ollowing the defeat of the English and the consolidation of United States sovereignty over Louisiana, the city of New Orleans began a new period of growth. In the years between 1820 and the Civil War, old plantations were subdivided to create new plantations and faubourgs. In 1838 the New Basin Canal was opened to facilitate traffic in Faubourg St. Mary, the original "American side." The Mississippi River became the highway for keelboats, flatboats, and side-wheeler and stern-wheeler steamboats, which created almost a city in itself on the river, loaded with entertainment, gambling, crops, and goods. The steamboat reigned as the supreme means of transportation until the railroad was fully developed.

Robert Fulton and Robert Livingston invented the steamboat. The New Orleans was the first one to arrive in the city (in January 1812). It had been built in 1811 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, by Nicholas Roosevelt, pioneer in steam navigation, former associate of Robert Fulton, and great granduncle of future President Theodore Roosevelt. The steamboat would become a cultural icon associated with the Mississippi River, and in particular with the city of New Orleans. It inspired artists, singers, writers, poets, and playwrights.

St. Claude and Dumaine Streets, Faubourg Treme (1895) Oil on canvas by Paul Poincy Louisiana State Museum

Cultivation of cotton and sugarcane had slowly but consistently become the core of the economic structure of Louisiana since the end of the 18th century. The Louisiana Planters Bank and the Bank of New Orleans were founded as early as 1811. New advances in technology related to the production and processing of crops increased their profitability. Between 1820 and 1860, the city developed a strong economy with emphasis on cotton and sugarcane, which in turn led to the development of the plantation class.

Cottonseeds had been introduced in Louisiana as early as 1699, but for almost 100 years the production of cotton remained secondary to indigo, tobacco, and sugarcane. After Eli Whitney discovered a method to extract the seed from the fiber in 1793 (the cotton gin), production of cotton spread rapidly throughout the South. Within 20 years, cotton production in the United States jumped from 10,000 to 150,000 bales a year. The World's Industrial and Cotton Centennial Exhibition took place in New Orleans in 1884-85. By the late 1930s, cotton represented 50 percent of the port's export cargo. Today cotton stands at only four percent.

Madam John's Legacy, (c1910) Oil painting by William Woodward. Louisiana State Museum

The Jesuits, who labored at the former Bienville Plantation, introduced sugarcane to Louisiana in 1751. The first successful (profitable) sugar crop recorded was that of Etienne Boré in 1796. Today, soybeans, rice, chemicals, and oil have replaced the old commodities, tobacco, cotton, and sugar. The Port of New Orleans has expanded. The 53-mile stretch between New Orleans and Baton Rouge contains numerous private docks and terminals. In 1980 the port of New Orleans was ranked first in the nation, moving almost 170 million tons of waterborne cargo.