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Ruston, Louisiana

Ruston is a small city and the parish seat of Lincoln Parish, Louisiana, United States. The 2020 population was 22,166. Ruston is near the eastern border of the Ark-La-Tex region and is the home of Louisiana Tech University. Ruston is the principal city of the Ruston micropolitan statistical area, which includes all of Lincoln Parish.

History
During the Reconstruction Era following the Civil War, word soon reached the young parish near what is now Ruston, that the Vicksburg, Shreveport, and Pacific Railroad would begin to run across north Louisiana, linking the Deep South with the West (the current operator is Canadian Pacific Kansas City). Robert Edwin Russ, the Lincoln Parish sheriff from 1877–1880, donated 640 acre to the town and the area was eventually known as Ruston in his honor.

In 1883, commercial and residential lots were created and sold for $375 apiece; and soon the sawing of lumber and clacking of hammers could be heard throughout the area.

Vienna was the parish seat of Lincoln Parish from its creation in 1873 until 1884, when a parish-wide vote moved it to the new town of Ruston.

As the town began to take shape, new churches, businesses, civic organizations and schools were being established. Cotton farming fueled the economy. In 1900 a second railroad, running north and south, was built through Ruston (the operator before the tracks were removed was Chicago, Rock Island and Pacific Railroad). This brought even more business and industry to the area and the population continued to provide a foundation for the local economy. By the time the U.S. entered World War I in 1917, Ruston was established as a center for learning, a place of civic pride, and as an area of economic prosperity throughout the region.

In 1938 Ruston received national attention when an African-American teenager named R.C. Williams was lynched in one of the most brutal attacks of its type in many years. The 19 year old Williams was accused by a mob of vigilantes of killing a white man and assaulting a white woman, although it was later determined to be highly unlikely that Williams was guilty of these, or any other crimes. The vigilantes captured Williams and after torturing him with red-hot pokers (castration was also suspected) and shooting him numerous times, he was hung from a tree. Although a local sheriff tried to stop the mob, they then threatened the sheriff's life, and the lynching continued. A grand jury of all white men later cleared all of the perpetrators of any wrongdoing. The crime had a significant and long lasting impact on state and national politics, and can be directly related to the rise of segregationist demagoguery in the south.

Ruston grew steadily during the post-World War II years. The GI Bill of Rights sent war veterans to college, helped to fuel the local economy, brought growth to the two local universities, Louisiana Tech University and nearby historically black Grambling State University, and new families moved into Lincoln Parish. By the middle 1960s, Interstate 20 passed through the northern part of Ruston. This major interstate highway made Ruston more easily accessible, much as the railroad had done a century earlier. In the 1980s, the state of Louisiana economy declined as the oil industry went into a recession.

Ruston, however, continued growing steadily because of the rapid expansion of Louisiana Tech. The city also had its centennial celebration during this decade, and emphasis was placed on revitalizing the historic downtown district. A joint effort between the city and the Louisiana Main Street Program and the Louisiana Department of Historic Preservation brought forth beautification projects to rehabilitate the downtown district, and helped draw the community closer to its roots. More than fifteen buildings have been placed on the National Register of Historic Places.

The city has a new general aviation airport to serve existing business and industry, and the timber, poultry and cattle industries continue to expand.

The Arkansas Southern Railroad Company (ASRR), that became the Chicago, Rock Island and Pacific Railway (CRI&P), built a station named Chautauqua, north of Ruston that became part of the town.

Geography
According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 18.2 sqmi, of which 18.1 sqmi is land and 0.1 sqmi (0.44%) is water.

Demographics
According to the 2020 United States census, there were 22,166 people, 7,970 households, and 3,938 families residing in the city. In 2010, there were 21,859 people in the city; according to the census of 2000, there were 20,546 people, 7,621 households, and 4,244 families residing in the city with a population density of 1,136.4 people per square mile (438.8/km$2$).

In 2000, the racial makeup of the city was 56.94% White, 38.92% African American, 0.17% Native American, 2.41% Asian, 0.02% Pacific Islander, 0.63% from other races, and 0.90% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 1.29% of the population. By 2020, the racial makeup of the city was 50.53% non-Hispanic white, 40% African American, 0.39% Native American, 2.49% Asian, 0.02% Pacific Islander, 3.13% two or more races, and 3.44% Hispanic or Latino of any race.

According to the 2000 census, the median income for a household in the city was $23,001, and the median income for a family was $37,394. Males had a median income of $33,408 versus $20,413 for females. The per capita income for the city was $14,573. About 22.1% of families and 32.1% of the population were below the poverty line, including 34.1% of those under age 18 and 17.6% of those age 65 or over. At the publication of the 2020 census, the median household income grew to $34,554.

Arts and culture

Most cultural activities are offered through Louisiana Tech. Also there are shops downtown, chain restaurants in the city, and an eight-screen Celebrity Theater. Other university-based opportunities exist at Grambling (6 miles from Ruston) and Monroe (35 miles away). The Louisiana Tech University Arboretum interests many visitors. Early in 2007, the city initiated a blueprint for future growth and development of the Ruston area. Known as "Ruston 21", the plan will evaluate the assets of the community and the ways to achieve goals. It will look citywide at residential development and neighborhoods, recreation planning, transportation issues, economic development, infrastructure concerns, quality of life, and working collaboratively with Louisiana Tech University.

Opened in 1928, the historic Dixie Theater serves as the visual and performing arts hub of Ruston as it houses the North Central Louisiana Arts Council, Piney Hills Gallery, Ruston Community Theatre, Ruston Civic Symphony Society, Troupe Dixie, independent film screenings, dance recitals, and music concerts. Celebrity Theatres, an eight-screen movie theater with digital projection and sound with 3D capabilities and stadium seating in all auditoriums, opened in Ruston in 2006. On campus at Louisiana Tech, Howard Auditorium and Stone Theatre serve as the university's home for the performing arts, and Louisiana Tech is home to two visual art galleries including the E. J. Bellocq Gallery and the Louisiana Tech Art Gallery.

The Louisiana Military Museum features uniforms, weapons, flags, training gear, aircraft, and vehicles from nearly every conflict in United States history. Built in 1886, the Kidd-Davis house is home to the Lincoln Parish Museum, which exhibits early Ruston history. Located on Louisiana Tech's main campus, The Idea Place Math and Science Discovery Center offers many interactive science exhibits including a planetarium.

Ruston is located in the heart of North Louisiana, known as the Sportsman's Paradise, where outdoor activities like hunting and fishing are popular for residents. Located on the Louisiana Tech campus, Garland Gregory Hideaway Park has a seven-acre lake for fishing and canoeing, walking/running trails, pavilions, grills, ropes course, and an 18-hole frisbee golf course. The North Louisiana Exhibition Center hosts rodeos, barrel races, horse and livestock shows, roping events, and antique car and tractor shows in Ruston.

As home to the Louisiana Tech Bulldogs and Lady Techsters of Conference USA, Ruston is a scene of major college sports. The Louisiana Tech Bulldogs football team plays at Joe Aillet Stadium and has won three national championships, won 25 conference championships, and played in 24 postseason games including nine major college bowl games. The Louisiana Tech Bulldogs basketball and Louisiana Tech Lady Techsters basketball teams play their games at the Thomas Assembly Center. The Dunkin' Dawgs have won 25 regular season conference championships, made seven NCAA Tournament appearances including one Sweet Sixteen, and nine NIT appearances. The Lady Techsters have won three national championships and 20 regular season conference championships; have competed in 13 Final Fours, 23 Sweet Sixteens, and 27 NCAA Tournaments; and have the second most wins all-time of any women's college basketball program. The Louisiana Tech Bulldogs baseball team plays at J. C. Love Field at Pat Patterson Park, has won 21 regular season conference championships, and has participated in eight NCAA Tournaments.

Peach Festival
Each June, Ruston hosts its annual Peach Festival, sponsored by the Squire Creek Country Club.

Until the 1940s, most area peach farming had been done on a small-scale family basis. In 1947, area peach growers organized the Louisiana Fruit Growers Association and held the first festival four years later on June 27–28, 1951. On that occasion, Justin Wilson, the popular south Louisiana chef and Cajun humorist entertained the audience at Howard Auditorium on the Louisiana Tech campus. Then State Senator Dudley J. LeBlanc of Abbeville in Vermilion Parish, the promoter of the patent medicine known as Hadacol, was invited to crown the first Peach Festival Queen, Ann Colvin of Bernice in Union Parish.

The festival sponsors races of 5K and 1M and a tennis tournament played on the Louisiana Tech courts.

Railroad Fest
Railroad Fest is an annual makers, music, and culture festival held in Downtown Ruston each April since 2017. The Makers Fair is held at the Historic Ruston Fire Station, and live music is performed at the amphitheater at Railroad Park.

Primary and secondary education
Public schools are part of the Lincoln Parish School System. Eight of the twelve Lincoln Parish Schools are located in Ruston. Lincoln Parish Early Childhood Center operates the parish's preschool program in Ruston. Glen View Elementary School and Hillcrest Elementary School teach kindergarten through the second grade. Cypress Springs Elementary School and Ruston Elementary School teach third grade through fifth grade. I. A. Lewis School teaches only sixth grade, and Ruston Junior High School teaches seventh and eighth grades. Ruston High School teaches ninth through twelfth grades.

Located on Louisiana Tech's campus in Ruston, A. E. Phillips Laboratory School offers kindergarten through eighth grade.

Ruston is home to a few private schools. Cedar Creek School and Bethel Christian School are college preparatory schools that offer preschool through twelfth grade. New Living Word School also offers preschool through twelfth grade. Montessori School of Ruston offers preschool through eighth grade.

Lorraine Nobles Howard Education Center, known as Howard School, is an alternative school for the residents of the Louisiana Methodist Children's Home in Ruston.

Higher education
Louisiana Tech University, a national research university, dominates the city of Ruston, providing the city with its distinctive college town character. Grambling State University is located in nearby Grambling, only four miles west of the Louisiana Tech campus. Additionally, Louisiana Delta Community College has a branch campus located in Ruston.

Media
The Ruston Daily Leader is the newspaper serving Ruston and the rest of Lincoln Parish since 1894. The Daily Leader is published Sunday morning and Monday through Friday afternoons. Louisiana Tech University is served by several publications including The Tech Talk, the independent Louisiana Tech student newspaper that reports on local, state, and national issues in addition to campus news.

