Parish in Louisiana, United States
Parish in Louisiana, United States
Claiborne Parish
(
French
:
Paroisse de Claiborne
) is a
parish
located in the northwestern section of the
U.S. state
of
Louisiana
. The parish was formed in 1828,
[1]
and was named for the first
Louisiana governor
,
William C. C. Claiborne
. As of the
2020 census
, the population was 14,170.
[2]
The
parish seat
is
Homer
.
[3]
History
[
edit
]
John Murrell moved his family from
Arkansas
to the Flat Lick Bayou area about 6 miles west of present-day Homer in 1818, and they became the first known non-natives to permanently settle in Claiborne Parish. As more settlers moved into the area, the Murrell house served as a church, school and post office. When the state legislature created Claiborne Parish out of
Natchitoches Parish
in 1828, all governmental business, including court, began being held in the Murrell house. This continued until the new parish's
police jury
selected Russellville (now a
ghost town
located northeast of
Athens
) as the parish seat.
[4]
[5]
[6]
As the population began swelling in what was then the western part of the parish, the seat was moved to Overton (another modern ghost town found near
Minden
) in 1836, because of its position at the head of the navigable portion of Dorcheat Bayou. Due to flooding and health concerns, the parish seat was moved to Athens in 1846, but an 1848 fire destroyed the courthouse and all the records in it. Soon thereafter the Claiborne Police Jury chose the present site for the parish seat, which came to be named, Homer.
[7]
[8]
Much of the area history is preserved in the
Herbert S. Ford Memorial Museum
, located across from the parish courthouse in Homer.
[
citation needed
]
Government and infrastructure
[
edit
]
Louisiana Department of Public Safety and Corrections
operates the
David Wade Correctional Center
in an
unincorporated section
of Claiborne Parish near
Homer
and
Haynesville
.
[9]
[10]
Geography
[
edit
]
According to the
U.S. Census Bureau
, the parish has a total area of 767 square miles (1,990 km
2
), of which 755 square miles (1,960 km
2
) is land and 13 square miles (34 km
2
) (1.6%) is water.
[11]
Major highways
[
edit
]
Adjacent parishes
[
edit
]
National protected area
[
edit
]
Communities
[
edit
]
Towns
[
edit
]
Villages
[
edit
]
Unincorporated communities
[
edit
]
Demographics
[
edit
]
Historical population
Census
| Pop.
| Note
| %±
|
1830
| 1,764
| | ?
|
---|
1840
| 6,185
| | 250.6%
|
---|
1850
| 7,471
| | 20.8%
|
---|
1860
| 16,848
| | 125.5%
|
---|
1870
| 20,240
| | 20.1%
|
---|
1880
| 18,837
| | ?6.9%
|
---|
1890
| 23,312
| | 23.8%
|
---|
1900
| 23,029
| | ?1.2%
|
---|
1910
| 25,050
| | 8.8%
|
---|
1920
| 27,885
| | 11.3%
|
---|
1930
| 32,285
| | 15.8%
|
---|
1940
| 29,855
| | ?7.5%
|
---|
1950
| 25,063
| | ?16.1%
|
---|
1960
| 19,407
| | ?22.6%
|
---|
1970
| 17,024
| | ?12.3%
|
---|
1980
| 17,095
| | 0.4%
|
---|
1990
| 17,405
| | 1.8%
|
---|
2000
| 16,851
| | ?3.2%
|
---|
2010
| 17,195
| | 2.0%
|
---|
2020
| 14,170
| | ?17.6%
|
---|
2021 (est.)
| 14,038
| [12]
| ?0.9%
|
---|
As of the
2020 United States census
, there were 14,170 people, 5,917 households, and 3,718 families residing in the parish.
[17]
Politics
[
edit
]
With a narrow majority of African Americans in the population, Claiborne Parish in the years after the
civil rights movement
was primarily
Democratic
in political complexion. In
1988
,
Vice President
George Herbert Walker Bush
prevailed in Claiborne Parish with 3,756 votes (53.6 percent).
Governor
Michael S. Dukakis
of
Massachusetts
trailed with 3,158 votes (45.1 percent).
[18]
In
1996
,
U.S. President
Bill Clinton
of neighboring
Arkansas
, obtained 3,609 votes (53.6 percent) in Claiborne Parish.
