Economic Importance

Tourism interests

purchase of Louisiana

The Port

The economic history of Louisiana dates all the way back to 1803 when the United States purchased this land. Approximately 828,000 square miles were added to the U.S. which is now known as Louisiana. This was just the beginning of the New Orleans Economic importance.

Fast forward to 1879 to the era of the port of New Orleans. NOLA became a popular port due to the increase in sandbars and narrowing which interrupted ships entering the river. In 1908 the Dock Board approved the improvement of port facilities which only increased the purchasing and trading occurring at the port. During World War II the port housed thousands of workers to build ships and homes for troops to reside. Despite the economic success, it all came to a halt when New Orleans was quickly shattered.

Today the port is used for travel, shipments, and other industrial needs.

Katrina's Impact

Hurricane Katrina hit in 2005 which brought tragedy and a major change to the city. The population decreased from 450,000 to a few thousand. It took years to rebuild NOLA to the great city it was before, but they came back even better than ever.

Since 2008 the city has became a hot spot for Hollywood films and entertainment. A surge of professionals make way to the city to start their careers. All of the success eventually leads to the amazing New Orleans we all know of or hear of today.

Economic Importance Today

New Orleans tourism

Today New Orleans is a thriving, colorful, and loud city that is full of opportunities. In 2016 visitors brought in 7.41 billion dollars (a 5.1% increase from 2015), which are RECORD BREAKING numbers. These numbers show the massive interest in this city and that it continues to grow through the years.

Bourbon street that attracts many tourists

The river walk where tourists can see the port

References

Purchase of Louisiana

Population of New Orleans

Economic History

Tourism of New Orleans