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Rayne, Louisiana

Rayne is a city in the U.S. state of Louisiana, in Acadia Parish. With a population of 7,326 at the 2020 United States census, it is nicknamed the "Frog Capital of the World",  as well as the "Louisiana City of Murals". Rayne is part of the Crowley micropolitan statistical area, and within the Lafayette metropolitan statistical area in Acadiana.

History of Rayne, LA
Rayne, Louisiana, is located in Acadia Parish and has a rich history dating back to the late 19th century. The area that would become Rayne was originally part of a large land grant awarded to French settlers in the 18th century. These settlers were primarily involved in agriculture, cultivating crops such as rice and sugarcane.

The establishment of Rayne began in earnest in the 1880s with the arrival of the railroad. The city was initially named Pouppeville, after a prominent local figure, but was soon renamed Rayne in honor of Rayne Grey, an engineer for the Southern Pacific Railroad, whose efforts were instrumental in bringing the railroad to the area. The railroad not only facilitated transportation and commerce but also attracted a diverse population, contributing to the town's growth and development.

Rayne's association with frogs began in the early 20th century. Local entrepreneur Jacques Weil noticed the abundance of frogs in the region and started exporting frog legs to New Orleans. This venture proved successful, and soon Rayne became known for its frog exports, earning its unique moniker. Over time, frogs became an integral part of the city's identity and culture.

Throughout its history, Rayne has experienced growth and modernization while retaining its small-town charm and distinctive character. The community values its historical roots and continues to celebrate its unique cultural heritage, making Rayne a noteworthy example of Louisiana's rich and diverse history.

Today, Rayne remains a vibrant community known for its warm hospitality, cultural festivals, and as a proud emblem of Acadian heritage in the heart of Louisiana.

Geography
According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 9.9 sqkm, of which 0.02 sqkm, or 0.18%, is water. The city is located in Acadiana, and forms part of the Lafayette metropolitan area.

Demographics
As of the 2020 United States census, there were 7,236 people, 2,834 households, and 1,879 families residing in the city. The 2019 American Community Survey estimated 8,041 people and 2,834 households resided in the city.

In 2019, the racial and ethnic makeup of the city was 58.0% non-Hispanic or Latino white, 37.6% Black or African American, 3.3% two or more races, and 1.1% Hispanic and Latin American of any race. At the 2000 United States census, the racial and ethnic makeup of the city was 65.55% White American, 33.52% African American, 0.11% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.16% Asian, 0.19% from other races, and 0.47% from two or more races; Hispanic and Latin Americans of any race were 0.81% of the population. From 2015 to 2019, the largest Hispanic and Latin American groups were Mexican Americans and stateside Puerto Ricans (0.3% each).

There were 2,834 households and 3,463 housing units at the 2019 American Community Survey. Of the 1,569 occupied housing units, 879 were married couples living together, 97 were male households with no female present, and 137 female households with no male present. The average family size was 3.34, up from 3.22 at the 2000 census, and 38.0% of the population were never married.

In the city, the population was spread out, with 10.9% aged 5 and under, 76.0% aged 18 and older, and 16.6% aged 65 and older. The median age was 40.2 years, up from 34 years in 2000. The largest ancestry groups among the population were French (18.8%), Irish (6.6%), sub-Saharan African (2.1%), German (1.9%), English (1.4%), Scottish (0.9%), and Italian (0.7%). An estimated 10.1% spoke a language other than English at home, and Spanish was spoken by 1.1% of the population; other Indo-European languages were spoken by 8.7% of the population.

At the 2019 American Community Survey, the median household income was $32,266 and the median income for a family was $41,721; married couples had a median income of $53,373 and non-family households were $17,917. About 30.4% of the population lived at or below the poverty line, and 38.2% of the city aged under 18 lived at or below the poverty line; 32.4% of the population aged 65 and older were at or below the poverty line.

Arts and culture
Rayne hosts their annual Frog Festival the second weekend in May. The festival, which began in 1973, attracts thousands of visitors each year. It's a family-friendly event filled with a variety of activities and entertainment that reflect the city's distinctive character, including frog racing and jumping contests, frog-eating competitions, carnival rides, and live music performances.

Year-round, there are frog sculptures, murals, signs, and statues for visitors to see.

Tornado Strike
An EF2 tornado hit Rayne on March 5, 2011, injuring at least twelve people and killing one person, leveling homes and causing natural gas leaks that prompted evacuations.

Education
The Acadia Parish School Board serves the city. Rayne High School, home of the Mighty Wolves, is located in Rayne.

Other schools in Rayne include:
 * Central Rayne Kindergarten
 * Martin Pettijean Elementary
 * South Rayne Elementary
 * Armstrong Middle School
 * Rayne Catholic Elementary

Notable people

 * Cajun and swamp pop musicians Johnnie Allan, Lee Benoit, Amedée Breaux, Harry Choates, Joe Falcon, "Happy Fats" LeBlanc (of the Rayne-Bo Ramblers), Belton Richard, Jo-El Sonnier, Tony Thibodeaux, Lawrence Walker, and Joe Werner
 * Joshua Benton, director of Nieman Journalism Lab at Harvard University
 * Clint Conque and Ed Zaunbrecher, American football coaches
 * Catherine Fischer, deafblind librarian and author
 * Rhonda Franklin, professor of electrical and computer engineering at the University of Minnesota
 * Mike Heinen, professional golfer
 * Margaret Rose Henry, former majority leader of the Delaware Senate
 * Donnie Meche, Gerard Melancon, and Elvis Perrodin, horse racing jockeys
 * Byron Mouton, former standout basketball player at Tulane and Maryland
 * Gerald Paddio, former NBA basketball player
 * Dave Petitjean, humorist and actor
 * Addison Rae (Easterling), American social media personality and dancer
 * Josh Reed, LSU standout and NFL wide receiver for the Buffalo Bills
 * Irene Whitfield Holmes, ethnomusicologist

title: Rayne, Louisiana


text:
Elizabeth, Louisiana

Elizabeth is a village in Allen Parish, Louisiana, United States with population of 417 in the 2020 census. It was a town and had population of 532 at the 2010 census.

History
As the village's website notes, the Village of Elizabeth was once known as the "Town of Elizabeth". It became a town legally on January 23, 1964, when Gov. Jimmie H. Davis signed a proclamation making Elizabeth the fifth incorporated town in Allen Parish.

"The name Elizabeth was chosen as a tribute to the daughter of Sam Parks, one of the men who established the Industrial Lumber Company's Calcasieu Paper Mill. Elizabeth was carefully planned and held the component of a company town built to feed the lumber mill and made every effort to making them superior. The Town hospital for the mill, now holds Elizabeth's Village Hall."

Geography
According to the United States Census Bureau in 2010, the town (not yet a village) has a total area of 4.3 km2, of which 0.02 sqkm, or 0.37%, is water.

Demographics
As of the 2020 census, Elizabeth was noted as a Village, and it had population of 417.

As of the census of 2000, there were 574 people, 191 households, and 165 families residing in the town. The population density was 353.9 PD/sqmi. There were 205 housing units at an average density of 126.4 /mi2. The racial makeup of the town was 90.07% White, 4.36% African American, 1.22% Native American, 1.22% from other races, and 3.14% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 2.79% of the population. Elizabeth's closest neighbor in Allen Parish is Oakdale, LA. Oakdale is located to the east of Elizabeth.

There were 191 households, out of which 47.1% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 61.8% were married couples living together, 22.0% had a female householder with no husband present, and 13.6% were non-families. 11.0% of all households were made up of individuals, and 5.8% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 3.01 and the average family size was 3.17.

In the town, the population was spread out, with 32.2% under the age of 18, 9.8% from 18 to 24, 26.8% from 25 to 44, 19.2% from 45 to 64, and 12.0% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 30 years. For every 100 females, there were 82.2 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 86.1 males.

The median income for a household in the town was $28,750, and the median income for a family was $30,375. Males had a median income of $30,000 versus $21,250 for females. The per capita income for the town was $10,259. About 14.8% of families and 15.5% of the population were below the poverty line, including 20.3% of those under age 18 and 3.3% of those age 65 or over.

Notable people

 * Faye Emerson, known in the early 1950s as the "First Lady of Television", was born in Elizabeth in 1917 and died in Majorca in 1983.

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

title: Elizabeth, Louisiana


text:
Kinder, Louisiana

Kinder is a small town in Allen Parish, Louisiana, in the United States. The population was 2,477 at the 2010 census.

The Lieutenant Douglas B. Fournet Memorial Park, an American Legion enterprise, was dedicated on June 11, 1988, in Kinder to remember those who died in military service to the nation.

Kinder was the birthplace of the late Mayor J. Rayburn Bertrand of Lafayette, who served from 1960 to 1972 and presided over the near doubling of the municipal population.

Kinder is home to Coushatta Casino Resort, the largest casino resort in Louisiana. The resort includes Koasati Pines, an 18-hole par 72 championship layout golf course.

Geography
Kinder is located at 30.48667°N, -92.84667°W (30.486696, −92.846779).

According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 14.3 km2, all land.

2020 census
As of the 2020 United States census, there were 2,170 people, 973 households, and 649 families residing in the town.

2000 census
As of the census of 2000, there were 2,148 people, 848 households, and 576 families residing in the town. The population density was 1,311.4 PD/sqmi. There were 950 housing units at an average density of 580.0 /sqmi. The racial makeup of the town was 73.79% White, 22.30% African American, 1.26% Native American, 1.07% Asian, 0.09% Pacific Islander, 0.19% from other races, and 1.30% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 1.02% of the population.

There were 848 households, out of which 36.4% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 44.0% were married couples living together, 19.8% had a female householder with no husband present, and 32.0% were non-families. 28.9% of all households were made up of individuals, and 13.9% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.42 and the average family size was 2.97.

In the town, the population was spread out, with 28.6% under the age of 18, 8.1% from 18 to 24, 26.2% from 25 to 44, 19.4% from 45 to 64, and 17.7% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 35 years. For every 100 females, there were 84.1 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 75.3 males.

