Riverfront Plaza

Riverfront Plaza. Located on the first high bluffs rising above the Mississippi River, Baton Rouge derives its name from the French explorer d'Iberville's 1699 description of a red stick or pole dividing the hunting grounds of the Bayou Goula and Houmas Indians. The area has since generated a colorful history greatly influenced by its many and varied cultures., When incorporated in 1817, Baton Rouge had become a way station for river traffic and a fledgling center for agricultural interests. By World War II, the petrochemical and shipping industries were firmly established and the city expanded to the east, away from its point of orgin on the river's bank., Today, the city is a commercial, educational and governmental center heading the Deep South's petrochemical corridor, and one of the nation's leading seaports., City Parish government and the citizens of Baton Rouge have created a renaissance on the banks of the Mississippi with financial assistance from the State of Louisiana, the Department of Housing and Urban Development and the Economic Development Administration. Riverfront Plaza unites its various elements inviting all back to the historic area where the "red stick" was first discovered centuries ago.