The citizens of New Orleans formed the "White League" for the expulsion of the "carpet-bag" government and for restoring white supremacy. To frustrate their plan an order was issued for bidding a citizen to keep a firearm even in his home. It was rumoured that a ship was to arrive on Sept. 14, 1874, with a cargo of ammunition and the metropolitan police formed at the foot of Canal street with mounted cannon to prevent the citizens from reaching the vessel. The White League formed at Poydras street and moved out to the levee ; a skirmish followed in which the metropolitan police were worsted, suffering considerable loss. By gradual successes the White League restored white control.
Improvements made but slow progress during restoration times and for many years after; the city undertook the operation of the water works in 1869 ; a drainage system was proposed in 1871 but proved too expensive to be carried out; in 1871 the board of park commissioners bought the Upper City park, now Audubon park. The population in 1860 was 168,755 and had increased by 187o to 191,418. During this decade many freed negroes had come to the city from the country districts. In 1870 the fifth and sixth districts were added by the annexation of the town of Algiers on the opposite bank of the river and of Jefferson City (formerly Lafayette), a town adjoining the fourth district. In 1874 Carrollton was admitted as the seventh municipal district, and New Orleans attained its present limits.
In the spring of 1927, New Orleans was saved from a great Mississippi river flood by blasting the levee at Poydras, about 15 m. below the city, on April 29. This operation sacrificed the adjacent parishes of St. Bernard and Plaquemines at a cost to the city of approximately $5,000,000. To avoid similar danger in the future a spillway has been constructed about 35 m. above the city to remove 250,00o second-feet of water from the river during ex cessive floods and deliver it into Lake Pontchartrain.
The struggle of Mayor Walmsley and U. S. Senator Long for control of the city in 1934 and completion in December 1935 of a railroad and highway bridge built by joint city-state funds have been the outstanding recent events. (W. B. G.)
The Battle of New Orleans.—This was the final engagement of the American War of 1812 (q.v.), fought on Jan. 8, 1815, between the forces of the United States, under Maj.-gen. Andrew Jackson, and those of Great Britain under Maj.-gen. Sir Edward Pakenham. The abdication of Napoleon in April 1814 made it possible for Great Britain to give more attention to her American antagonist. The Gulf of Mexico region was selected for the attack, and late in 1814 a fleet of 5o vessels and an army of nearly io,000 veterans were dispatched to the region of the Mis sissippi river. The British advance was made by way of Lake Borgne and the Villere canal to the bank of the Mississippi where the advance-guard appeared on Dec. 23, 1814. Jackson was wholly surprised by this movement but with a superior force made an immediate (Dec. 24) attack with such effect that the British decided to wait for the main army and their artillery. This gave Jackson time to fortify a dry canal and to receive additional reinforcements.
At last, in the early morning of Jan. 8, 1815, a direct attack was made on the now strongly entrenched line of the defenders at Chalmette, near the Mississippi river. It failed disastrously with a loss of about 2,000 out of 9,000 British troops engaged, among the dead being Pakenham and Maj.-gen. Gibbs. The British attack on the right bank had been successful but Gen. Lambert, Pakenham's successor, was unwilling to take the responsi bility of any further fighting. The expedition was soon abandoned, and by the end of the month the troops embarked for England. The American loss proved to be 71, out of a total of about 4,000 engaged on both sides of the river. The battle of New Orleans had no bearing on the outcome of the war as peace had been made at Ghent 15 days before the battle was fought, but news of the battle and the peace reached Washington almost together. (See WAR OF I 8 I 2.)