Bayou St. John () is a
bayou
In usage in the Southern United States, a bayou () is a body of water typically found in a flat, low-lying area. It may refer to an extremely slow-moving stream, river (often with a poorly defined shoreline), marshy lake, wetland, or creek. They ...
within the city of
.
![New orleans plan 1728](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/54/New_orleans_plan_1728.jpg)
The Bayou as a natural feature drained the swampy land of a good portion of what was to become New Orleans, into
Lake Pontchartrain
Lake Pontchartrain ( ) is an estuary located in southeastern Louisiana in the United States. It covers an area of with an average depth of . Some shipping channels are kept deeper through dredging. It is roughly oval in shape, about from west ...
. In its natural state, it extended much farther than today; 18th- and early 19th-century maps show it had tributaries or branches (at least seasonally) reaching into what are now the
Broadmoor neighborhood, the
New Orleans Central Business District
The Central Business District (CBD) is a neighborhood of the city of New Orleans, Louisiana, United States.
A subdistrict of the French Quarter/CBD area, its boundaries, as defined by the City Planning Commission, are Iberville, Decatur and C ...
just back from
St. Charles Avenue
St. Charles Avenue (french: avenue Saint-Charles) is a thoroughfare in New Orleans, Louisiana, U.S. and the route of the St. Charles Streetcar Line. It is also famous for the dozens of mansions that adorn the tree-lined boulevard for much of the ...
above
Lee Circle
Lee Circle is a central traffic circle in New Orleans, Louisiana, which featured a monument to Confederate General Robert E. Lee between 1884 and 2017. The monument was a bronze statue by Alexander Doyle, a prominent American sculptor known for s ...
, the
Carrollton neighborhood, the
Treme neighborhood, and a branch connecting to Bayou Gentilly.
![EgretsBayouStJohn](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/e0/EgretsBayouStJohn.jpg)
The portion still in existence today was navigable by
canoe
A canoe is a lightweight narrow water vessel, typically pointed at both ends and open on top, propelled by one or more seated or kneeling paddlers facing the direction of travel and using a single-bladed paddle.
In British English, the term ...
s and similar small vessels, used by
Native Americans since
pre-Columbian
In the history of the Americas, the pre-Columbian era spans from the original settlement of North and South America in the Upper Paleolithic period through European colonization, which began with Christopher Columbus's voyage of 1492. Usually, th ...
times. The natives knew the waterway as Bayouk Choupic. There was a
portage
Portage or portaging (Canada: ; ) is the practice of carrying water craft or cargo over land, either around an obstacle in a river, or between two bodies of water. A path where items are regularly carried between bodies of water is also called a ...
between the Bayou and the
Mississippi River
The Mississippi River is the second-longest river and chief river of the second-largest drainage system in North America, second only to the Hudson Bay drainage system. From its traditional source of Lake Itasca in northern Minnesota, it f ...
due to the difference in water level between the bayou and the level of the sea, which attracted early
French explorers, traders, and trappers, some of whom established a small community there by the late 17th century. In 1701 a small
fort
A fortification is a military construction or building designed for the defense of territories in warfare, and is also used to establish rule in a region during peacetime. The term is derived from Latin ''fortis'' ("strong") and ''facere'' ...
was established by the French beside the
Lake Pontchartrain
Lake Pontchartrain ( ) is an estuary located in southeastern Louisiana in the United States. It covers an area of with an average depth of . Some shipping channels are kept deeper through dredging. It is roughly oval in shape, about from west ...
end of the Bayou to protect this important route; ''Fort St. Jean'' would be known to future generations of New Orleanians as "
Old Spanish Fort". The Bayou and portage were key factors in the selection of the site where the city was founded in 1718, at the
River
A river is a natural flowing watercourse, usually freshwater, flowing towards an ocean, sea, lake or another river. In some cases, a river flows into the ground and becomes dry at the end of its course without reaching another body of wate ...
end of the portage route.
The portage trail along the bayou became the "Grand Route St. John" which eventually was replaced by the wide, straight
Esplanade Avenue. After the destructive hurricanes of 1778 and 1779, the charitable Bayou plantation owner,
Don Andres Almonester, rebuilt the Charity Hospital. Earlier Almonester had founded a leper's hospital near the portage road prior to the construction of the important Carondelet waterway. After the
Louisiana Purchase
The Louisiana Purchase (french: Vente de la Louisiane, translation=Sale of Louisiana) was the acquisition of the territory of Louisiana by the United States from the French First Republic in 1803. In return for fifteen million dollars, or app ...
in 1803, the
Carondelet Canal The Carondelet Canal, also known as the Old Basin Canal, was a canal in New Orleans, Louisiana, U.S.A., operating from 1794 into the 1920s – nearly 135 years.
