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In Louisiana, Yesterday and Today, three veteran newspapermen examine the history and character of one of America's most remarkable states. This comprehensive, entertaining work will inform natives of their rich heritage and familiarize others with the many sources of Louisiana's special charm. In concise, thematic chapters, the authors discuss practically every aspect of Louisiana's history. They explore in depth many specific events and eras, including the Louisiana Purchase, the Battle of New Orleans, the Civil War and Reconstruction, and the rise of Huey P. Long. Illuminating Louisiana's wonderfully polyglot character, they trace the cultural milieu from earliest Indian days through the French and Spanish regimes into statehood. They tell of the pirate Jean Lafitte and the voodoo queen Marie Laveau, of the state's unique Cajun and Creole heritages, of the legendary red-light district of Storyville, and of the excitement and debauchery of Mardi Gras. As a bonus, the book provides an incisive look at the state's 64 parishes as it portrays Louisiana's history, population, economy, culture, and outstanding tourist attractions, evincing the diversity -- most notably between north and south -- that characterizes the state. An excellent guide for visitors who wish to learn about Louisiana's past as well as its present attractions, Louisiana, Yesterday and Today will also beckon natives to rediscover their heritage and the cultural wonderland that exists in their own backyard.

From the earliest colonists through the latest Mardi Gras, Louisiana has had a history as exotic as that of any state. Even its political corruption--extending from French governors for whom office was exploitable property through the "Louisiana Hayride" following the death of Huey Long--seems to have had a glamorous side. Handing the colony of Louisiana back and forth between their empires, the French and Spanish left a legacy that lives in such forms as the architecture of the Vieux Carre and a civil law deriving from the Napoleonic Code. Acadian refugees, German farmers, black slaves and free blacks, along with Italians, Irish, and the "Kaintucks" who helped Andrew Jackson win the Battle of New Orleans added to the state's distinctiveness. Made rich by sugar cane, cotton, and Mississippi River commerce before the Civil War, Louisiana faced poverty afterward. Battles between Bourbon Democrats and Reconstruction Republicans followed, ultimately involving the Custom House Ring and the Knights of the White Camelia. By methods that remain controversial, Huey Long ended "government by gentlemen" with economic transformations other had sought. Gas, oil, and industrialization have additionally "Americanized" the state. Something of Louisiana's historic joie de vivre remains, however, to the gratification of residents and visitors alike; both will enjoy Joe Gray Taylor's telling of the story.

Covering the lively, even raucous, history of Louisiana from before First Contact through the Elections of 2012, this sixth edition of the classic Louisiana history survey provides an engaging and comprehensive narrative of what is arguably America’s most colorful state. Since the appearance of the first edition of this classic text in 1984, Louisiana: A History has remained the best-loved and most highly regarded college-level survey of Louisiana on the market Compiled by some of the foremost experts in the field of Louisiana history who combine their own research with recent historical discoveries Includes complete coverage of the most recent events in political and environmental history, including the continued aftermath of Katrina and the 2010 BP oil spill Considers the interrelationship between Louisiana history and that of the American South and the nation as a whole Written in an engaging and accessible style complemented by more than a hundred photographs and maps