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D−History
History · Belle Chasse

Belle Chasse’s post office opened in 1912

More historic than 2% of U.S. towns · #153 of 161 in Louisiana. What drives it

Most of Belle Chasse was built recently: 0.3% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1989. Below: 2 old photos and papers, maps from 1892 on, and the census since 1980.

1912first post office
0on the National Register
0.3%homes built before 1940
2old photos & papers
2famous people
Add an old photoShare a memory
From Belle Chasse’s archive · credits on each photo
Quick answers

How Belle Chasse began

When was Belle Chasse founded?

1912

The Belle Chasse post office opened in 1912, the earliest record of the town by name. Another post office, Concession (1879), opened inside today’s town and later closed.

First census: 5,412 in 19802020 census: 10,579114 years

How historic is Belle Chasse?

D−

More historic than 2% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.

What drives the grade ↓
Founding year: the first Belle Chasse post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).The full story ↓
History grade

What drives Belle Chasse’s History grade

On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Belle Chasse is more historic than 2% of U.S. towns, #153 of 161 in Louisiana. Its National Register listings hold the grade up; its share of homes from before 1940 pulls it down.

D−
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Belle Chasse’s overall grade.
Founding era1912, from the first post office: founded 1900–1944, an older era than 9% of U.S. townsDHomes built before 19400.3% of homes (±0.4) · typical LA town 3.4% · U.S. 8.4%DNational RegisterNo listings counted · typical LA town 3.8 per 10,000 · U.S. 2.4C−
All U.S. towns we grade (21,289)Ahead of 2%
NewerOlder
Louisiana towns of 2,500+ (161)Ahead of 5%

Louisiana towns list more on the Register than most of the country (a typical Louisiana town has 3.8 per 10,000 residents, the U.S. 2.4), so Belle Chasse’s 0.0 sits below most of its state (21% of Louisiana towns have fewer) while its 0 listings outnumber those of 23% of U.S. towns.

How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would still be D−. The pre-1940 share (±0.4 points) is firm at this size. The founding year is the first post office, not a stated founding date.

Founding year: the first post office (other dates in Quick answers). Homes: Census ACS 2020–24. National Register: National Park Service, May 2026 list; each listing counted once (boundary changes and added documentation belong to their listing), and a historic district counts its contributing buildings. How TownRatings grades history →

What stands out about Belle Chasse’s past

Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.

A history waiting to be writtenOnly 2 old photos are in the public archives. The rest are in attics and albums.On the map since 18926 editions of the USGS map, 1892 to 1999. Watch Belle Chasse change.Lost villages1 post office opened and closed inside today’s Belle Chasse, and 3 old place names are still on the map.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Belle Chasse’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Belle Chasse’s history is told.

Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
1 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
Retake an old viewMississippi River Sheet 1895 Plaquemine…: stand where they stood+15Share a family photoSign in to add one+10
On the map

Belle Chasse on the map, 1892 to 1999

Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Belle Chasse. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.

Belle Chasse on the 1892 USGS mapBelle Chasse on the 1940 USGS mapBelle Chasse on the 1951 USGS mapBelle Chasse on the 1966 USGS mapBelle Chasse on the 1972 USGS mapBelle Chasse on the 1999 USGS map1892St Bernard sheet · 1:62,500

U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (public domain), via Esri’s collection of the scans. The red ring marks the center of Belle Chasse.

Places that used to be

Lost post offices, old corners and places now gone

Belle Chasse’s post office has been open since 1912. Another post office, Concession, opened and closed inside today’s town.

Concession
1879–1912
Belle Chasse
1912–today
18701950today
Hamlets and corners on the map
ConcessionNoble ManorSouthern Oaks Mobile Home Park
Gone or out of use
Stella Oil and Gas Fieldoilfield

US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Places and cemeteries from the USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).

The story

How Belle Chasse came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Belle Chasse.

Read it all →

There is little consensus regarding the origin of the name Belle Chasse. In French, belle chasse literally means "beautiful hunting." It is widely believed that it was so named due to the richness of wildlife which the initial French colonists observed when they settled in the region. Others say that Belle Chasse was named for Spanish colonial administrator Joseph Deville Degoutin Bellechasse, who lived there from 1806 to 1814.