Radio
Ruston is the principal city of the Ruston media market for radio.

Television
Ruston is part of the Monroe media market for television.

National Guard
The 527th Engineer Battalion (Triple Alpha) ("Anything, Anytime, Anywhere") is headquartered in Ruston. This battalion is part of the 225th Engineer Brigade of the Louisiana National Guard.

Health care

 * Green Clinic
 * Northern Louisiana Medical Center
 * Ruston Regional Specialty Center

Law Enforcement

 * Lincoln Parish Sheriff's Office
 * Louisiana State Police
 * Ruston Police Department

Notable people

 * Trace Adkins, country singer who attended Louisiana Tech; originally from Sarepta
 * Leon Barmore, Hall of Fame NCAA basketball coach, played basketball at Louisiana Tech and Ruston High School
 * Mary Black (activist), community activist and social worker
 * George W. Bond, president of Louisiana Tech University from 1929 to 1936
 * Terry Bradshaw, member of the Pro Football Hall of Fame, attended Louisiana Tech
 * Kix Brooks, country music singer, who attended Louisiana Tech.
 * P.J. Brown, retired NBA player, attended Louisiana Tech
 * Mary Elizabeth Talbot Busbee, the First Lady of Georgia from 1975 to 1983, was born and reared in Ruston. Known as "Mary Beth", she was a medical technologist and a graduate of Louisiana Tech. Her husband was the late Democratic Governor George D. Busbee.
 * John R. Conniff, educator, president of Louisiana Tech from 1926 to 1928
 * Martie Cordaro, president and general manager of the Omaha Storm Chasers baseball club
 * Fred Dean, NFL Hall of Famer, attended Ruston High and Louisiana Tech
 * Clarence Faulk, newspaper publisher, radio broadcaster, businessman
 * Tim Floyd, NCAA and NBA basketball coach, attended Louisiana Tech
 * Vic Frazier, MLB pitcher during the 1930s
 * W. C. Friley, founder of Ruston College in the late 1880s, a forerunner of Louisiana Tech; later president of Hardin–Simmons University in Abilene, Texas, and Louisiana College in Pineville, succeeded there in 1910 by Claybrook Cottingham
 * Ralph Garr, former Major League Baseball player and member of the Atlanta Braves Hall of Fame attended Lincoln High School
 * Andy Hamilton, NFL player
 * Aaron Holiday, NBA player for the Houston Rockets
 * Will Cullen Hart, indie rock musician, visual artist, and founding member of the Elephant Six Collective and The Olivia Tremor Control, and leader of Circulatory System, attended Ruston High School and was a disc jockey at Louisiana Tech's radio station KLPI
 * Sonja Hogg, founding coach of the Louisiana Tech Lady Techsters
 * Bert Jones, former NFL quarterback, attended Ruston High School
 * Dub Jones, former NFL halfback, attended Ruston High School
 * Karl Malone, Basketball Hall of Famer, attended Louisiana Tech, currently lives in Ruston
 * Jeff Mangum, indie rock musician and founding member of the Elephant Six Collective and Neutral Milk Hotel, attended Ruston High School and was a disc jockey at Louisiana Tech's radio station KLPI
 * Monica Maxwell, former WNBA player 1999-2002, played in two Final Fours for the Lady Techsters (1998, 1999)
 * Luke McCown, former NFL quarterback, attended Louisiana Tech
 * Garnie W. McGinty, Louisiana historian
 * Alice Cary McKinney, President, Louisiana State Woman's Christian Temperance Union
 * Paul Millsap, current NBA player, attended Louisiana Tech
 * Ryan Moats, athlete, attended Louisiana Tech
 * Kim Mulkey, head women's basketball coach of LSU Tigers
 * Virgil Orr, former state representative; Louisiana Tech vice president
 * Joe Raymond Peace, former football coach of Louisiana Tech Bulldogs and Ruston resident
 * Arthur T. Prescott, educator and founding president from 1894 to 1899 of Louisiana Tech University
 * Patrick Ramsey, former NFL quarterback, attended Ruston High School
 * Willie Roaf, NFL Hall of Fame player, attended Louisiana Tech
 * Kramer Robertson, current MLB player for St. Louis Cardinals
 * Scotty Robertson, high school, college, and professional basketball coach, died in Ruston in 2011
 * W. C. Robinson, mathematics professor and second president of Louisiana Tech from 1899 to 1900
 * Robert Schneider, Indie rock musician, record producer, founding member of the Elephant Six Collective, and frontman of The Apples in Stereo, attended Ruston High School
 * Josh Scobee, current NFL player, attended Louisiana Tech
 * John Simoneaux, blues singer, songwriter, and guitarist, graduate of LA Tech; memorial jam held in his memory annually to raise scholarship money
 * Mickey Slaughter, former NFL quarterback, attended and later coached football for, Louisiana Tech
 * Polly Smith, photographer
 * George Stone, former National League pitcher with the Atlanta Braves and New York Mets.
 * Scotty Thurman, former basketball player, attended Arkansas, made the game winning shot in the 1994 NCAA National Championship against Duke, attended Ruston High School
 * A. L. Williams, retired football coach
 * Kyle Williams, former NFL player, attended Ruston High School
 * Clint Williamson, US Ambassador, White House policy official, and international prosecutor
 * John D. Winters, historian of the American Civil War
 * Kenny Wright, former NFL defensive back (Minnesota Vikings 1999–2001, Houston Texans 2002–2004, Jacksonville Jaguars 2005, Washington Redskins 2006 and Cleveland Browns 2007)

In popular culture

 * Jack Kerouac refers to Ruston in his book On the Road.
 * Indie rock band Neutral Milk Hotel was formed in Ruston.
 * The longstanding Dixie Theater in Ruston is featured in a 1999 article in the publication North Louisiana History.
 * Ruston is also the hometown of Robert Schneider, frontman of The Apples in Stereo. He attended Ruston High School.
 * Ruston is mentioned several times in the HBO series True Blood. A vampire on the series is seen wearing a Louisiana Tech Bulldogs sweatshirt.
 * Social media personality Logan Paul acted as "mayor" of Ruston for two days for his online streaming show Logan Paul VS...
 * Ruston was featured in a first season episode of HBO's We're Here.

title: Ruston, Louisiana


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Simsboro, Louisiana

Simsboro is a village in western Lincoln Parish, Louisiana, United States. The population was 841 at the 2010 census. It is part of the Ruston Micropolitan Statistical Area.

Two 20th century lawmakers who were natives of Simsboro are interred at Simsboro Cemetery: State Representatives L.D. "Buddy" Napper, who served from 1952 to 1964, and practiced law for a half-century in Ruston, and Ragan Madden, who left the House in 1949 to become the five-term district attorney of the 3rd Judicial District. A 19th Century lawmaker who lived in Simsboro was Representative George M. Lomax, who in 1894 introduced the enabling legislation, Act 68, to establish the future Louisiana Tech University.

Geography
Simsboro is located at 32.53417°N, -92.78639°W (32.534169, -92.786417).

According to the United States Census Bureau, the village has a total area of 3.5 sqmi, all land.

2020 census
As of the 2020 United States census, there were 803 people, 352 households, and 264 families residing in the village.

2000 census
As of the census of 2000, there were 684 people, 273 households, and 193 families residing in the village. The population density was 197.2 PD/sqmi. There were 338 housing units at an average density of 97.4 /sqmi. The racial makeup of the village was 77.05% White, 21.49% African American, 0.73% Native American, 0.44% from other races, and 0.29% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 0.73% of the population.

There were 273 households, out of which 32.2% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 52.0% were married couples living together, 14.7% had a female householder with no husband present, and 29.3% were non-families. 23.4% of all households were made up of individuals, and 8.1% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.48 and the average family size was 2.93.

In the village, the population was spread out, with 24.3% under the age of 18, 13.6% from 18 to 24, 28.4% from 25 to 44, 21.6% from 45 to 64, and 12.1% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 34 years. For every 100 females, there were 93.8 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 98.5 males.

The median income for a household in the village was $31,324, and the median income for a family was $35,417. Males had a median income of $31,111 versus $18,750 for females. The per capita income for the village was $14,465. About 14.4% of families and 18.1% of the population were below the poverty line, including 23.0% of those under age 18 and none of those age 65 or over.

license: Creative Commons - Attribution Share-Alike - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/

title: Simsboro, Louisiana


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Vienna, Louisiana

Vienna is a town in Lincoln Parish, Louisiana, United States. The population was 483 in 2020.

During the American Civil War, Confederate troops drilled at a new camp established in 1862 in Vienna. Later in the war, a parolee camp was established at Vienna.

Vienna was the parish seat of Lincoln Parish from its creation in 1873 until 1884, when a parish-wide vote moved it to the new railroad town of Ruston.

History
Daniel Colvin settled near what is now Vienna in about 1812.

The Colvins operated a store or relay station of some kind. Their house was near the trail that led from Monroe to Shreveport. Jephthah (son of Daniel) opened the first post office in the region in 1838, originally known as Colvin's Post Office. The name was changed to Vienna in 1850.

Vienna was an overnight stop the stagecoaches on the Monroe-Shreveport Stagecoach Road (later called the Old Wire Road).

Geography
Vienna is located in central Lincoln Parish at 32.60667°N, -92.65083°W (32.606779, -92.650746). U.S. Routes 63 and 167 pass through the center of town together, leading south 5 mi to Ruston, the parish seat, and north 17 mi to Bernice. Vienna is 3.5 mi north of Exit 85 on Interstate 20 in Ruston.

According to the United States Census Bureau, Vienna has a total area of 9.0 sqkm, all land.

Demographics
As of the 2020 United States census, there were 483 people, 201 households, and 153 families residing in the town.

title: Vienna, Louisiana


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Albany, Louisiana

Albany is a town in eastern Livingston Parish, Louisiana, United States. The population was 1,088 at the 2010 census and 1,235 in 2020. It is part of the Baton Rouge metropolitan statistical area.

District 95 State Representative Sherman Q. Mack, an attorney, resides in Albany.

