==The construction of New Orleans began in 1718 by shan <phoneme alphabet="ipa" ph="bap 'ti st">Baptiste</phoneme> Le Moan, day Bien ville. At first, the community was nothing more than a trading camp on the curving east bank of the Mississippi River. Later, the city organized into a fortified community, which still exists as the French Quarter
==As Nouvelle or léans grew to the west, north, and east, the city followed the river's curve, becoming known as. the Crescent City
==Because New Orleans was surrounded by swamps and marshes. residents built levees to protect the city from the Mississippi River. Today, massive pumps and canals drain the city, as annual rainfall can be between 60 and 100 inches
==New Orleans was twice named the state capital. The title of capital city was moved from New Orleans to Donaldson ville in 1825, to Baton Rouge in 1846, to New Orleans in 1864, and then again to Baton Rouge in 1879
==Canal Street, once the widest street in the world, was named for a canal that was planned, but never built, on the street's dividing median
==Built in 1807. the first four-story building in the city is still in use on the corner of Royal Street and St. Peter Street
==New Orleans boasted the first opera house in America
==The Ursuline nuns braved five months of high seas, pirates, shipwreck and sickness to come to New Orleans in 1727. Their convent, located at Ursulines and Chartres Streets, was supposed to be constructed within six months of their arrival. It took seven years
==In 1813, Governor Claiborne offered a 500 dollar reward for the capture of legendary pirate shan Lafitte. Lafitte posted a one thousand five hundred dollar reward for the capture of Claiborne
==The largest municipal park in the country, New Orleans' City Park. was also home to the famous Duelling Oaks, where Creole gentlemen frequently met to settle scores with swords, pistols, and sometimes Bowie knives
==The monument to General Andrew Jackson was the world's first equestrian statue in which the horse had more than one foot off the base
==The Ursuline Convent, the oldest brick-and-post building of the French Colonial style in America, also housed the nation's first girls' school
==In 1872, the official colors of Mardi Gras were chosen based on an honored visitor to New Orleans: Russian Grand Duke Alexis Romanoff. Purple stands for justice, green for faith, and gold for power
==New Orleans cemeteries are above-ground
==Louisiana is the only state that uses the Church-based parishes rather than counties. New Orleans is in the aptly-named Or leans Parish
==Native Americans settled in the New Orleans area around 400 A D
==In April 1803, New Orleans became a part of the United States when Napoleon sold all of the Louisiana Territory to the U S under the Louisiana Purchase
==Mardi Gras has been celebrated openly in New Orleans since around 1730, but the first Mardi Gras parade of floats followed by a ball for krewe and their guests occurred on February 24, 1857 by the Krewe of Comus
==In the Louisiana State Museum is a death mask of the face of Napoleon Boneapart, cast by his physicians a day and a half after Napoleon died
==Each seat in the Superdome is a different color than the one next to it, providing the illusion of a full house even when some are empty
==Tulane's school of business is the oldest college of commerce in the U S
==The total mileage of canals both above and below ground in New Orleans exceeds that of Venice in Italy
==Lagoons in City Park, along City Park Blvd. are all that remain of what was once Bayou Metairie
==St. Louis Cathedral is the oldest continually operating cathedral in the United States
==New Orleans is home to Lake Pontchartrain Causeway, the world’s longest continuous bridge
==Oysters Rockefeller was invented at Ann twan’s Restaurant in New Orleans
==New Orleans is the birthplace of singer Louis Armstrong