Construction of the canal began in June 1794, on the orders of the Spanish Govern ...
was dug to connect the back of the city (when it was limited to the strip of land along the
Mississippi River
The Mississippi River is the second-longest river and chief river of the second-largest drainage system in North America, second only to the Hudson Bay drainage system. From its traditional source of Lake Itasca in northern Minnesota, it f ...
) with the Bayou, and the Bayou was
dredged
Dredging is the excavation of material from a water environment. Possible reasons for dredging include improving existing water features; reshaping land and water features to alter drainage, navigability, and commercial use; constructing da ...
to accommodate larger vessels.
In the 19th century, an area along Bayou St. John was reputedly the location of many
voodoo
Voodoo may refer to:
Religions
* African or West African Vodun, practiced by Gbe-speaking ethnic groups
* African diaspora religions, a list of related religions sometimes called Vodou/Voodoo
** Candomblé Jejé, also known as Brazilian Vodu ...
rituals by
Marie Laveau
Marie Catherine Laveau (September 10, 1801 – June 15, 1881)''Marie Laveau The Mysterious Voodoo Queen: A Study of Powerful Female Leadership in Nineteenth-Century New Orleans'' by Ina Johanna Fandrich was a Louisiana Creole people, Louisiana ...
. The Magnolia Bridge over the Bayou continues to serve as a site for such rituals every
St. John's Eve.
During the first half of the 20th century, commercial use of the Bayou declined and the Carondelet Canal was filled in. Some New Orleanians began living in
houseboat
A houseboat is a boat that has been designed or modified to be used primarily as a home. Most houseboats are not motorized as they are usually moored or kept stationary at a fixed point, and often tethered to land to provide utilities. How ...
s on the Bayou. Complaints from residents of nearby neighborhoods and sanitation concerns led to this practice being outlawed in the 1930s. A
Works Progress Administration
The Works Progress Administration (WPA; renamed in 1939 as the Work Projects Administration) was an American New Deal agency that employed millions of jobseekers (mostly men who were not formally educated) to carry out public works projects, i ...
project cleaned up and beautified the area. A
lock
Lock(s) may refer to:
Common meanings
*Lock and key, a mechanical device used to secure items of importance
*Lock (water navigation), a device for boats to transit between different levels of water, as in a canal
Arts and entertainment
* ''Lock ...
was installed near the Lake Pontchartrain end. In the summer of 1955, the New Orleans Sewerage and Water Board temporarily drained the Bayou, to clean out debris and material that was causing foul odors.
Since then, the Bayou has been a picturesque body of water with small earthen
levees
A levee (), dike (American English), dyke (Commonwealth English), embankment, floodbank, or stop bank is a structure that is usually earthen and that often runs parallel to the course of a river in its floodplain or along low-lying coastlin ...
on either side, forming a narrow park space in the city. From the mid-20th century on, the banks of the Bayou across from
City Park
An urban park or metropolitan park, also known as a municipal park (North America) or a public park, public open space, or municipal gardens ( UK), is a park in cities and other incorporated places that offer recreation and green space to resi ...
became a favorite destination for young couples seeking privacy. The banks of Bayou St. John are an important meeting place for the
downtown
''Downtown'' is a term primarily used in North America by English speakers to refer to a city's sometimes commercial, cultural and often the historical, political and geographic heart. It is often synonymous with its central business distric ...
Mardi Gras Indian tribes for their "Super Sunday" parade after
Carnival
Carnival is a Catholic Christian festive season that occurs before the liturgical season of Lent. The main events typically occur during February or early March, during the period historically known as Shrovetide (or Pre-Lent). Carnival typi ...
.
Officially opened in 2015, the
Lafitte Greenway now runs along the corridor previously occupied by the
Carondelet Canal The Carondelet Canal, also known as the Old Basin Canal, was a canal in New Orleans, Louisiana, U.S.A., operating from 1794 into the 1920s – nearly 135 years.
Construction of the canal began in June 1794, on the orders of the Spanish Govern ...
, with a prominent roundabout at the foot of the Bayou. In conjunction with the Lafitte Greenway, the Bayou has been recognized as part of the
EPA
The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is an independent executive agency of the United States federal government tasked with environmental protection matters. President Richard Nixon proposed the establishment of EPA on July 9, 1970; it be ...
's Urban Waters Partnership.
See also
*
Bayou St. John submarine
The Bayou St. John Confederate Submarine is an early military submarine built for use by the Confederate States of America during the American Civil War.
Description
The submarine is constructed of riveted iron, long, wide and deep, with a ha ...
*
Demourelles Island
References
External links
*
{{Authority control
Bodies of water of Orleans Parish, Louisiana
History of New Orleans
Wetlands and bayous of Louisiana
Works Progress Administration in Louisiana