Republican
Bob Dole
of
Kansas
polled 2,500 votes (37.1 percent).
[19]
However, by 2008,
U.S. Senator
John McCain
of
Arizona
easily carried the parish in his losing race to
Barack H. Obama
. McCain polled 3,750 votes (54.8 percent) to Obama's 3,025 votes (44.2 percent).
[20]
In 2012,
Mitt Romney
carried the parish, with 3,649 votes (54.2 percent), nearly identical to the McCain tally four years earlier. President Obama received 3,014 votes (44.8 percent), or .6 of 1 percent greater than his earlier tabulation.
[21]
United States presidential election results for Claiborne Parish, Louisiana
[22]
Year
|
Republican
|
Democratic
|
Third party
|
No.
|
%
|
No.
|
%
|
No.
|
%
|
2020
|
3,770
|
57.29%
|
2,731
|
41.50%
|
79
|
1.20%
|
2016
|
3,585
|
55.83%
|
2,717
|
42.31%
|
119
|
1.85%
|
2012
|
3,649
|
54.20%
|
3,014
|
44.77%
|
69
|
1.02%
|
2008
|
3,750
|
54.82%
|
3,025
|
44.22%
|
66
|
0.96%
|
2004
|
3,704
|
55.87%
|
2,854
|
43.05%
|
72
|
1.09%
|
2000
|
3,384
|
53.88%
|
2,721
|
43.32%
|
176
|
2.80%
|
1996
|
2,500
|
37.10%
|
3,609
|
53.55%
|
630
|
9.35%
|
1992
|
2,599
|
37.15%
|
3,263
|
46.64%
|
1,134
|
16.21%
|
1988
|
3,756
|
53.60%
|
3,158
|
45.07%
|
93
|
1.33%
|
1984
|
4,349
|
60.29%
|
2,788
|
38.65%
|
77
|
1.07%
|
1980
|
3,538
|
50.01%
|
3,443
|
48.67%
|
93
|
1.31%
|
1976
|
3,216
|
51.81%
|
2,891
|
46.58%
|
100
|
1.61%
|
1972
|
3,432
|
64.08%
|
1,551
|
28.96%
|
373
|
6.96%
|
1968
|
1,117
|
18.70%
|
1,545
|
25.87%
|
3,311
|
55.43%
|
1964
|
3,917
|
89.04%
|
482
|
10.96%
|
0
|
0.00%
|
1960
|
1,336
|
34.67%
|
489
|
12.69%
|
2,029
|
52.65%
|
1956
|
2,084
|
53.63%
|
810
|
20.84%
|
992
|
25.53%
|
1952
|
2,796
|
64.63%
|
1,530
|
35.37%
|
0
|
0.00%
|
1948
|
265
|
9.51%
|
457
|
16.40%
|
2,064
|
74.08%
|
1944
|
578
|
20.32%
|
2,266
|
79.68%
|
0
|
0.00%
|
1940
|
187
|
5.78%
|
3,049
|
94.22%
|
0
|
0.00%
|
1936
|
146
|
5.39%
|
2,563
|
94.54%
|
2
|
0.07%
|
1932
|
61
|
2.16%
|
2,765
|
97.84%
|
0
|
0.00%
|
1928
|
249
|
13.76%
|
1,560
|
86.24%
|
0
|
0.00%
|
1924
|
54
|
4.13%
|
1,252
|
95.87%
|
0
|
0.00%
|
1920
|
48
|
3.80%
|
1,216
|
96.20%
|
0
|
0.00%
|
1916
|
15
|
1.16%
|
1,276
|
98.76%
|
1
|
0.08%
|
1912
|
10
|
1.18%
|
785
|
92.24%
|
56
|
6.58%
|
Education
[
edit
]
Claiborne Parish School Board
serves the entire parish.
[23]
Claiborne Academy
is a private institution in an
unincorporated area
in the parish, near
Haynesville
.
[24]
Notable people
[
edit
]
Prominent Claiborne Parish residents include or have included:
- Henry Walton Bibb
American author, abolitionist, and former slave from 1839 to 1841
[25]
- T. H. Harris
, state education superintendent from 1908 to 1940.
