City North America
New Orleans
New Orleans is a city in the United States, beside the big Mississippi River. Jazz music was born here!
New Orleans is the largest city in Louisiana, on the Mississippi River near the Gulf of Mexico. The French founded it in 1718, and jazz music took shape here around 1890. The U.S. Census Bureau estimated 362,154 people in the city in July 2025.
Founded by the French in 1718 beside the Mississippi, New Orleans passed to Spain and back to France before becoming American in 1803. It grew into a great river port, and around 1890, Universalis says, it gave birth to jazz. The Census Bureau's Vintage 2025 estimate gives the city 362,154 people on 1 July 2025.
Photo: thepipe26, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons
Discover New Orleans
New Orleans is a city in the state of Louisiana, in the United States.
The wide Mississippi River curves right through the city.
New Orleans is in Louisiana, in the south of the United States. Universalis places it on the Mississippi delta, about 150 kilometers from where the river meets the Gulf of Mexico, between the river and Lake Pontchartrain. Its nickname, Crescent City, comes from the curve the river makes as it passes through.
The U.S. Census Bureau estimated 362,154 people in New Orleans on 1 July 2025, more than in any other city in Louisiana.
The Census Bureau's Vintage 2025 estimates for Louisiana's places give New Orleans 362,154 people on 1 July 2025 (estimates base 384,129 for April 2020); Baton Rouge, the next largest city, had 222,795. UrbanRail.Net gives the metropolitan area about 1.3 million inhabitants.
Universalis (Laurent Vermeersch) notes that much of the city lies below the level of the river and the lake, sheltered by levees, and that Hurricane Katrina in 2005 showed how vulnerable the site is.
- Country and state
- United States; Louisiana
- People in New Orleans (estimate, 1 July 2025)
- 362,154
- Rank in Louisiana
- largest city
- Nickname
- Crescent City
Towers above the trees
In the photo, tall towers rise above green trees and little houses. The sky is pink.
Some windows in the towers are lit up.
The photo, taken in April 2012, shows the towers of downtown New Orleans rising above green trees and the roofs of houses, under a pink sky. Lights glow in many windows and along the streets.
The French Quarter, which Universalis calls the city's historic heart, keeps the grid of streets laid out by Bienville. Close by is Jackson Square, a historic park that Wikidata dates to 1721.
The Commons file (thepipe26 via Flickr, 24 April 2012) is filed under New Orleans skylines; its description gives no viewpoint or building names.
Universalis says the French Quarter, or Vieux Carré, keeps the strict grid plan drawn by Bienville. Wikidata records Jackson Square as a historic park dating from 1721, and the Crescent City Connection as twin cantilever bridges carrying U.S. Route 90 Business over the Mississippi.
- French Quarter (Vieux Carré)
- the historic heart, laid out by Bienville
- Jackson Square
- historic park, from 1721
- Crescent City Connection
- twin bridges over the Mississippi
French, Spanish, then American
Long ago, French settlers built a town here, beside the big river. They named it after a French ruler.
Later the town belonged to Spain, then France again, and then the United States.
In 1718 the Frenchman Jean-Baptiste Le Moyne de Bienville decided to found a town on a mound beside the Mississippi, where it could control river traffic. It was named La Nouvelle-Orléans after Philippe d'Orléans, then regent of France, and in 1722 it became the capital of French Louisiana.
The city passed to Spain in 1762, back to France in 1800, and became American in 1803, when Napoleon sold the French territory to the United States.
Universalis says Native Americans already used a carrying place between Bayou St. John and the Mississippi, where the French set up a first camp and a fort at the end of the 17th century. The port drove the city's growth through the 19th century, with railways from the 1830s and steamboats across the Mississippi basin; Universalis also records that the city was at the center of the slave trade, and that about a third of its roughly 10,000 people in 1800 were enslaved.
By 1840 it was the third most populous U.S. city, in 1860 the third port of the country, and by 1900 it had about 280,000 people. French remained the main language until the 1830s.
- Founded
- 1718, by Jean-Baptiste Le Moyne de Bienville
- Became part of the United States
- 1803
- People in 1900
- about 280,000
Old-time streetcars
New Orleans has old-fashioned streetcars. They run along the streets on rails!
One line first opened in 1835!
New Orleans's streetcars run on 22 kilometers of track, on five routes, using vintage cars. The longest route, the St. Charles Streetcar, is 10.4 kilometers long, and Wikidata dates the line to 1835.
