Morgan City, LA Summary

Located between New Orleans and Lafayette along Hwy 90, Morgan City is best known for its jumbo shrimp and Cajun heritage.

Though it is a small city of about 14,000 people, it has a solid economy backed by its location as headquarters of the offshore gas and oil industries.

Described as a “gumbo city” — a melting pot of French, Spanish, German, and Dutch citizens — Morgan City was originally named Brashear, for Kentucky planter Walter Brashear. During the Civil War, its strategic river location along the Atchafalaya made it an important garrison for the Union army, who occupied it from 1862 to 1865. Union troops planned their assault on Texas from the city’s Fort Starr.

Following the war, shipping and railroad entrepreneur Charles Morgan began draining the Atchafalaya Bay Channel, using Brashear as his company base. He also turned the city into a thriving fishing and cypress-lumber center, as well as establishing a boat-building industry. In 1876, Brashear was renamed Morgan City in his honor and continued to flourish when offshore oil was discovered in the late 1940s.

The twentieth century was marked by city development, and many churches and handsome mansions were constructed. Among those residences were the Norman- Schierer House, Cotton Top, and the Turn-of-the-Century House; the latter features paneled rooms, antique furniture, and a collection of Mardi Gras costumes.

In 1997, Morgan City’s Main Street Program expanded, and now its restoration efforts have been extended well beyond its nine-block historic district.

Morgan City’s surrounding swamps were used as the setting for the early silent Tarzan features, which starred Elmo Lincoln.

Since Hollywood’s initial foray, Morgan City has been used periodically as the backdrop for several mainstream movies.

The Louisiana Shrimp and Petroleum Festival is the city’s oldest and largest event, held every Labor Day weekend. The festival nurtures the tradition of the “blessing of the fleet,” to ensure a safe return and a generous harvest.

Located along Hwy 90, Morgan City is serviced by airports in New Orleans or Lafayette.