St. Tammany Timeline

Originally home to Choctaw and other tribes, the Parish has been shaped by various cultures and events

The Choctaw inhabit the northern shore of Lake Pontchartrain, which they called Okwa’ta (meaning “wide water”).

Explorers Pierre LeMoyne Sieur d’Iberville and Jean Batiste LeMoyne Sieur de Bienville check out the Northshore.

The U.S. acquires 828,000 square miles of territory in the Louisiana Purchase, which does not include St. Tammany Parish.

The Republic of West Florida is formed to revolt against Spanish authority in the area — and lasts 74 days.

Louisiana admitted to the Union in April. West Florida resists but becomes part of the state five months later.

Bernard de Marigny builds sugar plantation (now Fontainebleau State Park), then founds Mandeville a few miles west.

Tourism boom begins in Abita Springs when a doctor declares the area’s local springs have restorative qualities.

First span of the 24-mile Pontchartrain Causeway is built, creating the longest continuous bridge over water in the world.