Tangipahoa Parish, Louisiana

Tangipahoa Parish, Louisiana
Location in the state of Louisiana
Louisiana's location in the U.S.
Founded	1868
Named for	Acolapissa word meaning ear of corn or those who gather corn
Seat	Amite City
Largest city	Hammond
Area  - Total  - Land  - Water	823 sq mi (2,132 km²) 790 sq mi (2,047 km²) 33 sq mi (85 km²), 3.99%
Population  - (2000)  - Density	100,588 127/sq mi (49/km²)
Time zone	Central: UTC-6/-5
Website	www.tangipahoa.org

Tangipahoa Parish (French: Paroisse de Tangipahoa) is a parish located in the U.S. state of Louisiana, one of the Florida Parishes. The parish seat is Amite City, but the major city is Hammond. As of 2006, the population was 113,137.^[1] Tangipahoa comes from an Acolapissa word meaning "ear of corn" or "those who gather corn."

The Hammond Micropolitan Statistical Area includes all of Tangipahoa Parish.

Geography

The parish has a total area of 823 square miles (2,130 km²), of which 790 square miles (2,000 km²) of it is land and 33 square miles (85 km²) of it (3.99%) is water.

Most of the parish south of Ponchatoula consists of Holocene coastal swamp and marsh—gray-to-black clays of high organic content and thick peat beds underlying freshwater marsh and swamp.^[2]

Cities and towns

Amite City Baptist Hammond Independence

Kentwood Loranger Manchac

Natalbany Ponchatoula Robert

Roseland Tangipahoa Tickfaw

Adjacent counties, parishes and features

Map of Tangipahoa Parish, depicting municipal boundaries.

• Amite County, Mississippi (northwest)
• Pike County, Mississippi (northeast)
• St. Tammany Parish and Washington Parish (east)
• Lake Pontchartrain (southeast)
• St. John the Baptist Parish (south)
• Livingston Parish and St. Helena Parish (west)

Education

The parish is served by the Tangipahoa Parish School System.^[3] Southeastern Louisiana University is located in Hammond.

On seven occasions, the American Civil Liberties Union has sued the Tangipahoa Parish School Board, along with other defendants, for having allegedly sponsored and promoted religion in teacher-led school activities.^[4]

Transportation

Major highways in the parish include:

• Interstate 12

Tangipahoa Parish has a president-council form of government. As of 2011 the parish president is Gordon Burgess (left), shown here with Dr David Ramsey of the parish's Board of Election Supervisors. The parish president and the parish council administer parish roads and other capital projects exclusive of schools.

Footbridge across a tributary of Ponchatoula Creek leading to North Oak Street Park on the campus of Southeastern Louisiana University in Hammond, Tangipahoa Parish, Louisiana.

• Interstate 55
• U.S. Route 51
• U.S. Route 190
• Louisiana Highway 10
• Louisiana Highway 16
• Louisiana Highway 22
• Louisiana Highway 38
• Louisiana Highway 40
• Louisiana Highway 440
• Louisiana Highway 442
• Louisiana Highway 443
• Louisiana Highway 445
• Louisiana Highway 450
• Louisiana Highway 1040
• Louisiana Highway 1045
• Louisiana Highway 1046
• Louisiana Highway 1048
• Louisiana Highway 1049
• Louisiana Highway 1050
• Louisiana Highway 1051
• Louisiana Highway 1053
• Louisiana Highway 1054
• Louisiana Highway 1055
• Louisiana Highway 1056
• Louisiana Highway 1057
• Louisiana Highway 1061
• Louisiana Highway 1062
• Louisiana Highway 1063
• Louisiana Highway 1064
• Louisiana Highway 1065
• Louisiana Highway 1067
• Louisiana Highway 1249
• Louisiana Highway 3158
• Louisiana Highway 3234
• Louisiana Highway 3260

Demographics

As of the census^[5] of 2000, there were 100,588 people, 36,558 households, and 25,773 families residing in the parish. The population density was 127 people per square mile (49/km²). There were 40,794 housing units at an average density of 52 per square mile (20/km²). The racial makeup of the parish was 69.76% White, 28.35% Black or African American, 0.39% Asian, 0.24% Native American, 0.01% Pacific Islander, 0.46% from other races, and 0.78% from two or more races. 1.53% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.

Many records and statistics for Tangipahoa Parish flow through the office of Clerk of Court Julian Dufreche (pictured), president of the Tangipahoa Parish Board of Election Supervisors.

Census	Pop.		%±
1900	17,625		—
1910	29,160		65.4%
1920	31,440		7.8%
1930	46,227		47.0%
1940	45,519		−1.5%
1950	53,218		16.9%
1960	59,434		11.7%
1970	65,875		10.8%
1980	80,698		22.5%
1990	85,709		6.2%
2000	100,588		17.4%
Est. 2006	113,137	[6]	12.5%
Tangipahoa Parish Census Data[7]

There were 36,558 households out of which 35.30% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 49.90% were married couples living together, 16.20% had a female householder with no husband present, and 29.50% were non-families. 24.00% of all households were made up of individuals and 8.40% 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 3.19.

