In the early nineteenth century, America’s frontier was continuously expanding as it acquired new lands from Spain and France along the Mississippi River. As American occupied these new territories, many officers like Colonel James Creecy wrote of their experiences in these new lands and had them published back home for the general public. While Creecy’s work was published after his death, it came at a particularly pivotal time in American history as the country prepared for war. In his accounting of the culture of New Orleans, he painted a very different picture of Blacks in a city dominated by whites—one that showed Blacks could be educated and fashionable while also deeply rooted to their African cultures and traditions.