The Confederate statesman Judah P. Benjamin was the most famous owner of the Belle Chasse plantation. After falling into decay and abandonment by the 1930s, the landmark plantation house was demolished in 1960. The bell was salvaged and today is in front of the Belle Chasse Public Library.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

Timeline

Belle Chasse, 1879 to 1990

Woven from the archive, old maps, post office records, the National Register and the people born here.

  1. 19th century
  2. 1879Post officeThe Concession post office opens
  3. 1892On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
  4. 1895In the archiveMississippi River Sheet 1895 Plaquemines Parish Louisiana
  5. 20th century
  6. 1912Post officeThe Concession post office closes
  7. 1912Post officeThe Belle Chasse post office opens
  8. 1983Born hereChris Henry is born here
  9. 1987In the archiveJudge Perez Bridge - Belle Chasse, Louisiana, USA - Ca. December 29, 1987
  10. 1990Born hereJeremy Vujnovich is born here
By decade

Belle Chasse, decade by decade

2 decades in the archive, from the 1890s to the 1980s. Scroll each row; tap a photo for its story.

1890s1 item
Mississippi River Sheet 1895 Plaquemines Parish Louisiana1895Mississippi River Sheet 1895 Plaquemines Parish Louis…
1900s–1970snothing yet
Nothing in the archives for these yearsWeddings on Main Street, storms, parades, school pictures, the old store. If it’s in your family album, it belongs here.
Add from your album
1980s1 item
Judge Perez Bridge - Belle Chasse, Louisiana, USA - Ca. December 29, 19871987Judge Perez Bridge - Belle Chasse, Louisiana, USA - C…
1990snothing yet
Nothing in the archives for these yearsWeddings on Main Street, storms, parades, school pictures, the old store. If it’s in your family album, it belongs here.
Add from your album
Today30 recent
Gretna LA Morning Railroad view. July 2014. Spur Track2014Gretna LA Morning Railroad view. July 2014. Spur TrackGretna LA Morning Railroad view. July 2014. End of the Spur track2014Gretna LA Morning Railroad view. July 2014. End of th…Gretna LA Morning Railroad view. July 20142014Gretna LA Morning Railroad view. July 2014Gretna LA Morning Railroad view. July 2014 - panoramio (7)2014Gretna LA Morning Railroad view. July 2014 - panorami…Gretna LA Morning Railroad view. July 2014 - panoramio (6)2014Gretna LA Morning Railroad view. July 2014 - panorami…Gretna LA Morning Railroad view. July 2014 - panoramio (5)2014Gretna LA Morning Railroad view. July 2014 - panorami…Gretna LA Morning Railroad view. July 2014 - panoramio (4)2014Gretna LA Morning Railroad view. July 2014 - panorami…Gretna LA Morning Railroad view. July 2014 - panoramio (3)2014Gretna LA Morning Railroad view. July 2014 - panorami…Gretna LA Morning Railroad view. July 2014 - panoramio (2)2014Gretna LA Morning Railroad view. July 2014 - panorami…Gretna LA Morning Railroad view. July 2014 - panoramio (1)2014Gretna LA Morning Railroad view. July 2014 - panorami…Hurricane Isaac 120831-G-ZZ999-0082012Hurricane Isaac 120831-G-ZZ999-008US Navy 110507-N-1928O-057 Capt. Tom Luscher delivers remarks at a ceremony honoring retired Navy Reserve Force Master …2011US Navy 110507-N-1928O-057 Capt. Tom Luscher delivers…Judge Perez Bridge and adjacent railroad bridge, viewed from car on Belle Chasse Hwy2011Judge Perez Bridge and adjacent railroad bridge, view…LakeParkChapelBelleChasseLouisiana2010LakeParkChapelBelleChasseLouisianaRiver Missisipi2009River MissisipiLocalizadorBelleChasse2009LocalizadorBelleChasseBelleChasseOakTreeRoad2009BelleChasseOakTreeRoadWelcome Home Troops Party Belle Chasse LA0212008Welcome Home Troops Party Belle Chasse LA021Belle Chasse Water Tower2008Belle Chasse Water TowerBelle Chasse LA - Home of the Fighting Cardinals2008Belle Chasse LA - Home of the Fighting CardinalsBayou Barriere Golf Course2008Bayou Barriere Golf CourseUS Navy 070331-N-2070C-001 Aviation Machinist's Mate 1st Class Anthony Mastrianni, his son, and MTV's2007US Navy 070331-N-2070C-001 Aviation Machinist's Mate …FEMA - 22061 - Photograph by Robert Kaufmann taken on 02-04-2006 in Louisiana2006FEMA - 22061 - Photograph by Robert Kaufmann taken on…US Navy 051001-N-3188R-001 Commanding General, First U.S. Army, Lt. Gen. Russel Honore reenlists U.S. Navy Yeoman 2nd C…2005US Navy 051001-N-3188R-001 Commanding General, First …US Navy 050912-N-9458H-003 Seabees clear fallen trees following Hurricane Katrina2005US Navy 050912-N-9458H-003 Seabees clear fallen trees…US Navy 050910-N-9712C-002 U.S. Navy Builder Constructionman Edward Halverson, assigned to Naval Mobile Construction Ba…2005US Navy 050910-N-9712C-002 U.S. Navy Builder Construc…US Navy 050906-N-9712C-005 U.S. Navy Seabees, assigned to Naval Mobile Construction Battalion Four Zero (NMCB-40), use …2005US Navy 050906-N-9712C-005 U.S. Navy Seabees, assigne…US Navy 050906-N-9712C-004 U.S. Navy Seabees, assigned to Naval Mobile Construction Battalion Four Zero (NMCB-40), use …2005US Navy 050906-N-9712C-004 U.S. Navy Seabees, assigne…US Navy 050906-N-9712C-002 U.S. Navy Seabee, Utilitiesman 3rd Class Samuel Gutierrez, assigned to Naval Mobile Construc…2005US Navy 050906-N-9712C-002 U.S. Navy Seabee, Utilitie…LAMap-doton-Belle Chasse2004LAMap-doton-Belle Chasse
Then & now

