1. Louisiana Purchase: On April 19, 1803, President Thomas Jefferson signed the Louisiana Purchase Treaty, which transferred over 800,000 square miles of land to the United States from France. This acquisition nearly doubled the size of the United States and led to the formation of several new states, including Louisiana.

2. Civil Rights: On April 19, 1960, the sit-in movement reached Baton Rouge when a group of African American college students staged a peaceful protest at a segregated lunch counter in a local Woolworth’s store. The protest was one of the first of its kind in Louisiana and helped to spark a broader civil rights movement in the state.

3. Space Exploration: On April 19, 1971, the Apollo 16 mission was launched from the Kennedy Space Center in Florida. The mission was significant for Louisiana as it carried a lunar module pilot, Charles Duke, who was born in Charlotte, North Carolina but raised in Metairie, Louisiana.

4. Disaster: On April 19, 1995, the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building in Oklahoma City was bombed, killing 168 people and injuring hundreds more. The bombing had a significant impact on Louisiana, as many of the victims and their families were from the state.

5. Culture: On April 19, 2003, New Orleans celebrated the 34th annual Jazz and Heritage Festival. The festival, which takes place over two weekends, is a celebration of the city’s unique music and cultural traditions and features performances by some of the biggest names in jazz, blues, and gospel music.