Other routes run along the riverfront, along Canal Street and along Rampart and St. Claude streets. New sections opened in 2013 and 2016.
UrbanRail.Net lists the routes: Riverfront 2.5 km, Canal Street with its Cemeteries and Museum branches 6.1 km, St. Charles 10.4 km and Rampart–St. Claude 3.5 km, on a 1,588 mm gauge. A 1.3 km section along Loyola Avenue to the Union Passenger Terminal opened on 28 January 2013, and a 2.2 km section along North Rampart Street on 2 October 2016.
Wikidata gives 1835 as the opening date of the St. Charles line.
- Streetcar system
- 22 km, 5 routes, vintage cars
- St. Charles Streetcar
- 10.4 km
- Rampart Street section
- opened 2 October 2016
Hot summers and mild winters
New Orleans is hot in summer and mild in winter.
It gets lots of rain, all through the year.
The World Meteorological Organization's averages for New Orleans (1981–2010) give July and August days an average high of about 32.5 °C or more, with nights near 25.5 °C. In January, days average about 16 °C and nights about 8 °C.
About 1,442 millimeters of rain fall in an average year. June is the wettest month, with about 168 millimeters, and October the driest, with about 79.
The WMO table for New Orleans, 1981–2010, gives average highs from 15.6 °C in January to 32.7 °C in August and average lows from 8.0 °C in January to 25.7 °C in August; no month's average low is near freezing.
The monthly rainfall averages add up to about 1,441.8 mm. June is wettest (167.6 mm), followed by July (144.3 mm); October is driest (78.7 mm), and every other month gets more than 100 mm.
- August, average high (WMO, 1981–2010)
- 32.7 °C
- January, average low (same period)
- 8.0 °C
- Rainfall in a year (sum of the monthly averages)
- about 1,442 mm
The city of jazz
Jazz music grew up in New Orleans! It came from a mix of African, European and Caribbean cultures.
A musician called Louis Armstrong helped make it popular.
Universalis says that from about 1890, the mix of African, European and Caribbean cultures in New Orleans gave birth to jazz. In the streets of the French Quarter, musicians such as Louis Armstrong made the music popular, before it spread to Chicago and New York. A park in the city is named after him.
Universalis also lists the city's history, food and French and Creole buildings among the reasons many visitors come.
Universalis notes that in the 20th century road transport weakened the port, despite the opening in 1923 of the Industrial Canal linking Lake Pontchartrain and the Mississippi, and that once container ships took over, coastal ports in Texas and Florida gradually overtook it.
Wikidata records the Lake Pontchartrain Causeway, two parallel bridges across the lake, with a length of about 38.4 km and dates of 30 August 1956 and 10 May 1969.
- Jazz
- took shape from about 1890
- Louis Armstrong Park
- park in New Orleans
- Industrial Canal
- opened 1923, between Lake Pontchartrain and the Mississippi
New Orleans on the map
Find the United States on the globe. Look at the south, near the Gulf of Mexico, where the Mississippi River ends. New Orleans is there!
A big lake lies to the north of the city.
New Orleans is in the south of the United States at about 30° north, between the Mississippi River and Lake Pontchartrain, about 150 kilometers upriver from the Gulf of Mexico.
Measured from the French Quarter, Jackson Square is about 0.2 kilometers to the east-southeast, Louis Armstrong Park about 0.5 kilometers to the north-northwest, and the Crescent City Connection bridges about 2.3 kilometers to the south-southeast.
New Orleans lies at about 30.00° N and 90.04° W. Measured from the French Quarter (Wikidata points): Jackson Square 0.22 km east-southeast, Louis Armstrong Park 0.47 km north-northwest, the Crescent City Connection 2.34 km south-southeast and Wikidata's point for the Lake Pontchartrain Causeway 27.38 km north-northwest.
The hero photo was taken on 24 April 2012; Commons gives no camera location.
- Latitude
- about 30.0° north
- Longitude
- about 90.0° west
- French Quarter to the Crescent City Connection
- about 2.3 km south-southeast
Amazing facts
-
New Orleans is called the Crescent City because the river curves around it like a crescent moon.
New Orleans's nickname, Crescent City, comes from the curve the Mississippi makes as it passes through the city.
Universalis explains the nickname Crescent City ('la ville-croissant') by the meander the Mississippi traces through the city.
-
Much of New Orleans is lower than the river next to it!