Stand where they stood

No then-and-now pairs yet. Take a photo from the same spot as an old one and they appear here side by side.

Mississippi River Sheet 1895 Plaquemines Parish Louisiana
Retake this viewMississippi River Sheet 1895 Plaquemines Parish Louisiana, 1895

Find the spot, match the angle, and add your photo. It becomes the first then-and-now pair on Belle Chasse’s page.

Retake this view · +15
People over time

Belle Chasse, census by census

02,0004,0006,0008,00010,00012,00014,000198020002020Peak: 12,679

Between 5,412 and 12,679 people in every census since 1980.

5 censuses, 1980–2020.

U.S. Census Bureau decennial counts, from the census table on Belle Chasse’s Wikipedia page.

Famous people

2 famous people were born in Belle Chasse

Writers, athletes, leaders and more, ranked by how widely they’re known.

See all →
Chris HenryWide receiver for the Cincinnati Bengals · b. 1983
J
Jeremy VujnovichAmerican football offensive tackle · b. 1990
Stories next door

History across the town line

Each neighbor’s History grade, on the same three inputs.

New Orleans StationIts storyD−TerrytownIts storyDTimberlaneIts storyD−Woodmere1 historic placeC−

Questions about Belle Chasse’s history

What year was Belle Chasse founded?

The Belle Chasse post office opened in 1912, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).

How does Belle Chasse rank for history?

Belle Chasse is more historic than 2% of U.S. towns, #153 of 161 in Louisiana. The History grade combines the town’s founding era, the share of homes built before 1940 and its National Register listings. It’s a character grade, so it isn’t part of the overall grade. How it works.

How old are the homes in Belle Chasse?

0.3% of Belle Chasse’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate), against a typical 3.4% for a Louisiana town; the median home was built in 1989.

Memory lane

What the archives can’t tell you, neighbors can.

Town Square →
Start a conversation
Sources

Where this page comes from

Founding dates: Wikidata, Wikipedia, the U.S. post office records of Blevins & Helbock (CC0) and the Census. Homes by year built: Census ACS 2020–24. National Register of Historic Places: National Park Service (list of May 22, 2026). Old photos, postcards and papers: Wikimedia Commons, the Library of Congress and other public archives, credited on each item’s page. Maps: U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (via Esri) and Sanborn fire-insurance maps (Library of Congress). History text and census tables: Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0). Places that used to be: USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).

From Wikimedia Commons (32), Wikipedia, Wikidata and Wikipedia for famous people, U.S. Geological Survey historical maps, U.S. Census counts (via Wikipedia), the US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock) and the USGS Geographic Names Information System. Archive images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.