Editing River Ridge, Louisiana (section)

== History ==
The land that is now River Ridge was developed by French colonists and their descendants in the late 18th and early 19th centuries for large sugar plantations; these lined the [[Mississippi River]] in traditional French [[ribbon farm|long-lot]] fashion. The plantations had relatively narrow waterfronts, in order to provide water access, and extended deeply back from the river. These plantations were developed by French colonists and their descendants; they depended on the labor of African [[Slavery in the United States|slaves]]. Major landowners included members of the Trudeau and Sauvé families. (Pierre Sauvé (1805–1867) had a major plantation here known as Providence.)

The alignments of the major streets in the area are vestiges of this era. Sauve Road continues to be a main thoroughfare in River Ridge (the street name and sign omitting the accent mark).

In 1849, a major flooding event known as [[Sauvé's Crevasse]] occurred. The crude river levee at the Sauvé Providence plantation failed under pressure of high water on the Mississippi. The massive flood inundated much of the land to the east, including parts of New Orleans. This crevasse occurred where a former meander of the Mississippi River once branched to form the Metairie and Gentilly Ridges.

In the early 20th century, an interurban transit line was constructed through this area. It served to connect the cities of New Orleans and [[Kenner, Louisiana|Kenner]]. It was aligned along the present course of Jefferson Highway, which was improved from earlier roads.

For many years the area remained rural farmland, until the post-[[World War II]] suburbanization era. Aided by funding under the [[G.I. Bill]], which enabled veterans to buy houses, large-scale suburban development began in the early 1950s. By 1965, virtually all of the area along the Mississippi River between [[Harahan, Louisiana|Harahan]] and Kenner was developed. This area at the time was known as "Little Farms", a name which well described its pre-urban history; this was also the place name officially recognized by the Post Office. (To this day Little Farms Avenue remains a major River Ridge thoroughfare.) Other subdivision names such as "East Bank" and "Rural Acres" were used as place names for the area at the time.

To eliminate confusion and create some sense of community identity, the area between Kenner, Harahan, Metairie, and the Mississippi River was officially renamed "River Ridge" in 1974.

In 2019, a baseball team from River Ridge won the [[2019 Little League World Series|Little League World Series]], becoming the first team from Louisiana to do so. They also became the first team since 2001 to lose their opening game, but win the championship.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.mlb.com/news/louisiana-wins-little-league-world-series |title=Louisiana beats Curacao for Little League crown|author= Randhawa, Manny|date=August 25, 2019|publisher=MLB.com}}</ref>