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The history of Metairie
Metairie is an unincorporated community in Jefferson Parish, west of New Orleans. Old Metairie, Fat City and the Lake Pontchartrain shoreline offer different local settings for restaurants, shopping and a day outside.
People who shaped Metairie
These milestones are an introduction, not a complete local history. Follow the linked city and museum sources to explore the people and places behind them.Read the local historical account.
Watch the city’s history
FROM THE ARCHIVES
“Jefferson Genesis: Metairie”
The Jefferson Historical Society shares a school-system production examining Metairie's history in Jefferson Parish.
Watch on YouTube ↗- Before modern development
The ridge beneath Metairie Road
An abandoned Mississippi River channel left a ridge of relatively well-drained land. Metairie Road followed this higher ground, providing an overland route into New Orleans from the west.
Louisiana State Legislature: Old Metairie Road district ↗ - An agricultural name
Farming and the Metairie name
The name reflects the area's French farming history. Louisiana's legislative account connects it with forms of sharecropping, rather than the name of a later incorporated city.
Louisiana State Legislature: Old Metairie Road district ↗ - 1956
A bridge across Lake Pontchartrain
The first Causeway span opened, connecting Metairie's south-shore approach with Mandeville. Its repeated, prefabricated concrete elements were an important feature of mid-century bridge construction.
Historic American Engineering Record: Lake Pontchartrain Causeway ↗ - 1969
A second Causeway span
Completion of a parallel span expanded the crossing. The paired bridges strengthened the connection between Jefferson Parish's East Bank and communities on the lake's north shore.
Historic American Engineering Record: Lake Pontchartrain Causeway ↗ - 2006
Recognizing Old Metairie Road
A state law effective July 1 designated part of Metairie Road as a business and cultural district. The designation recognized both the historic route and its continuing commercial life.
Louisiana State Legislature: Old Metairie Road district ↗
See the history for yourself.
Check current opening hours and visitor information before you go: local cultural and visitor information.
For local services and public information, the local government website is a starting point. For historical research, consult local libraries, archives and museums and check collection-specific image permissions.
Selected milestones from the linked historical sources. This is an introduction, not a complete account of the city’s history.