Etymology
It is speculated that the name of the community is derived from the Choctaw word abani which means "to cook over a fire" in the Choctaw language. After interviewing many of the older residents and comparing their answers it was determined that the community was named after the nearby Natalbany River. During an interview Mrs. George (Mary Addison) Cunningham who was born on November 11, 1884, stated that when the Illinois Central Railroad built a line through the town they tried to name the community Natalbany but the railroad and post office refused the name because there was already a community with the same name.

Hungarian Settlement
Historic Hungarian Settlement is in Albany. Between 1896 and 1920 hundreds of Hungarian immigrants settled here and named the community Árpádhon. In 1900, there were eleven families living in the Hungarian Settlement and by 1908 there were about forty Hungarian families on new farms in the area. By 1910, there were sixty-five families. In 1920, there were about two hundred families on farms in the area. The Hungarian name is derived from Árpád, the leader of the Hungarian tribes and -hon meaning home. Árpádhon was the largest rural Hungarian settlement in the United States at that time with an estimated 350 Hungarian families living within the community. During the 1930s many of the Hungarian families became strawberry farmers.

Geography
Albany is located at the intersection of U.S. Route 190 and Louisiana Highway 43 and I-12 passes south of the city. The Little Natalbany River flows past the east side of the city and joins the Natalbany River approximately two miles to the southeast.

According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 1.1 sqmi, all land.

Demographics
As of the census of 2000, there were 865 people, 371 households, and 234 families residing in the town. By the 2010 census, its population grew to 1,088; in 2020, its population was 1,235.

Cultural and historic sites

 * The Hungarian Settlement School is located in Albany and was listed on the National Register of Historic Places on August 2, 2001. The old school is home to the Hungarian Settlement Museum and the grand opening was celebrated on September 27, 2017.
 * In 1909, a twenty-acre church site was donated by Mr. and Mrs. Joseph Juhasz and in that same year, Archbishop James Blenk from the Archdiocese of New Orleans approved the official name of St. Margaret Catholic Church
 * Albany Plantation, which promotes the heritage of the French Cajun culture of Louisiana, sits on 34 acres of land.

Education
Albany is within the Livingston Parish Public Schools system.

Schools that serve Albany include:

 * Albany Lower Elementary School (Louisiana)
 * Albany Upper Elementary School (Louisiana)
 * Albany Middle School (Louisiana)
 * Albany High School

title: Albany, Louisiana


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Denham Springs, Louisiana

Denham Springs is a city in Livingston Parish, Louisiana, United States. The 2010 U.S. census placed the population at 10,215, up from 8,757 at the 2000 U. S. census. At the 2020 United States census, 9,286 people lived in the city. The city is the largest area of commercial and residential development in Livingston Parish. Denham Springs and Walker are the only parish municipalities classified as cities. The area has been known as Amite Springs, Hill's Springs, and Denham Springs.

19th century
The original land claims of John Noblet and Alexander Hogue form what is now the older section of Denham Springs, including the first residential and business districts. In 1828, William Denham, a Wilkinson County, Mississippi, native, married Mercy Hogue, the daughter of Alexander Hogue. Three months later he purchased the 640 acre originally claimed by his father-in-law. Denham purchased the land and a slave for $1,350.

A popular belief, supported by previously published histories, is that William Denham discovered the mineral springs on his property and that a health resort quickly grew up there. This belief defies logic, however, considering the number of springs which may be found in this area even today, and the length of time that elapsed before Denham arrived. Hogue and other early residents of the area likely depended on the springs for drinking water.

It was in the 1850s that Amite Springs became synonymous with the area that is now Denham Springs.

On May 1, 1855, Denham sold the Hogue tract to Stamaty Covas of New Orleans for $3,050, and Denham eventually moved to Baton Rouge and to Texas. Apparently during the time Covas owned the Hogue-Denham tract, and before the Civil War, a health resort did flourish at Amite Springs—as the hamlet was known at the time. Several newspaper articles and advertisements survive from that period, which describe the hotel and the facilities which it offered.

An article in the Baton Rouge Daily Comet, on June 25, 1856, notes that a bridge of boats had been formed at Benton's Ferry over the Amite River to facilitate travel to Amite Springs. Benton's Ferry was the name of the post office which was established near Amite Springs on January 25, 1856, and named for Robert Benton, its first postmaster and also the operator of the ferry across the Amite.

It is assumed that the hotel was burned during the Civil War, although no evidence to support this assumption has been found to this date. Following the Civil War, Covas, the New Orleans businessman, lost possession of the Hogue-Denham tract when George L. Minton bought it for delinquent taxes of $124.00.

According to the 1882 act of sale, the land was bounded "east by Chambers, south by Noblet, west by the Amite River, north by Allen, and known as the Denham Springs tract." This points to the fact that although William Denham had moved away nearly 30 years before, his name was still associated with the mineral spring area.

Minton, the first mayor of Denham Springs and founder of the Denham Springs News, thus received title to much of what is now the downtown section of Denham Springs. Conveyance records at the parish courthouse show that he then began subdividing the tract and selling the lots for residences and businesses. By this time, the large Noblet holdings were also being subdivided and sold to newcomers, and the village that became Denham Springs began to grow.

In October, 1879 John Sullivan made an application for the establishment of a post office north of the present city limits. The location of the office was given as one mile (1.6 km) south of Beaver Creek and one mile (1.6 km) east of the Amite River on what is now La. Hwy. 1028 or the Old River Road. Three names were considered for the post office - Pine Bluff, Allen and Hill's Springs - with the Post Office Department settling on the latter when it was finally established on January 12, 1880. By at least 1890, John R. Allen had become the postmaster and the office was moved inside the present city limits. On May 9, 1898, the name of the post office was changed to Denham Springs.

Another reason given for the development of the community is that the Denham Springs Collegiate Institute was founded by a group or residents in 1895. According to a graduate of the institute, the school was a good one, attracting boarders from miles around. The boarding students may have created more demand for hotels than did people visiting the springs, although the hotels did have many guests in the summer. The Collegiate Institute was located on the site of the present Presbyterian Church, on property sold to the private school by George L. Minton. The first buildings included a large meeting hall and a smaller frame structure. The four-year institution was financed by tuition paid by students from Denham Springs and neighboring communities, and the board of directors was able to attract teachers from as far away as Virginia.

20th century
George L. Minton was elected the first mayor of Denham Springs upon its founding in 1903 and served until J.M. Smiley was elected in April 1912. Smiley moved from the village later that year and J.O. Brannon was elected mayor in a special election. He received 17 votes and was unopposed.

Two reasons were given for the development of Hill's Springs and Denham Springs in the 1890s and early 20th century prior to the completion of a Baton Rouge to Hammond railroad line. One was the development of the springs by hotel owners. A New Orleans publication entitled Men and Matters described the so-called health-restoring properties of the spring water in a 1902 article on Denham Springs. Ivy Cockerham and J.B. Easterly built hotels in the area near the present public park on Tabernacle Street, and there were some who believed the springs to be beneficial to the sick.

Circa 1908, the board of directors of the Denham Springs Collegiate Institute deeded the property to the public school system, which was coming of age with the construction of consolidated schools, and shortly thereafter, a two-story brick building was erected on the same site. This was to be the beginning of Denham Springs High School, now the parish's largest senior high school.

On May 8, 1903, Gov. William W. Heard issued a proclamation incorporating the village of Denham Springs. Governor Huey Long designated Denham Springs as a town on February 5, 1929 and Lt. Gov. Lethar Frazar, standing in for the Kingfish's brother Earl, proclaimed Denham Springs to be a city on September 5, 1957.

Several factors influenced the growth of Denham Springs after 1900, notably the construction of the railroad line, the growth of Baton Rouge as an industrial center, and the corresponding improvement of roads which made Denham Springs a desirable place for Baton Rouge workers to live. The railroad prompted the gradual movement of businesses toward the present Range Avenue area, and later made Denham Springs the shipping hub of a large truck crop region. The Baton Rouge-Hammond line was completed by the Illinois Central railroad during the first part of February, 1908 and the first train ran on February 26. Denham Springs almost missed being included on the route, however, as the Baton Rouge, Hammond and Eastern Railroad Co., which was later purchased by the IC, at one time considered bypassing the village, perhaps to force some concessions on the local residents' part.

The construction of good roads and the advent of the automobile, combined with the growth of the petrochemical industry in Baton Rouge led to Denham Springs becoming the so-called "bedroom of Baton Rouge". Denham Springs became the banking and commercial center of Livingston Parish.

The Denham Springs City Hall was listed in the National Register of Historic Places listings in Louisiana on April 16, 1993.

21st century
The city is situated at the intersections of the east-west highways, US 190 and Interstate 12, with La. Hwy. 16, the major north-south artery in western Livingston Parish. Denham Springs is also located on the Illinois Central Gulf Railroad, a line which played a large role in the city's early development. The Amite River also forms a portion of the municipality's boundary, but the river is not navigable at this point. Ground-water springs which come to the surface at the base of the low-lying ridge which runs through the center of the city have figured in the city's name since at least the 1850s.

A state of emergency was declared in mid-August 2016 when waters began rising in rivers, lakes, and bayous all across the southern area of the state. Denham Springs took much of the damage. 90% of the homes in Greater Baton Rouge were either damaged or destroyed. The Amite River, the main body of water in Denham Springs, was one of the most publicized rivers that flooded.

Downtown Denham Springs has transformed itself from hardware stores, drug stores, doctors' offices, and a single movie theater, into a collection of unique antique shops, and boutiques, including the locally popular restaurants and Cafes. The historic downtown district is now recognized as a cultural arts district and is known as the Denham Springs Antique Village.

Geography
Denham Springs is located in the Florida Parishes of the U. S. state of Louisiana, and within the Baton Rouge metropolitan statistical area.

Climate
Denham Springs has a humid subtropical climate with hot summers and mild winters. The city experiences moderate to heavy rainfall and is at risk of severe thunderstorms and high winds year around.

Demographics
As of the 2020 United States census, there were 9,286 people, 3,615 households, and 2,256 families residing in the city. According to the 2019 American Community Survey, the racial and ethnic makeup was 81.6% non-Hispanic white, 13.9% Black and African American, 0.2% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.2% some other race, 0.5% two or more races, and 3.6% Hispanic and Latin American of any race. The median household income was $53,435 and 8.9% of the population lived at or below the poverty line.

