Bywater section of New Orleans. The northern or inland boundary is often given as the Florida Canal with Florida Avenue, a levee, and railroad tracks running beside it. Alternatively, the industrial area north of Florida Avenue is sometimes included as part of the Lower 9th Ward, extending the boundary to the southern edge of the Gulf Intracoastal Waterway. History In Louisiana's colonial era, this area was developed as sugar cane plantations, with narrow tracts extending from river frontage that provided the transportation and shipping routes. At the start of the 19th century, the portion closer to the river was developed for residential use, at the same time as the Bywater area. In 1834 the United States Army established the Jackson Barracks here. As late as the 1870s, the area behind Saint Claude Avenue was still mostly small farms with scattered residences. The area on the "woods" (away from the river) side of Claiborne was mostly undeveloped cypress swamp. In 1852, the 9th Ward was added as an official district of New Orleans. In 1899 Louisiana passed a law allowing the ward to have drainage and sewage systems. The first bridge of the Port of New Orleans into the ward was completed in 1919. What became the Lower 9th Ward did not become distinct from the upriver parts of the 9th Ward until the start of the 1920s, when the Industrial Canal was dredged. This development bisected the 9th Ward. At this time, people started referring to the area above (upriver) the Canal as the "Upper" 9th Ward, and this area as the "Lower." The section on the River side of St. Claude Avenue, which developed as an urban area first, is sometimes called the "Holy Cross Neighborhood" for Holy Cross High School, the large Catholic school. For many years, it attracted students from throughout the city. Construction of the Industrial Canal led to development of the land farther from the river along the Canal; it provided steady work for area laborers. As shipping became containerized in the later 20th century, however, demand for labor declined, with negative economic consequences for the neighborhood. Some people left to find work in other areas; others struggled with lower-paying jobs. Hurricane Betsy In 1965, Hurricane Betsy struck New Orleans. A levee on the Industrial Canal collapsed, and much of the Lower 9th Ward was flooded. President Lyndon B. Johnson visited the devastated flooded area