Orleans Canal
Encyclopedia
The Orleans Canal is a drainage
canal
in New Orleans, Louisiana
. The current version of the canal is about 2 km long, running along the up-river side of City Park, through the Lakeview
and Lakeshore neighborhood, and into Lake Pontchartrain
. It is part of the system used to pump rain water out of the streets of the city into the Lake.
The Canal has also been known as the Orleans Avenue Canal, the Orleans Outfall Canal, the Orleans Tail Race, and early on, the Girod Canal,
neighborhood into Bayou St. John
. It was part of a city drainage plan by state engineer George T. Dunbar. The "Bienville Drainage Machine" was constructed, basically a large paddle-wheel powered by a steam engine
, at the corner of Hagen and Bienville Streets, which pushed the current of the Orleans Canal out towards the lake, perhaps the first of what would become many mechanical pumps for removing water from city streets. Dunbar's plans included many other improvements to the city's drainage, but the Panic of 1837
largely halted further implementation plans for decades.
The canal was expanded during the developments and civic improvements in New Orleans in the 1870s. In 1871 drainage improvements rerouted and extended the canal, changing its terminus from the Bayou to the lake. The Canal Street, City Park, and Lake Railroad Company was formed in 1873, and the line was complete and running by 1877. The railway ran from the developed part of the city which still hugged the Mississippi River
, with a stop at City Park (which at the time extended only 1 block back from Metairie Road—modern City Park Avenue), then taking a bend at the Lakefront to terminate at Spanish Fort Amusement Park
. Much of its route ran alongside the straight line of the canal, which was dug deeper, providing fill for the railway right-of-way through the low swampy area running from Metairie Ridge to the lake. While some 19th century city map
s show a grid of streets in this area, in reality these streets were not extended into this area, and it remained a swamp with little development until the mid 20th century. At the time, the main intention of the canal was to remove water from the developed area on the lake side of the machine, not from the swampy ground along closer to the lake along most of the canal's length.
The first decade of the 20th century saw further improvements. A second pumping station was added closer to the lake at Florida Boulevard (near the current I-610
). In 1906 the steam locomotive
running along the line was replaced with electric streetcars. The early 20th century a greatly improved drainaged pumping system designed by A. Baldwin Wood
was installed.
Starting in the late 1920s, the Lake Pontchartrain shore line was extended and lake side levee
s constructed. The portion of the canal on the river side of Metairie Ridge was enclosed to become sub-street drainage. The levees along the canal further back were raised, as the former swamp was developed after World War II
, the area on the downriver side becoming an extension of City Park and on the upriver side the Lakeview residential neighborhood. The level of the water in the canal in this section was and is often higher than the surrounding streets.
A system of improved floodwalls topped the canal levees as part of hurricane protection projects following Hurricane Betsy
in 1965.
During Hurricane Katrina
in 2005, the Orleans Canal levees and floodwalls held. This was in contrast to the 17th Street Canal
up from it and the London Avenue Canal
below it, both of which experienced catestrophic failures. All three canals were supposedly engineered to the same specifications before the hurricane, and all presumably experienced very similar conditions from the storm. However, post-Katrina forensic engineering reports by the Corps of Engineers, Louisiana State University, and the Independent Levee Investigation Team (ILIT, based at UC Berkeley) found that the Orleans Canal did not fail because a section of its floodwalls at City Park were unfinished and much lower than along the rest of the canal; thus the surge waters were able to flow out into the city through this low spot, relieving the pressure along the rest of the canal.
Drainage
Drainage is the natural or artificial removal of surface and sub-surface water from an area. Many agricultural soils need drainage to improve production or to manage water supplies.-Early history:...
canal
Canal
Canals are man-made channels for water. There are two types of canal:#Waterways: navigable transportation canals used for carrying ships and boats shipping goods and conveying people, further subdivided into two kinds:...
in New Orleans, Louisiana
New Orleans, Louisiana
New Orleans is a major United States port and the largest city and metropolitan area in the state of Louisiana. The New Orleans metropolitan area has a population of 1,235,650 as of 2009, the 46th largest in the USA. The New Orleans – Metairie – Bogalusa combined statistical area has a population...
