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LOUISIANA 
 
 PUBLISHED BY 
 
 THE NEW ORLEANS PROGRESSIVE UNION 
 
L O U I S I A N A 
 
 
 Louisiana constitutes a portion of the south- 
 western part of the United States. Its parallels 
 of latitude are 28° 50' N., and 33° N., with no 
 defined south latitudinal line, owing to its ir- 
 regular Gulf border. Its meridians of longi- 
 tude are 80° 41' W., and 90° 10' W. from Green- 
 wich. 
 
 Louisiana contains 45,966 square miles of 
 land, and 2,328 square miles of land-locked 
 bays, lagoons and rivers. Louisiana soils are 
 divided into alluvial lands, sea or coast marsh, 
 redeemable by levees and drainage, bluff land, 
 prairies, long leaf pines, hill lands and oak 
 lands. 
 
 Louisiana has the greatest body of alluvial 
 lands existing anywhere in the world. Only a 
 small portion of these lands is subject to over- 
 flow from the Mississippi. Nearly all are pro- 
 tected by magnificent levees, maintained by the 
 State and National Governments. 
 
 Louisiana is composed of 28,000,000 acres of 
 land, of which only about 5,500,000 acres are 
 cultivated, and on these there are yearly pro- 
 duced crops valued at nearly $100,000,000. 
 
 Louisiana's CL131ATE is admirable. Breezy 
 and cool in summer, mild in winter, healthful 
 at all times. The State is not subject to ex- 
 tremes of heat in summer or cold in winter. 
 
 Louisiana's PRODUCTS are varied and 
 abundant. Sugar, cotton, corn, rice, tobacco, 
 oats, wheat, sorghum, jute, hemp, ramie, 
 grasses, clovers and forage crops; millet, pota- 
 toes, vegetables, oranges, lemons, mandarins, 
 olives, figs, and grapes are [)roduced with great 
 profit antl little labor. 
 
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L O UIS I A NA 
 
 a tremendous impetus to manufacturing, par- 
 ticularly at New Orleans. 
 
 Louisiana's EDUCATIONAL FACILITIES are 
 splendid. Every parish is well provided with 
 public schools for both white and colored people; 
 tuition free. Industrial schools are at Ruston 
 and Lafayette; tuition free. Private schools 
 abound in all the small towns. 
 
 Louisiana's STATE UNIVERSITY and AGRI- 
 CULTURAL and MECHANICAL COLLEGE is 
 an i^p-to-date modern school. Its tuition is 
 free. Its faculty is able and large. Its equip- 
 ment is new and complete. Its branches are 
 numerous. Its courses are thorough. Its (dis- 
 cipline is excellent. Its grounds located on the, 
 Mississippi River, Baton Rouge, are beautiful 
 and the most attractive in the South. 
 
 Louisiana's great college at New Orleans, 
 is TULANE UNIVERSITY for boys, and NEW- 
 COMB COLLEGE for girls. The Medical, Law 
 and Technical departments of the former are 
 especially notable. 
 
 Louisiana's STATE NORMAL SCHOOL at 
 Natchitoches, is a splendid training school for 
 both sexes. It offers untold advantages for a 
 scholarly education. 
 
 Louisiana's INDUSTRIAL SCHOOLS at Rus- 
 ton and Lafayette arc magnificently equipped, 
 and domiciled in comfortable and modern build- 
 ings. The faculties are energetic, thorough, and 
 ample. 
 
 Louisiana's INSTITUTIONS are all modern 
 and extensive. She has a magnificent Deaf 
 and Duml) Institute, a splendid new Institute 
 for the Blind, two large Charity Hospitals, a 
 
 /..x 
 
LOUISIANA 
 
 Soldiers' Home, large and commodious build- 
 ings for the Infirm, and an Institution for the 
 Colored Blind at Alexandria, Louisiana has 
 three State Agricultural Experiment Stations, 
 at New Orleans, Baton Rouge, and Calhoun. 
 All classes are looked after and cared for in 
 Louisiana. 
 
 i Louisiana's HEALTH is good. The death 
 rate is far below that of many States in the 
 Union. 
 
 Louisiana's TOWNS and CITIES are progres- 
 sive, thriving, business-like, and anxious to 
 welcome in people from other sections. 
 
 Louisiana EXEMPTS FROM TAXATION for- 
 eign money sent here for loan and investment 
 purposes. 
 
 Louisiana's NEWSPAPERS are patriotic and 
 progressive. There are over 200 in the State 
 and wield a large influence for the upbuilding 
 of the commonwealth. 
 
 Louisiana's PEOPLE are peaceful, courteous, 
 generous, liberty-loving, loyal and always ready 
 to extend the hand of goodfellowship and hos- 
 pitahty to the stranger in her borders. 
 
 I 
 
L OU I S I A N A 
 
 CONDENSED INFORMATION ABOUT LOUISIANA 
 
 The Louisiana Territory, after being Under 
 Spanish and French rule, through settlement 
 and conquest, for over 250 years, was ceded by 
 France to the United States on the 30th of 
 April, 1803, for $15,000,000. Louisiana was 
 admitted as a State in 1812. The State is com- 
 posed of fifty-nine parishes or counties, having 
 a total population of 1,381,625 in 1900; this is 
 rapidly growing. Private lands may be bought 
 cheaply, the prices varying according to the 
 richness of the soil, improvements, etc. 
 