[26]
- Andrew R. Johnson
was a state senator from Claiborne and
Bienville
parishes from 1916 to 1924.
[27]
- John Sidney Killen
, state representative for Claiborne Parish in 1871
[28]
- Joe LeSage
, state senator for Caddo Parish from 1968 to 1972; Shreveport attorney born in Homer
[29]
- George H. Mahon
, Former U.S. Representative.
[30]
- James T. McCalman
, state senator from Claiborne and Bienville parishes from 1960 to 1964.
[31]
- Danny Roy Moore
, state senator from 1964 to 1968.
[32]
- Dave L. Pearce
,
Louisiana Commissioner of Agriculture and Forestry
from 1952 to 1956 and 1960?1976.
[33]
- Larry Sale
, sheriff of Claiborne Parish from 1936 to 1944; bodyguard at the assassination of
Huey Pierce Long Jr.
[34]
- Richard Stalder
, former secretary of the
Louisiana Department of Public Safety and Corrections
.
- David Wade
,
Lieutenant General
of the
United States Air Force
.
[35]
- Loy F. Weaver
, state representative from 1976 to 1984.
[36]
- Mule Watson
, pitcher in Major League Baseball from 1918 to 1924.
[37]
- Pinkie C. Wilkerson
state representative from 1992 to 2000.
[38]
- Patrick Floyd Garrett
, Sheriff of Lincoln County New Mexico, and killer of Billy the Kid.
[39]
Gallery
[
edit
]
See also
[
edit
]
References
[
edit
]
- ^
Harris, D. W.; Hulse, B. M. (1886).
The History of Claiborne Parish, Louisiana
. New Orleans, LA: W. H. Stansbury & Company
. Retrieved
September 3,
2014
.
- ^
a
b
"QuickFacts Caliborne Parish, Louisiana"
. United States Census Bureau
. Retrieved
September 7,
2022
.
- ^
"Find a County"
. National Association of Counties. Archived from
the original
on May 31, 2011
. Retrieved
June 7,
2011
.
- ^
Burr, Murphy J.
"Murrell family pioneered in Claiborne Parish"
.
www.thepineywoods.com/
. The Piney Woods Journal. Archived from
the original
on March 4, 2016
. Retrieved
December 14,
2014
.
- ^
Volentine, Linda; Herring, Susan T.
"Bridges Mill School Remembered"
. The Guardian-Journal
. Retrieved
December 15,
2014
.
- ^
Herring, Susan T. (April 29, 1999).
"
"Father Of Claiborne Parish" John Murrell Arrived In August Of 1819"
.
www.usgwarchives.net/
. The Guardian-Journal
. Retrieved
December 15,
2014
.
- ^
Harris, D. W.; Hulse, B. M., eds. (1886).
The History of Claiborne Parish, Louisiana, From Its Incorporation in 1828 to the Close of the Year 1885
. New Orleans: W. B. Stansbury & Co. pp.
19
?20, 103.
- ^
"
Russellville: Ghost Town of Claiborne Parish
"
. claiborneone.org. Archived from
the original
on July 7, 2010
. Retrieved
July 8,
2010
.
- ^
"
David Wade Corr. Center
Archived
2011-01-27 at the
Wayback Machine
."
Louisiana Department of Public Safety and Corrections
. Accessed September 14, 2008.
- ^
"
Inmate wants his privileges restored
."
The Advocate
. January 11, 1990. Retrieved on October 2, 2010. "But Mule was transferred to Wade Correctional Center in Haynesville[...]"
- ^
"2010 Census Gazetteer Files"
. United States Census Bureau. August 22, 2012. Archived from
the original
on September 28, 2013
. Retrieved
August 27,
2014
.
- ^
"QuickFacts Claiborne Parish, Louisiana"
. Retrieved
September 7,
2022
.
- ^
"U.S. Decennial Census"
. United States Census Bureau
. Retrieved
August 27,
2014
.
- ^
"Historical Census Browser"
. University of Virginia Library. Archived from
the original
on August 11, 2012
. Retrieved
August 27,
2014
.
- ^
"Population of Counties by Decennial Census: 1900 to 1990"
. United States Census Bureau
. Retrieved
August 27,
2014
.
