The French, Spanish, British and Americans all occupied the site at one point. The French presence began with the arrival of explorer&nbsp;Pierre Le Moyne d'Iberville. They remained here until 1763 at which point the British gained control of the fort and the city. The British built Fort Richmond in 1779 and were attacked by the Spanish led by Bernado de&nbsp;Gálvez,&nbsp;who was the territorial governor of Louisiana at the time (the territory was under Spanish control during this period). The Spanish defeated the British at the Battle of Baton Rouge and remained until 1810, when Americans and those British who had stayed overthrew the Spanish and declared the establishment of the Republic of West Florida. This lasted only a short time as by late that year the Republic ceded its territory to the United States. The U.S. took over control of the fort and held onto to it until the Civil War in 1861, when the Confederacy seized control. This didn't last long. A year later Union forces recaptured the fort and did not relinquish control for the duration of the war. In 1886, the federal government transferred use and then ownership to the Louisiana State University in 1884 and 1886, respectively. The state acquired the site and the barracks in 1951.

The Pentagon Barracks is named as such for its four, two-story barracks built between 1819-1825 arranged in the shape of a pentagon. Since the early 18th century, the site had long been a strategic military location, protecting the city of Baton Rouge, New Orleans, and access to the rest of the Mississippi River to the north. Today the barracks are home to the Lieutenant Governor of Louisiana and private apartments for state legislators. They were added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1973. 

Pentagon Barracks

This short tour circles the Louisiana State Capitol Complex and includes several historical markers as well as museums, buildings, and monuments. Highlights of the tour include the state capitol and the governor's mansion. Visitors to the city will also want to be sure to see the former state capitol located about eight blocks south of the current complex. 

Legendary Louisiana Governor Huey Long echoed the general sentiment that the Old Capitol Building should be replaced, saying that the new capitol would symbolize ending the “political domination of Louisiana’s traditional social and economic elite.” Long was a Democrat and established the Share Our Wealth program. This program was created in 1934 and focused on wealth redistribution in an effort to combat the poverty created by the Great Depression. This program included a net asset tax, also known as a wealth tax, both on corporations and individuals. Long’s actions in office include an extensive expansion of public programs, including free textbooks for schoolchildren, the establishment of charity hospitals, and the expansion of highways and bridges in an effort to make rural areas less isolated.
















Long remains a controversial figure in Louisiana history. In 1929, an attempt was made by lawmakers Cecil Morgan and Ralph Norman Bauer to impeach the governor. Their grounds for impeachment covered a wide variety of perceived offenses, including blasphemy, abuse of power, bribery, and misusing state funds. On September 8, 1935, Dr. Carl Weiss assassinated Long in the State Capitol. The assassination left bullet holes in one of the building’s marble columnns. The following quote taken from a speech Huey Long gave at Louisiana State University provides incite into the state’s love-hate relationship with one of its most famous public figures: “People say I steal. Well, all politicians steal . . .But a lot of what I stole has spilled over in no-toll bridges, hospitals, and to build this university."

The Louisiana State Capitol is an Art Deco style building housing the chambers for the Louisiana State Legislature and the office of the Governor of Louisiana. The building stands at 450 feet making it the seventh tallest building in Louisiana and the tallest capitol building in the nation. The building sits on twenty-seven acres that includes the capitol gardens.

The Louisiana State Capitol (Current)

This marker commemorates the the first air mail flight in the United States, which occurred on April 10, 1912. Pilot George Mestache flew a monoplane from City Park in New Orleans to the athletic field at Louisiana State University. He brought with him a 32 pound bag of letters and delivered it to a temporary post office set up at the field. 

Historical Marker: First Air Mail Flight

He was urged to run for president, a notion that thought ridiculous. Nonetheless, he was nominated and narrowly elected (despite&nbsp;not doing any campaigning). Though he served in the army, he did own a plantation in Mississippi and 100 slaves. Around this time, new states were joining the Union and there was a fierce debate in the country whether slavery would be allowed to expand in these new areas. Despite owning slaves himself, Taylor was a strong nationalist and did not defend slavery nor secession, an idea that began to emerge during this time. Taylor made it clear that he would defend the Union and lead forces against any state that threatened to secede. After he died, a compromise was reached regarding the expansion of slavery, thereby staving off the war that would arrive in 1861.

Situated just south of the Pentagon Barracks, this marker indicates the location of President Zachary Taylor's home in Baton Rouge. Known as "Old Rough and Ready" for his disheveled appearance and temperament, Taylor served as president for a short period from March 1849-July 1850, when he died suddenly of a stomach illness. He served for forty years in the Army, serving in the American frontier, commanded U.S. forces against Native Americans and during the Mexican-American War (1846-1848). His skill as a commander and victories during the war, notably at Monterrey and Buena Vista, earned him wide respect in the country. 

