When doing research for our trip to Louisiana, I read that it is the state that feels like a foreign country more than anywhere else. Though I did not visit New Orleans and my time was short, I did not feel this to be the case. It's capital city's capitol buildings, though, have been by far the most interesting of the few that I have been to.
Where is the tallest Capitol building in the U.S? It's a good little trivia question. It also has quite the history. Louisiana Governor Huey Long can be credited with modernizing the U.S. poorest state in the 1920s and 1930s. Part of his modernizing was to build a capitol as grand as were his ambitions. Completed in 1932, the Capitol Building is an Art Deco, 32 story skyscraper. It's the tallest building in the city and it is quite striking from a distance.
As Governor and then U.S. Senator, Huey Long made many enemies. On September 8, 1935, one of these enemies shot and killed Long in the Capitol that he had such a huge part in building. Walking through the halls, one cannot stop and think of this incident.
The grounds around the building are a great place to walk. There are gardens and a statue of Huey Long. It's also the site of his burial. One can take an elevator to the top, which gives great views of the city. It's clear the oil industry is the major player. There are always oil tankers in the river and the city is littered with refineries.
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| Huey Long Burial Site |
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| The Oil Industry |
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| The Mississippi |
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| The gardens on the Capitol grounds |
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| St Josephs Cathedral |
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| The busy Mississippi |
The Old Capitol building is not to be missed. Today it's a museum. This also is a unique structure. When I first saw the building, it looked like a castle. This makes sense, since the state of Louisiana was heavily influenced by the Spanish and French in its early years.
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| The Old Capitol |
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| Huey Long |
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| The beautiful interior of the Old Capitol |
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| Old Capitol as seen from near the river |
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| Magnolia bloom |
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| Lol |
Interesting historical narrative. Is the capital building still fully in use? It looks a little run down.
ReplyDeleteGreat photos. The refinery shot is impressive, as are the shots of the river.
Out of all the places I've been to in America, I thought San Antionio felt most like a foreign city. It felt like an extension of Mexico. Texas, being mostly a shithole, felt most like a third-world country. The poverty in Texas is hardcore and depressing. It's kind of funny that Texas has over a trillion dollar economy but is mostly a dump.
I walked through some seriously poor neighborhoods in Baton Rouge. Many of the homes were essentially shacks. It's so beautiful how the human race treats itself. We're not all that different from alligators.
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