1764 Bellin Map of New Orleans, Louisiana

This scarce 1764 map by J. N. Bellin is the earliest obtainable map of New Orleans, Louisiana. With cartography dating from 1744, this is among the earliest obtainable maps of New Orleans.

A Closer Look

Oriented to the northwest, Bellin's map covers the original settlement of New Orleans along the Mississippi River and inland as far the Fosse plein d'eau ('Pit full of Water') near modern-day Dauphine Street, and from modern-day Iberville Street (shown but not named) to Barracks Street (shown but not named). The map illustrates about 100 buildings, with 18 specifically identified via an alphabetically coded table set just above the map. The layout of today's French Quarter is immediately recognizable, with Jackson Square (Place d'Armes) bordered by a Catholic Church (now the site of St. Louis Cathedral) on the waterfront. Most of the street names seen here remain in use today.

Early History of New Orleans

New Orleans was founded by French colonists in 1718 as a base for exploiting and exporting the upriver riches of the Mississippi. The Regent of France, Philip II, Duke of Orléans, for whom the city is named, entrusted his Controller General of Finances of France, a Scottish economist named John Law, with promoting the colony, which resulted in one of the earliest bubble economies in financial history. Law organized the Mississippi Company, a joint-stock company modeled on the chartered monopolies common among European powers at the time - such as the British East India Company and VOC. Despite having never set foot in Louisiana, Law proved a skilled evangelist, touting the colony's Eden-like qualities and tremendous opportunities.

Under Law's charismatic leadership, the Mississippi Company attracted widespread investment, causing its shares to rocket in value. In 1719, Law arranged for the Mississippi Company to absorb much of France's ballooning national debt by issuing company shares in exchange for the government's debt obligations. Investors holding government bonds could exchange them for shares, which were seen as having tremendous growth potential. This allowed France to effectively transfer its debt obligations to the Mississippi Company, a private entity.

When colonists in Louisiana encountered a hostile environment rife with tropical diseases, which killed many, and no real action was taken to exploit the interior, the Mississippi Company began a fast collapse. The bursting of the Mississippi Bubble, as it came to be known, left France's economy in ruins and contributed to long-term public distrust in banking and financial speculation, influencing French economic policy for years to come.

Law's financial skullduggery, along with a nasty hurricane in 1722, were hardly auspicious beginnings for New Orleans. Nonetheless, the city persevered through the subsequent centuries, embarking on bold environmental engineering and public health measures, eventually emerging as a thriving city, especially as the Mississippi River trade boomed in the 19th century.

Publication History and Census

This plan was first engraved by D'Heulland for inclusion by Bellin in Pierre François Xavier de Charlevoix's 1744 Histoire et description generale de la Nouvelle France. There were at least two subsequent re-engraved plates, 1757 and 1764. The 1764 plate, as here, was updated for the Petit Atlas Maritime and is particularly desirable for its richly and dramatically engraved presentation of the Mississippi River in the map's lower quadrants.