Saint Denis

Hey there, cowboy. This article looks a little bit small.
I reckon you could impress me by contributing to it. Don't be shy now.

“	A key gateway into North America with a trade route that runs the length of the country, the bustling city of Saint Denis is a melting pot of cultures and people where businessmen, socialites, sailors, laborers, beggars, and thieves all live side by side.	„
	—Website description

Saint Denis is a major city in Red Dead Redemption 2 in the Bayou Nwa region of the Lemoyne territory.^[1]

It is the largest city in Bayou Nwa; the largest settlement of the five American territories featured in game.

Description

Saint Denis is a heavily industrialized city, containing large factories with towering chimneys. As a modern city, it incorporates paved streets, uniformed police officers and a network of tram lines. The city is dark and dull, covered in a blanket of fog and the skies overpowered by large clouds of thick, black smoke.

To the north, there are small ranches, along with some derelict houses. African-Americans are prevalent around the north-eastern part of the city. To the west of the city there are large, posh mansions, manors, and estates, belonging to the wealthiest citizens of Saint Denis. To the south of the city, near the Lannahechee River, is a large industrialized zone full of factories, warehouses, cargo ports, and storage facilities.

Saint Denis is very lively and populated, with bustling streets and markets, making the city feel crowded and claustrophobic. At any given time, there are trams gliding down the middle of roads, wagons slowly making their way down the streets, dogs playing and barking at passers-by, and people chatting and shopping in local stores.

The city is very diverse with residents of many backgrounds, religions and ethnicities. Many African-Americans reside in the slums in the north-eastern district of the city. Because of the city's French history, French citizens can be encountered throughout the town, often greeting the player with "Bonjour!". A sizable Chinese diaspora can be found within the city too, particularly around the markets of Saint Denis. Many Italians can be seen also, mostly thanks to Angelo Bronte and his powerful Italian mafia.

Amenities

Holdern Barber
Lemoyne National Bank
Bastille Saloon, poker played here
Butcher, southeast
Dr. Theodore Scott, Pharmacy
Saint Denis Police Department, bounty posters can be found in the station.
Doyle's Tavern
Fence, east near the railroad tracks at the Saint Denis Market
Horner & Co.General Store, southeast
Kuo Chao & Co. Gunsmith
Newspaper Seller, at the roundabout in the southeast
Photographic Studios
Victoria Street Station, Post Office, in the southeast
Theodore Eckhart Stables, located in the south
Stagecoach, near the Post Office in the southeast
Theatre Râleur, dominoes can be played across the street to the north
Trapper, close to the Fence in the east

Notes

On a crate on the southwestern docks is the Cigarette Card for Luther Covington.
On the south-central docks is the Cigarette Card for the Appaloosa, sitting on a barrel.
The Maria Isabella can be found docked on one of the southeast piers. On the cotton bales inside the upper deck is Ginseng Elixir.
A blue booth can be found on one of the docks north of the Maria Isabella. On the windowsill inside is the Cigarette Card for the Balener Whaling Vessel.
On a cart near the Post Office is the Cigarette Card for Saint Denis.
On the piano inside the Gunsmith is Aged Pirate Rum.
In an alley near the Trapper in the east is a table behind a wooden wall. On the table is the Cigarette Card for Laurence Carson.
On the piano inside the Bastille Saloon is the Cigarette Card for the Player Piano - 1829 - Edward Leveaux.
In the Theatre Raleur's west corridor is the Cigarette Card for Mabel Potter.
On a table near the theater's stage is the Cigarette Card for Robin Koninsky. Note that this can only be obtained after watching all five shows at the theater, the last of which unlocks after the "Fatherhood and Other Dreams" mission.
On a barrel on the western docks is the Cigarette Card for the Catfish.
In the northwest part of town, the Cigarette Card for the Velocipede can be found on the table of a front porch.
A trellis is located south of the Photo Studio in the east, covered in vines. Hidden there is the Cigarette Card for Oleander Sage.
On a shelf in the back of Doyle's Tavern, to the east, is the Cigarette Card for the Hot Air Balloon.
The Cigarette Card for the Camera - 1814 - Joseph Nicephone Niepce can be found in the building just south of the Photo Studio on the balcony.
A shack on Pandella Street has the Cigarette Card for Lawn Tennis - Patsy Hill on its back porch.
In a mausoleum in the northwest corner of the cemetery is the Cigarette Card for Jim "Boy" Calloway.
An oblong shack can be found by going north up Bolden Street. Hidden beneath a floorboard is a lockbox containing the Poison Throwing Knife Pamphlet.
North up Rue de la Diligent and past the cemetery, a gazebo can be found on the western side of the road. On a table to the southeast is the Cigarette Card for Richard McCullough.
Further north of the gazebo, this time on the east side of the road, the Cigarette Card for Henrietta Beatrice Woods can be found on a front porch table.
Much further up the same road and almost to the edge of town, a lockbox containing an apple, Miracle Tonic, and Snake Oil can be found neat to the crates on the northeast side of the stables (not the usable stables to the far south).

