Parish in Louisiana, United States
Parish in Louisiana
St. Landry Parish
(
French
:
Paroisse de Saint-Landry
) is a
parish
located in the
U.S. state
of
Louisiana
. As of the
2020 Census
, the population was 82,540.
[1]
The
parish seat
is
Opelousas
.
[2]
The parish was established in 1807.
[3]
St. Landry Parish comprises the Opelousas, LA
Micropolitan Statistical Area
(μSA), which is also included in the
Lafayette
-Opelousas-
Morgan City
, LA
Combined Statistical Area
. It is at the heart of
Creole
and
Cajun
culture and heritage in Louisiana.
History
[
edit
]
French and Spanish Territory
[
edit
]
The land that became St. Landry Parish was inhabited since at least 10,500 B.C., as deduced from excavations of three prehistoric dwelling sites. By the 15th century, the
Opelousa
Indians settled in the area situated between
Atchafalaya River
and
Sabine River
(at the border of Texas-Louisiana). The Opelousa were war-like and preyed on neighbors to defend their own territory.
The first European recorded in the Opelousa territory was a French trader named Michel de Birotte. He came in 1690 and negotiated with the Opelousa nation.
[
citation needed
]
Nine years later, France named
Louisiana
as a colony and defined the land occupied by the Opelousa as the Opelousas Territory. The area south of the Opelousas Territory between the Atchafalaya River, the Gulf of Mexico and
Bayou Nezpique
, occupied by the Atakapas Indians (Eastern
Atakapa
), was named Atakapas Territory.
In 1764,
France
established the Opelousas
Post
slightly north of the contemporary city of Opelousas (near present-day
Washington
).
[4]
It was a major trading organization for the developing area. In addition, France established the Attakapas Post (near the present-day
St. Martinville
) in the Attakapas Territory, in 1765. France gave land grants to soldiers and settlers to encourage development. Most settlers were French immigrants. Tradition says that Jean Joseph LeKintrek and Joseph Blainpain, who had formed a partnership to trade with the Opelousa Indians, came in the early 1740s. They brought three enslaved Africans, the first to live in the area.
[5]
Some Indians sold land to the newcomers. When the Eastern Attakapas Chief
Kinemo
sold all the land between
Vermilion River
and
Bayou Teche
to Frenchman
Gabriel Fuselier de la Claire
in 1760, however, the angry
Opelousa
tribe exterminated the Attakapas (Eastern Atakapa).
France ceded Louisiana and its territories to
Spain
in 1762. Under Spanish rule, Opelousas Post became the center of government for Southwest
Louisiana
. By 1769 about 100 families were living in Opelousas Post. Between 1780 and 1820, the first settlers were joined by others coming from the Attakapas Territory, from the
Pointe Coupee
Territory, and east from the Atchafalaya River area. They were joined by immigrants from the
French West Indies
, who left after Haiti/St. Domingue became independent in a slave revolution. Most of the new settlers were French, Spaniards,
French Creoles
,
Spanish Creoles
,
Africans
and
African-Americans
.
The group from Attakapas Post included many
Acadians
. These were French who migrated from
Nova Scotia
in 1763, after their expulsion by the English in the aftermath of France's defeat in the Seven Years' War (known in North America as the French and Indian War). They were led by
Jean-Jacques Blaise d'Abbadie
. D'Abbadie was Governor of the territory from 1763 to 1765. The French community built
St. Landry Catholic Church
by 1766, dedicated to
St. Landry (Landericus) of Paris
, the
Bishop of Paris
in the 7th century.
[6]
[7]
On April 10, 1805, after the United States had acquired the
Louisiana Purchase
, the post was named the town of Opelousas and became the seat of the County of Opelousas, part of the
Territory of Orleans
. In 1807, when the territory was reorganized into parishes, Opelousas was designated the seat of St. Landry Parish.
[8]
Purchase by the United States
[
edit
]
The
United States
gained control of the territory in 1803 through the
Louisiana Purchase
. Americans from the South and other parts of the United States began to migrate to the area, marking the arrival of the first large English-speaking population and the introduction of the need for more general use of English.
[4]
St. Landry Parish was officially established on April 10, 1805, by a legislative act, becoming the largest parish in the Louisiana state. The new parish was named after the St. Landry Catholic Church located near the Opelousas Post.
