Lake Pontchartrain

Images of America: Louisiana

by Catherine Campanella

Native Americans used Okwata, meaning "wide water," as a shortcut for inland trade between the Gulf of Mexico and the Mississippi River. When the Europeans arrived, the original inhabitants showed them the route--the settlement near the river became the city of New Orleans, other lakeshore communities grew, and Lake Pontchartrain continued to be a vital waterway well into the 20th century. Aside from its economic value, Lake Pontchartrain was a cultural mecca: Mark Twain wrote about it and jazz sprang from its shores; locals and visitors traveled out to the amusement parks and opera pavilions, simple fishing villages and swanky yacht clubs, forts and lighthouses; and majestic hotels and camps perched precariously over the water. In Images of America: Lake Pontchartrain, photographs document memories of a time that not even Hurricane Katrina could erase.

128 pages, Paperback

First published April 18, 2007

Reviews

[Aimée · Rating 2 out of 5]

I'm reading this for a variety of reasons.

1. I'm a nerd who loves local tales.
2. I'm allegedly teaching Louisiana History to 8th graders this year.
3. The author, Catherine Campanella, was my 6th grade homeroom teacher, my middle school computer teacher, and the lady who, in 1991, told my class about Y2K coming up, and so when everyone FREAKED OUT at the last minute, I knew it would all be okay, because scientists and nerds everywhere had known about the problem since AT LEAST 1991.

ADDENDUM: Mostly pictures. Some cool info.

[Amy · Rating 2 out of 5]

Initially, this book started out traveling clockwise from Milneburg around Lake Ponchartrain. I thought it might go all the way around, but it stopped after mentioning the bayou area, and then the book went on to deal with other topics relating to Lake Ponchartrain.

Towards the end of the book, I got the feeling that the author wanted to ensure that her family's history was included. Biased?

Although much of the history was interesting, I just do not know that it flowed the way it should have.

[Ron]

This book gives a brief history of communities such as Bucktown, Milneburg, and West End that developed around the shores of Lake Pontchartrain in the 1800s through present day. As a native New Orleanean, it was interesting to read about the "land reclamation project", that all but destroyed Milneburg, an important area that fostered the early development of jazz. At some point in the future, I'd like to revisit some of the areas highlighted in the book, and see some of the last vestiges of days gone by.