Government
Denham Springs is run under a Mayor-council form of government. The current mayor, Gerard Landry, has been in office since 2014, being reelected in 2018 after support from the city in his recovery efforts after the flood of 2016.

The Denham Springs City Council is a Unicameral council governing the City of Denham Springs. The five member council is elected directly by popular vote. Each council member serves the entire Denham Springs community. No neighborhoods elect representatives. Members serve a term of four years. Each city council member serves as a member of one of several city groups. This includes the Denham Springs Economic Development District, The Denham Springs Sewage District No. 1, Springs at Riverside Landing Economic Development District, and Finance Committee.

The city council meets twice monthly at 6 PM on the second Tuesday and fourth Monday of the month at the Municipal building in Denham Springs' Historic District.

Education
Denham Springs is within the Livingston Parish Public Schools system.

High schools

 * Denham Springs High School
 * Denham Springs Freshman High School

Junior high schools

 * Denham Springs Junior High School
 * Southside Junior High School
 * Juban Parc Junior High School

Elementary schools

 * Denham Springs Elementary School
 * Freshwater Elementary School
 * Juban Parc Elementary School
 * Lewis Vincent Elementary School
 * Southside Elementary School

Notable people

 * Valarie Hodges (born 1955), businesswoman and Republican member of the Louisiana House of Representatives
 * Jefferson D. Hughes, III, associate justice of the Louisiana Supreme Court since 2013, reared in Denham Springs
 * Rosalie "Lady Tambourine" Washington (born 1957), gospel musician and tambourine player

 * Robert Pete Williams (1914-1980), blues musician, in 1958 was released from the Louisiana State Penitentiary into servitude parole in Denham Springs

title: Denham Springs, Louisiana


text:
French Settlement, Louisiana

French Settlement (historically La Côte-Française ) is a village in Livingston Parish, Louisiana, United States. The population was 1,073 in 2020. It is part of the Baton Rouge metropolitan statistical area.

History
French Settlement was settled in 1800 via the Amite River by French, German, and Italian immigrants. The area was a thriving center of commerce, including cypress sawmills, animal trappers, shingle-making, farms, and a steamboat port.

French Settlement has four houses on the National Register of Historic Places listings in Livingston Parish, Louisiana: Decareaux House, Deslattes House, Guitreau House, and Lobell House.

Geography
French Settlement is located at 30.30444°N, -90.79889°W (30.304395, -90.798881).

According to the United States Census Bureau, the village has a total area of 2.7 sqmi, of which 2.7 sqmi is land and 0.37% is water.

Demographics
As of the 2020 United States census, there were 1,073 people, 348 households, and 240 families residing in the village. As of the census of 2000, there were 945 people, 359 households, and 276 families residing in the village. The population density was 349.0 PD/sqmi. There were 436 housing units at an average density of 161.0 /sqmi. The racial makeup of the village was 99.26% White, 0.21% Asian, 0.11% from other races, and 0.42% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 1.90% of the population.

There were 359 households, out of which 31.8% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 65.2% were married couples living together, 7.0% had a female householder with no husband present, and 23.1% were non-families. 18.4% of all households were made up of individuals, and 7.8% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.63 and the average family size was 2.99.

In the village, the population was spread out, with 25.8% under the age of 18, 8.5% from 18 to 24, 29.3% from 25 to 44, 24.0% from 45 to 64, and 12.4% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 37 years. For every 100 females, there were 95.7 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 98.0 males.

The median income for a household in the village was $38,563, and the median income for a family was $41,518. Males had a median income of $36,875 versus $18,500 for females. The per capita income for the village was $17,660. About 5.6% of families and 7.0% of the population were below the poverty line, including 9.9% of those under age 18 and 6.0% of those age 65 or over.

Education
French Settlement is within the Livingston Parish Public Schools system.

French Settlement is served by French Settlement Elementary School and French Settlement High School.

title: French Settlement, Louisiana


text:
Killian, Louisiana

Killian is a town in Livingston Parish, Louisiana, United States. The population was 1,206 at the 2010 census. It is part of the Baton Rouge Metropolitan Statistical Area.

Geography
Killian is located at 30.36722°N, -90.56639°W (30.367113, -90.566390).

According to the United States Census Bureau, the village has a total area of 11.1 sqmi, of which 11.1 sqmi is land and 0.04 sqmi (0.18%) is water.

Demographics
As of the census of 2000, there were 1,053 people, 407 households, and 310 families residing in the village. The population density was 95.0 PD/sqmi. There were 590 housing units at an average density of 53.2 /sqmi. The racial makeup of the village was 81.48% White, 17.09% African American, 0.09% Native American, 0.47% from other races, and 0.85% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 0.85% of the population.

There were 407 households, out of which 30.2% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 66.3% were married couples living together, 6.1% had a female householder with no husband present, and 23.8% were non-families. 19.4% of all households were made up of individuals, and 5.9% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.59 and the average family size was 2.95.

In the village, the population was spread out, with 23.6% under the age of 18, 7.9% from 18 to 24, 26.9% from 25 to 44, 29.5% from 45 to 64, and 12.1% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 39 years. For every 100 females, there were 104.9 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 101.0 males.

The median income for a household in the village was $40,781, and the median income for a family was $42,885. Men had a median income of $41,058 versus $25,833 for women. The per capita income for the village was $19,648. About 7.3% of families and 10.2% of the population were below the poverty line, including 12.8% of those under age 18 and 10.2% of those age 65 or over.

Education
Killian is within the Livingston Parish Public Schools system. The local government of Killian has yet to build a school of its own. Instead, the students in the area attend nearby Springfield Elementary, Middle, and High Schools.

title: Killian, Louisiana


text:
Livingston, Louisiana

Livingston is the parish seat of Livingston Parish, Louisiana, United States. The population was 1,769 at the 2010 census. Livingston hosts one of the two LIGO gravitational wave detector sites, the other one being located in Hanford, Washington.

History
Like the parish, Livingston takes its name from the jurist Edward Livingston.

Livingston was the site of a major train derailment (spilling about 200,000 gallons of chemicals) in 1982.

On February 11, 2016, it was officially announced that the LIGO collaboration successfully made the first direct observation of gravitational waves in September 2015. Barry Barish, Kip Thorne and Rainer Weiss were awarded the 2017 Nobel Prize in Physics for leading this work.

Geography
Livingston is located at 30.49861°N, -90.74833°W (30.498721, -90.748371).

According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 3.1 sqmi, all land. The communities of Doyle and Livingston, combined in 1955 to create the Town of Livingston. Doyle was established northeast of present-day Livingston, located on Hog Branch, off present-day North Doyle Road but moved when the railroad was built from Baton Rouge to Hammond, and the community was re-located in 1901 by the McDonald family.

Livingston was started by the Lyons Lumber Company in 1916 as a logging community on 63 acres just west of Doyle, to support their logging industry and timber mill in Garyville, located south of Livingston on the Mississippi River. Therefore, Livingston and Garyville are sister cities.

When Livingston was first established there was a house on every lot, a board walk in front of every home, and water wells drilled on each corner so every home would have access to running water.

Demographics
As of the 2020 United States census, there were 1,877 people, 679 households, and 492 families residing in the town.

As of the census of 2000, there were 1,342 people, 539 households, and 377 families residing in the town. The population density was 429.8 PD/sqmi. There were 581 housing units at an average density of 186.1 /sqmi. The racial makeup of the town was 96.05% White, 2.98% African American, 0.07% Native American, 0.22% Asian, and 0.67% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 0.52% of the population.

There were 539 households, out of which 34.3% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 49.9% were married couples living together, 15.0% had a female householder with no husband present, and 29.9% were non-families. 25.6% of all households were made up of individuals, and 11.9% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.49 and the average family size was 3.00.

In the town, the population was spread out, with 26.1% under the age of 18, 11.2% from 18 to 24, 27.0% from 25 to 44, 23.9% from 45 to 64, and 11.8% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 35 years. For every 100 females, there were 95.3 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 87.9 males.

The median income for a household in the town was $32,813, and the median income for a family was $41,625. Males had a median income of $33,958 versus $20,795 for females. The per capita income for the town was $15,075. About 10.9% of families and 12.9% of the population were below the poverty line, including 7.7% of those under age 18 and 21.4% of those age 65 or over.

Education
Livingston is within the Livingston Parish Public Schools system.

The following schools serve the Town of Livingston and the local area:
 * Doyle Elementary School
 * Doyle High School
 * Frost Elementary (South of the Town of Livingston, serving the Frost Community)

Notable people

 * Dale M. Erdey, current state senator from Livingston Parish and former mayor of Livingston. His father was also a mayor of Livingston.
 * Heulette Fontenot, former state representative and state senator from Livingston Parish
 * Gabriela González, spokesperson for the LIGO Scientific Collaboration
 * Laine Hardy, American Idol contestant 2018; American Idol winner 2019

title: Livingston, Louisiana


text:
Port Vincent, Louisiana

Port Vincent is a village in Livingston Parish, Louisiana, United States. The population was 741 at the 2010 census. It is part of the Baton Rouge Metropolitan Statistical Area.

Geography
Port Vincent is located at 30.33722°N, -90.84194°W (30.337250, -90.841927).

According to the United States Census Bureau, the village has a total area of 1.7 square miles (4.4 km$2$), of which 1.6 square miles (4.3 km$2$) is land and 0.04 square mile (0.1 km$2$) (2.37%) is water.

Demographics
As of the census of 2000, there were 463 people, 192 households, and 134 families residing in the village. The population density was 280.3 PD/sqmi. There were 262 housing units at an average density of 158.6 /sqmi. The racial makeup of the village was 96.11% White, 1.30% African American, 0.86% Native American, 0.43% Asian, and 1.30% from two or more races.

There were 192 households, out of which 27.6% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 59.4% were married couples living together, 5.2% had a female householder with no husband present, and 29.7% were non-families. 24.0% of all households were made up of individuals, and 7.8% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.41 and the average family size was 2.89.

In the village, the population was spread out, with 22.7% under the age of 18, 7.3% from 18 to 24, 30.9% from 25 to 44, 28.1% from 45 to 64, and 11.0% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 39 years. For every 100 females, there were 112.4 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 103.4 males.

