Fort Maurepas Site

The first permanent European settlement in the Mississippi Valley stood here. In April 1699, Jean de Sauvole built Fort Maurepas on the north shore of Biloxi Bay under orders from Pierre Le Moyne d'Iberville — making this spot the first capital of French Louisiana, a decade before Mobile and two decades before New Orleans existed. The fort was abandoned by 1702, but the decision to build here set in motion the colonization of the entire lower Mississippi Valley. No structure remains. What remains is the fact that French Louisiana began on this shore, not in New Orleans.

Quick facts

·First capital of French Louisiana — before Mobile, before New Orleans, before Natchitoches.
·Built by Jean de Sauvole in April 1699 under orders from Pierre Le Moyne d'Iberville.
·Abandoned by 1702 when the capital moved to Mobile — the fort lasted barely three years.
·No visible remains of the fort exist today. A historical marker on the bluff is the only indication.
·The Biloxi people, for whom the bay and city are named, had occupied this area for centuries before the French arrived.
·Located in Ocean Springs on the north shore of Biloxi Bay — not in Biloxi proper.