Faubourg Marigny
Encyclopedia
The Marigny is a neighborhood
of the city of New Orleans
. A subdistrict of the Bywater District Area, its boundaries as defined by the City Planning Commission are: North Rampart Street
and St. Claude Avenue to the north, Franklin Avenue to the east, the Mississippi River
to the south and Esplanade Avenue
to the west.
, the district has a total area of 0.33 square mile (0.8546960763 km²). 0.31 square mile (0.8028963141 km²) of which is land and 0.02 square mile (0.0517997622 km²) (6.06%) of which is water.
In the 19th century, Marigny was the old Third Municipality
of New Orleans. The triangular area between Esplanade and Elysian Fields Avenue
is sometimes called "The Marigny Triangle", and is part of the 7th Ward of New Orleans
. The remainder is in the 8th Ward of New Orleans
, unless one counts the three blocks between Franklin and Press, which would extend Marigny into the 9th Ward as well.
The area further back from Rampart/St. Claude to Claiborne Avenue is sometimes called "New Marigny", the name dating back to the early 19th century. The lower boundary, with the Bywater
neighborhood, is either Press Street (a traditional boundary that is along the railroad tracks) or Franklin Avenue (the upper boundary of the city's 9th Ward
).
of 2000, there were 3,145 people, 1,960 households, and 391 families residing in the neighborhood. The population density
was 10,145 /mi² (3,931 /km²).
millionaire developer Bernard Xavier Philippe de Marigny de Mandeville on land that had been his family plantation
just down river from the old city limits of New Orleans. The portion of Marigny closer to the river was built up first; the area on the side of St. Claude Avenue (formerly "Goodchildren Street") away from the river was sometimes called "New Marigny." In the early 19th century, New Marigny was where white Creole gentlemen set up households for their mistresses of color (and their offspring) in the tradition of "plaçage
."
Wide Elysian Fields Avenue, named after the Champs-Élysées
in Paris
, was designed to be the main street
of the Faubourg Marigny. It was the first street in New Orleans to extend all the way from the riverfront straight to Lake Pontchartrain
8 km (5 mi) away. In 1830-31 the Pontchartrain Railroad was built with tracks down the center of Elysian Fields. The area at the other end of the rail line developed into Milneburg
. Marigny's town square, Washington Square, fronts Elysian Fields.
The neighborhood declined badly in the mid 20th century, and the area around Washington Square was nicknamed "Little Angola" (after the prison
of that name
) for the dangerous criminal
s there. It came back strongly in the late 20th century. Profiteering around the 1984 World's Fair drove many long-term residents from the French Quarter into Marigny. Frenchmen Street developed one of the city's premier collections of live music
venues and restaurant
s, and is a popular destination with music lovers from other parts of the city and knowledgeable out-of-town visitors in the early 21st century.
Marigny is one of the centers for homegrown New Orleans Mardi Gras
(see Faubourg Marigny Mardi Gras costumes
). The neighborhood is also home to the New Orleans Center for Creative Arts
Riverfront facility.
Notable people from The Marigny include jazz composer/musician Jelly Roll Morton
and singer Lizzie Miles
.
Hurricane Katrina
, which had a disastrous effect on the majority of New Orleans (see Effect of Hurricane Katrina on New Orleans
), had a less severe aftermath here than in much of the city. The section on the river side of Rampart experienced some wind damage, but was at a high enough elevation to escape the great flood. The lower lying areas of New Marigny flooded, but not as deeply as elsewhere. A good portion of the 19th century style raised houses were elevated enough so that the flood waters did not reach high enough to cause significant damage, even as far back as Claiborne Avenue. A free community kitchen and goods exchange camp was set up in Washington Square for a couple months after the storm. The official reopening of Marigny was delayed in September and early October by the fact that at first decisions were made to reopen areas by ZIP code
, and Marigny shares a ZIP code with more badly damaged areas. However after reopening, the area rebounded quickly.
New Orleans neighborhoods
In 1980 the New Orleans City Planning Commission divided the city into 13 planning districts and 72 distinct neighborhoods.While most of these assigned boundaries match with traditional local designations, some others differ from common traditional use...
of the city of New Orleans
New Orleans, Louisiana
New Orleans is a major United States port and the largest city and metropolitan area in the state of Louisiana. The New Orleans metropolitan area has a population of 1,235,650 as of 2009, the 46th largest in the USA. The New Orleans – Metairie – Bogalusa combined statistical area has a population...