. The current version of the canal is about 2 km long, running along the up-river side of City Park, through the Lakeview
Lakeview, New Orleans
Lakeview is a neighborhood of the city of New Orleans. A subdistrict of the Lakeview District Area, its boundaries as defined by the City Planning Commission are: Robert E. Lee Boulevard to the north, Orleans Avenue to the east, Florida Boulevard, Canal Boulevard and I-610 to the south and...
and Lakeshore neighborhood, and into Lake Pontchartrain
Lake Pontchartrain
Lake Pontchartrain is a brackish estuary located in southeastern Louisiana. It is the second-largest inland saltwater body of water in the United States, after the Great Salt Lake in Utah, and the largest lake in Louisiana. As an estuary, Pontchartrain is not a true lake.It covers an area of with...
. It is part of the system used to pump rain water out of the streets of the city into the Lake.
The Canal has also been known as the Orleans Avenue Canal, the Orleans Outfall Canal, the Orleans Tail Race, and early on, the Girod Canal,
History
The earliest version of the Orleans Canal did not include any of the current route. It was a drainage ditch dug alongside of Orleans Avenue in the 1830s, running from the TremeTreme
Tremé is a neighborhood of the city of New Orleans. A subdistrict of the Mid-City District Area, its boundaries as defined by the City Planning Commission are Esplanade Avenue to the north, North Rampart Street to the east, St. Louis Street to the south and North Broad Street to the west...
neighborhood into Bayou St. John
Bayou St. John
Bayou St. John is a bayou within the city of New Orleans, Louisiana.The Bayou as a natural feature drained the swampy land of a good portion of what was to become New Orleans into Lake Pontchartrain...
. It was part of a city drainage plan by state engineer George T. Dunbar. The "Bienville Drainage Machine" was constructed, basically a large paddle-wheel powered by a steam engine
Steam engine
A steam engine is a heat engine that performs mechanical work using steam as its working fluid.Steam engines are external combustion engines, where the working fluid is separate from the combustion products. Non-combustion heat sources such as solar power, nuclear power or geothermal energy may be...
, at the corner of Hagen and Bienville Streets, which pushed the current of the Orleans Canal out towards the lake, perhaps the first of what would become many mechanical pumps for removing water from city streets. Dunbar's plans included many other improvements to the city's drainage, but the Panic of 1837
Panic of 1837
The Panic of 1837 was a financial crisis or market correction in the United States built on a speculative fever. The end of the Second Bank of the United States had produced a period of runaway inflation, but on May 10, 1837 in New York City, every bank began to accept payment only in specie ,...
largely halted further implementation plans for decades.
The canal was expanded during the developments and civic improvements in New Orleans in the 1870s. In 1871 drainage improvements rerouted and extended the canal, changing its terminus from the Bayou to the lake. The Canal Street, City Park, and Lake Railroad Company was formed in 1873, and the line was complete and running by 1877. The railway ran from the developed part of the city which still hugged the Mississippi River
Mississippi River
The Mississippi River is the largest river system in North America. Flowing entirely in the United States, this river rises in western Minnesota and meanders slowly southwards for to the Mississippi River Delta at the Gulf of Mexico. With its many tributaries, the Mississippi's watershed drains...
, with a stop at City Park (which at the time extended only 1 block back from Metairie Road—modern City Park Avenue), then taking a bend at the Lakefront to terminate at Spanish Fort Amusement Park
Spanish Fort, New Orleans
Spanish Fort, also known as Old Spanish Fort, Fort St. Jean, and Fort St. John, is a historic place in New Orleans, Louisiana, formerly the site of a fort and later an amusement park.-The fort:...
. Much of its route ran alongside the straight line of the canal, which was dug deeper, providing fill for the railway right-of-way through the low swampy area running from Metairie Ridge to the lake. While some 19th century city map
City map
A city map is a large-scale thematic map of a city created to enable the fastest possible orientation in an urban space. The graphic representation of objects on a city map is therefore usually greatly simplified, and reduced to generally understood symbology.Depending upon its target group or...
s show a grid of streets in this area, in reality these streets were not extended into this area, and it remained a swamp with little development until the mid 20th century. At the time, the main intention of the canal was to remove water from the developed area on the lake side of the machine, not from the swampy ground along closer to the lake along most of the canal's length.
