1 Louisiana is the only state in the country with "parishes" instead of counties.
2 Louisiana is named after King Louis XIV of France.
3 Mardi Gras, in New Orleans, Louisiana, is a world famous event. It has been celebrated for hundreds of years and is a time of celebration before Lent begins.
4 Louisiana is home to a large population of Cajuns. These individuals are descendants of a group called "Acadians" who were expelled from Canada in the 1700s.
5 The Louisiana Native Guards were the first American army to swear in African American officers in 1862.
6 The United States government offered ten million dollars to France for the city of New Orleans. However, Napoleon offered the entire Louisiana Territory for only $15 million, effectively doubling the size of the U.S. in one fell swoop.
7 The highest point in Louisiana (Driskill Mountain) is 535 feet above sea level, while the lowest point (New Orleans) is 8 feet below sea level.
8 Since much of New Orleans sits below sea level, mausoleums are often used instead of traditional underground graves.
9 Louisiana is home to the world's largest bridge over a body of water. Known as the Lake Pontchartrain Causeway, the bridge is roughly 24 miles long.
10 Louisiana's state flower is the magnolia and its state bird is the brown pelican.
11 Famous Americans from Louisiana include Jerry Lee Lewis, Ellen DeGeneres, Louis Armstrong, Reese Witherspoon, Peyton Manning, and Tyler Perry.
12 Louisiana is known as the birthplace of jazz.
13 Louisiana's state capitol building, located in Baton Rouge, is the tallest in the United States at 450 feet high.
14 Louisiana's numerous salt mines make it one of America's greatest salt producers.
15 The patent for Tabasco Sauce was one of the first patents ever in the state of Louisiana. It was filed in 1870.
16 The first opera ever performed in the U.S. took place in the French Quarter of New Orleans in 1796.
17 Louisiana is home to both the "Crawfish Capital of the World" (Breaux Bridge) and the "Frog Capital of the World" (Rayne).
18 Agriculture, fishing, oil, and natural gas are among Louisiana’s top industries.
19 New Orleans' famous Saint Charles streetcar is one of the only two mobile national monuments in the country.
20 The oldest town in Louisiana is Natchitoches. It was founded in 1714.
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