The median income for a household in the town was $25,493, and the median income for a family was $31,799. Males had a median income of $28,015 versus $19,015 for females. The per capita income for the town was $13,187. About 19.6% of families and 20.2% of the population were below the poverty line, including 23.6% of those under age 18 and 25.8% of those age 65 or over.

Notable people

 * Beau Jocque, zydeco musician
 * Bruston Manuel, Tony Award-winning Broadway producer
 * Blake Trahan, former professional baseball player
 * Douglas B. Fournet, United States Army officer and posthumous recipient of the Medal of Honor during the Vietnam War
 * Roy Brown, Blues Musician

History
James A. Kinder, a Union soldier, went south during the Civil War and after the war, he returned to the state, settling first in Rapides Parish in 1870, then moving south to Kinder. He homesteaded a Soldier's Land Grant of 138.77 acre and built a home and store where Highway 165 and Highway 190 now intersect. His customers called the store Kinder's Store.

Jabez Bunting Watkins brought the Watkins, Kansas City and Gulf Railroad through Kinder, and purchased Kinder's land in 1892. Kinder moved to Lake Charles.

After buying Kinder's property, JB Watkins brought in a surveyor, John W. Rhorer, to make a plat and lay out town streets for a company town. In 1903, Louisiana Gov. William Heard issued a proclamation declaring the site the Village of Kinder.

Among the first families who came to Kinder, all employees of Watkins Enterprises, were Milton B. McRill, John M. Houston and Philetus Philbrick. McRill joined JB Watkins' venture as a railroad contractor. His job was to build 100 mi of railway from Alexandria to Lake Charles. McRill bought lots at the corner of Ninth Street and Fourth Avenue and built the first home in Kinder. McRill, who became one of the early mayors of Kinder, often provided lodging and meals for teachers because he believed strongly in education.

John M. Houston came south to serve as office manager and surveyor for the railroad Watkins was building. About 35 mi before the railroad reached Lake Charles, Houston selected and purchased a tract of timber land. He built a sawmill and commissary on the tract north of Kinder, alongside the railroad, to enable him to ship logs to other states. Houston's commissary became known as the "Houston spur".

Philetus Philbrick came south from the University of Iowa, where he had helped set up the Department of Engineering and taught there for 14 years. It was Philbrick's knowledge of railroading that brought him in contact with Watkins, then south to Kinder as a railroad surveyor. Philetus wrote to his brother Franklin, telling him of the available and fertile farmland. Franklin brought his family south and bought a farm north of Kinder. There was no school then, and the state would not furnish a teacher until the school had operated for three months. Franklin Philbrick opened the school and taught without pay in the small, rough-plank building.

Many other settlers came from the Midwestern states during the JB Watkins era of 1880 to 1900. At that time Watkins was spending enormous sums of money promoting his "Garden of Eden" in southwest Louisiana. Among the new settlers were families named Storer, Mayfield, Jones, Phelps, Mayes, Reynolds, Johnson, Harvey, Leeds and Oden.

By 1903, when Kinder officially became a village, other families had arrived. They included Patrick E. Moore, who was appointed the first mayor, and four men who became aldermen Dr. R.E. Oden, Fred Moore, Edoc Roza and J.W. Kingrey.

In 1911, Kinder had a population of 1,088, thereby entitling it to be classified as a town. Gov. Jared Young Sanders proclaimed Kinder a town on March 4, 1911.

The mayors from 1903 on were Patrick Moore, Jack Dempsey, Dr. R.E. Oden, W.C. McNann, M.B. McRill, Randall H. Odom, J. W. Kingrey, S.R. Kingrey, D.T. Slocum, W.D. Horn, William Marcantel, E.E. Migues, Percy LeLand, Lee St. Romain, Cledius LaFargue, Fred Ashy, for whom the municipal building is named, and Estes Ledoux.

Louisiana Maneuvers
Kinder was used as the headquarters for the Blue Army during the Louisiana Maneuvers preceding the United States entry into WWII. A roadside marker commemorates the occasion.

Education
Allen Parish Public Schools operates:
 * Kinder High School
 * Kinder Middle School
 * Kinder Elementary School

title: Kinder, Louisiana


text:
Oakdale, Louisiana

Oakdale is a city in Allen Parish in south Louisiana, United States. The population was 7,780 at the 2010 census.

Oakdale was founded as "Dunnsville" by William T. Dunn. The history of Allen Parish is preserved at the Leatherwood Museum, which reopened on September 27, 2008, in a renovated facility at 202 E. 7th Ave. in Oakdale.

Geography
According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 13.6 sqkm, of which 13.4 sqkm is land and 0.2 sqkm, or 1.18%, is water. Oakdale's closest neighbor in Allen Parish is Elizabeth, located just west of Oakdale.

2020 census
As of the 2020 United States census, there were 6,692 people, 2,112 households, and 1,418 families residing in the city.

2000 census
As of the census of 2000, there were 8,137 people, 2,246 households, and 1,525 families residing in the city. The population density was 1,603.6 PD/sqmi. There were 2,512 housing units at an average density of 495.1 /sqmi. The racial makeup of the city was 62.07% White, 34.94% African American, 0.57% Native American, 1.23% Asian, 0.01% Pacific Islander, 0.33% from other races, and 0.85% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 12.22% of the population.

There were 2,246 households, out of which 34.5% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 40.6% were married couples living together, 23.0% had a female householder with no husband present, and 32.1% were non-families. 29.0% of all households were made up of individuals, and 13.7% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.54 and the average family size was 3.13.

In the city, the population was spread out, with 21.2% under the age of 18, 10.3% from 18 to 24, 38.6% from 25 to 44, 18.3% from 45 to 64, and 11.6% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 34 years. For every 100 females, there were 157.4 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 179.2 males.

The median income for a household in the city was $22,826, and the median income for a family was $28,506. Males had a median income of $32,179 versus $16,039 for females. The per capita income for the city was $10,288. About 21.7% of families and 23.4% of the population were below the poverty line, including 25.1% of those under age 18 and 22.9% of those age 65 or over.

Notable people

 * Leroy Johnson, posthumous recipient of the Medal of Honor
 * Coleman Lindsey, former lieutenant governor of Louisiana
 * Bill Dodd, former lieutenant governor of Louisiana
 * Mary Evelyn Parker, former Louisiana State Treasurer
 * E. Holman Jones, former Louisiana State Representative
 * R.C. Slocum, former head football coach at Texas A&M

Education
Allen Parish School Board operates public schools:
 * Oakdale High School
 * Oakdale Middle School
 * Oakdale Elementary School

Notable facilities
Oakdale is home to the Oakdale Federal Correctional Complex.

In April 2009, the Roy O. Martin Lumber Company, doing business as Martco, unveiled a $200 million oriented-strand-board plant near Oakdale. The largest plant of its kind in the world, the facility initially employed 170 persons, according to company president Roy O. Martin, III.

title: Oakdale, Louisiana


text:
Oberlin, Louisiana

Oberlin is a town in and the parish seat of Allen Parish, Louisiana, United States. The population was 1,770 at the 2010 census. The town is named after Johann Friedrich Oberlin.

Oberlin was the home of Ernest S. Clements, a Democratic member of the Louisiana State Senate and, later, the Louisiana Public Service Commission. He ran unsuccessfully in 1944 for governor of Louisiana.

Geography
Oberlin is located at 30.61944°N, -92.76417°W (30.619560, -92.764058). According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 11.4 sqkm, all land. Oberlin is located on U.S. Route 165 at LA 26.

2020 census
As of the 2020 United States census, there were 1,402 people, 496 households, and 313 families residing in the town.

2000 census
As of the census of 2000, there were 1,853 people, 702 households, and 464 families residing in the town. The population density was 602.0 PD/sqmi. There were 789 housing units at an average density of 256.3 /sqmi.

The racial makeup of the town was 60.28% White, 37.61% African American, 0.76% Native American, 0.27% Asian, 0.16% from other races, and 0.92% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 0.70% of the population.

There were 702 households, out of which 34.5% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 45.0% were married couples living together, 17.7% had a female householder with no husband present, and 33.8% were non-families. 31.3% of all households were made up of individuals, and 13.0% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.43 and the average family size was 3.06.

In the town, the population was spread out, with 26.4% under the age of 18, 8.0% from 18 to 24, 25.1% from 25 to 44, 24.5% from 45 to 64, and 16.0% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 38 years. For every 100 females, there were 90.1 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 83.8 males.

The median income for a household in the town was $23,333, and the median income for a family was $30,583. Males had a median income of $28,558 versus $16,923 for females. The per capita income for the town was $12,050. About 18.3% of families and 25.5% of the population were below the poverty line, including 30.3% of those under age 18 and 31.1% of those age 65 or over.

Education
Allen Parish School Board operates Oberlin High School and Oberlin Elementary School in Oberlin.

There is a private school, Oberlin Covenant School, which opened circa 1986. In 1992, two people worked to operate the school, and there were five teachers who worked full time. That year, its enrollment was 40, and there were six students per teacher, a ratio lower than those of public schools.

Notable people

 * Hoyle Granger- former AFL and NFL player

title: Oberlin, Louisiana


text:
Reeves, Louisiana

Reeves is a village in Allen Parish, Louisiana, United States. The population was 232 at the 2010 census.

Geography
Reeves is located at 30.52056°N, -93.04694°W (30.520543, -93.046888).

According to the United States Census Bureau, the village has a total area of 6.3 sqkm, all land.

Demographics
As of the census of 2000, there were 209 people, 82 households, and 57 families residing in the village. The population density was 86.9 PD/sqmi. There were 91 housing units at an average density of 37.8 /sqmi. The racial makeup of the village was 97.61% White, 0.96% African American, 0.96% from other races, and 0.48% from two or more races.

There were 82 households, out of which 40.2% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 46.3% were married couples living together, 17.1% had a female householder with no husband present, and 29.3% were non-families. 28.0% of all households were made up of individuals, and 12.2% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.55 and the average family size was 3.03.

In the village, the population was spread out, with 30.6% under the age of 18, 7.7% from 18 to 24, 29.2% from 25 to 44, 21.1% from 45 to 64, and 11.5% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 35 years. For every 100 females, there were 99.0 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 90.8 males.

