
The state of Arkansas borders the Mississippi River in the south of the country. There are several parks and wilderness areas in the area, including mountains, caves, rivers, and hot springs.
The state of Louisiana is located in the southeast of the United States along the Gulf of Mexico. Louisiana's Creole and Cajun cultures reflect its history as a melting pot of French, African, American, and French-Canadian cultures. There are many reasons to visit New Orleans, including the colonial French Quarter, the raucous Mardi Gras festival, jazz music, the Renaissance-style St. Louis Cathedral and the National WWII Museum.
QUICK FACTS ABOUT LOUISIANA |
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Louisiana was first settled around 12,000 years ago. The land was inhabited by Native American tribes during its history, including the Atakapa, Choctaw, Chitimacha, Natchez, and Tunica.
Spain claimed the territory in 1541, thanks to its explorer Hernando de Soto. The region was seized by France in 1682. As part of the Louisiana Purchase, the United States purchased the area that would become Louisiana from France in 1803. The state of Louisiana was established in 1812.
African slaves were brought to New Orleans just a few years after the city was founded in 1718. Louisiana, and especially New Orleans, have a unique culture as a result of the blend of African, French, and Spanish influences.
1861 was the year Louisiana left the Union. Louisiana rejoined the Union in 1868 after reunification. Currently, the state is home to the Chitimacha, Coushatta, and Jena Band of Choctaw Indians, as well as the Tunica-Biloxi tribe.
Louisiana's mammals include coyotes, American beavers, muskrats, and swamp rabbits. The American alligator is probably the state's best-known reptile. However, the area is also home to alligator snapping turtles, Louisiana pine snakes, and venomous harlequin coral snakes. Louisiana's many birds include the bright pink roseate spoonbill, yellow-crowned night heron, Louisiana waterthrush, and purple gallinule. Louisiana slimy salamanders, Southern toads, and crawfish frogs are a few of the state's amphibians.
Some of Louisiana's most common trees include pecans, Louisiana hickory, magnolias, live oaks and bald cypresses (the state tree). Louisiana is home to little brown jug, American hogpeanut, and sensitive partridge pea.
Fertile soil, natural gas, and oil are among Louisiana's top natural resources. Louisiana also produces the most salt in the United States.