High crime rates and police corruption characterized the 1990s in New Orleans. Marc Morial, son of Dutch Morial, served as mayor for two terms consecutively between 1994 and 1998. The tourism industry became a great contributor to the economy of New Orleans during the late 1990s.
On May 8, 1995, Louisiana Flood, heavy rains dumped over a foot of water on parts of the city faster than pumps could remove it. Particularly in lower-lying parts of the city, the streets were filled with water. More automobiles were declared totaled than in any other incident in the U.S. A Freightliner/bulk cargo vessel collided with the Riverwalk mall and hotels on the Poydras Street Wharf in the afternoon of Saturday, December 14, 1996. The accident didn’t result in any deaths, but 66 people were injured. Fourteen shops and 456 hotel rooms were destroyed. The Freightliner was not removed from the crash site until January 6, 1997, by which time it had become something of a tourist attraction.
Below are some fascinating photos by Todd Jacobson that show what New Orleans looked like in the 1990s.
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I am always amazed at how New Orleans looks so much the same in photographs taken from almost any decade.
There’s a problem with that
Definitely. The fact that nothing really changes is both the best and the worst thing about New Orleans.
Being unable to attract big businesses is for the worse. They move to Texas and other southern states.
I’m amazed. Some of these pictures are from my childhood and I haven’t thought of them in so long. Palace Cafe was literally lit with florescent lights and chrome, like Canal Video next door. The Pearl Oyster sign was still up because it was still open. Hanging over Canal Street are Maison Blanche and a giant Mr Bingle.
My immediate reaction is to move to the CBD and visit Canal St. where I see a lot of business people and white-collar workers. With the solely tourism-driven economy, we don’t have that anymore.
You wouldn’t know if the cars weren’t there.
I love how clean it is
The nineties are my favorite decade, but not the crime, which was so bad then. Renting an entire shotgun house for 300 a month, though, that’s what I miss. I miss all the weirdos who got priced out.
The picture of Kaldi’s (which no longer exists) would have been more interesting if it showed people, events or businesses that were popular back then. Old architectural pictures are boring since they show the same buildings.