[4]
The parish's boundaries encompassed about half the land of the Opelousas Territory, between the
Atchafalaya River
and
Sabine River
, between
Rapides Parish
and
Vernon Parish
, and
Lafayette
and
St. Martin
Parishes. Since then, the area of the parish has decreased, as six additional parishes have been created from its territory. These include
Calcasieu
,
Acadia
,
Evangeline
,
Jeff Davis
,
Beauregard
, and
Allen
.
[4]
In 1821 the second educational institution west of the Mississippi was founded in
Grand Coteau
. In this community south of Opelousas is the Academy of the Sacred Heart, a private Catholic school founded by the French Creole community.
[9]
The city of
Opelousas
has been the seat of government for the St. Landry Parish since its formation.
[4]
After
Baton Rouge
fell to the Union troops during the Civil War in 1862, Opelousas became the state capital for nine months. The capital was moved again in 1863, this time to
Shreveport
when Union troops occupied Opelousas.
[10]
[11]
St. Landry Parish originally consisted of all the territory in the current parishes of Acadia, Evangeline, and St. Landry. Over time, it was separated into three different parishes. The southwestern portion of St. Landry was broken off to become
Acadia Parish
in 1886. A bill was introduced in the Louisiana House of Representatives entitled "An act to create the parish of Nicholls, and to provide for the organization thereof."
[12]
The title was later changed to read: "An act to create the parish of Acadia." Father Joseph Anthonioz, the first pastor of the Catholic Church at
Rayne
, is credited with having suggested the name, Acadia Parish. The bill passed the house on June 11, the senate on June 28, and was approved by Governor
Samuel D. McEnery
on June 30.
[13]
On October 6, an election was held to affirm the creation of the parish, with 2,516 votes for and 1,521 votes against the creation.
St. Landry was divided again when the northwestern portion was broken away. In June 1908, a bill was passed to create a new parish out of a portion of St. Landry Parish. This new parish became named
Evangeline Parish
in 1910. Prior to creation of the new parish, Eunice and
Ville Platte
were in competition for the new parish seat. Ville Platte was selected by voters on April 12, 1909. After the election, Eunice declared it would remain in St. Landry Parish.
[14]
In the aftermath of the ratification of Louisiana's Constitution of 1868 and the
Fourteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution
, tensions between white Democrats and Black Republicans in St. Landry Parish escalated throughout the summer of 1868. On September 28, white schoolteacher and Republican newspaper editor Emerson Bentley was attacked and beaten by three white supremacists while teaching a classroom of Black children in
Opelousas, Louisiana
. Rumors of Bentley's death, while unfounded, led both Black Republicans and white supremacist Democrats, including the St. Landry Parish chapter of the
Knights of the White Camelia
, to threaten violent retribution. In the days following Bentley's subsequent covert flight to New Orleans, the massacre began. Heavily outnumbered, Black citizens were chased, captured, shot, murdered, and lynched during the following weeks. While estimates of casualties vary widely, several sources number the deaths between 200 and 300 black people and several dozen whites, making it the bloodiest massacres of the
Reconstruction Era
and among the deadliest in American history. Following the massacre, the Republican Party in St. Landry Parish was eliminated for several years.
[15]
2019 black church fires
[
edit
]
During 10 days,
three black churches
, the St. Mary Baptist Church over 100 years old (March 26, 2019), Greater Union Baptist Church (April 2, 2019), and Mount Pleasant Baptist Church (April 4, 2019) set on fire by a vandal and this incident raised officials concern that the fires started by
racist
and
radical group
or person. Finally, police arrested the vandal who was the son of a
St. Landry Parish
sheriff's deputy. Holden Matthews, 21, has been charged with the arson attack on black churches.
[16]
[17]
[18]
Geography
[
edit
]
According to the
U.S. Census Bureau
, the parish has a total area of 939 square miles (2,430 km
2
), of which 924 square miles (2,390 km
2
) is land and 15 square miles (39 km
2
) (0.6%) is water.
