<b>Locating the Isle of Orleans: Atlantic and American historiographical perspectives</b>

Abstract

Abstract This essay offers a review of American and Atlantic approaches to the history of New Orleans. It argues that most American historical writing about New Orleans employs a national perspective that views the city as “exceptional.” The essay highlights the limits of a USA-centered historiography and suggests that an Atlantic-oriented approach might offer new insights. It considers a variety of works, old Din, G.ilbert. 1993. Francisco Bouligny: A Bourbon Soldier in Spanish Louisiana, Baton Rouge: Louisiana State University Press. [Google Scholar] and new, that address themes related to the Atlantic World, noting the richness of research about the colonial city and the paucity of work about its nineteenth- and twentieth-century successor. The essay suggests possible directions for future research in the areas of ethnicity, immigration, and cultural transfer, while also identifying some limitations to the Atlantic approach.