NOLA Legends

Dr. Raphael Cassimere, Jr., is Seraphia D. Leyda University Teaching Professor, Emeritus, University of New Orleans.

When I was at UNO in the late 70s, Dr. Cassimere taught Louisiana and American History. You'd always hear the groans of students when told they would have to read Twelve Years a Slave, but once they started reading the story of Solomon Northrup. Dr. Cassimere was one of the first UNO graduates to return to his alma mater (he got his bachelor's and master's degrees from then-LSUNO) to teach.

Dr. Cassimere was also one of the teachers who did not hesitate to tell the author when he was full of crap as a Student Government Association official, but it's Cassimere's teaching skills and many contributions to the community that make him a Legendary Local.

Arthur Hardy was Band Director at Brother Martin High School when he published the first edition of his now-famous Mardi Gras Guide, in 1977. It's still going strong, and so is Arthur! In addition to his long-time support of the BMHS Band (and his good friend, the late Marty Hurley), Arthur is on the board of Warren Easton High, now that it's a charter school.

Happy Mardi Gras!

Photo courtesy WDSU-TV, my go-to-folks for local news/sports/weather.

x-posted to CanalStreetCar (dot com)



The 1880s...Louisiana was still working through Reconstruction, but the worst of the post-war violence was over. Immigrants from Italy came to New Orleans by the thousands, leaving a mark on the city that's lasted to this day. African-Americans began to experiment with variations on brass band/marching band music that would become the first Jazz tunes. Many of our Legendary Locals were also leaving their mark on history in the 1880s.

The 1880s also were an incredible period of growth for the railroads. Their surveys were quite accurate, leaving wonderful maps for us to peruse.

Click the map to jump to a zoom.it version, where you can look at the original in detail.

(h/t to Accessible Archives)

Be sure to check out my latest for GoNOLA.com, on the history of St. Louis Cathedral. There are several NOLA Legends mentioned in the article. GoNOLA.com is the website for the New Orleans Tourism and Marketing Corporation, which promotes tourism in the city.

You also might want to check out a new feature on CanalStreetCar (dot com)--we're sharing desktop wallpapers and images sized properly to be "cover pictures" for social media profiles. This week kicks the series off with the Cathedral.