[19]
Adjacent parishes
[
edit
]
National protected areas
[
edit
]
Major highways
[
edit
]
Demographics
[
edit
]
Historical population
Census
| Pop.
| Note
| %±
|
1830
| 12,591
| | ?
|
---|
1840
| 15,233
| | 21.0%
|
---|
1850
| 22,253
| | 46.1%
|
---|
1860
| 23,104
| | 3.8%
|
---|
1870
| 25,553
| | 10.6%
|
---|
1880
| 40,004
| | 56.6%
|
---|
1890
| 40,250
| | 0.6%
|
---|
1900
| 52,906
| | 31.4%
|
---|
1910
| 66,661
| | 26.0%
|
---|
1920
| 51,697
| | ?22.4%
|
---|
1930
| 60,074
| | 16.2%
|
---|
1940
| 71,481
| | 19.0%
|
---|
1950
| 78,476
| | 9.8%
|
---|
1960
| 81,493
| | 3.8%
|
---|
1970
| 80,364
| | ?1.4%
|
---|
1980
| 84,128
| | 4.7%
|
---|
1990
| 80,331
| | ?4.5%
|
---|
2000
| 87,700
| | 9.2%
|
---|
2010
| 83,384
| | ?4.9%
|
---|
2020
| 82,540
| | ?1.0%
|
---|
As of the
2020 United States census
, there were 82,540 people, 30,441 households, and 20,790 families residing in the parish.
Law enforcement
[
edit
]
Law enforcement agency
The St. Landry Parish Sheriff's Office (SLPSO) is the primary law enforcement agency of St. Landry Parish. It falls under the authority of the
Sheriff
, who is the chief law enforcement officer of the parish. As of 2022
[update]
the sheriff of St. Landry Parish is Bobby J. Guidroz.
[26]
The office briefly became the subject of national attention in 2015 when its eccentric
Crime Stoppers
videos, starring public relations officer (later U.S. Representative)
Clay Higgins
, went viral and were featured on
The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon
.
[27]
Higgins left the department after the videos attracted criticism from the ACLU and Sheriff Guidroz ordered that future videos be "toned down".
[28]
[29]
Politics
[
edit
]
United States presidential election results for St. Landry Parish, Louisiana
[30]
Year
|
Republican
|
Democratic
|
Third party
|
No.
|
%
|
No.
|
%
|
No.
|
%
|
2020
|
23,171
|
56.30%
|
17,372
|
42.21%
|
611
|
1.48%
|
2016
|
21,971
|
54.96%
|
17,209
|
43.05%
|
797
|
1.99%
|
2012
|
21,475
|
51.56%
|
19,668
|
47.23%
|
504
|
1.21%
|
2008
|
21,650
|
50.95%
|
20,268
|
47.70%
|
575
|
1.35%
|
2004
|
18,315
|
49.82%
|
18,166
|
49.42%
|
279
|
0.76%
|
2000
|
15,449
|
45.24%
|
18,067
|
52.90%
|
635
|
1.86%
|
1996
|
12,273
|
34.62%
|
20,636
|
58.21%
|
2,544
|
7.18%
|
1992
|
11,882
|
32.27%
|
20,383
|
55.37%
|
4,550
|
12.36%
|
1988
|
15,790
|
44.53%
|
19,091
|
53.84%
|
576
|
1.62%
|
1984
|
19,055
|
51.19%
|
17,950
|
48.22%
|
218
|
0.59%
|
1980
|
14,940
|
45.72%
|
17,125
|
52.41%
|
613
|
1.88%
|
1976
|
9,956
|
37.94%
|
15,613
|
59.49%
|
674
|
2.57%
|
1972
|
12,510
|
57.01%
|
7,421
|
33.82%
|
2,014
|
9.18%
|
1968
|
3,508
|
13.90%
|
9,075
|
35.95%
|
12,659
|
50.15%
|
1964
|
10,920
|
48.05%
|
11,807
|
51.95%
|
0
|
0.00%
|
1960
|
3,083
|
15.22%
|
14,625
|
72.18%
|
2,554
|
12.60%
|
1956
|
5,141
|
51.56%
|
4,435
|
44.48%
|
394
|
3.95%
|
1952
|
5,303
|
52.69%
|
4,761
|
47.31%
|
0
|
0.00%
|
1948
|
829
|
10.70%
|
1,179
|
15.22%
|
5,739
|
74.08%
|
1944
|
784
|
15.06%
|
4,423
|
84.94%
|
0
|
0.00%
|
1940
|
561
|
8.11%
|
6,358
|
91.89%
|
0
|
0.00%
|
1936
|
441
|
7.25%
|
5,639
|
92.75%
|
0
|
0.00%
|
1932
|
297
|
7.31%
|
3,766
|
92.69%
|
0
|
0.00%
|
1928
|
718
|
17.46%
|
3,394
|
82.54%
|
0
|
0.00%
|
1924
|
357
|
20.86%
|
1,354
|
79.14%
|
0
|
0.00%
|
1920
|
942
|
48.09%
|
1,017
|
51.91%
|
0
|
0.00%
|
1916
|
117
|
31.03%
|
139
|
36.87%
|
121
|
32.10%
|
1912
|
101
|
8.31%
|
938
|
77.20%