Much of New Orleans lies below the level of the Mississippi and Lake Pontchartrain, protected by long walls of earth called levees.
Universalis notes that the site lies below the level of the river and the lake and is sheltered from them by levees.
-
A very, very long bridge crosses the big lake north of New Orleans.
The Lake Pontchartrain Causeway is two parallel bridges across the lake, about 38 kilometers long.
Wikidata gives the Lake Pontchartrain Causeway a length of about 38.44 km, with dates of 1956 and 1969.
-
People in New Orleans mostly spoke French long ago.
French was the main language of New Orleans until the 1830s, more than 25 years after the city became American.
Universalis says French stayed dominant until the 1830s, strengthened by French speakers arriving after Haiti's independence.
Words to know
- delta
- flat land at a river's mouth, built up from mud the river carries
- levee
- a long bank of earth built to stop a river or lake from flooding the land
- crescent
- a curved shape, like a thin slice of the Moon
- streetcar
- a passenger car that runs on rails along city streets
- jazz
- a kind of music with strong rhythms, often made up as it is played
- regent
- a person who rules a country for a king or queen who is too young
Discovery challenge
-
Which big river flows through New Orleans?
New Orleans stands on which river?
The curve of which river gives New Orleans the nickname Crescent City?
- The Mississippi
- The Hudson
- The Colorado
Show the answer
The Mississippi
The Mississippi!
The Mississippi River.
The Mississippi.
-
Which kind of music grew up in New Orleans?
Which music took shape in New Orleans around 1890?
Which music, made popular by musicians such as Louis Armstrong, grew from New Orleans's mix of African, European and Caribbean cultures?
- Jazz
- Opera
- Bagpipe music
Show the answer
Jazz
Jazz!
Jazz.
Jazz.
-
Who started the town of New Orleans long ago?
Settlers from which country founded New Orleans in 1718?
La Nouvelle-Orléans was named after a regent of which country?
- England
- France
- Mexico
Show the answer
France
People from France!
France.
France (Philippe d'Orléans).
-
What do people ride along New Orleans streets on rails?
What runs on 22 kilometers of track in New Orleans, using vintage cars?
The St. Charles line, 10.4 km long, is part of which New Orleans transport system?
- Streetcars
- Cable cars up a mountain
- Monorails
Show the answer
Streetcars
Streetcars!
Streetcars.
The streetcar system.
-
When did New Orleans become part of the United States?
In which year did New Orleans become American?
In which year did Napoleon's sale of French territory to the United States make New Orleans American?
- 1718
- 1803
- 1923
Show the answer
1803
In 1803!
1803.
1803.
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For parents & teachers
What children will learn
- Locate New Orleans on the Mississippi, near the Gulf of Mexico.
- Explain how a river port grew under French, Spanish and American rule.
- Describe how levees protect a city built on low ground.
- Read a hot, wet climate from real averages.
Recommended ages: 3 to 17 · About 15 minutes
Talk about it
- New Orleans belonged to France, Spain and the United States. What traces might each leave in a city's names, buildings and food?
- Jazz grew from a mix of African, European and Caribbean cultures. What happens when different kinds of music meet?
- Much of New Orleans is below the level of the river beside it. How do levees work, and what must people do to look after them?
Try at home or in class
- Levee test: build a small sand or clay bank in a tray, pour water on one side and see what keeps the 'town' dry.
- Rain chart: plot New Orleans's monthly rainfall and compare it with your own town's.
- Flag timeline: draw the three countries New Orleans belonged to, in order, with their years.
Key vocabulary: delta, levee, crescent, streetcar, jazz, regent
Where these facts come from
- Wikidata , Wikimedia Foundation (CC0 1.0)
- Natural Earth vector data , Natural Earth (NACIS) (Public domain)
- City and town population totals, Vintage 2025: Louisiana (sub-est2025_22.csv) , U.S. Census Bureau
- La Nouvelle-Orléans , Encyclopaedia Universalis (Laurent Vermeersch)
- New Orleans Streetcar , UrbanRail.Net (Robert Schwandl)
- World Weather Information Service: New Orleans, Louisiana climatological information , World Meteorological Organization
- File:New Orleans skyline-02.jpg (thepipe26, 24 April 2012) , Wikimedia Commons
- Wikimedia Commons , Wikimedia Foundation (Per file (public domain, CC0, CC BY or CC BY-SA); see each media record)
Checked, not yet human-reviewed. Last updated November 1, 2026. Spotted a mistake? Tell us.