Zachary Taylor Home Site

One of nine Louisiana State Museum, the Capitol Park Museum delves into the cultural, industrial, political and economic history of Louisiana. It features two permanent exhibits: Grounds for Greatness: Louisiana and the Nation, and Experiencing Louisiana: Discovering the Soul of America. Exhibits explore several topics, including the impact of slavery on the state and the subsequent periods of emancipation, Jim Crow, and the Civil Rights movement. Other exhibits explore the state's musical heritage and influence on the rest of the country. Many musical instruments owned by famous artists, including Louis Armstrong, are displayed here. Other highlights on display are the 48-foot shrimp trawler, a two-row sugar cane harvester, an oil well head, a Civil War submarine, and artifacts from steamboats. 

Capitol Park Museum

Long rose to prominence in Louisiana&nbsp;as a staunch populist, highly critical of big business and strong advocate for the redistribution of wealth. He served as governor from 1928-1932 and as a U.S. senator beginning in 1932 until his death. During this time he was undoubtedly the strongest political figure in Louisiana and had aspirations to run for president. He had many opponents who accused him of demagoguery. Franklin D. Roosevelt, who was president at the time, considered Long "one of the most dangerous men in the country." Unfortunately for Long, the state physician&nbsp;who conducted the surgery was unqualified and botched the procedure. Ironically, it was Long who appointed him when he was governor.&nbsp;

The Weiss House was once the small cottage home of Carl Weiss, the man who, according to the official story, shot prominent Louisiana political figure Huey Long (1893-1935) on September 8, 1935. Long died two days later after surgery failed to save his life; he was only 42 years old. Weiss was the son-in-law of judge Benjamin Pavy, who was one of Long's numerous political opponents. A few months earlier Long accused Weiss' wife of being mixed race and even fired her uncle from his job as a principal and sister from her job as a teacher. In retaliation, the story goes, Weiss decided to take revenge on Long. The house was demolished in 1970.

Historical Marker: Site of the Weiss House

Not to be confused with the Indian mounds on the LSU campus, this mound has beed dated to around 1,000 AD during the Cole Creek culture period. The mound probably had sacred buildings on it and/or a platform from which the chief would address his people. A village likely surrounded the mound. During the 1800s, the mound was used as an officer cemetery for the nearby Baton Rouge Post and Arsenal. Just a few feet from the marker is another historical site  commemorating the 1779 Battle of Baton Rouge, the only battle during the American Revolutionary War fought outside of the colonies. 

Historical Marker: Ceremonial Indian Mound

A siege that ended on September 21, 1779, the Battle of Baton Rouge occurred during the Anglo-Spanish War. This war was a result of Spain’s entry into the American Revolutionary War. On May 8, 1779, a formal declaration of war made by King Charles III entered Spain into the war. Another declaration on July 8 authorized Spanish colonial leaders in the present-day United States to engage in aggressive action against British forces. Directly following this decree, Governor of Spanish Louisiana Bernardo de Gálvez began planning offensive actions against the British.

On September 12, the Spanish arrived in Baton Rouge. During the battle, the Spanish used the surrounding dense plant life to shield themselves as they attacked the new British fort, New Richmond. Construction on Fort New Richmond had only begun earlier that year, in July of 1779.

The battle ended in a Spanish victory, eradicating British forces from the Mississippi River. A justice of the peace in the area, Isaac Johnson, wrote of the battle “the Spaniards only lost one man and some say not one, the English lost twenty-five and the commanding officer wounded his head on his tea table.” Johnson’s account was not far removed from the truth; the Spanish suffered only three casualties. The conditions of British Lieutenant Colonel Alexander Dickson’s surrender included surrounding the infantry soldiers at Fort Panmure, located in present-day Natchez, Mississippi. This fort was exceptionally well fortified and would have proved very difficult for Gálvez to take through military force. A few days after this Spanish victory, American and Spanish privateers captured British ships on Lake Pontchartrain.&nbsp;

The historical marker at this site commemorates the 1779 Battle of Baton Rouge, not to be confused with the later Civil War battle of the same name. It was the only Revolutionary War battle that occurred in the area that became part of the United States but occurred outside of the original thirteen colonies.

Historical Marker- 1779 Battle of Baton Rouge

The Governor’s Mansion was built in 1963 when Jimmie Davis was Governor of Louisiana and cost taxpayers nearly one million dollars. 

State Capitol and Downtown Baton Rouge Walking Tour

Pentagon Barracks

Introduction

Images

Backstory and Context

Sources