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Ports of Call - Baton Rouge, Louisiana

Situated on the Mississippi River, Baton Rouge represents the best of Louisiana's vibrant culture. The state capital, Baton Rouge is a thriving city that is home to both LSU and Southern University and numerous businesses and industrial facilities. Known for its great people, its unique food and its lively music, Red Stick has something for everyone - including a local government that cares.

 

In the 1950s and 1960s, Baton Rouge experienced a boom in the petrochemical industry, causing the city to expand away from the original center. In recent years, however, government and business have begun a move back to the central district. A building boom that began in the 1990s continues today, with multi-million dollar projects for quality of life improvements and new construction happening all over the city. In the 2000s, Baton Rouge has proven to be one of the fastest growing cities in the South in terms of technology. Baton Rouge's population temporarily exploded after Hurricane Katrina with as many as 200,000 displaced residents. Metropolitan Baton Rouge is one of the fastest growing metropolitan areas in the U.S. (under 1 million), with 600,000 in 2000 and an estimate of 770,000 in 2008. Some estimates indicate that the Baton Rouge metro area could top 805,000 residents in the 2010 census and near 900,000 residents as soon as 2013.

 

There is a vibrant mix of cultures found throughout Louisiana, thus forming the basis of the city motto: "Authentic Louisiana at every turn".

 

Arts & Theater

Baton Rouge has an expanding visual arts scene, which is centered downtown. This increasing collection of venues is anchored by the Shaw Center for the Arts. Opened in 2005, this award-winning facility houses the Brunner Gallery, LSU Museum of Art, the Manship Theatre, a contemporary art gallery, traveling exhibits, and several eateries. Another prominent facility is the Louisiana Art and Science Museum (LASM), which contains Irene W. Pennington Planetarium, traveling art exhibits, space displays, and an ancient Egyptian section. Several smaller art galleries, including the Baton Rouge Gallery, offering a range of local art are scattered throughout the city.

 

There is also an emerging performance arts scene. The Baton Rouge Little Theater, Baton Rouge River Center, and Manship Theatre mostly host traveling shows, including broadways, musical artists, and plays. Opera Louisiane is Baton Rouge's newest and only professional opera company. Other venues include Reilly Theater which is home to Swine Palace, a non-profit professional theater company associated with the Louisiana State University Department of Theatre. Shaw Center for the Arts in Downtown

 

In addition, the Baton Rouge Symphony Orchestra has been in service for 61 years, and currently operates at the River Center Music Hall downtown. Today, there are over 60 concerts annually performed by the Baton Rouge Symphony Orchestra directed by Timothy Muffitt and David Torns The BRSO's educational component, the Louisiana Youth Orchestra, made its debut in 1984 and currently includes almost 180 musicians under the age of 20.

 

Events

Many events take place throughout the year, the biggest of which is Mardi Gras. Every year Baton Rouge hosts many Mardi Gras parades, the largest one being held in historic Spanish Town. Other festivals include FestforAll, Louisiana Earth Day, Mardi Gras season, Pennington Balloon Festival, the St. Patrick's Day Parade, and Red Stick International Animation Festival.

 

Sports

Baton Rouge is heavily into college sports. The LSU Tigers and the Southern University Jaguars are the two most popular teams and provide the city's biggest entertainment during football season. The teams' dominance of the city's sports scene is evidenced by the numerous shops and restaurants around town that sell and display memorabilia. College baseball, basketball and gymnastics are also popular.

 

Baton Rouge has a successful rugby team, the Baton Rouge Redfish 7, which began playing in 1977 and has won numerous conference championships. Currently, the team competes in the Deep South Rugby Union as a Division II team.

 

The city has an Australian rules football team, the Baton Rouge Tigers, which began playing in 2004 competes in the USAFL.

 

The city also has a minor-league soccer team, the Capitals, who play in the PDL (USL Premier Development League). Currently, the team plays home games in Olympia Stadium.

 

Points of Interest

Architectural

 

Huey Long Field House - one-time student union for LSU. When built, it featured the largest indoor swimming pool in the country at that time.

 

Old Louisiana State Capitol

 

Louisiana State Capitol - tallest state capitol building in the United States.

 

LSU - One of only thirteen American universities designated as a land-grant, sea-grant and space-grant research center.

 

Southern University - one of the most well known historically black colleges and universities.

 

Yazoo and Mississippi Valley Railroad Company Depot - currently houses Louisiana Arts and Science Museum and was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1994. It is considered Classical Revival in style.

Assembly Centers

 

Alex Box Stadium - Baseball stadium for LSU.

 

Baton Rouge River Center - Entertainment complex.

 

Blue Bayou Waterpark - Blue Bayou has over 20 water rides. Favorites are the "Mad Moccasin," "Conja" and "Racers."

 

Memorial Stadium - 21,395-seat football stadium. Was built in 1956 in memory of the men and women who fought and served Baton Rouge during the two World Wars and the Korean War.

 

F.G. Clark Center - basketball arena for Southern University.

