Baton Rouge

Baton Rouge, a city on the east bank of the Mississippi, 129 miles above New Orleans, from 1847 to 1862, and again since 1880, the capital of the state of Louisiana. It was one of the earliest French settlements, and as far back as 1838 was the seat of a college. Baton Rouge contains a national arsenal and barracks, a military hospital, an asylum for the deaf and dumb, state penitentiary, an elegant state-house, and several churches. The district is very fertile, producing large quantities of cotton, sugar, and maize. Baton Rouge was more than once the scene of important operations during the civil war. It was occupied by Federal troops after the capture of New Orleans, and defended by General Williams, who fell in fighting against the Confederate general Breckinridge, August 5, 1862. Pop. (1870) 6498; (1880) 7197; (1890) 10,478.