Note the following cannot be obtained until the "Smoking and other Hobbies" mission is acquired:

On a workbench inside the freight hall - where railroad tracks all converge - is the Cigarette Card for Harvey Griggs.
On the docks south of the Newspaper Seller is the Cigarette Card for The Showboat.
On the old desk in the alley near the Doctor is the Cigarette Card for Ilga Ulmer.
On a crate in the courtyard in the back of the Bastille Saloon is the Cigarette Card for Swinger - Axel McCormack.

Trivia

Saint Denis is based on the real-world city of New Orleans, Louisiana, sharing a number of similarities, just as Lemoyne does with the real-world state of Louisiana.^[2]
- The city name of "Saint Denis" refers to the patron saint of Paris, with the city's seal seemingly depicting the martyr in his conventional beheaded state (see below).
- Much like real life New Orleans, the street names of Saint Denis are written on the sidewalks, with blue lettering on white tiles.
- The prominent statue near the Saint Denis train station is nearly identical to the real-world bronze statue of Henry Clay that was built in the 1860s and still stands in Lafayette Square in New Orleans.
Nearly every character in the game refers to Saint Denis by its French pronunciation (sant-deh-nee). Arthur Morgan's pronunciation of the city due to his southern accent has become something of an internet meme.
The city was supposedly named as New Bordeaux but changed during the development of the game because the name was already used in another open-world game, Mafia III. The name can be seen on the leaked 2016 map. The name change seems to have occurred rather late in development. As a campfire song that can be sung by the Van der Linde gang and heard in game will mention a town with the name "Bordeaux".
Saint Denis is home to the Supreme Court of Lemoyne, mirroring how the Supreme Court of Louisiana is actually located in New Orleans as opposed to the state capitol of Baton Rouge. The Supreme Court of Lemoyne building is located directly to the right of the Vaudeville Theatre on Frontier St.
The 1899 setting for the game means that it takes place roughly three years after the infamous Plessy v. Ferguson U.S. Supreme Court decision that affirmed the state supreme court and upheld the constitutionality of states' racial segregation ("separate but equal") laws. The case originally came about over disagreements on laws requiring separate racial accommodations on railroads, including railway cars, in New Orleans. The game is broadly accurate in reflecting both the interactivity and segregation that existed socially and economically among different ethnic and racial groups in the city at the time.
Both Arthur Morgan and John Marston display a high degree of disdain for Saint Denis, lamenting it as a "crowded, stuffed up city". Marston even openly states that he despises the city on several occasions. However, this does not affect the gameplay, and the player is free to travel and spend as much time in the city as they wish without any repercussions.
Players can't drive the trolleys in Saint Denis.
After finding five hidden messages written on walls scattered throughout the city, the journal will indicate the locations of the writing form a star-like shape. If the player chooses to explore the area in the middle of the star during 0:00 to 1:00, they can find the infamous vampire, Nosferatu.

Gallery

References

↑ The Red Dead Redemption 2: Special Edition, Ultimate Edition and Collectors Box
↑ Business Insider, Ben Gilbert (September 27, 2018). I played 2018's most anticipated game, 'Red Dead Redemption 2' — here are the 12 most interesting things I learned: "The “open world” of “Red Dead Redemption 2” is America itself. But, like in the “Grand Theft Auto” games and the previous “Red Dead” title, don’t expect to see a lot of direct examples. For example: A version of New Orleans (above) is named “Saint Denis” (the patron saint of Paris)."

Navigation

[1] The Red Dead Redemption 2: Special Edition, Ultimate Edition and Collectors Box

[2] Business Insider, Ben Gilbert (September 27, 2018). I played 2018's most anticipated game, 'Red Dead Redemption 2' — here are the 12 most interesting things I learned: "The “open world” of “Red Dead Redemption 2” is America itself. But, like in the “Grand Theft Auto” games and the previous “Red Dead” title, don’t expect to see a lot of direct examples. For example: A version of New Orleans (above) is named “Saint Denis” (the patron saint of Paris)."

[1]

[2]