The median income for a household in the village was $19,375, and the median income for a family was $20,000. Males had a median income of $26,667 versus $13,750 for females. The per capita income for the village was $9,101. About 26.1% of families and 30.3% of the population were below the poverty line, including 46.6% of those under the age of eighteen and 9.1% of those 65 or over.

Education
Allen Parish School Board operates the PK-12 school Reeves High School.

title: Reeves, Louisiana


text:
Donaldsonville, Louisiana

Donaldsonville (historically Lafourche-des-Chitimachas) is a city in, and the parish seat of Ascension Parish in the U.S. state of Louisiana. Located along the River Road of the west bank of the Mississippi River, it is a part of the Baton Rouge metropolitan statistical area. At the 2020 U.S. census, it had a population of 6,695.

Donaldsonville's historic district has what has been described as the finest collection of buildings from the antebellum era to 1933, of any of the Louisiana river towns above New Orleans. Union forces attacked the city, occupying it and several of the river parishes beginning in 1862. Fort Butler was built on the west bank of the Mississippi River. The fort was successfully defended on June 28, 1863, against a Confederate attack. This battle was one of the first occasions when free blacks and fugitive slaves fought as soldiers on behalf of the Union. The fort is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

After the war, in 1868 Donaldsonville residents elected as mayor Pierre Caliste Landry, an attorney and Methodist minister; he was the first African American to be elected as mayor in the United States.

History

The French were the first Europeans to colonize the area. They named the site Lafourche-des-Chitimachas, after the regional indigenous people and the local bayou, which they gave the same name. They developed agriculture in the parish, mainly as sugar cane plantations worked by African slave labor.

Acadians, expelled by the British from Acadia in 1755, began to settle in the area from 1756 to 1785, where they developed small subsistence farms. Spanish Isleños also settled here. In 1772 when the territory was under Spanish rule, the militia constructed La Iglesia de la Ascensión de Nuestro Señor Jesucristo de Lafourche de los Chetimaches (the Ascension of Our Lord Catholic Church of Lafourche of the Chitimaches) to serve the area. The region returned later to French control for a time.

This area was included in the Louisiana Purchase in 1803 and became part of the United States. Americans began to move into the area. Landowner and planter William Donaldson in 1806 commissioned the architect and planner, Barthelemy Lafon, to plan a new town at this site. It was renamed Donaldsonville after him.

Donaldsonville was designated as the Louisiana capital (1829–1831), as the result of conflict between the increasing number of Anglo-Americans, who deemed New Orleans "too noisy" and wanted to move the capital closer to their centers of population farther north in the state, and French Creoles, who wanted to keep the capital in a historically-French area.

As a result of the wealth planters gained from sugar and cotton commodity crops, they built fine mansions and other buildings in town during the antebellum years.

Civil War
In the summer of 1862, Donaldsonville was bombarded by Union forces during the American Civil War as part of the Union's effort to gain control of the Mississippi River. The Union sent gunboats to the town and warned that if shots were fired, the Union Navy would strike the area for six miles to the south and nine miles to the north and destroy every building on every plantation. Admiral David G. Farragut destroyed much of the former capital city and put Ascension Parish under martial law, extending that to other River parishes.

Historian John D. Winters, in his The Civil War in Louisiana (1963), describes the scene:

"The irate naval commander, Admiral Farragut, ordered the bombardment of Donaldsonville as soon as it could be evacuated. All of the citizens of Donaldsonville . . . 'left their homes and went to the bayou . . . a detachment of Yankees went to shore with fire torches in hand.' The hotels, warehouses, dwellings, and some of the most valuable buildings of the town were destroyed, Plantations . . . were bombarded and set afire. . . . A citizens' committee met and decided to ask Governor Moore to keep the [Confederate] Rangers from firing on Federal boats. These attacks did no real good and brought only crude reprisals against the innocent and helped to keep the Negroes stirred up."

A citizen complained that the Rangers were useless and lawless, unable or unwilling to protect Confederate property. The citizen added that the Confederate people "could not fare worse were we surrounded by a band of Lincoln's mercenary hirelings. Our homes are entered and pillaged of everything that they [Rangers] see fit to appropriate to themselves."

Union forces established a base at Donaldsonville for their occupation of river parishes. They took over some plantations, running them as U.S. government plantations to supply the forces and produce cotton.

Fort Butler
Many escaping slaves entered the Union lines to gain freedom. General Benjamin Butler had declared them "contrabands" of war and would not return them to slaveholders. They stayed and worked with Union forces, helping build the star-shaped Fort Butler in the town. A work of earth and wood, it was 381 feet long on the side by the Mississippi River, the other was protected by Bayou Lafourche, and the land sides by a deep moat. A stockade surrounded the fort, which contained a high and thick earth parapet. There was further security from a strong log. The fort was built to accommodate 600 men, but in 1863 there were a small garrison of 180 Union men, commanded by Major Joseph Bullen of the 28th Maine; the forces were also made up of the 1st Louisiana Volunteers, a few Louisiana Native Guard convalescents, and some fugitive slaves.

In June 1863, Confederate forces attacked Fort Butler at night. Led by General Tom Green, more than 1,000 Texas Rangers attacked the fort. Free blacks and fugitive slaves joined in the successful defense of the fort, in one of the first times they fought as soldiers on behalf of the Union. The New York Tribune wrote; "When action took place the negroes were stimulated to daring deeds." Historian Don Frazier, wrote; "Not only did black hands build this citadel of freedom, they defended it to the death." The Union kept control of the fort and ultimately won the war. It has been listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

Post-Civil War
After the war, Donaldsonville became the third-largest black community in the state, as more freedmen moved there to join those who had settled near Union forces for safety during the war. In 1868 the city elected the first African-American mayor in the United States, Pierre Caliste Landry, a former slave who been educated in schools on a plantation owned by the Bringier family. After the war, he had advanced to become an attorney and state politician, serving in both houses of the legislature. He also became a Methodist Episcopal minister.

Donaldsonville is the home of one of the oldest synagogue buildings still standing in the United States. The wooden structure was built in 1872 by Congregation Bikur Cholim, which disbanded in the 1940s. It is now used as an Ace Hardware store. The Jewish Cemetery dates to 1800s and is located on the corner of St. Patrick Street and Marchand Drive.

Mechanization of agriculture and other changes resulted in a major loss of population in Ascension Parish from 1900 to 1930, particularly from 1920 to 1930. This was the period of the Great Migration, when tens of thousands of African Americans left the rural South to go for opportunities in northern and midwestern cities. Such changes also drew off business from the parish seat. Ascension Parish lost more than 16% of its population in that decade. In the Great Depression, the area struggled economically.

Historian Sidney A. Marchand, who was also an attorney, was elected as mayor of the city and state legislator during that period. He served as a state Senator and contemporary of Governor Huey Long. During the mayoral administrations of Sidney A. Marchand and his son Sidney Marchand, Jr., they directed the construction of significant infrastructure in Donaldsonville (including about 12 miles of paving, and the still-extant sewerage system). Today the Donaldsonville Historic District has what is described as the "finest collection of buildings from the pre-Civil War to 1933 period" of rivertowns above New Orleans. It is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

In the 21st century, Donaldsonville is a small city with numerous historic sites. Since 2008, the River Road African American Museum, located in the city, has been included on the Louisiana African American Heritage Trail. It also has parks, Civil War grounds, and shopping centers.

The official newspaper of the city is the Donaldsonville Chief, which has been published since 1871.

Geography
According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 2.5 sqmi, all land. Coming upriver on the Mississippi, Donaldsonville is the point of the first expanse of land beyond the narrow natural levee. The city sits approximately 25 feet above sea level. Donaldsonville is located where Bayou Lafourche, a distributary of the Mississippi River, formerly branched off until the entrance was dammed in 1905.

Demographics
At the census of 2000, there were 7,605 people, 2,656 households, and 1,946 families residing in the city. The population density was 2,986.9 PD/sqmi. There were 2,948 housing units at an average density of 1,157.8 /sqmi. In 2020, the U.S. Census Bureau determined 6,695 people lived in the city, down from 7,436 in 2010. There were 3,031 households and 1,846 families in the city at the 2020 census.

In 2000, the racial and ethnic makeup of the city was 29.82% White, 69.13% Black or African American, 0.12% Native American, 0.12% Asian, 0.37% from other races, and 0.45% from two or more races. Hispanic and Latino Americans of any race were 1.10% of the population. By 2020, the racial and ethnic makeup was 18.04% non-Hispanic white, 77.31% African American, 0.01% Native American, 0.19% Asian, 2.03% from two or more races, and 2.4% Hispanic or Latino of any race.

In 2000, median income for a household in the city was $24,084, and the median income for a family was $29,408. Males had a median income of $31,849 versus $17,528 for females. The per capita income for the city was $12,009. About 32.8% of families and 34.8% of the population were below the poverty line, including 49.0% of those under age 18 and 22.2% of those age 65 or over. From 2014 to 2019, its median household income increased to $25,551 and $36,667 for families. At the 2021 American Community Survey, the median income was $20,052, while families had a median income of $26,061, down from the 2000 census.

Notable people

 * Bernette Joshua Johnson (1943 - ) Chief Justice of the Louisiana Supreme Court, (2013 – 2020) and Associate Justice of the Louisiana Supreme Court from the 7th district (1994 - 2020)
 * D-D Breaux – head coach of the LSU Lady Tigers gymnastics team
 * Jarvis Green – defensive end, NFL's New England Patriots
 * Howard Green – defensive end, NFL
 * Jack P. F. Gremillion (1914–2001) – Attorney General of Louisiana, 1956–1972
 * Henry Johnson – Governor of Louisiana (1824–28)
 * Plas Johnson – saxophonist
 * Duncan F. Kenner (1813–1887) – built Ashland Plantation, C.S.A. ambassador to France & England, horse racer, founder of Kenner
 * Joseph Aristide Landry (1817–1881) – Congressman
 * Pierre Caliste Landry – first African-American mayor in the US (1868)
 * John Harvey Lowery (1860–1941) – physician and philanthropist
 * Francis T. Nicholls – Governor of Louisiana (1877–80, 1888–92), Confederate general
 * King Oliver (1881–1938) – jazz musician
 * Stephen Sullivan – NFL tight end for Carolina Panthers
 * Nicholas Trist – negotiator of the Treaty of Guadalupe-Hidalgo
 * Sarah S. Vance – judge, U.S. District Court, Eastern District of Louisiana
 * Edward Douglass White, Sr. – Governor of Louisiana (1834–38), father of the US Chief Justice
 * Claiborne Williams (1868–1952) – bandleader

title: Donaldsonville, Louisiana


text:
Gonzales, Louisiana

Gonzales is a city in Ascension Parish, Louisiana, United States. As of the 2020 census, it has a population of 12,231. Known as the "Jambalaya Capital of the World", it is famous for its annual Jambalaya Festival, which was first held in 1968. Stephen "Steve" F. Juneau came up with the idea for the Jambalaya Festival and served as the first president of the Jambalaya Festival Association.