. A subdistrict of the Bywater District Area, its boundaries as defined by the City Planning Commission are: North Rampart Street
Rampart Street
Rampart Street is a historic avenue located in New Orleans, Louisiana.The upper end of the street is in the New Orleans Central Business District...
and St. Claude Avenue to the north, Franklin Avenue to the east, the Mississippi River
Mississippi River
The Mississippi River is the largest river system in North America. Flowing entirely in the United States, this river rises in western Minnesota and meanders slowly southwards for to the Mississippi River Delta at the Gulf of Mexico. With its many tributaries, the Mississippi's watershed drains...
to the south and Esplanade Avenue
Esplanade Avenue, New Orleans
-History:Esplanade runs from the Mississippi River front to the intersection with Carrollton Avenue just past Bayou St. John, and the entrance to City Park. In the 19th century it was important as a portage route of trade between the Bayou which linked to Lake Pontchartrain and the River...
to the west.
Geography
The Marigny is located at 29°57′53"N 90°03′19"W and has an elevation of 1 foot (0.3048 m). According to the United States Census BureauUnited States Census Bureau
The United States Census Bureau is the government agency that is responsible for the United States Census. It also gathers other national demographic and economic data...
, the district has a total area of 0.33 square mile (0.8546960763 km²). 0.31 square mile (0.8028963141 km²) of which is land and 0.02 square mile (0.0517997622 km²) (6.06%) of which is water.
In the 19th century, Marigny was the old Third Municipality
Municipality
A municipality is essentially an urban administrative division having corporate status and usually powers of self-government. It can also be used to mean the governing body of a municipality. A municipality is a general-purpose administrative subdivision, as opposed to a special-purpose district...
of New Orleans. The triangular area between Esplanade and Elysian Fields Avenue
Elysian Fields Avenue
Elysian Fields Avenue is a broad, straight avenue in New Orleans named after the Avenue des Champs-Élysées in Paris. It courses south to north from the Lower Mississippi River to Lake Pontchartrain, a distance of approximately . The avenue intersects with Interstate 610, Interstate 10, and U.S....
is sometimes called "The Marigny Triangle", and is part of the 7th Ward of New Orleans
7th Ward of New Orleans
The 7th Ward is a section of New Orleans, Louisiana. It is geographically the second largest of the 17 Wards of New Orleans, after the 9th Ward.-Boundaries and geography:...
. The remainder is in the 8th Ward of New Orleans
8th Ward of New Orleans
The 8th Ward is a section of New Orleans, Louisiana. It is one of the Downtown Wards of New Orleans, with a Creole history.The 8th Ward is a narrow strip stretching from the Mississippi River on the south to Lake Pontchartrain in the north...
, unless one counts the three blocks between Franklin and Press, which would extend Marigny into the 9th Ward as well.
Adjacent Neighborhoods
- Seventh WardSeventh Ward, New OrleansThe Seventh Ward is a neighborhood of the city of New Orleans. A subdistrict of the Mid-City District Area, its boundaries as defined by the City Planning Commission are: A.P. Tureaud Avenue, Agriculture, Allen, Industry, St. Anthony, Duels, Frenchmen and Hope Streets to the north, Elysian Fields...
(north) - St. RochSt. Roch, New OrleansSt. Roch is a neighborhood of the U.S. city of New Orleans. A subdistrict of the Bywater District Area, its boundaries as defined by the City Planning Commission are: Lafreniere Street, Paris Avenue, I-610, Benefit Street and Dahlia Walk to the north, People's Avenue and Almonaster Avenue to the...
(north) - BywaterBywater, New OrleansBywater is a neighborhood of the city of New Orleans. A subdistrict of the Bywater District Area, its boundaries as defined by the City Planning Commission are: Florida Avenue to the north, the Industrial Canal to the east, the Mississippi River to the south and Franklin Avenue Street to the west...
(east) - Mississippi RiverMississippi RiverThe Mississippi River is the largest river system in North America. Flowing entirely in the United States, this river rises in western Minnesota and meanders slowly southwards for to the Mississippi River Delta at the Gulf of Mexico. With its many tributaries, the Mississippi's watershed drains...
(south) - French QuarterFrench QuarterThe French Quarter, also known as Vieux Carré, is the oldest neighborhood in the city of New Orleans. When New Orleans was founded in 1718 by Jean-Baptiste Le Moyne de Bienville, the city was originally centered on the French Quarter, or the Vieux Carré as it was known then...