The median income for a household in the village was $36,250, and the median income for a family was $49,583. Males had a median income of $35,357 versus $27,188 for females. The per capita income for the village was $17,347. About 4.6% of families and 7.9% of the population were below the poverty line, including 9.6% of those under age 18 and 15.0% of those age 65 or over.

title: Port Vincent, Louisiana


text:
Springfield, Louisiana

Springfield is a town in Livingston Parish, Louisiana, United States. The population was 487 at the 2010 census. It is part of the Baton Rouge metropolitan statistical area.

Geography
Springfield is located at 30.42917°N, -90.54806°W (30.429173, -90.548065).

According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 1.4 square miles (3.6 km$2$), all land.

The town's name is derived from the numerous artesian springs in the area.

The ZIP Code of Springfield is 70462.

History
Springfield began in the 18th century at one of the northernmost points considered to be navigable on the Natalbany River. Between Springfield and Lake Maurepas, Ponchatoula Creek joins the Natalbany and increases its flow. The town was also connected to the Natchez Trace.

Via the Natalbany, Lake Maurepas, Lake Pontchartrain, and Bayou Saint John, Springfield had access to New Orleans by water. Similarly, at the time (prior to the damming of the channel by levees) along the Amite River and Mississippi River, Bayou Manchac provided shallow-water access between Springfield and Baton Rouge. By 1810 Springfield was one of the areas of interest in the rebellion against Spain, which produced the short-lived Republic of West Florida. Bricks from an old Spanish fort can still be found, roughly 200 yards in front of today's post office. At this time the area was part of St. Helena Parish, with Livingston Parish created in 1832 from the southern portion of St. Helena.

Springfield served as the Livingston parish seat from 1835 to 1872. The town was incorporated in 1838. A post office was listed in Springfield, Livingston County (Parish), on October 1, 1846, with Jacob P. Randolph as the postmaster.

In the early part of the 19th century, Peter av Hammerdal (Peter Hammond), eponym of Hammond, Louisiana, came to do business of transporting lumber and other products for ocean-going ships in New Orleans, via the rivers and lakes south of Springfield.

The Springfield city fathers, fearing a lawless element, declined to allow a railway track to be laid from New Orleans through Springfield and then north. (This decision gave birth to Ponchatoula, Hammond, Amite, and other towns.) The 1854 completion of the New Orleans, Jackson & Great Northern Railroad (now the Canadian National Railway)—which went through Hammond, Ponchatoula, and Manchac—bypassed Springfield and deprived it of a logistical role.

When Tangipahoa Parish was formed partly from Livingston Parish in 1868, Springfield was no longer a central location in Livingston Parish. It sat along the new boundary between Livingston and Tangipahoa Parishes. Today's seat of government for Livingston Parish is the city of Livingston.

Demographics
As of the census of 2000, there were 395 people, 162 households, and 115 families residing in the town. The population density was 282.4 PD/sqmi. There were 185 housing units at an average density of 132.3 /sqmi. The racial makeup of the town was 96.20% White, 2.03% African American, 0.25% Asian, and 1.52% from two or more races.

There were 162 households, out of which 27.8% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 51.9% were married couples living together, 12.3% had a female householder with no husband present, and 28.4% were non-families. 25.9% of all households were made up of individuals, and 11.1% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.44 and the average family size was 2.90.

In the town, the population was spread out, with 23.5% under the age of 18, 8.1% from 18 to 24, 24.1% from 25 to 44, 28.4% from 45 to 64, and 15.9% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 41 years. For every 100 females, there were 101.5 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 89.9 males.

The median income for a household in the town was $28,125, and the median income for a family was $48,750. Males had a median income of $35,536 versus $21,667 for females. The per capita income for the town was $17,075. About 19.0% of families and 20.8% of the population were below the poverty line, including 35.2% of those under age 18 and 15.6% of those age 65 or over.

Education
Springfield is within the Livingston Parish Public Schools system.

Springfield is served by: (Grades: PK-4th) (Grades: 5th-8th) (Grades: 9th-12th)
 * Springfield Elementary School
 * Springfield Middle School
 * Springfield High School

St. John's University was based in Springfield before closing in 2005.

title: Springfield, Louisiana


text:
Walker, Louisiana

Walker is a city in Livingston Parish, Louisiana, United States. As of the 2010 census the population was placed at 6,138 (up 28% over the past decade), making Walker and Denham Springs the only parish municipalities classified as cities.

History
The area now known as Walker was founded by Michael Joseph Milton, Jr. (1795-1863) and “several slaves” in 1825. Michael Milton married in 1832 in Livingston Parish. He and his wife, Martha Clark Milton (1803-1878) developed 343 acres from a Land Grant for his service in the War of 1812. The Milton family was a pioneering family from North Carolina who settled in an area in Alabama, before establishing the new community in the piney woods east of the Amite River and Denham Springs. In this sense, Walker, Louisiana, by virtue of its establishment, traces its roots to the founding of the nation in Jamestown, Virginia. The Federal government recognized the growth of the settlement and opened a post office as Milton Old Field in 1856. Michael Milton was appointed as postmaster in 1858. In 1890, the post office was renamed after Dr. William Elliott Walker, M.D., a legislator from nearby Springfield, who had also served as a lieutenant colonel in the Confederate States of America.

Walker became a city in 2011, by proclamation of Louisiana Governor Bobby Jindal.

Geography
Walker is located at 30.48944°N, -90.86278°W (30.489423, -90.862872). According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 5.8 square miles (14.9 km$2$), all land.

The city is located roughly 20 miles east of Baton Rouge, the Louisiana State Capitol.

Demographics
As of the 2020 United States census, there were 6,374 people, 2,449 households, and 1,557 families residing in the city.

According to the 2010 census, there were 6,138 people, 2,297 households, and 1,693 families residing in the city. The racial makeup of the city was 85.2% White, 10.8% African American, 0.3% Native American, 0.07% Asian, 1.6% from other races, and 1.4% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 2.9% of the population.

According to the 2000 census, the population density was 834.8 PD/sqmi. There were 1,905 housing units at an average density of 331.2 /sqmi. There were 1,758 households, out of which 39.6% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 59.4% were married couples living together, 11.1% had a female householder with no husband present, and 24.9% were non-families. 21.3% of all households were made up of individuals, and 8.5% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.73 and the average family size was 3.18.

In the town the population was spread out, with 29.8% under the age of 18, 9.7% from 18 to 24, 31.4% from 25 to 44, 19.5% from 45 to 64, and 9.6% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 32 years. For every 100 females, there were 97.9 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 91.6 males. The median income for a household in the town was $38,298, and the median income for a family was $43,750. Males had a median income of $32,907 versus $21,775 for females. The per capita income for the town was $16,056. About 5.9% of families and 9.6% of the population were below the poverty line, including 5.8% of those under age 18 and 20.6% of those age 65 or over.

Education
Walker is within the Livingston Parish Public Schools and includes Walker High School.

The Livingston Parish Literacy and Technology Center in Walker is named for Sally Clausen, former Louisiana commissioner of education, and her brother, Thomas G. Clausen, state education superintendent from 1984 to 1988.

Notable people

 * Jefferson D. Hughes, III, associate justice of the Louisiana Supreme Court since 2013, Walker resident
 * Mike DeJean, Former Major League Pitcher, grew up in Walker and graduated from Walker High School.
 * Julie Cantrell, editor and best-selling novelist, attended K-12 in Walker.
 * Brian Thomas Jr., American football wide receiver for the LSU Tigers

title: Walker, Louisiana


text:
Delta, Louisiana

Delta is a village in Madison Parish, Louisiana, United States. The population was 232 at the 2020 census. It is part of the Tallulah Micropolitan Statistical Area.

As the birthplace of African-American entrepreneur Madam C. J. Walker, the first American woman to become a millionaire by her own business achievements, it has been included as one of 26 featured sites on the Louisiana African American Heritage Trail. In nearby Tallulah, the parish seat, a related site is the Hermione Museum, which has an exhibit about Walker.

Geography
Delta is located on the eastern edge of Madison Parish and the state of Louisiana at 32.32139°N, -90.93667°W (32.321342, -90.936544). It sits on the inside of a bend in the Mississippi River known as Delta Point, across which is the city of Vicksburg, Mississippi. Interstate 20 and U.S. Route 80 pass through the village, leading east to Vicksburg and west 16 mi to Tallulah, the parish seat.

According to the United States Census Bureau, the village of Delta has a total area of 4.61 sqmi, of which 4.44 sqmi are land and 0.17 sqmi, or 3.65%, are water.

2020 census
As of the 2020 United States census, there were 232 people, 104 households, and 89 families residing in the village.

2000 census
As of the census of 2000, there were 239 people, 101 households, and 62 families residing in the village. The population density was 80.2 PD/sqmi. There were 111 housing units at an average density of 37.3 /sqmi. The racial makeup of the village was 94.98% White, 2.51% African American, 0.42% Native American, 0.42% from other races, and 1.67% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 3.35% of the population.

There were 101 households, out of which 32.7% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 51.5% were married couples living together, 8.9% had a female householder with no husband present, and 38.6% were non-families. 33.7% of all households were made up of individuals, and 12.9% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.37 and the average family size was 3.00.

In the village, the population was spread out, with 25.9% under the age of 18, 12.6% from 18 to 24, 28.0% from 25 to 44, 22.2% from 45 to 64, and 11.3% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 34 years. For every 100 females, there were 82.4 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 86.3 males.

The median income for a household in the village was $29,750, and the median income for a family was $33,214. Males had a median income of $37,708 versus $18,929 for females. The per capita income for the village was $15,346. About 9.6% of families and 12.5% of the population were below the poverty line, including 14.6% of those under the age of eighteen and 38.9% of those 65 or over.

Climate
The climate in this area is characterized by relatively high temperatures and evenly distributed precipitation throughout the year. According to the Köppen Climate Classification system, Delta has a Humid subtropical climate, abbreviated "Cfa" on climate maps.

