17th century In 1682, French explorers
René-Robert Cavelier, Sieur de La Salle and
Henri de Tonti traveled the entire length of the
Mississippi River and as their expedition passed what is present-day
Hahnville on the west bank; they encountered indigenous
Quinipissa villagers. In 1699,
Pierre Le Moyne d'Iberville, along with his younger brother,
Jean-Baptiste Le Moyne de Bienville returned to the area claiming it for
France. They found an indigenous
Bayagoula settlement near the river's intersection with a tributary at a site named
L’Anse aux Outardes or
Bustard’s Cove in present-day
New Sarpy on the east bank of the Mississippi River. The early French settlers were not suited or prepared for the harsh conditions in Louisiana. This area of German settlers was called
les Allemands or
the Germans. In 1720, Germans were recruited in early spring to settle in
les Allemands. Roughly four thousand individuals (four hundred and fifty families) mostly from the
Rhineland, but also from
Baden-Württemberg,
Bavaria,
Swedish Pomerania,
Alsace–Lorraine,
Belgium, and
Switzerland traveled across France to
Lorient in
Brittany and then made the voyage to Louisiana on March 7, 1721. The settlers arrived in
Old Biloxi on June 4, 1721, and on December 15, 1721,
French Governor Bienville issued an order for boats to transport the recently arrived German-speaking settlers including newly named Commandant
Charles Frederic d'Arensbourg, born Karl Friedrich von Arensburg, to the already established villages of
Hoffen,
Marienthal, and
Augsburg on the west bank of the Mississippi River. Over time, "les Allemands" would come to be known as
Côté des Allemands or
German Coast and is located in present-day St. Charles and
St. John the Baptist Parishes. In order to prevent this exodus, Governor Bienville decided to grant the settlement of additional lands to settlers on the west bank in addition to the east bank of the river. A 1724 census revealed that the German families were not only harvesting enough food and raising enough cattle for their families, but they were bringing their surplus to New Orleans markets. It is apparent from these records that from the beginning of their settlement, German Coast farmers were a major source of food for the city of New Orleans. In 1731, as the first decade of settlement on the German Coast ended and the Company of the Indies charter was retrieved by France, Louisiana again became a French colony. A
log cabin structure was built and both the ecclesiastical parish and chapel were renamed St. Charles in honor of
St. Charles Borromeo. The early 18th century settlers in the area received land grants from the Spanish or French royal governments, depending upon which country ruled the territory at the time of application. The French style of property allotments was made up of narrow frontage on the river so that each
plantation had access to high ground for ground transportation of goods to and from New Orleans and world markets. In addition to ground transportation, goods were mainly shipped by boat on
bayous and lakes and also via the Mississippi River. The main house and supporting outbuildings were constructed near the river. The remaining property extended away from the river into the wetlands, where land was cleared for cultivation of
sugar cane and
indigo. Homes still existing in St. Charles Parish include
Destrehan Plantation,
Homeplace Plantation House, and
Ormond Plantation House.
Labranche Plantation no longer exists, but the Creole dependency house, known in French as a garconnière still exists.
19th century In 1800,
Napoleon, the First Consul of the
French Republic,
regained control over Louisiana for France. Following the
Louisiana Purchase in 1803, the
Territory of Orleans was established in 1804 and the following year on April 10, 1805, it was divided into twelve counties with one of them being the
County of the German Coast. The first courthouse was established in 1804, in a community then known as “St. Charles Courthouse". The town was later renamed
Hahnville and became the parish seat. The church became known as the "
Little Red Church". In 1811, part of the
German Coast uprising took place in St. Charles Parish. The first two
public schools in St. Charles Parish opened in 1850. During the
American Civil War, three
skirmishes took place in St. Charles Parish. They were the "Battle of Hahnville Courthouse", "Skirmish of Boutte Station" and the "Battle of Des Allemands". Louisiana and therefore St. Charles Parish were part of the
Fifth Military District during the
Reconstruction era from 1865 to 1877.
Our Lady of the Holy Rosary Catholic Church was originally built in 1877 in Taft. Towards the end of 19th century,
ferry regulation throughout the parish would now be implemented with parish oversight.
20th century Starting in the 20th century, the area of the German Coast and location of the first permanent settlement of
Acadians in Louisiana began to be referred to as the "
River Parishes". The River Parishes are those parishes in Louisiana between New Orleans and Baton Rouge that span both banks of the Mississippi River, and are part of the larger Acadiana region. In 1914, land in
Destrehan was sold to the
Mexican Petroleum Company, which began operating an
oil refinery in 1918, marking the first appearance of heavy industry in the parish. In 1924, the first public high schools in the parish opened.
Destrehan High School opened on the east bank and
Hahnville High School opened on the west bank of the parish. Previous crevasses in the areas of Hymelia and
Bonnet Carré caused extensive damage to the area. This site was chosen because four major crevasses had previously occurred at this location. In 1955,
Royal Dutch Shell opened the Shell Chemical Plant in Norco after their forerunner, Shell Petroleum Corporation, previously acquired the New Orleans Refining Company oil refinery in 1929. The 1960s saw a new industry come to St. Charles Parish as
grain elevators were built in
Ama and Destrehan. Additionally,
chemical plants were built in Taft in the 1960s. The official term appears on regional maps and highway markers. On October 20, 1976, the
MV George Prince ferry disaster occurred on the
Mississippi River. The
Luling–Destrehan Ferry George Prince was struck by the
Norwegian tanker . Ninety-six passengers and crew were aboard the ferry when it was struck, and seventy-eight perished. On October 6, 1983, seven-years after the ferry disaster, the
Hale Boggs Memorial Bridge opened. The bridge, originally named the Luling–Destrehan Bridge, connected the east bank and west bank of the parish by bridge for the first time. 1983 also saw the end of ferry service in the parish, marking the first time since the 1800s this service was not available. In 1985, the
Louisiana Power and Light Company began operation of the
Waterford Nuclear Generating Station on Charles Frédérique d'Arensbourg's original land grant of Karlstein.
21st century On September 5, 2000, the town of Good Hope was annexed by Norco. This was the eventual result of a 1983 buyout of all residential and commercial property by
Good Hope Refinery; the town is listed as a
ghost town. On March 26, 2002, the
Davis Pond Freshwater Diversion Project dedication ceremony was held near Luling after construction began on the project in 1997. In 2007, the East Bank Hurricane Protection Levee was completed. The levee protects the majority of the east bank from
Lake Pontchartrain and Labranche Wetlands flood waters. On August 29, 2021, St. Charles Parish was devastated by
Hurricane Ida. Parish President Matthew Jewel stated that "Nearly every structure in the parish has damage ranging from cosmetic damage to a total collapse of a home or building." ==Geography==