(west)
Boundaries
The City Planning Commission defines the boundaries of the Marigny as these streets: North Rampart Street, St. Claude Avenue, Franklin Avenue, the Mississippi River and Esplanade Avenue.The area further back from Rampart/St. Claude to Claiborne Avenue is sometimes called "New Marigny", the name dating back to the early 19th century. The lower boundary, with the Bywater
Bywater, New Orleans
Bywater is a neighborhood of the city of New Orleans. A subdistrict of the Bywater District Area, its boundaries as defined by the City Planning Commission are: Florida Avenue to the north, the Industrial Canal to the east, the Mississippi River to the south and Franklin Avenue Street to the west...
neighborhood, is either Press Street (a traditional boundary that is along the railroad tracks) or Franklin Avenue (the upper boundary of the city's 9th Ward
Ninth Ward of New Orleans
The Ninth Ward or 9th Ward is a distinctive region of New Orleans, Louisiana that is located in the easternmost downriver portion of the city. It is geographically the largest of the 17 Wards of New Orleans....
).
Demographics
As of the censusCensus
A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring and recording information about the members of a given population. It is a regularly occurring and official count of a particular population. The term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common...
of 2000, there were 3,145 people, 1,960 households, and 391 families residing in the neighborhood. The population density
Population density
Population density is a measurement of population per unit area or unit volume. It is frequently applied to living organisms, and particularly to humans...
was 10,145 /mi² (3,931 /km²).
History
The Marigny was laid out in the first decade of the 19th century by eccentric CreoleLouisiana Creole people
Louisiana Creole people refers to those who are descended from the colonial settlers in Louisiana, especially those of French and Spanish descent. The term was first used during colonial times by the settlers to refer to those who were born in the colony, as opposed to those born in the Old World...
millionaire developer Bernard Xavier Philippe de Marigny de Mandeville on land that had been his family plantation
Plantation
A plantation is a long artificially established forest, farm or estate, where crops are grown for sale, often in distant markets rather than for local on-site consumption...
just down river from the old city limits of New Orleans. The portion of Marigny closer to the river was built up first; the area on the side of St. Claude Avenue (formerly "Goodchildren Street") away from the river was sometimes called "New Marigny." In the early 19th century, New Marigny was where white Creole gentlemen set up households for their mistresses of color (and their offspring) in the tradition of "plaçage
Plaçage
Plaçage was a recognized extralegal system in which white French and Spanish and later Creole men entered into the equivalent of common-law marriages with women of African, Indian and white Creole descent. The term comes from the French placer meaning "to place with"...
."
Wide Elysian Fields Avenue, named after the Champs-Élysées
Champs-Élysées
The Avenue des Champs-Élysées is a prestigious avenue in Paris, France. With its cinemas, cafés, luxury specialty shops and clipped horse-chestnut trees, the Avenue des Champs-Élysées is one of the most famous streets and one of the most expensive strip of real estate in the world. The name is...
in Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
, was designed to be the main street
Main Street
Main Street is the metonym for a generic street name of the primary retail street of a village, town, or small city in many parts of the world...
of the Faubourg Marigny. It was the first street in New Orleans to extend all the way from the riverfront straight to Lake Pontchartrain
Lake Pontchartrain
Lake Pontchartrain is a brackish estuary located in southeastern Louisiana. It is the second-largest inland saltwater body of water in the United States, after the Great Salt Lake in Utah, and the largest lake in Louisiana. As an estuary, Pontchartrain is not a true lake.It covers an area of with...
8 km (5 mi) away. In 1830-31 the Pontchartrain Railroad was built with tracks down the center of Elysian Fields. The area at the other end of the rail line developed into Milneburg
Milneburg
Milneburg is a neighborhood of the city of New Orleans. A subdistrict of the Gentilly District Area, its boundaries as defined by the City Planning Commission are: Leon C. Simon Drive to the north, People's Avenue to the east, Filmore Avenue to the south and Elysian Fields Avenue to the west...
. Marigny's town square, Washington Square, fronts Elysian Fields.
The neighborhood declined badly in the mid 20th century, and the area around Washington Square was nicknamed "Little Angola" (after the prison
Prison
A prison is a place in which people are physically confined and, usually, deprived of a range of personal freedoms. Imprisonment or incarceration is a legal penalty that may be imposed by the state for the commission of a crime...
of that name
Louisiana State Penitentiary
The Louisiana State Penitentiary is a prison farm in Louisiana operated by the Louisiana Department of Public Safety & Corrections. It is the largest maximum security prison in the United States with 5,000 offenders and 1,800 staff...