|
176
|
14.49%
|
Education
[
edit
]
St. Landry Parish is served by the St. Landry Parish School Board
- Arnaudville Elementary (Grades 5?8)
- Beau Chene High School
(Grades 9?12) (unincorporated Arnaudville)
- Cankton Elementary (Grades PK-4) (Cankton)
- Central Middle School (Grades 5?6)
- East Elementary (Grades PK-4)
- Eunice Elementary (Grades PK-4)
- Eunice High School
(Grades 9?12)
- Eunice Jr. High School (Grades 7?8)
- Glendale Elementary (Grades PK-4)
- Grand Coteau Elementary (Grades PK-4) (Grand Coteau)
- Grand Prairie Elementary (Grades PK-4) (unincorporated Washington)
- Grolee Elementary (Grades PK-4)
- Highland Elementary (Grades PK-4)
- Krotz Springs Elementary (Grades PK-8)
- Lawtell Elementary (Grades PK-8) (Lawtell)
- Leonville Elementary (Grades PK-8)
- North Central High School
(Grades 9?12) (unincorporated Washington)
- Northeast Elementary (Grades PK-6)
- Northwest High School
(Grades 9?12) (unincorporated Opelousas)
- Opelousas Jr. High School (Grades 7?8)
- Opelousas Sr. High School
(Grades 9?12)
- Palmetto Elementary (Grades PK-4) (Palmetto)
- Park Vista Elementary (Grades PK-6)
- Plaisance Elementary (Grades 5?8) (unincorporated Opelousas)
- Port Barre Elementary (Grades PK-4)
- Port Barre High School
(Grades 5?12)
- South Street Elementary (Grades PK-6)
- Sunset Elementary (Grades 5?8)
- Washington Elementary (Grades PK-8)
St. Landry Parish is also served by the
Diocese of Lafayette
with five schools:
Additionally, St. Landry Parish is served by four unaffiliated private schools:
- Good Shephard Montessori School (Grades PK-8) (Port Barre)
- Melville Private School (Grades PK-7) (Melville)
- Opelousas Family Worship School (Grades PK-12) (Opelousas)
- Westminster Christian Academy
(Grades PK-12)
St. Landry Parish is served by two institutions of higher education:
Communities
[
edit
]
Cities
[
edit
]
Towns
[
edit
]
Villages
[
edit
]
Unincorporated areas
[
edit
]
Census-designated place
[
edit
]
Other unincorporated communities
[
edit
]
Notable people
[
edit
]
See also
[
edit
]
References
[
edit
]
- ^
"Census - Geography Profile: St. Landry Parish, Louisiana"
.
United States Census Bureau
. Retrieved
January 22,
2023
.
- ^
"Find a County"
. National Association of Counties
. Retrieved
June 7,
2011
.
- ^
"St. Landry Parish"
. Center for Cultural and Eco-Tourism
. Retrieved
September 6,
2014
.
- ^
a
b
c
d
e
Hartley, Carola (2003).
"Imperial St. Landry Parish"
. LAGenWeb. Archived from
the original
on September 21, 2007
. Retrieved
March 21,
2007
.
- ^
Harper, John, N. (2018).
Mississippi Valley Melange: A Collection of Notes and Documents for the Genealogy and History of the Province of Louisiana and the Territory of Orleans
(1st ed.). Baton Rouge: Provincial Press. pp. 12?16.
ISBN
1-59804-201-7
.
{{
cite book
}}
: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (
link
)
- ^
Harper, John, N. (1993).
The Mother Church of Acadiana: The History of the St. Landry Catholic Church in Opelousas, Louisiana
(1st ed.). Rayne, LA: Hebert Publications. pp. 5?9, 18?19.
{{
cite book
}}
: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (
link
)
- ^
Harper, John N. (November 3, 2013).
"
"Who was Saint Landry?"
"
.
The (Opelousas) Daily World
. pp. 13?14
. Retrieved
May 5,
2023
.
- ^
"History of Opelousas | City of Opelousas: Perfectly Seasoned"
.
www.cityofopelousas.com
. Retrieved
March 9,
2018
.
