Archaeological investigation of New Orleans Bridge II

In 1983, the Coastal Environmental Archaeologist Company conducted extensive tests and excavations for the Louisiana Department of Transportation and Development in the proposed area of Bridge 2 in Greater New Orleans. The first Great New Orleans Bridge was opened in 1958, connecting the east and west coasts of the city. The second bridge was completed in 1988, and in 1989 the city of New Orleans renamed it the crescent city connecting line. In 1977, a federal environmental impact study confirmed that 24 historical buildings in the proposed bridge project area met the requirements of the national historical sites register, and archaeological research followed up the environmental impact study to minimize the architectural damage to these archaeological resources.

excavation is an expanding work, which lasted for 4 months in the spring of 1983, and the total field work was 92 hours. The project area is a 1-mile-long and 3-foot-wide strip, extending from the foot of the Mississippi River Bridge to the existing Pontchartrain Expressway connected with Interstate 1, passing through 56 urban blocks and 36 acres of urban environment. This project provides archaeologists with an ideal opportunity to compare the material life of racial and class groups in New Orleans and the development of urban commerce and industry.

The garden area under the bridge is the most widely studied and excavated, because this part of the city used to be a vibrant neighborhood, and later became the active commercial center of New Orleans in the 19th century. The bridge was built along the land once occupied by plantations in Sarai, Forche and Delaude, which were divided and sold in the 193s. In the mid-19th century, the woodland along the river in this area caused a heated debate on land ownership disputes, which were submitted to the Supreme Court of the United States. During these 2 years, you can learn about the historical tour of the Louisiana Supreme Court. The area was then transformed into a bustling residential area on the edge of New Orleans, where immigrants from Ireland, Germany, Italy and the United States settled. The project area is close to rivers, railway terminals and the new basin canal completed in 1835, which has accelerated economic growth. There are five cotton mills in the corridor of the New Orleans Bridge, which are the main sources of work for Irish and German immigrants who live near the Irish Strait. Other commercial enterprises in the area include the sugar refinery in Orleans, rum distillery, foundry, hundreds of warehouses, brick factories and ice houses. By 185, with the wave of Irish immigrants in the 184s and 195s, the population of this community reached its peak. However, in the second half of the 18th century, in order to adapt to the growing industry, residents were displaced. It was not until the end of the civil war that people moved to the westernmost part of the project site, facing the intersection of the expressway and Interstate 1 near the Super Dome.

Archaeologists excavated 59 backhoe trenches and 11 manual excavation units, and excavated two tons of cultural relics, exposing 291 cultural features. These features include 23 private pits, 2 wells, 9 pool foundations, 74 wall foundations, 68 sidewalks, back formwork and garbage accumulation. These cultural relics and features come from various residential and commercial places, such as parking lots, tin shops, igloos, brick kilns, grocery stores and working-class houses. The team experienced various setbacks, including site destruction, cultural relics interference, and the inability to enter the potentially fruitful site due to private property ownership. They thoroughly investigated 1,1 pieces of cultural relics of Tchoupitoulas, St.Thomas and Constance Streets, an 1835 Creole hut, located at 615 erato Street, at the corner of the south wall and Calliope Street.

the excavation and analysis of site 16or78 provides a snapshot of the importance range of GNO 2 project. This is a city block with Gainey Street in the north, erato Street in the south, St. Thomas Street in the west, and Rus Street in Ciupitu in the east. There are buildings with national historical significance in the 19th century, including Creole hut, brick shotgun house and double shotgun house. In the 19th century, a carpenter's shop, a warehouse of Crescent City Ice Company, a Creole farmhouse, two-story houses and apartments inhabited by Irish working-class families. With the development of the 2th century, the number of commercial real estate has surpassed that of domestic real estate. The excavation behind the double shotgun house shows cobblestone pavement, cement chamber, pier foot, foundation wall, back mold and wooden trough. The recovered cultural relics, such as ceramics, buttons, wine bottles and pipes, led the research team to conclude that with the development of the 19th century, the middle and lower class residents in Ireland and Germany replaced the rich French residents

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