Pointe a la Hache, Louisiana
Encyclopedia
Pointe à la Hache is an unincorporated village and place in Plaquemines Parish
, Louisiana
, United States
.
Located on the east bank of the Mississippi River
, the village has been the seat for Plaquemines Parish since the formation of the parish.
The Pointe à la Hache Ferry
which connects to West Pointe à la Hache, Louisiana
across the Mississippi, is the furthest downriver vehicle crossing point on the river.
Pointe à la Hache was the home of E. W. Gravolet
, a cannery business
man, who served from Plaquemines Parish in both houses of the Louisiana State Legislature
from 1948 until his death in 1968.
, it is marked as "Hatchet Point". It is also the site near the area where Sieur d'Bienville and Sieur D'Iberville staked the claim for France at Mardi Gras Bayou on Mardi Gras Day. So the bayou where they made camp was named Mardi Gras Bayou. He later moved up the river to where the present day New Orleans is to build the city because there was not enough dry land at this point to build a city. Mardi Gras Bayou is a site a few miles north of Pointe-ala-Hache where there are still ruins of an old fort, Fort De La Bouyere that was later built on that site. The land there is mostly marshland. A tiny strip of land less than a mile wide between the wetlands and the Mississippi River. Pointe-ala-Hache is very rich in history and once stood many beautiful old homes and businesses of which through the years have been claimed by the sea during hurricanes.
There was a small catholic church there St Thomas where the first mass was a massacre and the natives murdered the priest as he said mass on the altar. Predominately Catholic there was a small group of German protestants who share a tiny church that is now ruins in a wooded area just south of there along the Mississippi. If you travel north on the river road it takes you into downtown New Orleans where most of the people of the area do their banking, shopping, doctors etc. Over the years the population has diminished and the town is nearly a ghost town due to hurricanes, however remains the county seat. There is oil and seafood industry that supports the local population and it is still owned and operated by local businessmen who have moved their families and homes to higher ground in the northern part of Plaquemines Parish.
Plaquemines Parish was one of the original 19 divisions of the Territory of Orleans established in 1807; after Louisiana achieved U.S. statehood in 1812 one of the original state parishes.
In the 1812 Louisiana hurricane storm surge from the Gulf pushed all the way into the River, and there was widespread death and destruction.
The 1915 New Orleans Hurricane devastated the area, busting levees and flooding the region. 31 died in Pointe à la Hache. http://files.usgwarchives.net/la/plaquemines/history/hurc1915.txt The Parish Courthouse was destroyed, but some of its material was salvaged for reuse in the new Courthouse completed the same year.
The 1930 census showed the town with a population of 404.
In 1965 Hurricane Betsy
damaged the area, flooding the courthouse. [Book "Leander Perez: Boss of the Delta" by Glen Jeansonne, p. 354]There were more than 50 refugees who rode out the storm in the courthouse all survived.
There were
During January 12, 2002 the parish courthouse was severely damaged by arson
. Since then, the parish government has used several temporary buildings in Belle Chasse
. The Plaquemines Parish Council has proposed to move the parish seat three times, but all were rejected by the voters.
Pointe à la Hache was severely damaged by Hurricane Katrina
in August 2005.
As of mid 2009, only a small number of people have returned to live full time here.
Dead fish were found floating in the waterways north of Point a la Hache after the 2010 Gulf of Mexico Deepwater Horizon oil spill
disaster.
Plaquemines Parish, Louisiana
Plaquemines Parish is the parish with the most combined land and water area in the U.S. state of Louisiana. The parish seat is Pointe à la Hache...
, Louisiana
Louisiana
Louisiana is a state located in the southern region of the United States of America. Its capital is Baton Rouge and largest city is New Orleans. Louisiana is the only state in the U.S. with political subdivisions termed parishes, which are local governments equivalent to counties...
, United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
.
Located on the east bank of the Mississippi River
Mississippi River
The Mississippi River is the largest river system in North America. Flowing entirely in the United States, this river rises in western Minnesota and meanders slowly southwards for to the Mississippi River Delta at the Gulf of Mexico. With its many tributaries, the Mississippi's watershed drains...
, the village has been the seat for Plaquemines Parish since the formation of the parish.
The Pointe à la Hache Ferry
Pointe à la Hache Ferry
The Pointe à la Hache Ferry, or Pointe a la Hache Ferry, is a ferry across the Mississippi River in the U.S. state of Louisiana, connecting West Pointe à la Hache and Pointe à la Hache in Plaquemines Parish, Louisiana....
which connects to West Pointe à la Hache, Louisiana
West Pointe à la Hache, Louisiana
West Pointe à la Hache is an unincorporated community in Plaquemines Parish, Louisiana, United States, on the west bank of the Mississippi River...
across the Mississippi, is the furthest downriver vehicle crossing point on the river.
Pointe à la Hache was the home of E. W. Gravolet
E. W. Gravolet
Ezekiel Winnfield Kelly Gravolet, Jr., usually known as E. W. Gravolet or E. W. "Kelly" Gravolet , was a businessman from Pointe a la Hache, Louisiana, who served in both houses of the Louisiana State Legislature from 1948 until his death at the age of forty-nine.Gravolet was the son of E. W...