History
Early European settlers of the area that was developed as Gonzales were, for the most part, of French and Spanish ancestry. They settled among the Houma Indians who lived in the area.

Among the projects and plans carried out by Luis de Unzaga ("Le Conciliateur") while he was governor of Louisiana between 1769 and 1777 was the promotion of new settlements by Europeans; among them were French Acadians and Málaga in the fertile Mississippi region, and more specifically in the Unzaga Post or "Puesto de Unzaga" that he created in 1771 in Pointe Coupee, the parish of Saint Gabriel in 1773 and Fort Manchac in 1776; the Gonzales people occupied land at the confluence of the aforementioned European settlements.

By 1851, the small European settlement still had only ten residents. A school was established in 1855 by Adlard Gautreaux for the European-American children in the area. By 1886, the settlement had grown, and the citizens of the community elected "Big" José Gonzáles as their sheriff. José's son, Joseph "Tee-Joe" (for Petit Joe) Gonzales, opened a general store and post office in May 1887. The post office became known as the Gonzales Post Office.

Construction of the railroad to the village stimulated the growth of Gonzales. When the Louisiana Railway and Navigation Company (LR&N) constructed its rail line through the area, the local post office was already named Gonzales. The rail company executives wanted to name their station Edenborn, after the company's owner, Willam Edenborn. The company also wanted to move the station north of the area to New River, Louisiana, then called Belle Hellene. After local residents filed protests with the Louisiana Railroad Commission, the railroad company was ordered to leave the station at Gonzales. The LR&N still tried to change the name to Edenborn. But the residents continued to protest and persuaded the Louisiana Legislature to pass a law requiring railroad companies to name their railroad stations the same as the local post offices.

Gonzales was laid out and subdivided in 1906. It was officially incorporated as a village in 1922. Joseph Gonzales was elected as the first mayor. The village continued to grow, with transportation improved by construction of Airline Highway.

Governor Earl K. Long proclaimed Gonzales as a town in 1952, during his term. The town held its first Jambalaya Festival in 1968. Governor John J. McKeithen marked the occasion by proclaiming Gonzales as the "Jambalaya Capital of the World".

Following the growth of industrial corporations in the area, the town was chartered by the state legislature as a city in 1977.

Gonzales became better known in 2005, after the widespread destruction caused by Hurricane Katrina. The National Guard, and HSUS and other animal rescue groups, established their bases at the fairground in Gonzales. This became their main search and rescue headquarters, as well as the site for holding pets pending return to their families; the animals were rescued from New Orleans and many other locations. Some people were reunited with their lost pets at this site.

Geography
Gonzales is located at 30.22722°N, -90.91972°W (30.227128, -90.919771). According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 22.0 km2, of which 21.7 km2 is land and 0.3 km2, or 1.27%, is water.

Climate
Gonzales has a subtropical climate, with hot summers and mild winters. The area is subject to potential severe weather year-round, with snowfall being rare for the city. Hurricanes also pose a threat to the area due to its proximity to the coastline of southeast Louisiana. In September 2008, Hurricane Gustav brought 80+ mph winds to the area with gusts over 100 mph.

2020 Census
In 2000, there were 8,156 people, 2,966 households, and 2,156 families residing in the city. The population density was 974.2 PD/sqmi. There were 3,332 housing units at an average density of 398.0 /sqmi. As of the 2020 United States census, there were 12,231 people, 4,159 households, and 2,807 families residing in the city.

At the 2000 census, the racial makeup of the city was 65.40% White, 31.25% African American, 0.22% Native American, 0.61% Asian, 0.01% Pacific Islander, 1.64% from other races, and 0.86% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 3.62% of the population. By 2020, its racial makeup was 36.24% non-Hispanic white, 46.85% African American, 0.27% Native American, 0.83% Asian, 0.03% Pacific Islander, 2.89% multiracial, and 12.9% Hispanic or Latino of any race, reflecting state and nationwide trends of greater diversification.

In 2000, there were 2,966 households, out of which 36.3% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 51.6% were married couples living together, 17.0% had a female householder with no husband present, and 27.3% were non-families. 23.0% of all households were made up of individuals, and 6.9% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.68 and the average family size was 3.18.

In the city, the population was spread out, with 27.4% under the age of 18, 10.1% from 18 to 24, 30.0% from 25 to 44, 22.3% from 45 to 64, and 10.2% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 34 years. For every 100 females, there were 91.1 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 89.3 males.

The median income for a household in the city was $38,173, and the median income for a family was $43,117 in 2000. Males had a median income of $38,731 versus $22,168 for females. The per capita income for the city was $17,690. About 14.9% of families and 16.6% of the population were below the poverty line, including 23.6% of those under age 18 and 14.5% of those age 65 or over. The median household income as of 2021's American Community Survey estimates increased to $59,108.

Government
The city is governed by a mayor-council form of government. The mayor is elected at-large, and the five council members are elected from city wide at large single-member divisions, One city council division is reserved for African American candidates. The Chief of Police is elected.The current mayor of Gonzales is Barney Arceneaux.

Legislative delegation
District 59 State Representative Tony Bacala of Ascension Parish is a retired law enforcement officer,State Senator Eddie Lambert a family law attorney who represents Ascension, Livingston, St. James, and St. John the Baptist

Edward Joseph Price, an African-American Democrat and a Gonzales businessman, has held the District 58 House seat for Ascension, Iberville and St. James parishes since 2012. Another District 58 representative was Melvin Irvin, a black educator and businessman from Gonzales, who held the seat from 1984 to 1992. He died in 2014.

State Representative Randal Gaines, of St. John the Baptist Parish, formerly resided in Gonzales.

National Guard
Gonzales is home to the 922nd engineer vertical construction company, which is part of the 528th engineer battalion, 225th engineer brigade. 922nd EVCC plays a pivotal role in providing humanitarian relief during natural disasters within the United States, along with remaining ready to deploy anywhere in the world as they are needed.

Notable people

 * Alicia Morton, actress
 * Cleo Moore, actress
 * Glenn Dorsey, NFL player
 * Robert Hillary King, born here as Robert King Wilkerson, grew up in New Orleans. He was one of the Angola Three, surviving decades of incarceration in solitary confinement. His 1973 conviction of murder was overturned, and he was released in 2001, the first of the three men to gain freedom.

Sister cities
Gonzales has one sister city, as designated by Sister Cities International:

 * 🇫🇷 Meylan, France

title: Gonzales, Louisiana


text:
Sorrento, Louisiana

Sorrento is a town in Ascension Parish, Louisiana, United States. The population was 1,514 in 2020. It is part of the Baton Rouge metropolitan statistical area.

Geography
Sorrento is located at 30.18028°N, -90.86611°W (30.180229, -90.866138). According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 3.1 square miles (8.1 km$2$), all land.

Demographics
As of the 2020 United States census, there were 1,514 people, 634 households, and 417 families residing in the town.

Education and media
Sorrento Primary School (K-5)

Sorrento is home to River Parishes Community College, established in 1998.

The official journal for the Town of Sorrento is The Gonzales Weekly Citizen.

Notable people

 * Clay Schexnayder, member of the Louisiana House of Representatives from Ascension Parish, owns an automotive repair business in Sorrento.
 * John "Hot Rod" Williams, NBA player
 * Toe Nash, retired MLB player

title: Sorrento, Louisiana


text:
Belle Rose, Louisiana

Belle Rose is a census-designated place (CDP) in Assumption Parish, Louisiana, United States. The population was 1,902 at the 2010 census. It is part of the Pierre Part micropolitan statistical area.

Geography
Belle Rose is located at 30.03694°N, -91.05417°W (30.036834, -91.054039).

According to the United States Census Bureau, the CDP has a total area of 13.9 km2, all land.

title: Belle Rose, Louisiana


text:
Labadieville, Louisiana

Labadieville is a census-designated place (CDP) in Assumption Parish, Louisiana, United States. The population was 1,854 at the 2010 census. It is part of the Pierre Part Micropolitan Statistical Area.

History
Labadieville, originally called "Brûlée Labadie", takes its name from a French pioneer and resident, Jean Louis L'Abadie. In 1721, there were some fifty warriors of the Chitimacha tribe. During the two decades after 1750, the area around Labadieville was taken up by French and Spanish, joined by Acadians, Isleños and a sprinkling of Germans from the Cote des Allemands or German Coast to the east on the Mississippi River.

In 1843, a mission was established. St. Philomena Catholic Church dates from 1848 as an organized parish, and the first mass was said in the home of Widow Zacharie Boudreaux. The first building was occupied in 1847.

During the Civil War, Labadieville was the scene of the Battle of Georgia Landing, Oct. 27, 1862, between Union forces under Gen. Weitzel and a body of Confederate troops under Brig. Gen. Alfred Mouton. Major General Benjamin F. Butler, commanding Union forces in the Department of the Gulf, launched an expedition into the Bayou Lafourche region to eliminate the Rebel threat from that area, to make sure that sugar and cotton products from there would come into Union hands and, in the future, to use it as a base for other military operations. Gen. Weitzel, Butler's protégé, with five regiments from the Reserve Brigade, Department of the Gulf (numbering about 4,000 men), left Carrollton, 7 mi above New Orleans, on Oct. 24, and went up the Mississippi River in transports conveyed by gunboats. Reaching Donaldsonville the next day, the troops were disembarked. On the 26th, they marched down the Bayou Lafourche 15 mi to Napoleonville, but were unable to find the Confederate force known to be in that region. On the 27th Gen. Weitzel continued his march to Labadieville, on the east bank of the bayou, where he found the enemy in considerable force entrenched on both sides of the bayou, with six pieces of artillery in battery. Confederate forces included the 18th Louisiana Infantry Regiment, Crescent Regiment, Ralston's Battery, Detachment of Cavalry, 33rd Louisiana Infantry Regiment, Terre Bonne Regiment of the Louisiana Militia, Semmes's Battery and 2nd Louisiana Cavalry Regiment (approx. 1,392 men).