Notable people

 * George H. Bradfield, associate justice of the Colorado Supreme Court
 * Curtis Pollard, a minister, farmer, store keeper and state legislator who served in the Louisiana State Senate during the Reconstruction era
 * Madam C. J. Walker, African-American hair care entrepreneur, tycoon and philanthropist born at Delta in 1867

title: Delta, Louisiana


text:
Mound, Louisiana

Mound is a village in Madison Parish, Louisiana, United States. With a population of 12 at the 2020 census, it is Louisiana's smallest village by population. Its ZIP Code is 71282. It is part of the Tallulah Micropolitan Statistical Area.

History
The community was named for a Native American mound which stood at the original site.

Geography
Mound is in eastern Madison Parish, 2 mi south of the Mississippi River. Along U.S. Route 80, it is 10 mi east of Tallulah, the parish seat, and 12 mi west of Vicksburg, Mississippi. Interstate 20 passes through the southern part of the village, with access from Exit 182.

Vicksburg Tallulah Regional Airport is on the north side of the village.

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the village has an area of 0.52 sqmi, of which 0.002 sqmi, or 0.38%, are water. Walnut Bayou, an anabranch of the Mississippi River, passes through the southwest corner of the village.

Demographics
At the 2000 census there were 12 people, 4 households, and 4 families in the village. The population density was 49.3 PD/sqmi. There were 5 housing units at an average density of 20.5 per square mile (8.0/km$2$). The racial makeup of the village was 100.00% White. 50.0% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 100.0% were married couples living together, and 0.0% were non-families. No households were one person, and none had someone living alone who was 65 or older. The average household size was 3.00 and the average family size was 3.00.

The age distribution was 25.0% under the age of 18, 8.3% from 18 to 24, 25.0% from 25 to 44, 25.0% from 45 to 64, and 16.7% 65 or older. The median age was 42 years. For every 100 females, there were 50.0 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 80.0 males.

The median household income was in excess of $200,000, as was the median family income. Males and females had a median income over $100,000. The per capita income for the village was $92,200. There were 33.3% of families living below the poverty line and 50.0% of the population, including 50.0% of those under 18 and none of those over 64.

title: Mound, Louisiana


text:
Richmond, Louisiana

Richmond is a village in Madison Parish, Louisiana, United States, located on Brushy Bayou. The population was 511 at the 2020 census, down from 577 in 2010. It is part of the Tallulah Micropolitan Statistical Area.

Geography
Richmond is located at 32.38583°N, -91.17472°W (32.385935, -91.174639) in east-central Madison Parish. It is bordered to the north by the city of Tallulah, the parish seat. Interstate 20 passes through the south side of the village, with access from Exit 173. I-20 leads west 20 mi to Delhi and east the same distance to Vicksburg, Mississippi.

According to the United States Census Bureau, Richmond has a total area of 1.66 sqmi, all of it recorded as land. Brushy Bayou, a branch of Bayou Roundaway, passes through the eastern part of the village and loops around the north and west sides of the village.

Demographics
As of the census of 2000, there were 499 people, 191 households, and 140 families residing in the village. The population density was 303.3 PD/sqmi. There were 202 housing units at an average density of 122.8 /sqmi. The racial makeup of the village was 92.18% White, 4.81% African American, 0.40% Asian, 1.60% from other races, and 1.00% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 4.41% of the population.

There were 191 households, out of which 31.9% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 61.3% were married couples living together, 8.4% had a female householder with no husband present, and 26.7% were non-families. 22.5% of all households were made up of individuals, and 6.3% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.57 and the average family size was 2.99.

In the village, the population was spread out, with 24.0% under the age of 18, 11.0% from 18 to 24, 28.5% from 25 to 44, 27.9% from 45 to 64, and 8.6% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 37 years. For every 100 females, there were 87.6 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 87.6 males.

The median income for a household in the village was $39,485, and the median income for a family was $42,500. Males had a median income of $33,750 versus $24,821 for females. The per capita income for the village was $19,650. About 3.3% of families and 6.2% of the population were below the poverty line, including 3.2% of those under age 18 and 5.5% of those age 65 or over.

title: Richmond, Louisiana


text:
Tallulah, Louisiana

Tallulah is a city in, and the parish seat of, Madison Parish in northeastern Louisiana, United States. As of the 2020 census, the population was 6,286, down from 7,335 in 2010.

As this was historically a center of agriculture since the antebellum years, producing cotton and pecans, Tallulah and the parish have long had majority-African American populations. The small city is now nearly 77 percent African American; the surrounding parish is 60 percent black. Mechanization and industrial agriculture have reduced the number of jobs, and many residents have moved since the mid-20th century to larger cities with more opportunities.

Tallulah is the principal city of the Tallulah Micropolitan Statistical Area, which includes all of Madison Parish. The Madison Parish Sheriff's office operates the Steve Hoyle Rehabilitation Center in Tallulah.

History
This area was developed in the antebellum years by European Americans for cotton plantations. They brought in thousands of enslaved African Americans to produce and process the crops. Major planters grew wealthy from their labor at a time when the market for cotton was strong.

Post-Civil War to 1942
After the American Civil War, many freedmen from the plantations stayed in the parish, often working as sharecroppers. In the late 19th century, Italian immigrants settled in Louisiana, most in New Orleans but some in outlying parishes such as Madison. Some served as migrant workers on cotton or sugar cane plantations, in the north or south of the state, respectively. The immigrants were primarily from Sicily. Starting as farm workers, some banded together to establish small stores, such as groceries in parish seats and other trading towns.

By 1899, five Sicilians were doing a good business in Tallulah, with four small stores devoted to fruit, vegetables and poultry. All but one of the men were relatives. Whites attacked the Sicilians because of economic competition. They had also been criticized for failing to comply with Jim Crow rules: if they had black customers waiting, they made new white customers wait their turn rather than giving the whites preference, as was the custom. On July 20, 1899, a mob of white residents of Tallulah lynched the five Sicilians from Cefalù. Two other Italians who lived in nearby Milliken's Bend fled the area for their safety. The Italians were still citizens (nationals) of Italy, and their government protested strongly to the United States government about each lynching murder. The US government said that the states had to prosecute such killings. As was typical in this period of frequent lynchings of black US citizens, none of the white lynch mob was prosecuted.

The city developed through the early 20th century and had a growing population, as people came in from rural areas to work in the lumber mills and timber processing. Because it was the center of a major agricultural area, Tallulah became the site of the Louisiana Delta Fair, held annually in October through the first half of the 20th century. It featured exhibits from Madison, East Carroll, and Tensas parishes. Later in the century, the fair was phased out.

Shirley Field, also known as Scott Field, was reportedly the first airport in Louisiana; it was built in 1922 near Tallulah. Dr. B.R. Coad, head of the Agricultural Experiment Laboratory, developed a process and equipment for crop dusting from airplanes, in order to combat the devastating boll weevil infestation of cotton crops. The USDA bought a Huff-Daland plane for this purpose in 1924. Hundreds of flights took off from the Tallulah Airport as this process was developed, and fields on both sides of the Mississippi were treated. Delta Air Lines had its origins from Delta Dusters, the company developed here to produce and operate crop dusting from airplanes. Shirley Field and the original airport building still stand near Tallulah, and are listed on the National Register of Historic Places (NRHP).

The parish seat also attracted Jewish immigrants. Based on the success of their drugstore, in 1927 merchant brothers Mertie M. and Abe Bloom built the first enclosed shopping mall, Bloom's Arcade, in the United States in Tallulah. It was built by A. Hays Town in the style of European city arcades. The building had a central hall, with stores located on either side, much like the ones today. The hall opened into the street on both ends. This landmark is still in Tallulah, located along what is now U.S. Route 80. It is listed on the National Register of Historic Places (NRHP). As of late 2013, it had been restored to its original architectural character and was adapted as an apartment complex.

Later in 1927, the downtown was flooded during the Great Mississippi Flood of 1927. Many downtown stores were flooded by several feet of water. It took time for the town to recover.

World War II to present
After serving in World War II, African-American veterans began to challenge racial discrimination in the South more vigorously. After the Supreme Court ruled in Smith v. Allwright (1944) that the white primary of the Democratic Party was unconstitutional, more blacks began to register in the South. However, in Louisiana, the number of white qualified voters in 1947 still surpassed blacks by a ratio of 100 to one.

The population increased in Tallulah in the decades after the war, reaching a high in 1980 (see tables below). African Americans were the majority population in the city and the parish. Having faced continuing discrimination in efforts to vote, in 1962 a group of eight African-American men successfully sued the parish registrar and state to be able to register and vote. Following passage of the national Civil Rights Act in 1964, in 1965, activists conducted boycotts to end discrimination in employment; many stores would not hire blacks as workers. Seventeen businesses closed in the city rather than hire blacks.

That year, Congress passed the Voting Rights Act, authorizing the federal government to oversee voter registration and elections in jurisdictions such as Tallulah and Madison Parish with historic under-representation of minorities. The proportion of African-American voting began to increase.

In 1969, Zelma Wyche, a local veteran and activist, was elected as Police Chief of Tallulah, the first African American to hold the office. He ensured there were an equal number of white and black police officers on the force and had them patrol in mixed teams.

In 1971, black candidates were running for 21 of 27 parish seats in Madison Parish, a sign of the changing times. In other parts of Louisiana, African Americans were also running for local offices.

In 1974, Adell Williams was elected as mayor of Tallulah, the first African American to hold the office. He is believed to have been the first black mayor elected in Louisiana since Reconstruction.

The city had its peak of population in 1980. The mechanization of agriculture and the decline of some former industries have reduced the number of local jobs, with population following. It used to be considered a lumber mill town, with the Chicago Mill and Lumber dominating local industry from its site on the west side of the city. After declines from the 1970s, the mill closed in 1983, adding to local economic problems.

Unlike some other areas of the state, only four antebellum structures remain in the parish, because of destruction by General Ulysses S. Grant's forces during the Vicksburg Campaign in the Civil War. One is a one-story 1855 plantation house, known as Hermione, from the Kell Plantation. It was used by Grant as a Union hospital.

After being donated to the Madison Historical Society in 1997, Hermione was moved to its current site on North Mulberry Street in Tallulah. It was adapted to serve both as offices for the society and as the Hermione Museum, and is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Among its exhibits is one about Madam C. J. Walker, the first African-American woman to become a self-made businesswoman and millionaire.

Born free soon after the war as Sarah Breedlove in nearby Delta, Louisiana, she moved north as a young woman, where she developed a line of hair-care products that she manufactured and sold nationally. The museum is on the Louisiana African American Heritage Trail.

