Lost Shreveport: Vanishing Scenes from the Red River Valley

Navigating Louisiana’s Red River in 1830 was an extremely treacherous task. Only after Captain Henry Miller Shreve removed The Great Raft, the giant logjam clogging over one hundred miles of river, could the frontier outpost of Shreveport begin to thrive. Over the course of many decades, the city of Shreveport witnessed dramatic growth and ever-changing landscapes. Mule-drawn railways gave way to electric streetcars, and what was once the Confederate capital of the state became today’s vibrant commercial hub of northwest Louisiana. Drawing from their extensive image collection, authors Joiner and Roberson depict the disappearing scenes and lost stories that form the complex layers of Shreveport history. From the famous performances of Pawnee Bill s Wild West Show to the infamous red-light district, from the decline of vigilante justice to the victims who perished from yellow fever, Joiner and Roberson recover and remember lost Shreveport.