Gen. Weitzel's troops began skirmishing with Confederate positions on the east bank at about 11:00 a.m. Lacking the artillery support of the troops entrenched on the west bank of the bayou, Confederate troops in these positions retired quickly. By means of a floating bridge Gen. Weitzel began crossing his men to the west bank to attack the Rebel troops there. For some time, these Confederate troops fought resolutely and brought the Union assault to a standstill. However, a lack of artillery ammunition compelled the Confederate forces to abandon these positions as well. Confederate forces retreated up the bayou to Labadieville.

Union losses were 18 killed and 68 wounded. Confederate losses were estimated at 229. Additionally, 206 Confederates were taken prisoner. On the 28th Weitzel entered and occupied Thibodaux, a few miles below Labadieville, and on the 29th communication was opened with New Orleans by means of the New Orleans, Opelousas and Great Western Railroad. The result of the expedition was to open the whole region of the Bayou Lafourche to Union occupation.

In 1905, a canal, called the Cancienne, leading east from Lake Verret to Bayou Lafourche near Napoleonville, was constructed.

Geography
Labadieville is located at 29.8325°N, -90.95472°W (29.832537, -90.954692).

According to the United States Census Bureau, the CDP has a total area of 10.1 km2, all land.

Demographics
As of the census of 2000, there were 1,811 people, 666 households, and 514 families residing in the CDP. The population density was 466.5 PD/sqmi. There were 709 housing units at an average density of 182.6 /sqmi. The racial makeup of the CDP was 81.12% White, 17.50% African American, 0.28% Native American, 0.17% Asian, 0.17% from other races, and 0.77% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 1.10% of the population.

There were 666 households, out of which 36.9% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 61.7% were married couples living together, 13.1% had a female householder with no husband present, and 22.7% were non-families. 18.8% of all households were made up of individuals, and 9.0% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.72 and the average family size was 3.12.

In the CDP, the population was spread out, with 26.5% under the age of 18, 10.3% from 18 to 24, 29.3% from 25 to 44, 22.6% from 45 to 64, and 11.2% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 35 years. For every 100 females, there were 92.9 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 89.9 males.

The median income for a household in the CDP was $35,417, and the median income for a family was $43,438. Males had a median income of $34,904 versus $22,063 for females. The per capita income for the CDP was $14,865. About 12.4% of families and 17.5% of the population were below the poverty line, including 26.4% of those under age 18 and 24.9% of those age 65 or over.

Notable person
Self-taught folk artist Mary Anne de Boisblanc was born in Labadieville in 1925.

title: Labadieville, Louisiana


text:
Napoleonville, Louisiana

Napoleonville, is a village and the parish seat of Assumption Parish, in the U.S. state of Louisiana. The population was 660 at the 2010 census. It is part of the Pierre Part Micropolitan Statistical Area. The village is best known as the location where the film Because of Winn-Dixie, based on Kate DiCamillo's Newbery Prize-winning novel, was shot. The book was set in (fictional) Naomi, Louisiana.

History
As early as 1807 the community that later became Napoleonville was known as "Canal". This canal extended west from Napoleonville to Lake Verret. The village that later developed was named by a former French soldier who served under Napoleon Bonaparte. The French veteran, Pierre Charlet, is buried in the cemetery of Our Lady of the Assumption Catholic Church in the nearby community of Plattenville in Assumption Parish.

The first permanent settlements in this region were made by the French and Spanish (including Isleños) about the middle of the 18th century along Bayou Lafourche, between the present towns of Donaldsonville and Napoleonville. From 1755 to 1785, the population was increased by the immigration of the exiled Acadians who settled in the area, clearing the land and building comfortable homes. The town was officially incorporated on March 11, 1878.

Geography
Napoleonville is located at 29.93778°N, -91.02667°W (29.937778, -91.026750). According to the United States Census Bureau, the village has a total area of 0.4 sqkm, all land.

Demographics
As of the 2020 United States census, there were 540 people, 229 households, and 137 families residing in the village.

Notable people

 * Troy E. Brown, former member of the Louisiana State Senate and native of Napoloenville
 * Paul Carmouche, former district attorney for Caddo Parish
 * Papa Celestin, jazz bandleader
 * Philip H. Gilbert, politician, former lieutenant governor
 * Joe Harrison, state representative
 * Brandon Jacobs, retired NFL running back
 * Samuel A. LeBlanc I, state representative, state court judge, justice of the Louisiana Supreme Court from 1949 to 1954
 * Charlie Melançon, former U.S. representative
 * Jordan Mills, NFL offensive lineman
 * J.C. Politz, sportscaster
 * Tramon Williams, NFL cornerback
 * Kim Willoughby, Team USA Volleyball (2008 Beijing Olympics)

National Guard
The village is home to the 928th Sapper Company, a combat engineer unit of the 769th Engineer Battalion of the Louisiana Army National Guard which in turn is headquartered at Baton Rouge. Both of these units belong to the 225th Engineer Brigade headquartered at Louisiana National Guard Training Center Pineville near Pineville.

Twin towns
The town maintains twinning links with:
 * 🇫🇷 Pontivy (Napoléonville in 1804), France since 1989

title: Napoleonville, Louisiana


text:
Paincourtville, Louisiana

Paincourtville is a census-designated place (CDP) in Assumption Parish, Louisiana, United States. The population was 911 at the 2010 census.

History
Legend says an early traveler, unable to buy a single loaf of bread there, facetiously called the place "short of bread town", which translates to Paincourtville.

The first permanent settlements in this region were made by the French and Spanish (including Isleños), circa the mid-18th century along Bayou Lafourche, between the present towns of Donaldsonville and Napoleonville. From 1755 to 1764, the population was increased by the immigration of the exiled Acadians who emigrated to the area, clearing the land and building homes. Many of their descendants remain in the parish today.

On a plot donated by Elizabeth Dugas, St. Elizabeth's Church was built in 1840. Parishioners promptly rebuilt their church after a fire in 1854. In 1903 a third structure, still in use, was completed. Nearby on a special steel scaffolding is the church bell, too large for either of the church's two towers. It was brought from France.

Geography
Paincourtville is located at 29.99111°N, -91.05972°W (29.990994, -91.059639).

According to the United States Census Bureau, the CDP has a total area of 4.5 sqkm, all land.

Demographics
Paincourtville is part of the Pierre Part Micropolitan Statistical Area.

As of the census of 2000, there were 884 people, 317 households, and 245 families residing in the CDP. The population density was 551.1 PD/sqmi. There were 343 housing units at an average density of 213.8 /sqmi. The racial makeup of the CDP was 55.43% White, 43.33% African American, 0.45% Asian, and 0.79% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 1.02% of the population.

There were 317 households, out of which 33.8% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 55.8% were married couples living together, 15.8% had a female householder with no husband present, and 22.7% were non-families. 21.1% of all households were made up of individuals, and 12.3% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.79 and the average family size was 3.25.

In the CDP, the population was spread out, with 25.5% under the age of 18, 9.3% from 18 to 24, 27.4% from 25 to 44, 23.1% from 45 to 64, and 14.8% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 37 years. For every 100 females, there were 82.6 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 85.1 males.

The median income for a household in the CDP was $32,014, and the median income for a family was $36,563. Males had a median income of $41,750 versus $22,500 for females. The per capita income for the CDP was $17,500. About 10.5% of families and 15.3% of the population were below the poverty line, including 11.0% of those under age 18 and 14.6% of those age 65 or over.

Notable people

 * Paincourtville was the birthplace of former Louisiana State Representatives Samuel A. LeBlanc I LeBlanc represented Assumption Parish from 1912 to 1916 and was thereafter a state court judge.
 * Former State Senator J. E. Jumonville Sr. was born in Paincourtville in 1919 but later lived in Pointe Coupee Parish.
 * William S. Patout III, a large sugar grower in Iberia Parish, resided in Paincourtville in the early 1960s.
 * Dan Brouillette, United States Secretary of Energy, appointed by Donald Trump, confirmed by Senate on December 2, 2019.

title: Paincourtville, Louisiana


text:
Pierre Part, Louisiana

Pierre Part (Ville de Pierre Part) is a census-designated place (CDP) in Assumption Parish, Louisiana, United States. The population was 3,169 at the 2010 census, making it the most populous community in Assumption Parish. With 39.3 percent of the population speaking French at home, Pierre Part is the most French town in the United States (by percentage) outside of Maine. Pierre Part is known locally for its prominent French influence and ancestry, which have become significant aspects of its contemporary local culture. Situated near Lake Verret, Pierre Part is a popular local destination for water sports and fishing during the summer.

History
Pierre Part was founded by Acadian French settlers after the Great Upheaval of 1755, during which much of the French population of Acadia was expelled by its British conquerors. The town remained isolated from most of the world, since it was surrounded by water and was inaccessible by land until the mid-twentieth century. Before the Great Depression, the inhabitants of Pierre Part were fishermen; after the Depression, many men of the town were forced to find work in other fields including logging, levee building, and the growing petroleum industry in Louisiana. Fewer people continue the traditional ways of fishing and living off the land with each generation.

Pierre Part experienced flooding when the Morganza Spillway was opened during the 1973 Mississippi River flooding.

The History Channel's reality show, Swamp People, features the Landry family, a Cajun family who lives in Pierre Part; the series debuted on History in 2010.

