Destination Louisiane: Los Islenos in St. Bernard

NEW ORLEANS — We know a lot about our state’s French heritage, but how much do you know about the history of Los Islenos in St. Bernard Parish?

In this week’s Destination Louisiane, WGNO’s Christopher Leach went down to the bottom of Louisiana to hear a story that began over four thousand miles and away, in the Canary Islands.

In the 1400’s the volcanic Canary Islands were the first settlement on what would become the Spanish Empire.

And by 1778, Canary Islanders, or Los Islenos, settled across the globe, in what is now St. Bernard Parish, Llouisiana.

Today, the original founders of the Louisiana Spanish Society rest in St. Bernard Catholic Cemetery.