Symbol | Official Item

by Paul Ott

Louisiana designated "I am Louisiana," by Paul Ott as the official state cultural poem in 2006:

by Jean McGivney Boese

Louisiana designated Leadership by Jean McGivney Boese as the official state senate poem in 1999:

by Sylvia Davidson Lott Buckley

Louisiana designated America, We the People, by Sylvia Davidson Lott Buckley as the official state judicial poem in 1995:

America
We the people
Justice, the word most sought by all, seek God to bless the courts with truth, for through His wisdom we rise or fall.

America
We the people
Do honor this great lady fair, who with her mighty arms still holds, the scales of Justice for all to share.

Louisiana designated the square dance as the state's official American folk dance in 1999. Twenty-two states have passed legislation to declare the square dance as a state symbol, and more than 30 bills (beginning in 1965) have been introduced at the federal level proposing the square dance as the national (folk) dance of the United States.

Louisiana designated the spotted sea trout (Cynoscion nebulosus) as the official state saltwater fish in 2001. Also called speckled trout, the spotted sea trout is found in the southern United States along the coasts of the Gulf of Mexico and south Atlantic ocean.

The white perch (pomoxis annularis) was designated the official freshwater fish of Louisiana in 1993. Also called sac-au-lait, white crappie, speckled perch, papermouth, goggleeye, silver bass, and bachelor perch, the white perch is a schooling fish in the sunfish family.

Petrified palmwood was designated the state fossil of Louisiana in 1976. 100 million years ago, what is now Louisiana was a lush tropical forest. Trees that fell into mineral-rich mud before having a chance to decay became petrified wood, which is actually a quartz-like stone. The organic wood cells were replaced over time by minerals, often retaining the detailed shape of the original prehistoric wood. Petrified wood is called the most beautiful of fossils.

Louisiana designated bald cypress (Taxodium distichum) as the official state tree in 1963. Unlike most conifers (which are evergreens), the bald cypress is deciduous (it loses its needles in the fall - giving the tree a "bald" appearance). A majestic tree that grows in many parts of Louisiana, particularly in swampy areas.

The Creole tomato was designated the official vegetable plant of Louisiana in 2003. This delicious variety of tomato is grown only in certain parts of south Louisiana where the soil is just right. Some say “tomato,” some say “tomaahto,” but in New Orleans they say "Creoles."

Louisiana designated the sweet potato as the official state vegetable in 2003. Sweet potatoes were born in Mexico, Central and South America, and the West Indies. Their botanical name (Ipomoca batata) was derived from the American Indians of Louisiana who were growing them in native gardens as early as 1540 (the Indians referred to sweet potatoes as batatas).