) for the dangerous criminal
Crime
Crime is the breach of rules or laws for which some governing authority can ultimately prescribe a conviction...
s there. It came back strongly in the late 20th century. Profiteering around the 1984 World's Fair drove many long-term residents from the French Quarter into Marigny. Frenchmen Street developed one of the city's premier collections of live music
Music
Music is an art form whose medium is sound and silence. Its common elements are pitch , rhythm , dynamics, and the sonic qualities of timbre and texture...
venues and restaurant
Restaurant
A restaurant is an establishment which prepares and serves food and drink to customers in return for money. Meals are generally served and eaten on premises, but many restaurants also offer take-out and food delivery services...
s, and is a popular destination with music lovers from other parts of the city and knowledgeable out-of-town visitors in the early 21st century.
Marigny is one of the centers for homegrown New Orleans Mardi Gras
New Orleans Mardi Gras
Mardi Gras in New Orleans, Louisiana, is a Carnival celebration well-known throughout the world.The New Orleans Carnival season, with roots in preparing for the start of the Christian season of Lent, starts after Twelfth Night, on Epiphany . It is a season of parades, balls , and king cake parties...
(see Faubourg Marigny Mardi Gras costumes
Faubourg Marigny Mardi Gras costumes
The Faubourg Marigny neighborhood of New Orleans, Louisiana is one of the most active on Mardi Gras Day, with many elaborate costumers strolling the streets. This part of town is comparatively little visited by tourists compared to other areas with active celebrations...
). The neighborhood is also home to the New Orleans Center for Creative Arts
New Orleans Center for Creative Arts
New Orleans Center for Creative Arts, or NOCCA, is a professional arts training center for secondary school-age children. NOCCA is located in New Orleans, Louisiana. The school offers instruction in creative writing, dance, media arts, music, theatre arts, and visual arts, with a summer culinary...
Riverfront facility.
Notable people from The Marigny include jazz composer/musician Jelly Roll Morton
Jelly Roll Morton
Ferdinand Joseph LaMothe , known professionally as Jelly Roll Morton, was an American ragtime and early jazz pianist, bandleader and composer....
and singer Lizzie Miles
Lizzie Miles
Lizzie Miles was the stage name taken by Elizabeth Mary Landreaux , an African American blues singer.-Career:...
.
Hurricane Katrina
Hurricane Katrina
Hurricane Katrina of the 2005 Atlantic hurricane season was a powerful Atlantic hurricane. It is the costliest natural disaster, as well as one of the five deadliest hurricanes, in the history of the United States. Among recorded Atlantic hurricanes, it was the sixth strongest overall...
, which had a disastrous effect on the majority of New Orleans (see Effect of Hurricane Katrina on New Orleans
Effect of Hurricane Katrina on New Orleans
The effects of Hurricane Katrina in New Orleans have been long-lasting. As the center of Katrina passed South-east of New Orleans on August 29, 2005, winds downtown were in the Category 3 range with frequent intense gusts and tidal surge. Hurricane force winds were experienced throughout the...
), had a less severe aftermath here than in much of the city. The section on the river side of Rampart experienced some wind damage, but was at a high enough elevation to escape the great flood. The lower lying areas of New Marigny flooded, but not as deeply as elsewhere. A good portion of the 19th century style raised houses were elevated enough so that the flood waters did not reach high enough to cause significant damage, even as far back as Claiborne Avenue. A free community kitchen and goods exchange camp was set up in Washington Square for a couple months after the storm. The official reopening of Marigny was delayed in September and early October by the fact that at first decisions were made to reopen areas by ZIP code
ZIP Code
ZIP codes are a system of postal codes used by the United States Postal Service since 1963. The term ZIP, an acronym for Zone Improvement Plan, is properly written in capital letters and was chosen to suggest that the mail travels more efficiently, and therefore more quickly, when senders use the...
, and Marigny shares a ZIP code with more badly damaged areas. However after reopening, the area rebounded quickly.
External links
- Faubourg Marigny Improvement Association visit for news, events, businesses and general information
- Faubourg Marigny on Wikitravel
- Marigny.org neighborhood news
- Neighborhood Snapshot on Greater New Orleans Community Data Center site
- marigny-bywater.org Marigny/Bywater Neighborhood News