On D-Day, 160,000 soldiers stormed Normandy's beaches. Most arrived in flat-bottomed boats designed and built in New Orleans by Andrew Higgins. Eisenhower said: "Andrew Higgins is the man who won the war for us."
From Nebraska to the Bayou
Born 1886 in Nebraska, expelled from high school for fighting, Higgins landed in New Orleans in 1910. Working in Louisiana's bayous, he developed flat-bottomed boats for shallow water.
The Boat That Won the War
The LCVP (Higgins boat) could carry 36 soldiers directly onto a beach. Over 23,000 were produced. Higgins Industries grew to 80,000 workers. Hitler called him "the New Noah." Higgins died in 1952. The National WWII Museum stands where his boats were built.
Dirty Coast Connection
Periodic Table of New Orleans captures the city's industrial grit. Be A New Orleanian Wherever You Are: 160,000 soldiers rode New Orleans craftsmanship onto Normandy.
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