Trust Closes on Chalmette Battlefield Property; Fundraising Still Ongoing to Save the War of 1812 Site

(New Orleans, La.) — The American Battlefield Trust has closed on a significant tract at Chalmette Battlefield, marking a milestone in preserving the land where General Andrew Jackson led American forces to victory in the Battle of New Orleans. The Trust’s $1 million private fundraising campaign remains ongoing to fully fund the acquisition, which will make possible the battlefield park’s first major expansion in a century.

“This is some of the most important War of 1812 land we will ever save, and closing on this property is a tremendous step forward,” said David Duncan, president of the American Battlefield Trust. “Much aligned to help us reach this moment, and I know that our generous members and outstanding network of allies will see us across the finish line, ensuring all who visit this hallowed ground will fully understand what happened here and why it matters.”

In addition to the Trust’s ongoing private fundraising need, a generous grant from the Louisiana Outdoors Foundation and a recent matching grant of nearly $1.8 million from the federal American Battlefield Protection Program, administered through the National Park Service, were also key to moving the $3.6 million transaction that will permanently save the property.

Portions of the iconic battlefield are preserved within Jean Lafitte National Historical Park and Preserve and Chalmette National Cemetery, but other sections, along with much of the surrounding area, have been lost to industrial development. The 40 acres the Trust has acquired saw several British regiments charge and subsequently retreat. Though the land is currently open and unimproved, its prime location has long made it a target for development. 

“This acquisition preserves the largest remaining unprotected acreage associated with this pivotal event,” said Louisiana Lt. Gov. Bill Nungesser at the onset of the Trust’s fundraising campaign. “Protecting it from development will enhance the Jean Lafitte National Historical Park and the Chalmette National Cemetery. It will also serve as an educational resource and support increased heritage tourism in St. Bernard Parish and across Louisiana.” 

The War of 1812 was winding down when British troops landed just south of New Orleans in December 1814. Their goal was to capture the city, and with it, control of the Mississippi River, the vital waterway on which America’s prosperity and future growth depended. On the other side of the Atlantic, diplomats signed the Treaty of Ghent on December 24, but word had not reached the sugarcane field at Chalmette where Jackson’s hastily assembled force gathered on January 8, 1815. A combination of U.S. Army regulars, Choctaw Indians, pirates and volunteers of every race, language, religion and social class from across Louisiana and the southeastern United States defeated the mighty British military, cementing Jackson’s hero status and setting him on a path to the White House. 

Badly outnumbered, the Americans inflicted more than 2,000 casualties while suffering only 71 themselves. The battle’s unconventional story was popularized in 1959, when Johnny Horton’s “The Battle of New Orleans” became a massive No. 1 Billboard hit, winning the Grammy Award for Best Country & Western Performance.

The American Battlefield Trust is dedicated to preserving America’s hallowed battlegrounds and educating the public about what happened there and why it matters today. The nonprofit, nonpartisan organization has protected more than 63,000 acres associated with the Revolutionary War, War of 1812 and Civil War across 160 sites in 25 states. Learn more at www.battlefields.org.

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