Old Mobile: Fort Louis de la Louisiane, 1702-1711 [Hardcover]

Jay Higginbotham (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 0914334034 | ISBN-13: 978-0914334033 | Publication Date: 1977 | Edition: 1st

“Higginbotham has given to American historiography a microcosmic view of one of the earliest and most important outposts in the colonial new world. The Latin South can henceforth not be ignored.” – Alabama Historical Quarterly

“The definitive account . . . superbly recounted.” – Journal of Southern History

 “Meticulously documented. . . . Recommended for libraries interested in the colonial period.” – Choice

“Mind-boggling . . . a stupendous job of research. It is amazing that Higginbotham can recreate in such detail the lives of these people. All history books should be written like this.” – Birmingham Magazine

--This text refers to the Paperback edition.

Editorial Reviews

Review

“A landmark in Gulf Coast historiography.” – Florida Historical Quaterly

“The importance of Old Mobile to students of Gulf Coast history can hardly be overstated. There is nothing by an American author that comes close to rivaling it, nor apt to be for several long lifetimes. The scholarship is awesome and exemplary, the detail and accuracy of the narrative unmatched; the writing is good for such a solid piece of scholarship. It is one of the important books in Alabama history.” – Robert R. Rea, Auburn University

“The best book ever written about a French settlement in the United States. . . .It is so good and so significant it presents a major challenge to American historians.” – Journal of the Illinois Historical Society

--This text refers to the Paperback edition.

About the Author

Jay Higginbotham is Director of the Mobile Municipal Archives. Author of thirteen books, he has received five literary awards, including the Gilbert Chinard Prize and the Alabama Library Association Award.

--This text refers to the Paperback edition.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 585 pages
• Publisher: Museum of the City of Mobile; 1st edition (1977)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0914334034
• ISBN-13: 978-0914334033
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #4,110,691 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

6 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Review of "Old Mobile" by a non-historian, August 15, 2000

By 

Dr. Mardi Sale - See all my reviews

This review is from: Old Mobile: Fort Louis de la Louisiane, 1702-1711 (Library Alabama Classics) (Paperback)

This comprehensive work is certainly not light reading, but it offers a degree of detail about the history of Mobile that is unavailable in other histories of the area. The author is careful to cite original documents, where available, to verify the information. The reader is reassured of the authoratative nature of the work. It is particularly helpful in substantiating information in less extensive narratives.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Old Mobile: Fort Louis de la Louisiana, 1702-1711, August 13, 2009

By 

Doyle L. Bailey "bibliophile" (Natchez, La. USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Old Mobile: Fort Louis de la Louisiane, 1702-1711 (Library Alabama Classics) (Paperback)

Scholarly and well documented but at the same time most readable. I had borrowed a copy of the book before I purchased it from Amazon so I knew what I was getting. Now that I have the book in hand, I am most pleased to have purchased it. One of the things that makes this book so interesting to me is that I live near Natchitoches, Louisiana. Natchitoches was founded in 1714 and is the oldest permanent settlement in the Louisiana Purchase Territory. My wife's grandfather, Francois Derbanne was under commission from King Louis XV of France as the "Keeper of the King's Storehouse and Paymaster to the Militia". The Fort St. Jean Baptiste, 1716, was where he was posted with Louis Juchereau de St Denis the Founder of Natchitoches. They had come from Mobile on a trade mission to Natchitoches. The book helped me to understand that Mobile was to French Louisiana what Jamestown was to the English colonies. There is also a fascinating account of Derbanne being captured by pirates falsely flying the flag of France. Jay Higginboth writes history that reads like a novel. He did his research well and has a full bibliography. I highly recommend this book.