 

Pete Maravich Assembly Center - The "PMAC" is a 13,472-seat multi-purpose arena. The arena opened in 1972, and is home to the LSU Tigers and Lady Tigers basketball teams, volleyball team and gymnastics team. It was originally known as the "LSU Assembly Center," but was renamed in memory of Pete Maravich, a Tiger basketball legend, shortly after his death in 1988.

 

Tiger Stadium LSU football stadium.

Parks

 

Baton Rouge Zoo - BREC’s Baton Rouge Zoo is home to over 1,800 animals from around the world. The Baton Rouge Zoo was the first zoo in Louisiana to achieve the distinguished honor of being accredited by the Association of Zoos and Aquariums.

 

Capitol Lakes - located north of the State Capitol.

 

City Park Golf Course - Baton Rouge's first public golf course.

 

Dixie Landin' Amusement Park - Dixie Landin' contains 26 rides, 10 games and more. Contains such rides as the "Ragin' Cajun," "Flyin' Tigers," "Gilbeau's Galaxi" and "The Glimmer."

 

The Herbarium of LSU

 

Independence Park Botanic Gardens - Includes a rose garden, crape myrtle garden, sensory garden, children's forest, and Louisiana iris garden.

 

Laurens Henry Cohn, Sr Memorial Plant Arboretum - contains more than 120 species of trees and shrubs on 16 acres (65,000 m2).

 

LSU University Lakes

Museums

 

African-American Art Museum

 

BREC, LSU, BRAS Highland Road Observatory - An astronomical observatory for education and recreation that provides regular events open to the public.

 

Louisiana Arts and Science Museum - Contains art and science galleries, an Ancient Egypt Gallery and traveling exhibitions featuring content by world renowned artists. LASM is also home to the Irene W. Pennington Planetarium and ExxonMobil Space Theater, which offers fulldome digital planetarium shows and large-format films.

 

Louisiana State Museum - Baton Rouge

 

LSU Museum of Art - located within the Shaw Center for the Arts. LSU MOA's permanent collection consists of about 4,000 objects with an emphasis placed on American, British, and, in particular, Louisiana art.

 

Louisiana Museum of Natural History - Was founded in 1936 and is one of the nation's largest natural history museums, with holdings of over 2.5 million specimens. As the only comprehensive research museum in the south-central United States, the Museum fulfills a variety of scientific and educational roles. Contains two main exhibit areas, one in the Textile and Costume Museum, the other in the Museum of Natural Science.

 

LSU Rural Life Museum - Commemorates the contributions made by Baton Rouge's various cultural groups through interpretive programs and events throughout the year.

 

The Old Arsenal Powder Magazine - Is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Was built around 1838.

 

Old State Capitol - Louisiana's Old State Capitol Center for Political and Governmental History houses several interactive state-of-the-art exhibits including "Huey Long Live! The Kingfish Speaks", "We The People," "The Governor Huey P. Long Assassination Exhibit" and more.

 

Magnolia Mound Plantation House - Built c. 1791. Is a rare survivor of the vernacular architecture influenced by early settlers from France and the West Indies.

 

Mount Hope Plantation

 

Poplar Grove Plantation - Began life not as a home but as the Bankers' Pavilion at the World's Industrial and Cotton Centennial Exposition of 1884 in New Orleans. The exposition was held at what is today Audubon Park in uptown New Orleans. Was moved upriver on a barge in 1886 and became the home of sugar planter Horace Wilkinson and his wife, Julia.

 

Shaw Center for the Arts - Performing-art venue and fine arts museum located at 100 Lafayette Street downtown.

 

USS Kidd - a Fletcher class destroyer, was the 1st ship of the United States Navy to be named for Rear Adm. Isaac C. Kidd, Commander of Battleship Division 1, who died on the bridge of his flagship USS Arizona during the attack on Pearl Harbor.

Shopping

 

Mall at Cortana is the largest mall in Baton Rouge and the State of Louisiana at over 1,600,000 sq ft (149,000 m2) with over 110 stores and five anchor department stores.

 

Mall of Louisiana is a two-level 1,200,000 sq ft (111,000 m2) upscale shopping mall with over 150 stores, including five department stores and a large food court. An expansion, known as "The Boulevard" is under construction currently, once complete will add 25 more stores and restaurants. A recently opened 15 screen theater "The Rave" is also part of the addition.

 

Perkins Rowe is an urban village that contains over 600,000 sq ft (56,000 m2) of retail. It houses many stores, restaurants, a Cinemark Movie Theater, and two future hotels.

 

Siegen MarketPlace is a large power center that contains many national chain retailers and restaurants.

 

Tanger Outlet is an outlet shopping center located in Gonzales, a southern suburb of Baton Rouge. It contains over 50 outlet stores and a recently completed expansion and renovation.

 

Towne Center is a 400,000 sq ft (37,000 m2) open-air shopping center located in the heart of Baton Rouge. It contains a mix of local and national retailers, restaurants, and an extended stay hotel