Period History of Catahoula

French Catahoula 1682-1763

Louisiana was divided into two regions, known as Upper Louisiana (French: Haute-Louisiane), which began north of the Arkansas River, and Lower Louisiana (French: Basse-Louisiane). The present-day U.S. state of Louisiana is named for the historical region, although it occupies only a small portion of the territory claimed by the French.

French exploration of the area began during the reign of Louis XIV, while French Louisiana was not greatly developed, due to a lack of human and financial resources. As a result of its defeat, in the Seven Years' War, France was forced to cede the eastern part of the territory in 1763 to the victorious British, and the western part to Spain as compensation for that country's loss of Florida. France regained sovereignty of the western territory in the secret Treaty of San Ildefonso of 1800. But, strained by obligations in Europe, Napoleon Bonaparte decided to sell the territory to the United States in the Louisiana Purchase of 1803, ending France's presence in Louisiana.

Revolutionary War 1775-1805

Spanish 1763-1800

• LOUISIANA: EUROPEAN EXPLORATIONS AND THE LOUISIANA PURCHASE
• U.S. History - Louisiana
• DISCOVERY AND ACQUISITIONTHE SPANISH AND FRENCH PERIODS AND THE PURCHASE
• A History of Louisiana, Grace King
• Louisiana History
• Biography of Hernando Desoto

Territorial 1803-1812

Antebellum 1812-1861

Civil War 1861-1865

See the Civil War Records for Catahoula

Reconstruction 1865-1877