On April 24, 2010, an EF4 tornado touched down just outside Tallulah, causing numerous injuries. The tornado damaged a tanker in a chemical plant, causing a small nitrogen leak. Significant damage to an industrial plant with associated injuries, trapped people, and destroyed homes nearby were reported in Madison Parish near the Louisiana-Mississippi state line. The tornado continued across the Mississippi River. It gained strength and struck Yazoo, Holmes, and Choctaw counties in Mississippi, causing 10 fatalities and extensive destruction.

Seviers of Tallulah
Tallulah and Madison Parish have been led and represented politically by numerous members of the prominent Sevier family, who were longtime planters. They are descended from John Sevier, a veteran of the American Revolution, and his wife. Later they were pioneers in what is now Tennessee, and Sevier was elected as the first governor of Tennessee. He was the namesake for the city of Sevierville, Tennessee.

George Washington Sevier Sr. (1858–1925) was elected as a member of the Madison Parish Police Jury. He served as the parish tax assessor from 1891 to 1916. Except for the years 1887–90, there has been at least one member of the Sevier family in public office for the 122 years preceding 2005. The family's power was maintained primarily in the decades-long period when Democratic Party whites dominated voting, and Louisiana was virtually a one-party state. From its passage of a new constitution in 1898, the state legislature worked to disenfranchise African Americans, who were then mostly members of the Republican Party. They were systematically disenfranchised and nearly excluded from the political system until after passage of civil rights legislation in the mid-20th century.

Under these conditions, Andrew Leonard Sevier Sr. was repeatedly re-elected as a Democratic member of the Louisiana State Senate, serving from 1932 until his death in 1962. His widow, the former Irene Newman Jordan, was appointed to serve the rest of his term. Andrew Jackson Sevier Jr. served as sheriff of Madison Parish from 1904 until his death in office in 1941. He was succeeded for the rest of his term by his widow, Mary Louise Day Sevier. A cousin of the Seviers, Henry Clay Sevier, was a member of the Louisiana House of Representatives from 1936 to 1952.

James D. Sevier Sr. and his son, also named James, held the office of tax assessor for more than four decades. Mason Spencer, husband of Rosa Sevier Spencer, represented Madison Parish in the Louisiana House from 1924 to 1936. He planned to run for governor of Louisiana in 1935 but withdrew his candidacy after the assassination of former governor Huey Pierce Long Jr.; Richard Leche of New Orleans, of the Long faction, won the office.

Among the political leaders from this family were William Putnam "Buck" Sevier Jr., a banker. He first served three terms as an elected town alderman in Tallulah. He was elected as mayor of the city in 1946 and served for nearly 30 years, from 1947 to 1974. His tenure included some of the volatile years of the civil rights movement, when African Americans sought changes to the Jim Crow system and justice as citizens. Sevier led white residents in adapting to change as more African-American citizens began to register, vote and be elected to local offices. Sevier at the time of his death held the record, at more than forty-four years, as the longest-serving publicly elected official in Louisiana.

Detention and correction facilities
In November 1994, the state opened the privately operated Tallulah Correctional Center for Youth on the western edge of the city. Residents hoped it would provide jobs for local people and aid the local economy, but there were soon problems associated with management of the facility, and the jobs there were low paying. In addition to problems within the facility, the prison seemed to have an adverse effect on the city. In 1999, the state took over operating the facility, renaming it the Swanson Correctional Center for Youth/Madison Parish Unit, but there continued to be problems with the treatment of youth.

A coalition of townspeople began to work on ideas for different uses for the land. The state decided to close the facility, and the coalition proposed an educational center instead. They gained legislative approval in one year, so when the juvenile prison was closed in 2004, there were plans developed for an educational center on the site. A bill for the Northeast Delta Learning Center was signed by Governor Kathleen Blanco in July 2004. Issues remaining were getting funding for it and offsetting a proposal to use the facility as an adult prison. Despite the desire of the townspeople, the facility was converted to house adult prisoners. It is known as the Madison Parish Louisiana Transitional Center for Women (LCTW), houses 535 inmates, and is operated by LaSalle Corrections, a private company.

Other related facilities in Tallulah, as it is the parish seat, are the Madison Parish Detention Center, with 264 inmates, and the Madison Parish Correctional Center, with 334 inmates. These are also operated by LaSalle Corrections.

Geography
Tallulah is in east-central Madison Parish in northeastern Louisiana. It is in the valley of the Mississippi River, 7 mi southwest of the river itself. It is bordered to the south by the village of Richmond.

U.S. Routes 65 and U.S. Route 80 cross in the center of Tallulah. US 65 leads north 28 mi to Lake Providence and south 26 mi to Newellton, while US 80 leads west 19 mi to Delhi and east 22 mi to Vicksburg, Mississippi. Interstate 20 crosses the southernmost part of Tallulah, with access from Exit 171 (US 65). I-20 leads east to Vicksburg and west 56 mi to Monroe.

According to the United States Census Bureau, Tallulah has a total area of 2.78 sqmi, all of it recorded as land. Brushy Bayou passes through the center of town.

Demographics

As of the 2020 United States census, there were 6,286 people, 2,561 households, and 1,528 families residing in the city.

Education
Madison Parish School Board operates public schools.
 * Madison High School - grades 9-12
 * Madison Middle School (grades 6, 7 and 8)
 * Wright Elementary School (grades 3-5)
 * Tallulah Elementary School (grades PreK-2)

 * Louisiana Technical College operates a Tallulah campus.

Notable people

 * Clifford Cleveland Brooks, planter in St. Joseph; represented Madison Parish in the Louisiana State Senate from 1924 to 1932
 * Buddy Caldwell, former Attorney General of Louisiana since 2008; former Madison, East Carroll, and Tensas parish district attorney
 * James Haynes, NFL player
 * Jimmy "Cooch Eye" Jones, former National Basketball Association (NBA) player with the Baltimore Bullets
 * Paul Jorgensen, professional boxer
 * John Little, professional football player
 * Robert Nixon, American serial killer
 * Joe Osborn, musician
 * James Silas, professional basketball player.
 * Jefferson B. Snyder, district attorney of Madison Parish from 1904 to 1948.
 * Madam C. J. Walker, born Sarah Breedlove on December 23, 1867, near Delta, Louisiana. She was a businesswoman who became a self-made millionaire from health care products she developed and sold for African Americans.
 * Zelma Wyche, political activist, first African-American police chief, and elected mayor of Tallulah, sometimes called "Mr. Civil Rights of Louisiana".

Representation in other media

 * Donna Jo Napoli, Alligator Bayou (2009), young adult historical novel about the 1899 lynchings of Italians in Tallulah, published by Wendy Lamb Books.

title: Tallulah, Louisiana


text:
Bastrop, Louisiana

Bastrop is a city in Morehouse Parish, Louisiana, United States. It is the parish seat of Morehouse Parish. The population was 9,691 at the 2020 census, down from 11,365 in 2010. The population of Bastrop is 76 percent African American. It is included in the Monroe Metropolitan Statistical Area and is part of the Monroe–Ruston Combined Statistical Area.

History
Bastrop was founded by Felipe Enrique Neri, Baron de Bastrop, a Dutch businessman accused as an embezzler. He had fled to the then Spanish colony of Louisiana to escape prosecution and became involved in various land deals. In New Spain, he falsely claimed to be a nobleman. He received a large grant of land, provided that he could settle 450 families on it over the next several years. However, he was unable to do this, and so lost the grant. Afterwards, he moved to Texas, where he claimed to oppose the sale of Louisiana to the United States and became a minor government official. He proved instrumental in Moses Austin's plan (and later, that of his son, Stephen F. Austin) to bring American colonists to what was then northern Mexico.

Bastrop formally incorporated in 1857, and is the commercial and industrial center of Morehouse Parish. In the 19th century, it was notable as the western edge of the great North Louisiana swamp, but more favorable terrain resulted in the antebellum rail line connecting to Monroe, further to the south.

Bastrop was a Confederate stronghold during the American Civil War until January 1865, when 3,000 cavalrymen led by Colonel Embury D. Osband of the 3rd United States Colored Cavalry Regiment, embarked from Memphis, Tennessee, for northeastern Louisiana.

During the Great Mississippi Flood of 1927, Bastrop was the site of a relief camp for refugees. During World War II, it was the site of a German prisoner-of-war camp.

Bastrop is the parish seat of Morehouse Parish and is within an area marketed to tourists as the Sportsman's Paradise Region of Louisiana. It is a Main Street Community and has received Transportation Enhancement funding for improvements in its historic district.

Celebrations and concerts are held in the historic downtown at the restored 1914 Morehouse Parish Courthouse and Rose Theater. Bastrop is home to the Snyder Museum and Creative Arts Center, housed in the circa 1929 home of a local family. Volunteers lead heritage appreciation tours for children and interpret the history of the parish using local artifacts.

Geography
Bastrop is located in western Morehouse Parish, at the crossroads of U.S. Highway 425 and U.S. Highway 165 (Madison Avenue).

According to the United States Census Bureau, Bastrop has a total area of 8.59 sqmi, all of it land.

Demographics
As of the 2020 United States Census, there were 9,691 people, 3,834 households, and 2,273 families residing in the city.

Economy
In 2008, International Paper Company, the largest area employer, ceased operations of its Bastrop mill.

In 2009, poultry processor Pilgrim's Pride closed multiple facilities in the area, which impacted the economy of Bastrop. DG Foods opened a poultry processing plant at Bastrop in 2011.

In 2015, and wood pellet facility opened in Bastrop, employing 64 people.

The 1023rd Engineer Company (Vertical) of the 528th Engineer Battalion of the 225th Engineer Brigade is located in Bastrop.

Arts and culture

A branch of the Morehouse Parish Public Library System is located in Bastrop.

Government
Bastrop is governed by a mayor, Betty Alford-Olive, and a city council, which includes:
 * Angela Moore, District A
 * Charles Bradford, District B
 * James Green, District C
 * Darry Green, District D
 * Howard Loche, District E

Public schools
Public schools located in Bastrop are operated by the Morehouse Parish School Board, and include:
 * Bastrop High School
 * Beekman Charter School
 * Morehouse Elementary School
 * Morehouse Magnet School

Private schools
Prairie View Academy is a private school in Bastrop serving kindergarten to grade 12.