On August 3, 2012, the Bayou Corne Sinkhole, situated roughly 3 miles from Pierre Part, appeared. In areas of Pierre Part near the sinkhole, residents reported gaseous odors and strange bubbling in local waterways, prompting Governor Bobby Jindal to issue an evacuation order for the nearby community of Bayou Corne. The sinkhole expanded significantly during the months after it first appeared, invoking fear in residents of Pierre Part due to what was perceived to be an imminent threat to the community. Significantly, the sinkhole continued to grow in the direction of Louisiana Highway 70, the main highway on which most residents drove. Public outrage to the events in Bayou Corne was largely directed towards Texas Brine Company, the salt mining company perceived to be chiefly responsible for the disaster; a class-action lawsuit against Texas Brine ensued. However, a 2018 court ruling declared the fault to be shared between three companies: Occidental Chemical was 50% at fault, Texas Brine was 35% at fault, and Vulcan was 15% at fault. As of 2019, the sinkhole continues to expand, albeit slowly, and the community of Bayou Corne remains deserted, with most homes demolished by demolition companies.

Geography
Pierre Part is located at 29.96111°N, -91.20667°W (29.960975, -91.206612). According to the United States Census Bureau, the CDP has a total area of 7.98 sqkm, of which 7.95 sqkm is land and 0.03 sqkm, or 0.37%, is water.

Demographics
As of the 2020 United States census, there were 3,024 people, 1,099 households, and 625 families residing in the CDP.

Education
Pierre Part is part of the Assumption Parish public school system.
 * Pierre Part Primary School
 * Pierre Part Middle School
 * Assumption High School (located in Napoleonville)

Transportation
Louisiana Highway 70 runs through Pierre Part and serves as its main highway. Other highways that serve the community include Louisiana 997, Louisiana 1015-1, Louisiana 1015-2, Louisiana 1016-1, and Louisiana 1016-2.

Notable people

 * Cliff Crochet, professional bass fisherman and competitor on the Bassmaster Elite Series

 * Troy Landry, TV personality starring in Swamp People. Nicknamed "King of the Swamp" in the series.

title: Pierre Part, Louisiana


text:
Supreme, Louisiana

Supreme is a census-designated place (CDP) in Assumption Parish, Louisiana, United States. The population was 1,052 at the 2010 census. In 2020, its population was 839.

Geography
Supreme is located at 29.86°N, -90.98528°W (29.859875, -90.985197).

According to the United States Census Bureau, the CDP has a total area of 8.9 sqkm, of which 8.8 sqkm is land and 0.1 sqkm, or 1.43%, is water.

title: Supreme, Louisiana


text:
Bunkie, Louisiana

Bunkie is a city in Avoyelles Parish, Louisiana, United States. The population was 4,171 at the 2010 census.

History
Bunkie was founded as a station terminus on the Texas and Pacific Railroad line. It was named for the daughter (whose nickname was "Bunkie") of the original landowner.

The federal post office in town contains a mural, Cotton Pickers, painted in 1939 during the Great Depression by Caroline Speare Rohland. Federally commissioned murals were produced from 1934 to 1943 in the United States through the Section of Painting and Sculpture, later called the Section of Fine Arts, of the Treasury Department. This work was part of the effort by the federal government to employ artists during the difficult Depression years.

The area around Bunkie is devoted to agriculture; since the late 20th century, corn has been an important commodity crop. Since 1987, Bunkie has hosted the annual Louisiana Corn Festival during the second full weekend of June.

Geography
According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 6.97 sqkm, of which 6.93 sqkm is land and 0.04 sqkm, or 0.57%, is water.

2020 census
As of the 2020 United States census, there were 3,346 people, 1,702 households, and 1,227 families residing in the city.

2000 census
As of the census of 2000, there were 4,662 people, 1,698 households, and 1,198 families residing in the city. The population density was 1,763.4 PD/sqmi. There were 1,866 housing units at an average density of 705.8 /sqmi. The racial makeup of the city was 48.54% White, 50.26% African American, 0.04% Native American, 0.28% Asian, 0.34% from other races, and 0.54% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 1.48% of the population.

There were 1,698 households, out of which 35.2% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 39.4% were married couples living together, 26.6% had a female householder with no husband present, and 29.4% were non-families. 26.3% of all households were made up of individuals, and 11.8% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.66 and the average family size was 3.22.

In the city, the population was spread out, with 30.3% under the age of 18, 9.1% from 18 to 24, 23.8% from 25 to 44, 20.6% from 45 to 64, and 16.2% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 35 years. For every 100 females, there were 82.5 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 73.2 males.

The median income for a household in the city was $14,745, and the median income for a family was $23,448. Males had a median income of $31,382 versus $19,479 for females. The per capita income for the city was $10,302. About 34.4% of families and 37.8% of the population were below the poverty line, including 38.9% of those under age 18 and 32.5% of those age 65 or over.

Notable people

 * Bunkie is the birthplace of jazz drummer Zutty Singleton.
 * Sue Eakin, Louisiana historian and former publisher of the Bunkie Record, resided in Bunkie for most of her life until her death in 2009 at the age of 90. Her works include Avoyelles Parish: Crossroads of Louisiana.
 * Physician Donald E. Hines, a former member of the Louisiana State Senate, who served from 2004 to 2008 as Senate president.
 * Ronnie Johns, a member of the Louisiana State Senate from Sulphur in Calcasieu Parish, grew up in Bunkie and graduated from Bunkie High School in 1967.
 * Seymour Weiss, former owner and longtime manager of the Roosevelt Hotel in New Orleans, close confidant of Huey Pierce Long, Jr., prominent New Orleans civic leader, who was born in Bunkie in 1896.

title: Bunkie, Louisiana


text:
Cottonport, Louisiana

Cottonport is a town in Avoyelles Parish, Louisiana, United States. The population was 2,006 at the 2010 census.

History
Cottonport was founded in the early 19th century. In 1835, Joseph Ducote donated land to be used for a road and school, which was the beginnings of the community. Incorporated in 1888 along the banks of Bayou Rouge (French for "Red Bayou"). In the 19th century, large boats made their way through Cottonport with goods destined for the port of New Orleans. The bayou was deep enough to support the large boats and formed a perfect horseshoe, which allowed vessels to turn around. The boats would deliver cargo into the area and would load crops on board to take to larger ports along the route. The main crop available for exporting at that time was cotton. In fact, because so much cotton was being shipped from the port, early settlers named the village Cottonport.

Present day
Today, over 100 years after its incorporation, Cottonport retains many of its picturesque qualities. Although Bayou Rouge is no longer navigable, it continues to be used as a fishing hole. It also serves as the backdrop to the annual Cottonport Christmas Festival, held the second weekend in December, which celebrated its 50th anniversary in 2015.

Geography
Cottonport is located at 30.98833°N, -92.05306°W (30.988465, -92.053049).

According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 5.2 km2, all land.

2020 census
As of the 2020 United States census, there were 2,023 people, 711 households, and 435 families residing in the town.

2000 census
As of the census of 2000, there were 2,316 people, 770 households, and 549 families residing in the town. The population density was 1,174.5 PD/sqmi. There were 840 housing units at an average density of 426.0 /sqmi. The racial makeup of the town was 48.32% White, 49.65% African American, 0.73% Native American, 0.17% Asian, 0.30% from other races, and 0.82% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 1.04% of the population.

There were 770 households, out of which 40.9% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 38.8% were married couples living together, 27.4% had a female householder with no husband present, and 28.7% were non-families. 26.9% of all households were made up of individuals, and 13.0% 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 3.26.

In the town, the population was spread out, with 32.3% under the age of 18, 9.5% from 18 to 24, 29.5% from 25 to 44, 18.7% from 45 to 64, and 9.9% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 31 years. For every 100 females, there were 71.9 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 64.8 males.

The median income for a household in the town was $418,973, and the median income for a family was $21,888. Males had a median income of $21,597 versus $18,542 for females. The per capita income for the town was $9,507. About 34.5% of families and 40.2% of the population were below the poverty line, including 54.7% of those under age 18 and 27.3% of those age 65 or over.

Notable people

 * Bill Callegari, Republican member of the Texas House of Representatives from northwestern Harris County since 2001; an engineer and businessman in Katy, Texas; born in Cottonport in 1941
 * Moon Ducote, football, baseball, and basketball player and coach, born in Cottonport.
 * Connie Francois Desselle, Avoyelles Parish Clerk of Court, 2019–Present.

title: Cottonport, Louisiana


text:
Evergreen, Louisiana

Evergreen is a town in Avoyelles Parish, Louisiana, United States. The population was 310 at the 2010 census. Evergreen is located east of Bunkie.

History
First named "Bayou Ridge", the town's name was later changed to "Evergreen", inspired by its beautiful, evergreen magnolia trees. The first store in Evergreen was owned by Alanson Pearce and was located on the Barbreck plantation that had been established by his wife's grandfather Marsden Campbell. The town was chartered in 1869.

Evergreen was the site of an early renowned school in the area, the Evergreen Home Institute (1856), which later became Evergreen College, and then Evergreen High School in 1904.

Geography
Evergreen is located at 30.95278°N, -92.10917°W (30.952856, -92.109068).

According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 2.6 km2, all land.

Demographics
As of the census of 2000, there were 314 people, 137 households, and 86 families residing in the town. The population density was 308.1 PD/sqmi. There were 152 housing units at an average density of 149.2 /sqmi. The racial makeup of the town was 73.57% White, 25.80% African American and 0.64% Asian. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 0.32% of the population.

There were 137 households, out of which 26.3% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 47.4% were married couples living together, 11.7% had a female householder with no husband present, and 37.2% were non-families. 32.8% of all households were made up of individuals, and 8.0% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.29 and the average family size was 2.91.

In the town, the population was spread out, with 23.6% under the age of 18, 8.0% from 18 to 24, 29.0% from 25 to 44, 26.4% from 45 to 64, and 13.1% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 39 years. For every 100 females, there were 92.6 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 87.5 males.

The median income for a household in the town was $17,250, and the median income for a family was $30,208. Males had a median income of $33,750 versus $18,750 for females. The per capita income for the town was $12,041. About 19.5% of families and 31.3% of the population were below the poverty line, including 28.6% of those under age 18 and 32.0% of those age 65 or over.

