New Orleans daily crescent., 1866-01-19
The Environs Of New Orleans.
40 EIGHT.

II Ibss VAS ID Lne spring OF the same year OF 1915
1 that dyke break or levee creYasse took places
the upper end Of McCarty's plantation, NOW The
town Of Carrollton, and from thence inundated all
tle back parts Of the plantations down to the city
Of New Orleans. The water, snrcharged with the
chalky and Shiny PARTICLES peculiar to the Missis
sippi current, spread throughout all the cypress
swamps, and reached as far as the corner o1
4 Bourbon street, IN Canal avenue, whilst in The
Isqlare proper, II appeared up to Dauphint
\ astreet where apparently it found its level. BY
this event oil the lower situated or depressed
parts Of our city enyirons were marked, as if the
| operation had been performed by a surveyors
water level for by this mark left upon tile retiring
| Of the element towards the lake and the swamps,
on the fences and pekets surrounding gardens and
Ipiots, every ones locality's water line was dis
tinotly legible. From this it was ascertained that
the greatest depression in the ground existed III
the locality of Canal street. which has therefore
required unusual filling up to bring it upon level
with the other parts Of our city whilst some
parts Of the Bayou road, in the neighborhood of
Claiborne avenue, and seyeralother isolated tracts,
were ascertained to be the most elevated ones, not
having been reached by that nearly universal sub
mersion, small tract of high ground, covered
with tataief sign that the soil ii not subject
to annual immersion, was found between the canal
8Carondelet, which at that time (lsl6l was about
being enlarged, and the high Bayou road. That
tract, In the vicinity Of Galyez street now, was
denominated '.le terre aux Lepreux the tract
of9tlle LepEons because, under the Spanish gov
eminent at the tiinesof Cav. Galyez, that ancient
disease had brokeao out, and the patients, as then
was tho custom, been consigned to the woods in
tlis piece OF high ground, where they were pro.
vided with provisions and water, hui every one
forbidden NJ have any iatereouse whateyer with
them sTh Thanks to Providence, this dreadful dis.
ease appears to bage taken its departure from our
shores, although an equally disgusting and cruel
maiady, the smallpox infection, seems to become
Its substitute, as the late Total attacks In MANY
eases prove to be the case. N, s Z
|. We have rSnarked already that the ridge Of high
ground extending from the levee, say at or about
Ursnline or Hospital street. which latter is called
Bayon Road lis extension towards the woods.
mnst have been originally, and for very long
time thereafter the only way in order to reach the
high ground at The gfeatinagnolia or green oak
trees upon the Bayou St. John, by which route the
first discoveregs, under Bienvie, from Lake
Pontchartrains and through that bayou by means |
of the Indian dagonts made their way through
the forests and canabrakes to the banks of the
Of rivers. By close Inspection of the
soposrap1y q eaf e''y i WY be found that actu
5 w col1lol ran along this ridge
" u W. 1'syo r. John y the spot where an
!. 'us sss puilt tnat Is 70 say, at
-. spouea uu'iuihg q OLD ar. lie
~ s,sta s.a.es collector for the
p0.s |. 81 ~ SSn Aa's pfiage vas some what
n, ,si p.'a sa fepiacsa y y isla
I ','a WE sss' nag oesn replaced
II, ~ so o',' own tle' which are
tiie reason oI SO
mi 4'g y Nv a1e'ns ~, 9 com