- ^
"Census 2000 PHC-T-4. Ranking Tables for Counties: 1990 and 2000"
(PDF)
. United States Census Bureau.
Archived
(PDF)
from the original on March 27, 2010
. Retrieved
August 27,
2014
.
- ^
a
b
"Explore Census Data"
.
data.census.gov
. Retrieved
December 29,
2021
.
- ^
"Claiborne Parish presidential election returns, November 8, 1988"
. staticresults.sos.la.gov
. Retrieved
November 11,
2012
.
- ^
"Claiborne Parish presidential election returns, November 5, 1996"
. staticresults.sos.la.gov
. Retrieved
November 11,
2012
.
- ^
"Claiborne Parish presidential election returns"
. staticresults.sos.la.gov
. Retrieved
November 11,
2012
.
- ^
"Claiborne Parish presidential election returns, November 6, 2012"
. staticresults.sos.la.gov
. Retrieved
November 11,
2012
.
- ^
Leip, David.
"Dave Leip's Atlas of U.S. Presidential Elections"
.
uselectionatlas.org
. Retrieved
March 7,
2018
.
- ^
"2020 CENSUS - SCHOOL DISTRICT REFERENCE MAP: Claiborne Parish, LA"
(PDF)
.
U.S. Census Bureau
. Retrieved
February 11,
2024
.
-
Text list
- ^
"
image007.gif
Archived
2011-06-27 at the
Wayback Machine
."
Claiborne Academy
. Retrieved on October 2, 2010. "6741 Highway 19, Haynesville, LA 71038."
- ^
Bibb, Henry (1849).
Narrative of the Life and Adventures of Henry Bibb, An American Slave, Written by Himself
. New York: The Author.
- ^
"T H Harris 1925 bio - Claiborne LAGenWeb"
.
www.lagenweb.org
. Retrieved
April 19,
2024
.
- ^
"Andrew R Johnson 1925 bio - Claiborne LAGenWeb"
.
www.lagenweb.org
. Retrieved
April 19,
2024
.
- ^
"John Killen Home"
. Minden Memories. Archived from the original on July 18, 2011
. Retrieved
March 16,
2015
.
{{
cite web
}}
: CS1 maint: unfit URL (
link
)
- ^
"Joe C. LeSage, Jr., obituary"
.
The Shreveport Times
. September 24, 2015
. Retrieved
September 27,
2015
.
- ^
"Congressman George Mahon Historical Marker"
.
www.hmdb.org
. Retrieved
April 19,
2024
.
- ^
"Membership in the Louisiana Senate, 1880-2024"
(PDF)
. senate.louisiana.gov
. Retrieved
April 19,
2024
.
- ^
"Membership in the Louisiana Senate, 1880-2024"
(PDF)
. senate.louisiana.gov
. Retrieved
April 19,
2024
.
- ^
"Lake Charles American-Press from Lake Charles, Louisiana"
.
Newspapers.com
. December 15, 1965
. Retrieved
April 19,
2024
.
- ^
Exhibit, Herbert S. Ford Memorial Museum,
Homer, Louisiana
- ^
Wade Room, Herbert S. Ford Memorial Museum, Homer, Louisiana
- ^
"Membership in the Louisiana House of Representatives, 1812-2012"
(PDF)
. house.louisiana.gov. Archived from
the original
(PDF)
on March 31, 2010
. Retrieved
September 5,
2009
.
- ^
admin.
"Mule Watson ? Society for American Baseball Research"
.
sabr.org
. Retrieved
April 19,
2024
.
- ^
"State Rep. Wilkerson Killed in Auto Accident"
. house.legis.state.la.us. August 1, 2000. Archived from
the original
on March 6, 2011
. Retrieved
September 26,
2009
.
- ^
"Sheriff Pat Garrett Historical Marker"
.
www.hmdb.org
. Retrieved
April 19,
2024
.
- ^
"Restaurant inspired by popular Lake Claiborne eatery coming to Cross Lake"
.
Shreveport Times
. Retrieved
February 14,
2014
.
External links
[
edit
]
Places adjacent to Claiborne Parish, Louisiana
|
---|
|
32°49′N
92°59′W
/
32.82°N 92.99°W
/
32.82; -92.99
|
---|
International
| |
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National
| |
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Geographic
| |
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Other
| |
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