Seen from the observation deck of the Louisiana State capitol

The Pentagon Barracks were first built by the British in 1779 as a dirt fort which was soon captured by the Spanish. In 1810 not wanting to be under Spanish rule, a new Republic of West Florida (as the area was known) was born. The republic shortly turned the fort over to the US who used it as a staging point in the battle of New Orleans of 1814.

During the US Civil War the federal barracks were captured by the Confederate forces, then recaptured by Union forces. After the war the barracks were turned over to the state of Louisiana as a location to replace the burned Pineville Seminary for Learning - which became Louisiana State University ( Wonder how many LSU'ers know that)