back o' town
Historic Black NOLA neighborhood near the old New Basin Canal.
Definitions
The historic Black working-class district behind the French Quarter, stretching back toward the old New Basin Canal in what's now the Superdome and Central City area. A cradle of early jazz — Louis Armstrong was a Back o' Town kid. Largely erased by mid-20th-century 'urban renewal' that bulldozed the canal and built the Dome.
back o' town In A Sentence
Origin & Usage
19th-century New Orleans geographic slang — literally the area 'in back of' the riverfront town. Solidified as a place name through jazz history and Louis Armstrong's autobiographical references.
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