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Authors are subject to change and certain restrictions may apply. What does possibility mean to you? Um, that's a hard question.
Something that you can strive for. That I'm able to do anything I set my mind to. You're confident in yourself and you believe in yourself. Stuff that you could achieve. I feel at Saida.
Eddie Ling is possible when you're more confident. Shoes are a huge part of that. They are the most important part of my style. You can like express yourself in the right shoes. Anything is possible.
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And how the reporters uncovered it. And as a journalist, I want to make sure that's what you get too. I'm Eva Heizadi, co-host of the podcast Post Reports. Every weekday, my colleagues and I at the Washington Post give you the context you need on the biggest stories. Healthcare, tariffs, artificial intelligence.
We've got you covered. Look for post reports wherever you listen to podcasts. Zach's off fifth, up to 70% off every day. Summer is officially here. Time to dress like it.
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This is Lee Habib, and this is our American Stories, the show where America is the star and the American people coming to you from the city where the West begins. Fort Worth, Texas. And to listen to all of our stories, go to ouramericanstories.com or subscribe to us anywhere you get your podcasts. each state in our nation from its borders to its people and its food. has its own distinct and unique culture and history.
Today, our Hillsdale intern Nate Gallagher shares the story of the great state. of Louisiana. Let's get into it. The name Louisiana comes from French explorer Robert de La Salle. he claimed a vast swathe of the North American continent in honor of King Louis the Fourteenth.
This expansive territory was named La Louisiane. and was split to an upper and a lower section. Much of this lower section became the modern state of Louisiana. with the rest becoming about fifteen other states. During the Seven Years' War, or as we know it, the French and Indian War, France ceded the Louisiana territory to Spain, not wanting such valuable land to fall under the control of the British, their fiercest rival.
This session kicked off a 50-year period during which the territory changed hands three times. Then in eighteen hundred the territory was handed back over to France when Napoleon signed a secret treaty with Spain. After that, we stepped in. In 1803, President Jefferson sent delegates to France to negotiate the purchase of the city of New Orleans and surrounding area. Having a foreign power control the mouth of the Mississippi meant our trade could be cut off at any time, something Americans could not abide by.
The delegates were given a total of ten million dollars to make the purchase. French Minister Talleyrand, however, offered the whole of the Louisiana Territory for just fifteen million dollars. The delegates knew that this was a once-in-a-lifetime offer and immediately accepted it, despite having inadequate funds and no approval from Congress. This decision was controversial, as many in the Federalist Party believed it was illegal to make such a purchase without congressional approval. The Senate ultimately approved of the purchase, however, and the US doubled in size for fewer than three cents an acre.
The modern state was the first part of the territory to gain statehood. and as such claim the name Louisiana. French influence can be seen and heard all throughout the state. Much of Louisiana claims Cajun heritage. This term Cajun comes from the region of Acadia, a French colony in the far east of Canada.
In seventeen ten Britain conquered this region. Many of the people living there refused to bow to the Crown, and as such were expelled from the colony. Over time the name Acadian morphed into Cajun. This resistance and unwillingness to sacrifice their culture is the root for the extensive use of French in the region. even today where signs can frequently be seen having both English and French.
The French influence is so strong that the state's professional football team, the New Orleans Saints, have a fleur-de-lis as their logo. This symbol can be traced back to the French monarchy and nation. Louisiana is also one of the only states not to subdivide into counties, instead it uses parishes. While similar to counties, parishes reflect the strong Catholic roots of France, where territory is often demarcated by church-parish lines. The aqueous geography also played a large role in shaping Louisiana's identity.
32% of the state's territory is wetland, and 25% of it is just water. Reflecting this, the state verges the Pelican. More so, the Pelican State is the official state nickname, and the name of the state's professional basketball team is the New Orleans Pelicans. The most famous aspect of this wet environment is the bayou. Bayous are areas of stagnant or nearly stagnant water.
These areas often come from a stream's flow slowing down or beginning to mix with ocean water. The bayou is often brackish and as such is home to a vast aquatic ecosystem of things like alligators, shrimp, crawfish, herons, catfish, and many other species. Perhaps the perfect blending of these worlds comes from food. The wetlands provide housing for one of the staple foods of the bayou, crawfish. Eating crawfish can be traced back to the natives of the land.
and that continued during French ownership of the area. The dish really explodes because of the Cajuns, however. When they were expelled from Acadia and travelled south, Acadians were very poor. The abundance and easy cooking make crawfish a staple. Coming from the northeast of Canada, Cajuns were no strangers to lobsters.
The two crustaceans were similar enough, and so the recipes were easily translated. From the Bayou backcountry, the dish eventually made its way to New Orleans. From here the crawfish became an essential aspect of Louisiana cuisine. combining Cajun roots with New Orleans flare. Perhaps the pinnacle of New Orleans flair is the Mardi Gras celebration.
Mardi Gras is French for Fat Tuesday. It is celebrated every year before the season of Lent in order to feast before a time of sacrifice and self-denial. The celebration began during the 17th century in France and then moved to America through their colonies. The people of New Orleans were familiar with the celebration, but it was mostly like any other holiday. That changed in 1857 when a secret society called the Mystic Crew of Comas celebrated Mardi Gras with marching bands and decorated parade floats.
This would become the base for the Mardi Gras we see today, which still features crews, clubs and organizations that come together to make parade floats for the celebration. Staying in the city of New Orleans, the black population and the French influence were coming together to form something new, something that would come to define the city. Chaz was a fusion of African American rhythm and European harmonic structure. It was a genre that had a rich musical history but was comfortable breaking the rules. Jazz grew out of several roots.
The biggest of these was ragtime. Ragtime was a deeply rhythmic, deeply improvisational style. this tradition of improvisation and freedom would become a core element of jazz. Another root was black gospel music. This gospel music often featured call and response.
jazz musicians would take that idea and run with it. having one instrument play a melody and then the rest respond in their own unique way. The freedom, sound, and charisma of jazz would become defining characteristics of New Orleans and Louisiana as a whole. The Louisiana way of life is one of French traditions, a fiery passion for freedom, and a flair for style. And a terrific job on the production, editing, and storytelling by our own Nate Gallagher.
And while everything about Louisiana, they say, is different, and it's true, no counties, it's parishes, that's because of the Catholic tradition, its geography, not even Florida comes close. 33% of the state, wetlands, is the only state with a state bird that's a waterfowl. A pelican. And of course, there are the bayous. There's the crawfish.
Thank you, Cajuns. Of course, there's Mardi Gras. Then there is the music, jazz, and ragtime. all a product of that city, New Orleans, the city where I got married. The story of Louisiana, a part of our series on states, here on Our American Stories.
Lee Habib here. As we approach our nation's 250th anniversary, I'd like to remind you that all the history stories you hear on this show are brought to you by the great folks at Hillsdale College. Go to Hillsdale.edu to find out about their terrific free online courses. Their series on communism is one of the finest I've ever seen. Again, go to hillsdale.edu and sign up for their free and terrific online courses.
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Offers are subject to change and certain restrictions may apply. I hear a lot from people that there are days where it's hard to read a single news story. Forget actually being caught up. But I host a podcast that can fix that. It's called The Seven.
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The Seven Podcast will turn around your morning and get you caught up. Check it out and follow The Seven wherever you listen to podcasts. We finally switched to T-Mobile because with them, we can be connected here and there. Dad, the cousins in Mexico have a surprise for you. And enjoy the gift of staying connected.
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