Third Street

Third Street. "the principal street of the town...". By the turn of the twentieth century, Baton Rouge's Third Street had changed from a sleepy row of residences to a bustling commercial center. Because it connected the Old State Capitol with the original site of Louisiana State University (then located on today's State Capitol Grounds), Third Street drew crowds easily. Over the years, merchants, movie theaters, restaurants, and five-and-dimes all opened here, and everyone from students to business leaders frequented its blocks. Third Street was the center of window shopping and night life, and occasionally, bizarre events., In 1921, Robbie Simpson, the "Human Fly," arrived in Baton Rouge and aimed to scale the city's tallest structure, Third Street's Roumain Building, "without the aid of rope or ladder." Simpson took one look at the building's exterior features and changed his mind, making it to the top by elevator instead. Once there, he succeeded in hanging over the side of the building by one hand, and riding his bicycle along the cornice as the crowd looked on., Photos: The Louisiana Collection, State Library of Louisiana . This historical marker is in Baton Rouge in East Baton Rouge Parish Louisiana