Postsecondary schools
Louisiana Delta Community College has a campus in Bastrop.

Bastrop High School prayer controversy
In 2011, graduating senior Damon Fowler objected to prayer at the Bastrop High School graduation exercises, claiming a looming violation of the First Amendment to the Constitution of the United States. The American Civil Liberties Union of Louisiana asked the school not to include a prayer in the May 20 graduation. At the Thursday night rehearsal for the graduation, senior Sarah Barlow included a prayer that explicitly mentioned Jesus Christ, and during the graduation, student Laci Mattice led people in the Lord's Prayer before a moment of silence. The school says that Mattice was told not to include a prayer. Fowler stated that after his objections became public he was ostracized by other students.

Media

Bastrop and Morehouse Parish were until 2019 served by a daily newspaper, the Bastrop Daily Enterprise, which ceased operations because of financial and readership issues.

Notable people

 * Ronnie Coleman, professional bodybuilder
 * Bill Dickey, Major League Baseball Hall of Fame catcher for the New York Yankees
 * Denzel Devall, college football player
 * Michael Echols, member of the Louisiana House of Representatives
 * Stump Edington, Major League Baseball player who died in Bastrop
 * David 'Bo' Ginn, state senator from Morehouse Parish from 1980 to 1988
 * Luther E. Hall, governor of Louisiana
 * Stacey Hawkins, United States Air Force major general
 * Ed Head, Major League Baseball player who died in Bastrop
 * Mable John, Motown Records singer born in Bastrop
 * Jim Looney, NFL player
 * Bob Love, NBA basketball player
 * Calvin Natt, National Basketball Association player who was born in Monroe, but attended Bastrop High School, later NLU and was an NBA All-Star with the Denver Nuggets
 * Kenny Natt, National Basketball Association younger brother of Kenny Natt, drafted by Indiana Pacers in 1980
 * Willie Parker, NFL and WFL player
 * Rueben Randle, LSU Tigers football, wide receiver, led Bastrop High School to a state championship, was drafted by the New York Giants in 2012
 * Shane Reynolds, Major League Baseball player
 * John Wesley Ryles, country music singer, born in Bastrop in 1950
 * Talance Sawyer, played for the Minnesota Vikings; born in Bastrop
 * Dylan Scott, country music singer-songwriter
 * Pat Williams, NFL player (Minnesota Vikings); born in Bastrop
 * Hulon B. Whittington, Medal of Honor recipient

title: Bastrop, Louisiana


text:
Bonita, Louisiana

Bonita is a village in Morehouse Parish, Louisiana, United States. The population was 170 at the 2020 census, down from 284 in 2010.

History
Not much is known on the early history of Bonita, but it is believed that the exstention of the Missouri Pacific Railroad through Morehouse Parish in the 1890s is what triggered the establishment of the town. The construction of a post office around the same period solidifies this.

Bonita was incorporated as a village in 1901.

Five churches serve the small village. St. Mark Missionary Baptist Church, St. Luke Baptist Church, St. Joe Ame Church, the Bonita Church of God, and the Bonita Baptist Church.

Geography
Bonita is located in northeastern Morehouse Parish at 32.92167°N, -91.67389°W (32.921780, -91.673838). U.S. Route 165 passes through the village, leading southwest 12 mi to Mer Rouge and 20 mi to Bastrop, the parish seat, while to the northeast it leads 11 mi to Wilmot, Arkansas.

According to the United States Census Bureau, Bonita has a total area of 1.35 sqmi, all of it recorded as land. Bayou Bonne Idee winds through the east side of the village, running south to the Boeuf River east of Oak Ridge. It is part of the Ouachita River watershed.

2000 census
As of the census of 2000, there were 335 people, 122 households, and 87 families residing in the village. The population density was 247.0 PD/sqmi. There were 143 housing units at an average density of 105.4 /sqmi. The racial makeup of the village was 42.69% White, 55.52% African American, 0.30% Asian, 1.49% from other races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 1.49% of the population.

There were 122 households, out of which 30.3% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 50.0% were married couples living together, 16.4% had a female householder with no husband present, and 27.9% were non-families. 25.4% of all households were made up of individuals, and 14.8% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.75 and the average family size was 3.35.

In the village, the population was spread out, with 26.9% under the age of 18, 8.7% from 18 to 24, 23.0% from 25 to 44, 22.4% from 45 to 64, and 19.1% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 39 years. For every 100 females, there were 92.5 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 91.4 males.

The median income for a household in the village was $22,727, and the median income for a family was $25,227. Males had a median income of $19,167 versus $19,688 for females. The per capita income for the village was $25,029. About 25.0% of families and 30.1% of the population were below the poverty line, including 37.6% of those under age 18 and 27.0% of those age 65 or over.

title: Bonita, Louisiana


text:
Collinston, Louisiana

Collinston is a village in Morehouse Parish, Louisiana, United States. The population was 274 at the 2020 census.

History
Very little is known about the Collinston's early history, but it is believed that it was a spanish territory in the 1700s. Originally, Collinston was within Ouachita Parish until the formation of Morehouse Parish in 1844. After an increase in population during and after the Civil War, Collinston was finally granted its charter and became incorporated as a village in 1904. Although the area was not included in the 1900 United States census, it is estimated that the population at that time was 300.

The original city hall at 4628 Main St was built in 1928. Since the early 2000s it has served as a local museum.

The population of Collinston peaked in 1950 at 546 people. Since then it has seen a gradual decline, with an estimated population of only 227 as of 2022.

Geography
Collinston is located in southern Morehouse Parish at 32.69°N, -91.87167°W (32.690121, -91.871583). It is 7 mi southeast of Bastrop, the parish seat, and 23 mi northeast of Monroe.

According to the United States Census Bureau, the village has a total area of 1.13 sqmi, all land.

Demographics
As of the census of 2000, there were 327 people, 132 households, and 83 families residing in the village. The population density was 290.5 PD/sqmi. There were 149 housing units at an average density of 132.4 /sqmi. The racial makeup of the village was 53.82% White, 45.87% African American, and 0.31% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 3.36% of the population.

There were 132 households, out of which 24.2% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 40.2% were married couples living together, 18.2% had a female householder with no husband present, and 36.4% were non-families. 32.6% of all households were made up of individuals, and 14.4% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.48 and the average family size was 3.18.

In the village, the population was spread out, with 24.2% under the age of 18, 11.3% from 18 to 24, 23.2% from 25 to 44, 25.4% from 45 to 64, and 15.9% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 39 years. For every 100 females, there were 90.1 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 77.1 males.

The median income for a household in the village was $17,500, and the median income for a family was $31,042. Males had a median income of $29,844 versus $15,000 for females. The per capita income for the village was $11,686. About 20.9% of families and 31.8% of the population were below the poverty line, including 50.0% of those under age 18 and 21.1% of those age 65 or over.

title: Collinston, Louisiana


text:
Mer Rouge, Louisiana

Mer Rouge (lit. 'Red sea') is a Village in Morehouse Parish, Louisiana, United States. The name is French for "Red Sea". The population was 491 at the 2020 census, down from 628 in 2010.

History
There is a hill that serves as a boundary between Mer Rouge and Bastrop, named "Red Hill". According to legend, French settlers recognized the "sea of red sedge" between the bluffs to the north and west of the area. They called it Prarie Mer Rouge, or the "red sea" prairie.

On February 3, 1865, near the end of the American Civil War, two squadrons of the Illinois cavalry attacked Mer Rouge and, according to historian John D. Winters, seized some horses and mules, while also freeing some enslaved African-Americans. They then "burned about 300,000 bushels of corn [and] some cotton", thus undermining the production power of the pro-slavery rebels.

In August 1922, in a case that would attract national attention, members of the Ku Klux Klan abducted two Mer Rouge men—Filmore Watt Daniel and Thomas Fletcher Richard—on the Bastrop highway. After torturing and killing the men, the Klansmen disposed of their bodies in nearby Lake Lafourche. Following the killings, Louisiana Governor John M. Parker sought help from the U.S. Department of Justice in suppressing Klan violence within the state.

Geography
Mer Rouge is in central Morehouse Parish, 7 mi east of Bastrop, the parish seat. The above-mentioned Red Hill rises 50 ft above the plain on which Mer Rouge sits, about halfway between the village and Bastrop.

U.S. Routes 165 and 425 pass through the village. The highways lead together westerly to Bastrop but split in the center of Mer Rouge, the US 165 leading northeast 12 mi to Bonita and US 425 leading south 11 mi to Oak Ridge.

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, Mer Rouge has an area of 1.18 sqmi, of which 0.008 sqmi, or 0.68%, are water.

Demographics
As of the census of 2000, there were 956 people, 504 households, and 172 families residing in the village. The population density was 576.8 PD/sqmi. There were 293 housing units at an average density of 234.4 /sqmi. The racial makeup of the village was 62.97% White, 36.48% African American, 0.28% Native American, and 0.28% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 1.11% of the population.

There were 264 households, out of which 27.7% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 41.7% were married couples living together, 20.1% had a female householder with no husband present, and 34.5% were non-families. 30.7% of all households were made up of individuals, and 15.2% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.28 and the average family size was 2.86.

In the village, the population was spread out, with 20.0% under the age of 18, 7.4% from 18 to 24, 23.3% from 25 to 44, 20.9% from 45 to 64, and 28.4% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 45 years. For every 100 females, there were 81.2 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 78.1 males.

The median income for a household in the village was $23,472, and the median income for a family was $27,273. Males had a median income of $26,833 versus $19,861 for females. The per capita income for the village was $12,759. About 29.7% of families and 39.6% of the population were below the poverty line, including 51.7% of those under age 18 and 10.9% of those age 65 or over.

Notable people

 * Lou Brock, former Major League Baseball player and member of the Baseball Hall of Fame
 * Ben Lilly, famous big game hunter; once owned a farm located near Mer Rouge
 * Newt V. Mills, congressman from Louisiana's 5th District; taught school in Mer Rouge from 1921 to 1932
 * Samuel W. Mitcham Jr., writer of military history; born in Mer Rouge

title: Mer Rouge, Louisiana