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A. Botsay

Before the street was renamed after Gov. Francis T. Nicholls, it was Hospital Street for 180 years. And 516 Hospital St. was the residence and business of Alexander Botsay, a pioneer cigar box maker of the South. It was about 1860 that Botsay introduced the cigar box industry to New Orleans. Before that, cigar boxes were imported.

Botsay came to New Orleans in 1856 from Budapest. He was a revolutionary when the Hungarians fought against Austria for their freedom. He married in New Orleans and eventually had a large family and a successful business.

When the Northern blockade cut off the city's supplies during the Civil War, Botsay saw an opportunity. He bought up old cigar boxes and reworked them for his trade. He did well, receiving as much as 50 cents per box.

Botsay stayed active in his business well into his eighties. He died Dec. 22, 1913.

Crescent City

The crescent that gave rise to our city's nickname runs from Canal Street to Esplanade Avenue, across from Algiers Point. It hugs a sharp, crescent-shaped bend of the river, and the moniker became popular in the early 1800s.

When Jean Baptiste Le Moyne Sieur de Bienville was looking for a place to build a city in the Louisiana Territory in 1718, he spotted a stretch of land on the river that was higher than the surrounding area. He reportedly was taken with the dramatic bend in the Mississippi River and its proximity to the nearby lake, which he named Pontchartrain. There was also a bayou that ran from the lake almost to the river. Most important, the spot for the city he planned would be ideal for monitoring river traffic.

Bienville apparently was so enchanted with the spot that he wasn't deterred by the cypress swamp that would have to be cleared, the potential for hurricanes and flooding, the heat and humidity, alligators or swarms of mosquitoes.