Steamboats had enough power to move upstream against the current of the Mississippi, making two way trade possible between New Orleans and the cities in the interior river network. Before the steamboat, keelboat men bringing cargo downriver would break up their boats for lumber in New Orleans and walk back to Ohio or Illinois to repeat the process. Of particular significance were the inventions of the steamboat and the cotton gin. Its position by the mouth of the Mississippi River, which drained most of the North American continent made New Orleans one of the most significant transportation hubs in the early United States before the establishment of railroad and road systems. New Orleans also benefited more by the Industrial Revolution, international trade, and geographical position. The census population of that time was made up of mostly French speaking refuges from the Haitian Revolution, the French and Indian War, and French and Spanish Creoles along with some smuggled slaves. Only 13 percent of the 1810 population was Anglo-American. Due to its founding by the French, and ownership by Spain for a time, New Orleans had a more cosmopolitan culture and diverse population. The history of New Orleans contrasts significantly with the histories of other cities that became part of the Confederate States of America.

2.6 The moment of truth, the Confederate counterstroke.

2.5 The impact of the occupation on slaves and slavery.

2.4 The poorer classes as the key to the city.

2.3 Building a political power base in New Orleans.

2.2 The balance between military power and political support.1.2 The jewel in the mouth of the Mississippi.1.1 Jacksonian democracy and manifest destiny.

Civil war union navy at new orleans