th century industrialists, Jahncke expanded the focus of his business to include industries that serviced his original product. He bought the boats that carried his supplies rather than renting shipping service. Eventually this fleet grew so large that it became practical for him to own a ship repair yard in Madisonville . This yard would eventually grow into a boat building operation so large that it supplied ships to the U.S. Navy in WWI.
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Unlike the East Coast Lighthouses, the Louisiana lighthouses were constructed on soft Delta bottoms and were located in bayous, bays, lakes, and the Gulf of Mexico . This fact, along with hurricanes, warfare, erosion, and neglect are factors that led to their destruction. Many people, therefore, are unaware of the Louisiana lighthouse heritage.
After much research and three years of full time labor the memories of many of the Louisiana lighthouses have been brought back into existence. Nelson Plaisance carefully built these twenty five dioramas using information obtained from blueprints, descriptive stories, old books, historic photos, and existing lighthouse remains.
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The Combat Craft of World War II Come Home to the Sportsman's Paradise The ability to rely on external power to travel our region's scenic rivers and bayous broadened the appeal of boating beyond outdoors men seeking fish or game. The mere act of boating on our waterways became a stylish recreation, and the pleasure craft industry assumed a major role in our maritime history. |
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As enterprising settlers learned to harvest Louisiana 's abundant raw resources to their advantage, maritime frontier towns emerged. In the 19th century, the coal powered engines of the industrial revolution allowed these communities to take full advantage of water-based transport. Steamboats puffed up and down our waterways, conveying goods and people, enriching the lives of the passengers and communities they served. In Fall of 2002 the museum unveiled its Port Century Exhibit. This full-scale model recreates the sights and sounds of a paddle boat at dock, allowing our visitors to literally step into the hustle and bustle of another century. |
| In the early months of the Civil War, the Union blockade of southern ports was taking a heavy toll on the Confederate war effort, and a local New Orleans group sought a quick, innovation solution to this problem. In the Leed's Foundry, one of two such heavy manufacturing facilities in the South, they built the Pioneer I , a three-man submersible war ship. After successfully sinking another ship in a Lake Pontchartrain , this innovative little craft had to be scuttled when the Federals captured New Orleans . However, the knowledge gained in building and testing the Pioneer I led a few months later to the construction of the famous C.S.S. H. L. Hunley , which became the first submarine to be used successfully in warfare when it sank the U.S.S. Housatanic in Charleston harbor. This exciting tale, as well as a comprehensive coverage of the newly developing ironclad ships and other important naval warfare aspects of the Civil War are brought to life in a Lake Pontchartrain Basin Maritime Museum exhibit entitled The Secret Weapon. |  |