Winn Parish, Louisiana

Infobox U.S. County
county = Winn Parish
state = Louisiana




founded year = 1852
founded date =
seat wl = Winnfield
largest city wl = Winnfield
area_total_sq_mi = 957
area_total_km2 = 2478
area_land_sq_mi = 950
area_land_km2 = 2462
area_water_sq_mi = 6
area_water_km2 = 17
area percentage = 0.67%
census yr = 2000
pop = 16894
density_sq_mi = 18
density_km2 = 7
time zone = Central
UTC offset = -6
DST offset = -5
footnotes =
web =
named for = Louisiana state legislator Walter Winn or a hero of the War of Mexico Winfield Scott

Winn Parish (French: "Paroisse de Winn" is a parish located in the U.S. state of Louisiana. Its seat is Winnfield. In 2000, its population was 16,894.

History

Winn Parish was established in 1852 from lands which had belonged to the parishes of Catahoula, Natchitoches, and Rapides.

During the American Civil War, David Pierson, a young attorney, was elected to represent Winn Parish at the Secession Convention called by Governor Moore in Baton Rouge, Louisiana in January 1861. Pierson voted against secession in all votes taken and refused, along with several others, to change his "no" vote at the end of the process when asked to do so in order that the vote for secession be made unanimous. This act of voting "no" has confused some into thinking that Winn Parish refused to secede from the Union and was a "de facto" Union enclave called the Free State of Winn in the Confederate state of Louisiana.Fact|Apr 2008|date=April 2008

The Confederate States Army defeated a Union Army detachment sent to destroy the Drake Salt Works in the area.

After the American Civil War, bandits roamed the Natchez Trace or Harrisonburg Road that ran through the lower part of the parish. Among the worst were the West and Kimbrell Clan whose membership briefly included Frank and Jesse James. For seven years they preyed especially on travelers and migrants passing through the area. The later gang headed by Jesse James has been characterized as part of a continuing guerrilla insurgency mounted by Confederate veterans after the Civil War. [T.J. Stiles, "Jesse James: Last Rebel of the Civil War", New York: Vintage Books, paperback 2003]

In April 1873 white militia from Winn Parish joined in the Colfax Massacre in neighboring Grant Parish, putting down what they called a riot by freedmen as an aftermath to the disputed gubernatorial election of 1872. Columbus Nash, the former sheriff of Grant Parish, and head of the white militia, in 1874 formed the White League, whose first chapter was made up of members of white militia from Grant, Winn and Rapides parishes. Chapters of the White League formed in other rural areas of the state.

The paramilitary group operated openly to restore white supremacy, overthrow Republican rule and disfranchise freedmen, using violence, intimidation and assassination, in what has been described as the second stage of insurgency after the Civil War. [ [http://www.libertychapelcemetery.org/files/hogue-colfax.pdf James K. Hogue, "The 1873 Battle of Colfax: Paramilitarism and Counterrevolution in Louisiana"] , 6 Nov 1997; rev. 27 Jun 2006, pp.1-3, accessed 26 Jun 2008] They were instrumental in white Democrats' regaining control of the state legislature in Louisiana in the 1870s. [Eric Foner, "Reconstruction: America's Unfinished Revolution, 1863-1877", New York: Perennial Classics, Paperback, 2002, pp.550-551] [Nicholas Lemann, "Redemption: The Last Battle of the Civil War", New York: Farrar Strauss & Giroux, paperback, 2007, pp.24-25, 28-29]

Winn Parish is the traditional home of the former Long family Democratic political dynasty. It is the birthplace of Huey Long, Earl Kemp Long, and Oscar K. Allen, former governors of Louisiana. Earl Long is buried in a public square in Winnfield, the site of the Louisiana Political Museum and Hall of Fame, which opened in 1993.

Alexandria businessman Morgan W. Walker, Sr. (1893-1983), a co-founder of Continental Trailways, was a Winn Parish native. Charlton Lyons practiced law in Winn Parish briefly in the 1920s. He went on to become a successful oil man in Shreveport and helped build a competitive Republican Party in the state. In 1964 he ran as a Republican candidate for governor, receiving a record-breaking 37% of the votes as a Republican candidate.

Geography

The parish has a total area of 957 square miles (2,478 km²), of which, 950 square miles (2,462 km²) of it is land and 6 square miles (17 km²) of it (0.67%) is water.

Major highways

*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*

Adjacent parishes

*Jackson Parish (north)
*Caldwell Parish (northeast)
*La Salle Parish (southeast)
*Grant Parish (south)
*Natchitoches Parish (west)
*Bienville Parish (northwest)

National protected area

*Kisatchie National Forest (part)

Demographics

USCensusPop
title=
1790=
1800=
1810=
1820=
1830=
1840=
1850=
1860=
1870=
1880=
1890=
1900= 9648
1910= 18357
1920= 16119
1930= 14766
1940= 16923
1950= 16119
1960= 16034
1970= 16369
1980= 17253
1990= 16269
2000= 16894
estimate= 15835
estyear= 2006
estref= [cite web|url=http://quickfacts.census.gov/qfd/states/22/22127.html|title=Winn Parish Quickfacts|author=United States Census Bureau|accessdate=2008-02-02]
footnote=Winn Parish Census Data [cite web|url=http://www.census.gov/population/cencounts/la190090.txt|title=Louisiana Population of Counties by Decennial Census: 1900 to 1990|author=United States Census Bureau|accessdate=2008-02-02] As of the censusGR|2 of 2000, there were 16,894 people, 5,930 households, and 4,234 families residing in the parish. The population density was 18 people per square mile (7/km²). There were 7,502 housing units at an average density of 8 per square mile (3/km²). The racial makeup of the parish was 66.27% White, 32.03% Black or African American, 0.50% Native American, 0.16% Asian, 0.05% Pacific Islander, 0.13% from other races, and 0.86% from two or more races. 0.87% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.

There were 5,930 households out of which 32.60% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 51.80% were married couples living together, 15.30% had a female householder with no husband present, and 28.60% were non-families. 26.20% of all households were made up of individuals and 12.90% 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 3.07.

In the parish the population was spread out with 24.80% under the age of 18, 9.60% from 18 to 24, 28.90% from 25 to 44, 22.70% from 45 to 64, and 14.00% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 36 years. For every 100 females there were 110.80 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 113.20 males.

The median income for a household in the parish was $25,462, and the median income for a family was $31,513. Males had a median income of $29,094 versus $17,939 for females. The per capita income for the parish was $11,794. About 17.00% of families and 21.50% of the population were below the poverty line, including 28.40% of those under age 18 and 24.20% of those age 65 or over.

Communities

Cities and towns

Unincorporated areas

*Joyce
*Saint Maurice
*Tannehill

Education

Winn Parish School Board operates local public schools.

Corrections

Corrections Corporation of America, under contract with Louisiana Department of Public Safety and Corrections, operates the Winn Correctional Center in an unincorporated section of Winn Parish. [" [http://www.doc.louisiana.gov/view.php?cat=7&id=49 Winn Corr. Center] ." "Louisiana Department of Public Safety and Corrections". Accessed September 14, 2008.]

ee also

References