The first decade of the 20th century saw further improvements. A second pumping station was added closer to the lake at Florida Boulevard (near the current I-610
Interstate 610 (Louisiana)
Interstate 610 is a long auxiliary route of Interstate 10 that lies entirely within the boundaries of New Orleans, Louisiana.-Route description:...
). In 1906 the steam locomotive
Locomotive
A locomotive is a railway vehicle that provides the motive power for a train. The word originates from the Latin loco – "from a place", ablative of locus, "place" + Medieval Latin motivus, "causing motion", and is a shortened form of the term locomotive engine, first used in the early 19th...
running along the line was replaced with electric streetcars. The early 20th century a greatly improved drainaged pumping system designed by A. Baldwin Wood
A. Baldwin Wood
Albert Baldwin Wood was an inventor and engineer from New Orleans, Louisiana. He graduated from Tulane University with a Bachelor of Science in Mechanical Engineering in 1899....
was installed.
Starting in the late 1920s, the Lake Pontchartrain shore line was extended and lake side levee
Levee
A levee, levée, dike , embankment, floodbank or stopbank is an elongated naturally occurring ridge or artificially constructed fill or wall, which regulates water levels...
s constructed. The portion of the canal on the river side of Metairie Ridge was enclosed to become sub-street drainage. The levees along the canal further back were raised, as the former swamp was developed after World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, the area on the downriver side becoming an extension of City Park and on the upriver side the Lakeview residential neighborhood. The level of the water in the canal in this section was and is often higher than the surrounding streets.
A system of improved floodwalls topped the canal levees as part of hurricane protection projects following Hurricane Betsy
Hurricane Betsy
Hurricane Betsy was a Category 4 hurricane of the 1965 Atlantic hurricane season which caused enormous damage in the Bahamas, Florida, and Louisiana. Betsy made its most intense landfall near the mouth of the Mississippi River, causing significant flooding of the waters of Lake Pontchartrain into...
in 1965.
During Hurricane Katrina
Hurricane Katrina
Hurricane Katrina of the 2005 Atlantic hurricane season was a powerful Atlantic hurricane. It is the costliest natural disaster, as well as one of the five deadliest hurricanes, in the history of the United States. Among recorded Atlantic hurricanes, it was the sixth strongest overall...
in 2005, the Orleans Canal levees and floodwalls held. This was in contrast to the 17th Street Canal
17th Street Canal
The 17th Street Canal is a drainage canal in Greater New Orleans, Louisiana, that flows into Lake Pontchartrain. The canal forms a significant portion of the boundary between the city of New Orleans and Metairie, Louisiana...
up from it and the London Avenue Canal
London Avenue Canal
The London Avenue Canal is a drainage canal in New Orleans, Louisiana, used for pumping rain water into Lake Pontchartrain. The Canal runs through the 7th Ward of New Orleans from the Gentilly area to the Lakefront....
below it, both of which experienced catestrophic failures. All three canals were supposedly engineered to the same specifications before the hurricane, and all presumably experienced very similar conditions from the storm. However, post-Katrina forensic engineering reports by the Corps of Engineers, Louisiana State University, and the Independent Levee Investigation Team (ILIT, based at UC Berkeley) found that the Orleans Canal did not fail because a section of its floodwalls at City Park were unfinished and much lower than along the rest of the canal; thus the surge waters were able to flow out into the city through this low spot, relieving the pressure along the rest of the canal.
See also
- Drainage in New OrleansDrainage in New OrleansDrainage in New Orleans, Louisiana has been a major concern since the founding of the city in the early 18th century, remaining an important factor in the history of New Orleans through today....
- Effect of Hurricane Katrina on New OrleansEffect of Hurricane Katrina on New OrleansThe effects of Hurricane Katrina in New Orleans have been long-lasting. As the center of Katrina passed South-east of New Orleans on August 29, 2005, winds downtown were in the Category 3 range with frequent intense gusts and tidal surge. Hurricane force winds were experienced throughout the...
- Levee failures in Greater New Orleans, 2005Levee failures in Greater New Orleans, 2005In 29 August 2005 there were over 50 failures of the levees and flood walls protecting New Orleans, Louisiana, and its suburbs following passage of Hurricane Katrina and landfall in Mississippi. The levee and flood wall failures caused flooding in 80% of New Orleans and all of St. Bernard Parish...