“Last Island” —Louisiana’s Very Own Resort Island

Did you know that Louisiana had its own resort island?

Yep. It’s true. Louisiana had its own resort island about 200 years ago… and it was a pretty popular spot.

In the early 1800s, the resort island known as Last Island was a nice getaway for Louisiana residents.

Last Island was about 25 miles long, one mile wide, and approximately five feet above sea level. Last Island was known for its white sandy beaches and blue water. It was also known as the perfect getaway from the busy city. In the 1850s it was known as the "finest beach in the world." Yep, all of that was right here off of the coast of Louisiana.

However, on August 10, 1856, a powerful and destructive hurricane hit the island. Now, as you can imagine in 1856 there was no technology to make sure that everyone on the island was able to escape and unfortunately, things got pretty scary.

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The unnamed hurricane hit the island as a category 4 storm and wiped out the whole island. After the storm had passed it was discovered that the whole island was submerged under water thanks to the 13-foot storm surge, every building was destroyed, and more than 200 people had died.

After the hurricane, the island was broken up into five smaller islands which came to be known as "Isles Dernieres" which means Last Islands in French. The five islands are known as East, Trinity, Whiskey, Raccoon, and Wine. Today, these five islands make up the Terrebonne Barrier Island Refuge.

While some spots on the islands are open to the public the majority are closed and are only occupied by wildlife.

Take a look at the "Isle Dernieres":