Throughout this guide, we have talked about the mystique of New Orleans and its ineffable essence. Now it's time for some hard-core stats. The largest city in Louisiana (pre-Katrina) and one of the chief cities of the South, New Orleans is nearly 100 miles above the mouth of the Mississippi River system and stretches along a strip of land 5 to 8 miles wide between the Mississippi and Lake Pontchartrain to the north. This is a city surrounded by water -- a gulf, a river, and a lake -- and it's all largely under sea level. The highest natural point is in City Park, a whole 35 feet above sea level. That brings us to grimmer, more recent facts. There are 350 miles of levee systems, designed to keep the city dry. Breeches in at least three main levees, plus more in the Mississippi River Gulf Outlet, caused flooding in 80% of the city shortly after August 29, 2005. The flooding ranged in depth from mere inches to well over 12 feet, resulting in billions of dollars in damage. Recovery will be ongoing for decades.
Lady Bountiful: Baroness de Pontalba -- New Orleans owes a great debt to Baroness Micaela Almonester de Pontalba and her family -- without them, Jackson Square would be a mudhole. Her father, Don Almonester, used his money and influence to have the St. Louis Cathedral, Cabildo, and Presbytère built. The baroness was responsible for the two long brick apartment buildings that flank Jackson Square and for the renovation that turned the center of the square into what it is today.
Born in 1795 into the most influential family in New Orleans, she married her cousin, who stole her inheritance. When she wanted a separation at a time when such things were unheard of, her father-in-law shot her several times and then shot himself. She survived, though some of her fingers did not. In subsequent portraits, she would hide the wounded hand in her dress. In the end, she got her money back -- she used it for those French Quarter improvements -- and also ended up taking care of her (eventually) slightly nutty husband for the rest of his life. She died in Paris in 1874, and her home there is now the residence of the American ambassador. The book Intimate Enemies, by Christina Vella (Louisiana State University Press, 1997), has all the details about this remarkable woman.