- ^
Central Acadiana Gateway: Opelousas and St. Landry Parish, LSUE Office of Public Relations, 2000
Archived
April 1, 2007, at the
Wayback Machine
, accessed April 27, 2008
- ^
"Opelousas and St. Landry Parish"
. Louisiana State University - Eunice. Archived from
the original
on April 1, 2007
. Retrieved
March 19,
2007
.
- ^
"Opelousas Facts and History"
. City of Opelousas. Archived from
the original
on July 5, 2007
. Retrieved
March 19,
2007
.
- ^
"Official Journal of the Proceedings of the House of Representatives of the State of Louisiana"
. 1886.
- ^
Fontenot, Mary.
Acadia Parish, Louisiana
. The Center for Louisiana Studies, 1976, p. 244.
- ^
"Evangeline Parish History"
(PDF)
.
www.lacollege.edu
.
Archived
(PDF)
from the original on September 10, 2016.
- ^
Boissoneault, Lorraine (September 28, 2018).
"The Deadliest Massacre in Reconstruction-Era Louisiana Happened 150 Years Ago"
.
Smithsonian Magazine
. Archived from
the original
on September 30, 2021
. Retrieved
September 30,
2021
.
- ^
Ingber, Sasha (April 11, 2019).
"
'Evil Acts': Son Of Sheriff's Deputy Is Chief Suspect In Louisiana Church Arson Cases"
.
National Public Radio
. Retrieved
April 11,
2019
.
- ^
Blinder, Alan; Fausset, Richard; Eligon, John (April 11, 2019).
"A Charred Gas Can, a Receipt and an Arrest in Fires of 3 Black Churches"
.
New York Times
.
- ^
McLaughlin, Eliott C.
"Prosecutor adds hate crimes to charges against Louisiana church fire suspect"
.
CNN
. Retrieved
April 17,
2019
.
- ^
"2010 Census Gazetteer Files"
. United States Census Bureau. August 22, 2012. Archived from
the original
on September 28, 2013
. Retrieved
September 1,
2014
.
- ^
"U.S. Decennial Census"
. United States Census Bureau
. Retrieved
September 1,
2014
.
- ^
"Historical Census Browser"
. University of Virginia Library
. Retrieved
September 1,
2014
.
- ^
"Population of Counties by Decennial Census: 1900 to 1990"
. United States Census Bureau
. Retrieved
September 1,
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
September 1,
2014
.
- ^
"State & County QuickFacts"
. United States Census Bureau
. Retrieved
August 18,
2013
.
- ^
"Explore Census Data"
.
data.census.gov
. Retrieved
December 29,
2021
.
- ^
"Information about Sheriff Bobby J. Guidroz, St. Landry Parish"
. St. Landry Parish Sheriff's Office. Sheriff Guidroz is a 1994 graduate of the F.B. I. National Academy
. Retrieved
September 29,
2012
.
- ^
Stickney, Ken (December 16, 2016).
"Higgins carves unlikely path to Capitol"
.
The Daily Advertiser
.
- ^
gunn, billy.
"ACLU blasts St. Landry's law and order sheriff's captain over comments on latest viral video"
.
The Advocate
. Retrieved
October 19,
2022
.
- ^
"Higgins Leaves St. Landry Parish Sheriff's Office"
.
acadiaparishtoday.com
. February 29, 2016
. Retrieved
October 18,
2022
.
- ^
Leip, David.
"Dave Leip's Atlas of U.S. Presidential Elections"
.
uselectionatlas.org
. Retrieved
March 9,
2018
.
- ^
"Our Colleges"
.
Louisiana's Technical and Community Colleges
. Retrieved
June 3,
2021
.
References
[
edit
]
External links
[
edit
]
Geology
- Heinrich, P. V., and W. J. Autin, 2000,
Baton Rouge 30 x 60 minute geologic quadrangle.
Louisiana Geological Survey
, Baton Rouge, Louisiana.
- Heinrich, P. V., J. Snead, and R. P. McCulloh, 2003,
Crowley 30 x 60 minute geologic quadrangle.
Louisiana Geological Survey, Baton Rouge, Louisiana.
- Snead, J., P. V. Heinrich, and R. P. McCulloh, 2002,
Ville Platte 30 x 60 minute geologic quadrangle.
Louisiana Geological Survey, Baton Rouge, Louisiana.
Places adjacent to St. Landry Parish, Louisiana
|
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|
|
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International
| |
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National
| |
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Geographic
| |
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Other
| |
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30°36′N
92°00′W
/
30.60°N 92.00°W
/
30.60; -92.00