Notable people

 * Lionel Aldridge, who played American football professionally as a defensive end in the National Football League on the historic Green Bay Packers teams of the 1960s, is an Evergreen native.

title: Evergreen, Louisiana


text:
Hessmer, Louisiana

Hessmer is a village in Avoyelles Parish, Louisiana, United States. The population was 802 at the 2010 census.

History
The rail depot which served the area was named "Hessmer" in 1902 by William Edenborn, railroad tycoon. The village was incorporated in 1955.

Geography
Hessmer is located at 31.05472°N, -92.12111°W (31.054727, -92.121076).

According to the United States Census Bureau, the village has a total area of 2.1 km2, all land.

Demographics
As of the census of 2000, there were 642 people, 280 households, and 176 families residing in the village. The population density was 855.1 PD/sqmi. There were 303 housing units at an average density of 403.6 /sqmi. The racial makeup of the village was 91.43% White, 6.70% African American, 1.56% Native American, and 0.31% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 0.16% of the population.

There were 280 households, out of which 27.9% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 50.7% were married couples living together, 8.6% had a female householder with no husband present, and 37.1% were non-families. 32.9% of all households were made up of individuals, and 14.6% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.29 and the average family size was 2.90.

In the village, the population was spread out, with 23.8% under the age of 18, 9.7% from 18 to 24, 30.2% from 25 to 44, 22.3% from 45 to 64, and 14.0% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 35 years. For every 100 females, there were 94.5 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 85.2 males.

The median income for a household in the village was $24,659, and the median income for a family was $31,528. Males had a median income of $23,750 versus $16,964 for females. The per capita income for the village was $12,449. About 15.3% of families and 18.6% of the population were below the poverty line, including 16.1% of those under age 18 and 20.0% of those age 65 or over.

title: Hessmer, Louisiana


text:
Mansura, Louisiana

Mansura is a town in Avoyelles Parish, Louisiana, United States. The population was 1,419 at the 2010 census. Mansura is home to the Cochon de Lait Festival, and claims to be the Cochon de Lait capital of the world.

Louisiana 4-H Museum
The city of Mansura is the home of the Louisiana 4-H Museum and Hall of Fame. Opened in 2009, this museum has a complete history of 4-H in Louisiana from 1908 to present day. The museum boasts its Camp Grant Walker's Old Dance Pavilion look of its video screen and benches looking like the Greek Theatre seating. The museum also boasts its hall of fame with over 100 inductees and at least one from all of the 64 parishes of Louisiana.

Education
Local public schools are managed by the Avoyelles Parish School Board.

Geography
Mansura is located at 31.05917°N, -92.04861°W (31.059242, -92.048660). According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 7.0 km2, all land.

2020 census
As of the 2020 United States census, there were 1,320 people, 623 households, and 288 families residing in the town.

2010 census
As of the census of 2010, there were 1,419 people, 591 households, and 343 families residing in the town. The racial makeup of the town was 37.6% White, 56.7% African American, 1.7% Native American, 0.1% Asian, 0.1% Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander, 0.5% from other races, and 3.2% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 1.3% of the population.

There were 591 households, out of which 24.2% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 25.9% were married couples living together, 27.4% had a female householder with no husband present, and 42% were non-families. 39.4% of all households were made up of individuals, and 20.3% 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 3.03.

In the town, the population was spread out, with 28.2% under the age of 18, 9.1% from 18 to 24, 25.2% from 25 to 44, 18.9% from 45 to 64, and 18.5% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 36 years. For every 100 females, there were 85.3 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 75.9 males.

The median income for a household in the town was $16,836, and the median income for a family was $19,612. Males had a median income of $26,250 versus $15,972 for females. The per capita income for the town was $11,473. About 34.4% of families and 40.4% of the population were below the poverty line, including 55.7% of those under age 18 and 27.6% of those age 65 or over.

Notable people

 * Felix Moncla, U.S. Air Force pilot who disappeared in 1953.
 * Johnathin E. Lewis IV, basketball player in the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA). Lewis played for Kansas Christian College in Overland Park, Kansas and Faith Baptist Bible School in Ankeny, Iowa. He was raised in Mansura. (May 2017)
 * Vincent Simmons, born and raised in Mansura, is serving a 100-year sentence at Louisiana State Prison for attempted aggravated rape. Supporters are trying to have his case appealed because of problems of due process in the charges and his 1977 trial; exculpatory evidence was withheld by the prosecution. He was one of six men featured in the Academy Award-nominated film The Farm: Angola, USA (1997) and is the sole subject of its successor Shadows of Doubt: Vincent Simmons (2007).

Mayors of Mansura

 * Captain J.C. Joffrion, 1860
 * Dr. Jules Charles Desfossé, 1861
 * Nelson Durand, 1865
 * David Siess, 1874
 * Valery Coco, 1876
 * F.J.C. Monnin, 1878
 * Leandré François Roy, elected June 1878 (died November 1878)
 * David Siess, 1879
 * F.J.C. Monnin, 1880
 * David Siess, 1881–82
 * Pascalis D. Roy, 1884 (son of LF Roy)
 * David Siess, June 1884
 * Theo Forest, 1885
 * David Siess, 1886–90

title: Mansura, Louisiana


text:
Marksville, Louisiana

Marksville is a small city in and the parish seat of Avoyelles Parish, Louisiana, United States. The population was 5,702 at the 2010 census, an increase of 165 over the 2000 tabulation of 5,537.

Louisiana's first land-based casino, Paragon Casino Resort, opened in Marksville in June 1994. It is operated by the federally recognized Tunica-Biloxi Indian Tribe, which has a reservation in the parish.

History
The land where Marksville was founded on was once a meeting place, leading to the present day Marksville Prehistoric Indian Site.

Marksville is named after Marc Eliche (Marco Litche or Marco de Élitxe, as recorded by the Spanish), a Venetian Jew who established a trading post after his wagon broke down in this area. He was a Sephardic Jewish trader believed to be from Venice. His Italian name was recorded by a Spanish priest as Marco Litche; French priests, who were with colonists, recorded his name as Marc Eliche or Mark Eliché after his trading post was established about 1794. Marksville was noted on Louisiana maps as early as 1809, after the United States acquired the territory in the Louisiana Purchase of 1803. Eliche later donated the land that became the Courthouse Square. It is still the center of Marksville, the parish seat.

Marksville's population has numerous families of Cajun ancestry, in addition to African Americans, European Americans, and persons of mixed European-African ancestry. Many of the families had ancestors here since the city was incorporated.

Marksville became the trading center of a rural area developed as cotton plantations. After the United States outlawed the Atlantic slave trade in 1808, enslavers purchased African-American slaves through the domestic slave trade; a total of more than one million were transported to the Deep South from the Upper South in the first half of the 19th century. Enslavers typically bought slaves from markets in New Orleans, where they had been taken via the Mississippi River or by the coastal slave trade at sea. Solomon Northup, a free black from Saratoga Springs, New York, was kidnapped and sold into slavery in Louisiana. After being held for nearly 12 years on plantations in Avoyelles Parish, he was freed in 1853 with the help of Marksville and New York officials. Northup's memoir, which he published after returning to New York, was the basis of the 2013 movie 12 Years A Slave, of the same name.

2015 shooting of Jeremy Mardis
On March 31, 2017, Judge William Bennett of the 12th Judicial District Court sentenced Stafford to forty years' imprisonment for the manslaughter of Jeremy Mardis. He was given a concurrent fifteen years for the attempted manslaughter of Christopher Few. Judge Bennett denied Stafford's defense request for a new trial. Stafford told the court that he did not know Jeremy was strapped in the front seat of the father's vehicle when he fired the fatal shots. Meanwhile, Greenhouse will be tried beginning June 12 on second-degree and attempted second-degree murder counts.

Geography
Marksville is located at 31.12667°N, -92.06611°W (31.126595, −92.066073).

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 4.1 sqmi, of which 4.1 sqmi is land and 0.24% is water.

2020 census
As of the 2020 United States census, there were 5,065 people, 2,145 households, and 1,150 families residing in the city.

2000 census
As of the census of 2000, there were 5,537 people, 2,036 households, and 1,400 families residing in the city. The population density was 1,358.0 PD/sqmi. There were 2,198 housing units at an average density of 539.1 /sqmi. The racial makeup of the city was 51.98% White, 48.59% African American, 0.80% Native American, 0.27% Asian, 0.11% from other races, and 1.25% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 0.65% of the population.

There were 2,036 households, out of which 36.3% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 41.0% were married couples living together, 22.4% had a female householder with no husband present, and 31.2% were non-families. 27.8% of all households were made up of individuals, and 13.8% 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 3.15.

In the city, the population was spread out, with 28.7% under the age of 18, 9.6% from 18 to 24, 27.2% from 25 to 44, 20.2% from 45 to 64, and 14.3% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 34 years. For every 100 females, there were 79.9 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 72.0 males.

The median income for a household in the city was $20,750, and the median income for a family was $25,681. Males had a median income of $24,896 versus $15,865 for females. The per capita income for the city was $11,546. About 32.0% of families and 34.8% of the population were below the poverty line, including 50.1% of those under age 18 and 25.4% of those age 65 or over.

Education
All primary public schools are run by the Avoyelles Parish School Board, which operates two schools within the city of Marksville. In January 2018, 5 children from Marksville died in a car accident while traveling through Gainesville, Florida.