, a cannery business
Business
A business is an organization engaged in the trade of goods, services, or both to consumers. Businesses are predominant in capitalist economies, where most of them are privately owned and administered to earn profit to increase the wealth of their owners. Businesses may also be not-for-profit...
man, who served from Plaquemines Parish in both houses of the Louisiana State Legislature
Louisiana State Legislature
The Louisiana State Legislature is the state legislature of the U.S. state of Louisiana. It is bicameral body, comprising the lower house, the Louisiana House of Representatives with 105 representatives, and the upper house, the Louisiana Senate with 39 senators...
from 1948 until his death in 1968.
History
Native American settlement in the area goes back to unknown dates. The earliest European settlement in the area was by the French about 1700. The name "Pointe à la Hache" is French for "cape of the axe". In the Mitchell Map of 1755Mitchell Map
The Mitchell Map is a map made by John Mitchell , which was reprinted several times during the second half of the 18th century. The Mitchell Map was used as a primary map source during the Treaty of Paris for defining the boundaries of the newly independent United States...
, it is marked as "Hatchet Point". It is also the site near the area where Sieur d'Bienville and Sieur D'Iberville staked the claim for France at Mardi Gras Bayou on Mardi Gras Day. So the bayou where they made camp was named Mardi Gras Bayou. He later moved up the river to where the present day New Orleans is to build the city because there was not enough dry land at this point to build a city. Mardi Gras Bayou is a site a few miles north of Pointe-ala-Hache where there are still ruins of an old fort, Fort De La Bouyere that was later built on that site. The land there is mostly marshland. A tiny strip of land less than a mile wide between the wetlands and the Mississippi River. Pointe-ala-Hache is very rich in history and once stood many beautiful old homes and businesses of which through the years have been claimed by the sea during hurricanes.
There was a small catholic church there St Thomas where the first mass was a massacre and the natives murdered the priest as he said mass on the altar. Predominately Catholic there was a small group of German protestants who share a tiny church that is now ruins in a wooded area just south of there along the Mississippi. If you travel north on the river road it takes you into downtown New Orleans where most of the people of the area do their banking, shopping, doctors etc. Over the years the population has diminished and the town is nearly a ghost town due to hurricanes, however remains the county seat. There is oil and seafood industry that supports the local population and it is still owned and operated by local businessmen who have moved their families and homes to higher ground in the northern part of Plaquemines Parish.
Plaquemines Parish was one of the original 19 divisions of the Territory of Orleans established in 1807; after Louisiana achieved U.S. statehood in 1812 one of the original state parishes.
In the 1812 Louisiana hurricane storm surge from the Gulf pushed all the way into the River, and there was widespread death and destruction.
The 1915 New Orleans Hurricane devastated the area, busting levees and flooding the region. 31 died in Pointe à la Hache. http://files.usgwarchives.net/la/plaquemines/history/hurc1915.txt The Parish Courthouse was destroyed, but some of its material was salvaged for reuse in the new Courthouse completed the same year.
The 1930 census showed the town with a population of 404.
In 1965 Hurricane Betsy
Hurricane Betsy
Hurricane Betsy was a Category 4 hurricane of the 1965 Atlantic hurricane season which caused enormous damage in the Bahamas, Florida, and Louisiana. Betsy made its most intense landfall near the mouth of the Mississippi River, causing significant flooding of the waters of Lake Pontchartrain into...
damaged the area, flooding the courthouse. [Book "Leander Perez: Boss of the Delta" by Glen Jeansonne, p. 354]There were more than 50 refugees who rode out the storm in the courthouse all survived.
There were
During January 12, 2002 the parish courthouse was severely damaged by arson
Arson
Arson is the crime of intentionally or maliciously setting fire to structures or wildland areas. It may be distinguished from other causes such as spontaneous combustion and natural wildfires...
. Since then, the parish government has used several temporary buildings in Belle Chasse
Belle Chasse, Louisiana
Belle Chasse is a census-designated place in Plaquemines Parish, Louisiana, on the West Bank of the Mississippi River. Belle Chasse is part of the Greater New Orleans Metropolitan area. The population was 9,848 at the 2000 census....
. The Plaquemines Parish Council has proposed to move the parish seat three times, but all were rejected by the voters.
Pointe à la Hache was severely damaged by Hurricane Katrina
Hurricane Katrina
Hurricane Katrina of the 2005 Atlantic hurricane season was a powerful Atlantic hurricane. It is the costliest natural disaster, as well as one of the five deadliest hurricanes, in the history of the United States. Among recorded Atlantic hurricanes, it was the sixth strongest overall...
in August 2005.
As of mid 2009, only a small number of people have returned to live full time here.
Dead fish were found floating in the waterways north of Point a la Hache after the 2010 Gulf of Mexico Deepwater Horizon oil spill
Deepwater Horizon oil spill
The Deepwater Horizon oil spill is an oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico which flowed unabated for three months in 2010, and continues to leak fresh oil. It is the largest accidental marine oil spill in the history of the petroleum industry...
disaster.