 HOW TO GET INFORMATION 
 
 Should detailed information concerning any 
 particular locality be desired, a letter addressed 
 to the Secretary of the NEW ORLEANS PRO- 
 GRESSIVE UNION, 528 Camp Street or to any 
 
 of the following organizations in the State, 
 will be promptly answered: 
 
 Alexandria, Progressive League 
 Athens, Progressive League 
 Baton Rouge, Board of Trade. 
 Bogalusa, Progressive League 
 Bimkie, Commercial Club 
 Colfax, Board of Trade 
 Covington, Citizens League 
 Crowley, Board of Trade 
 De Quincey, Commercial Club 
 Duson, Progressive Union 
 Eunice, Progressive League 
 Franklington, Progressive League 
 Gueydan, Business League 
 
L O U I SI A N A 
 
 Louisiana heads all the States of the Union in 
 the acreage value of her crops raised. This is 
 a census fact. 
 
 Louisiana's FISHING GROUNDS and OYS- 
 TER BEDS are famous and furnish the most 
 delicious of these luxuries in the world. 
 
 Louisiana is the coming seat of the oyster 
 industry of the United States. Her tidal bot- 
 toms, the home of the oyster, embrace 4,500,000 
 acres — a greater area of oyster waters than have 
 Maryland and Virginia combined. 
 
 Louisiana's FORESTS are inexhaustible, mag- 
 nificent, and the varieties of her timbers numer- 
 ous. They consist of oaks, hickories, ash, elms, 
 gums, magnolias, pines, maples, cypress and a 
 quantity of others. 
 
 Louisiana has the greatest area of long-leaf 
 pine of any State in the Union, and has more 
 cypress timber than any other State. She is 
 now the second lumber producing State in the 
 Union, ranking next to the State of Washington. 
 
 Louisiana's MINERAL WEALTH is attract- 
 ing world-wide attention. Louisiana has with- 
 in her borders the greatest sulphur mine the 
 world has ever seen. It is taken out of the 
 earth 98 per cent. pure. 
 
 Louisiana's FUEL OIL fields are unsurpassed 
 in the United States. Some of her oil wells 
 have a record of 3,000,000 barrels of oil each. 
 
 Louisiana has the greatest deposit of pure 
 rock salt in the western hemisphere. It comes 
 up 99 per cent. pure. 
 
 Louisiana's NATURAL GAS fields are the 
 greatest in the United States and have given 
 
L O U I S I A N A 
 
 Louisiana's LIVE STOCK consists of sheep, 
 horses, hogs, cattle and mules. Her pastures 
 are inviting, her waters are pure and refreshing, 
 and her cane brakes in winter offer protection 
 and forage. 
 
 Louisiana's RAILROADS are extensive, ac- 
 commodating, convenient and modern. These 
 traverse 5,852.84 miles of territory. Louisiana 
 has a Railroad Commission that regulates and 
 adjusts rates, fares and charges. 
 
 Louisiana was . the second State in railway 
 construction in 1907. She has more navigable 
 rivers than any other State, and a greater 
 length of navigable waterways than any. It is 
 by exploiting and developing her resources, in 
 a way that is rapidly pushing her to the front, 
 that Louisiana is doing more than her share in 
 making America the greatest of nations. 
 
 Louisiana's RIVERS, BAYOUS and LAKES 
 are mostly all navigable and many run north 
 and south through the entire State. They fur- 
 nish transportation facilities for many com- 
 modities, and create competition in rates. They 
 furnish water for irrigation, are deep running 
 streams which abound in fish, and furnish cool 
 water for stock. Every parish except four, 
 can be reached by navigalbe streams at some 
 period during the year. 
 
 Louisiana's PRODUCTS make up an imposing 
 total. Louisiana produces one million bales of 
 cotton annually, and besides this, she produces 
 95 per cent of all the cane sugars raised in the 
 United States, and more rice than any other 
 State of the Union. One parish in Louisiana 
 raises more rice than all of South Carolina. 
 
L OU I SI A N A 
 
 Greensburg, Business League 
 Hammond, Progressive Union 
 Jackson, Progressive Union 
 Jeanerette, Progressive League 
 Kaplan, Development Club 
 Kentwood, Citizens League 
 Lafayette, Progressive League 
 Lake Charles, Board of Trade 
 Lake Providence, Progressive League 
 Leesville, Progressive League 
 Mansfield, Progressive League 
 Marksville, Progressive Union 
 Minden, Progressive League 
 Monroe, Progressive League 
 Morgan City, Progressive League 
 Napoleonville, Progressive League 
 New Iberia, Board of Trade 
 Pontchatoula, Progressive League 
 Slidell, Progressive Union 
 Shreveport, Progressive League 
 St. Francisville, Progressive League 
 St. Martinville, Progressive League 
 Thibodaux, Progressive Union 
 Villa Platte, Progressive I^eague 
 Washington, Progressive League 
 Waterproof, Business League 
 West Monroe, Progressive League 
 White Castle, Progressive League 
 Winnfield, Progressive League. 
 
 The Progressive Union is indebted to Hon. 
 ('harles Schuler, State Commissioner of Agri- 
 culture and Commerce for material assistance 
 in compiling the above data for publication. 
 
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