Elementary

 * Marksville Elementary

High school

 * Marksville High School

Newspaper

 * Avoyelles Journal

Notable people

 * D'Anthony Batiste (born 1982), Former University of Louisiana at Lafayette football player; former National Football League player; Canadian Football League player
 * Aaron Broussard, Jefferson Parish politician impacted by the political effects of Hurricane Katrina
 * Chester Coco (1915–2001), politician, lawyer and Louisiana state senator
 * Dylan Dauzat social media celebrity and model known for publishing YouTube videos and other content on Instagram, Twitter, Vine, and Facebook
 * Edwin Edwards, four-term Governor of Louisiana
 * Elaine Schwartzenburg Edwards, US senator in 1972
 * H. Claude Hudson, civil rights activist and founder of Broadway Federal Savings and Loan
 * Matthew "Boogie Jake" Jacobs, blues musician
 * Jeannette Knoll, associate justice of the Louisiana Supreme Court since 1997; long-time Marksville resident
 * Chad Lavalais, former LSU and NFL football player
 * Tommy Neck (pronounced NICK), LSU and NFL football player from the 1960s
 * Ed Oliver, NFL football player
 * John H. Overton (1875–1948), U.S. senator, native of Marksville
 * Gaston Porterie, former Attorney General of the State of Louisiana
 * Charles Addison Riddle III, District Attorney since 2003; former State Representative, 1992–2003
 * Little Walter Jacobs, blues musician, 2008 Rock and Roll Hall of Fame
 * Chief Sesostrie Youchigant, former chief of the Tunica-Biloxi tribe and last Tunica native speaker, provided information about the Tunica language to researchers.
 * Horace Pierite, former chief of the Tunica-Biloxi tribe.
 * Earl Barbry, an American politician and Native American leader, former chairman of the Tunica-Biloxi Tribe.
 * Allen Barbre, an American football offensive tackle who plays for the Denver Broncos.

National Guard
1020th Engineer Company (Vertical) of the 527th Engineer Battalion of the 225th Engineer Brigade is located in Marksville.

Small communities in the area

 * Brouillette
 * Fifth Ward
 * Moncla
 * Spring Bayou
 * Tunica-Biloxi Indian Reservation

title: Marksville, Louisiana


text:
Moreauville, Louisiana

Moreauville is a village in Avoyelles Parish, Louisiana, United States. The population was 929 at the 2010 census.

Geography
Moreauville is located at 31.03889°N, -91.97611°W (31.038998, -91.976067).

According to the United States Census Bureau, the village has a total area of 7.8 sqkm, all land.

2020 census
As of the 2020 United States census, there were 984 people, 416 households, and 255 families residing in the village.

2000 census
As of the census of 2000, there were 922 people, 373 households, and 243 families residing in the village. The population density was 304.5 PD/sqmi. There were 412 housing units at an average density of 136.1 /sqmi. The racial makeup of the village was 61.17% White, 35.68% African American, 1.74% Native American, 0.65% from other races, and 0.76% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 0.54% of the population.

There were 373 households, out of which 33.2% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 49.1% were married couples living together, 12.9% had a female householder with no husband present, and 34.6% were non-families. 31.9% of all households were made up of individuals, and 20.1% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.46 and the average family size was 3.14.

In the village, the population was spread out, with 27.4% under the age of 18, 7.9% from 18 to 24, 25.5% from 25 to 44, 20.2% from 45 to 64, and 19.0% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 37 years. For every 100 females, there were 88.9 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 81.8 males.

The median income for a household in the village was $28,942, and the median income for a family was $36,696. Males had a median income of $25,500 versus $16,406 for females. The per capita income for the village was $12,078. About 11.7% of families and 17.2% of the population were below the poverty line, including 14.8% of those under age 18 and 19.1% of those age 65 or over.

Government
On October 13, 2014, Moreauville passed a ban on several breeds of dogs, including Rottweilers and pit bulls. According to Penn Lemoine, a village alderperson, several Moreauville residents had complained that dogs from those breeds "were basically running along town" and that made the persons unable to "walk along the neighborhoods". Owners would have had to give up the dogs by December 1 of that year. The law stated that all banned dogs not removed would be seized and taken for "disposition" by that day. O'Hara Owens, a village resident and the owner of a pit bull, criticized the law. After the story gained widespread attention, the village government "reconsidered" the law, and abandoned the December 1 deadline.

title: Moreauville, Louisiana


text:
Plaucheville, Louisiana

Plaucheville is a village in Avoyelles Parish, Louisiana, United States. The population was 248 at the 2010 census.

Geography
Plaucheville is located along Bayou Choupique at 30.96472°N, -91.98111°W (30.964664, -91.981139).

According to the United States Census Bureau, the village has a total area of 3.9 sqkm, all land.

Demographics
As of the census of 2000, there were 47 people, 29 households, and 9 families residing in the village. The population density was 178 PD/sqmi. There were 135 housing units at an average density of 86 /sqmi. The racial makeup of the village was 96.80% White, 2.14% African American, 0.71% from other races, and 0.36% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 0.71% of the population.

There were 129 households, out of which 24.0% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 45.0% were married couples living together, 7.8% had a female householder with no husband present, and 46.5% were non-families. 42.6% of all households were made up of individuals, and 27.1% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.16 and the average family size was 3.04.

In the village, the population was spread out, with 23.8% under the age of 18, 7.5% from 18 to 24, 24.6% from 25 to 44, 21.7% from 45 to 64, and 22.4% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 41 years. For every 100 females, there were 84.9 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 81.4 males.

The median income for a household in the village was $32,190. Males had a median income of $27,708 versus $21,875 for females. The per capita income for the village was $35,207 (2021). About 5.7% of families and 12.1% of the population were below the poverty line, including 3.1% of those under the age of eighteen and 23.7% of those 65 or over.

History
Plaucheville was first incorporated in 1803 by the three Plauché brothers, Etienne, François, and Martin Visitant, while on a rowing expedition beginning in present day Simmesport, continuing down Bayou De Glaise, Bayou Rouge, and Bayou Choupique (Bayou Choupique was named by the brothers). Their father, Judge Joseph Alexander Plauché, was the first resident in the village, and was Major General in the Battle of New Orleans, similar to his brother, Jean Baptiste Plauché. He also surveyed the area and the Avoyelles Parish Territory, with the help of Jean Baptiste.

title: Plaucheville, Louisiana


text:
Simmesport, Louisiana

Simmesport is a town in Avoyelles Parish, Louisiana, United States. The population was 2,161 at the 2010 census. It is the northernmost town on the Atchafalaya River, located near the Old River which connects the Red and Atchafalaya rivers with the Mississippi River.

History
The town was founded by Bennet Barton Simmes (1811–1888), one-time owner of White Hall Plantation, which was located on the opposite bank of the Atchafalaya River.

In December 2005 industrialist Frank Stronach founded a new community just south of Simmesport along the Atchafalaya River levee, known as Canadaville, a place intended to house people displaced by Hurricane Katrina.

Geography
Simmesport is located in eastern Avoyelles Parish on the west bank of the Atchafalaya River.

According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 6.1 sqkm, of which 5.7 sqkm is land and 0.5 sqkm, or 7.93%, is water.

2020 census
As of the 2020 United States census, there were 1,468 people, 627 households, and 379 families residing in the town.

2000 census
As of the census of 2000, there were 2,239 people, 751 households, and 510 families residing in the town. The population density was 1,036.5 PD/sqmi. There were 830 housing units at an average density of 384.2 /sqmi. The racial makeup of the town was 52.1% White, 46.7% African American, 0.2% American Indian, 0.2% Asian, 0.2% from other races, and 0.6% from two or more races. Hispanic of any race were 0.8% of the population.

There were 751 households, out of which 37.7% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 40.1% were married couples living together, 23.2% had a female householder with no husband present, and 32.0% were non-families. 29.3% of all households were made up of individuals, and 13.0% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.58 and the average family size was 3.18.

In the town, the population was spread out, with 27.9% under the age of 18, 10.0% from 18 to 24, 30.1% from 25 to 44, 17.7% from 45 to 64, and 14.2% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 34 years. For every 100 females, there were 70.5 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 59.4 males.

The median income for a household in the town was $15,455, and the median income for a family was $19,115. Males had a median income of $22,153 versus $15,938 for females. The per capita income for the town was $8,061. About 33.0% of families and 35.8% of the population were below the poverty line, including 41.5% of those under age 18 and 28.6% of those age 65 or over.

The cusp of tributaries and distributaries
Simmesport sits very near the end of the Red River and the beginning of the Atchafalaya River, into which water from the Mississippi once flowed freely. In the 1960s, the Old River Control Structure was constructed on the Mississippi to regulate the division of flow between the two. Some advocates for wetland renewal recommend increasing the flow of water into the Atchafalaya basin in the interest of replenishing land lost to coastal subsidence.

Notable people

 * Norma McCorvey, a.k.a. "Jane Roe", the plaintiff in Roe v. Wade, was born in Simmesport in 1947.
 * Joe Simon, the soul musician, was born in Simmesport in 1943.

title: Simmesport, Louisiana


text:
Merryville, Louisiana

Merryville is a town in Beauregard Parish, Louisiana, United States. The population was 1,103 at the 2010 census. It is part of the DeRidder Micropolitan Statistical Area.

Geography
Merryville is located at 30.75389°N, -93.53694°W (30.753916, -93.536991). U.S. Route 190 passes through the community, leading north and east 19 mi to DeRidder, the parish seat, and west 18 mi to Newton, Texas. The Sabine River, which forms the border between Texas and Louisiana, is 4 mi west of the center of Merryville.

According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 25.4 sqkm.

Demographics
As of the census of 2000, there were 1,126 people, 418 households, and 300 families residing in the town. The population density was 138.0 PD/sqmi. There were 482 housing units at an average density of 59.1 /sqmi. The racial makeup of the town was 82.06% White, 15.19% African American, 1.24% Native American, 0.09% Asian, 0.27% from other races, and 1.15% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 3.46% of the population.

There were 418 households, out of which 34.9% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 50.2% were married couples living together, 17.7% had a female householder with no husband present, and 28.2% were non-families. 27.0% of all households were made up of individuals, and 10.8% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.55 and the average family size was 3.10.

In the town, the population was spread out, with 28.0% under the age of 18, 9.4% from 18 to 24, 24.3% from 25 to 44, 21.8% from 45 to 64, and 16.4% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 36 years. For every 100 females, there were 81.0 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 78.2 males.

The median income for a household in the town was $22,500, and the median income for a family was $30,962. Males had a median income of $30,250 versus $18,672 for females. The per capita income for the town was $14,055. About 24.8% of families and 28.3% of the population were below the poverty line, including 34.8% of those under age 18 and 29.0% of those age 65 or over.

Notable people

 * Jesse Knowles
 * Sam H. Jones
 * Red Cagle
 * Gussie Loftin Townsley, primitive folk artist
 * Lether Frazar

title: Merryville, Louisiana