Pecan Island, Louisiana

Pecan Island ( _fr. Île du Pecan) is an unincorporated community with a population of about 300 located in Vermilion Parish, Louisiana. It is right under the south peak of White Lake. It is the composition of two ridges that make the island. There isn't much land, but farms raise livestock on what is there.

Most residents evacuated under the threat of Hurricane Rita, which obliterated most of the homes there and forced the closure of the community's school - Pecan Island High School.

It is located in the prairie-marsh region of Southwest Louisiana, approximately ten miles from the Gulf of Mexico, along state Hwy. 82, which runs from Abbeville through Vermilion Parish westward along the coast to Lake Charles. The town is inhabited largely by persons of cajun ancestry, and has a Catholic Mission Church, Sacred Heart, a Baptist and a Methodist Church. Only one small store exists following Hurricane Rita, selling fuel, some groceries and hunting supplies. Common family names in the area include Veazey, Stelly, Guidry, Wench, Broussard and Miller. The town had previously ravaged by Hurricane Audry in 1957.

It has a Mardi Gras and is bustleing with duck hunters in the winter months. As with most Gulf coastal towns, future growth will be regulated by FEMA construction guidelines following the 2005 hurricanes, meaning new homes will be somewhat more expensive to construct.

Pecan Island is part of the Abbeville Micropolitan Statistical Area.