In the parish the population was spread out with 27.70% under the age of 18, 12.70% from 18 to 24, 27.70% from 25 to 44, 21.20% from 45 to 64, and 10.60% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 32 years. For every 100 females there were 93.00 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 88.60 males.

The median income for a household in the parish was $29,412, and the median income for a family was $36,731. Males had a median income of $31,576 versus $20,066 for females. The per capita income for the parish was $14,461. About 18.00% of families and 22.70% of the population were below the poverty line, including 28.60% of those under age 18 and 20.10% of those age 65 or over.

Politics

The parish is part of Louisiana's 1st congressional district.

The justice of the peace for the parish's 8th ward (Robert, Louisiana), Keith Bardwell, made the news in October 2009 for refusing to officiate the wedding of an interracial couple; Bardwell, a justice of the peace for 34 years, "came to the conclusion that most black society does not readily accept offspring of such relationships, and neither does white society" and said he doesn't perform weddings for interracial marriages because "I don’t want to put children in a situation they didn’t bring on themselves."^[8] Bardwell, who said he thought he had refused to perform the weddings of four couples during the 2½-year period before the news of his refusals became public, resigned effective November 3.^[9] Bobby Jindal, the Governor of Louisiana, called the resignation "long overdue."^[9]

Residents and natives

Louisiana portal

Notable residents and natives of the parish, past and present, include:

• Britney Spears, World Famous Superstar
• [(Jackie Smith)], Hall of Fame NFL Tight End
• Hodding Carter, 20th century journalist
• William Hodding Carter, I, politician and father of Hodding Carter
• John Desmond, architect
• C.B. Forgotston, attorney and political activist
• Robert L. Frye, educator
• Tim Gautreaux, writer
• Bolivar E. Kemp, U.S. representative, 1925–1933
• Bolivar Edwards Kemp, Jr., Louisiana Attorney General, 1948–1952
• James H. Morrison, represented Louisiana's 6th congressional district from 1943 to 1967
• Henry "Tank" Powell, state representative from 1996–2008; member of the Louisiana Board of Pardons
• Steve Pugh, state representative since 2008
• Beth Rickey, political activist who opposed David Duke taught government for a time at Southeastern Louisiana University.^[10]
• Shelby Stanga, reality television star on Ax Men and logger
• Justin Wilson, chef and humorist
• Irma Thomas, Grammy-winning singer

See also

• National Register of Historic Places listings in Tangipahoa Parish, Louisiana

References

1. ^ About Tangipahoa Parish from the parish's official website. Retrieved 2009-10-17.
2. ^ McCulloh, R. P.; P. V. Heinrich and J. Snead (2003). "Ponchatoula 30 x 60 Minute Geologic Quadrangle". Louisiana Geological Survey. Baton Rouge, Louisiana: Louisiana State University. http://www.lgs.lsu.edu/deploy/uploads/Ponchatoula%20100K.pdf. Retrieved 2009-10-17. 
3. ^ Official website of the Tangipahoa Parish School System
4. ^ Mitchell, David. "School board sued over prayer", Baton Rouge Morning Advocate, Capital City Press, p. B01.^[when?]
5. ^ "American FactFinder". United States Census Bureau. http://factfinder.census.gov. Retrieved 2008-01-31. 
6. ^ United States Census Bureau. "Tangipahoa Parish Quickfacts". http://quickfacts.census.gov/qfd/states/22/22105.html. Retrieved 2008-02-02. . Hurricane Katrina,which in 2005 wreaked severe damage east and south of Tangipahoa Parish, caused a surge in immigration from the Greater New Orleans area.
7. ^ United States Census Bureau. "Louisiana Population of Counties by Decennial Census: 1900 to 1990". http://www.census.gov/population/cencounts/la190090.txt. Retrieved 2008-02-02. 
8. ^ "JP refuses to marry couple". Daily Star (Hammond). October 15, 2009. http://www.hammondstar.com/articles/2009/10/17/top_stories/8847.txt. Retrieved 2009-10-17. "Bardwell said he came to the conclusion that most black society does not readily accept offspring of such relationships, and neither does white society.... “I don’t do interracial marriages because I don’t want to put children in a situation they didn’t bring on themselves,” Bardwell said. “In my heart, I feel the children will later suffer.”" 
9. ^ ^{a b} "US judge in mixed-race row quits". BBC News. 4 November 2009. http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/8341556.stm. Retrieved 2009-11-04. 
10. ^ Patricia Sullivan, "Beth Rickey dies with an immune disorder and Crohn's disease," Washington Post, September 16, 2009

External links

• Tangipahoa Parish official website
• Tangipahoa Parish Guide and Business Directory
• Historic Tangipahoa Parish Places and Sites
• Visitor's Bureau website, Tangipahoa history
• "Explore the History and Culture of Southeastern Louisiana". Discover Our Shared Heritage Travel Itinerary. National Park Service. http://www.nps.gov/history/nr/travel/louisiana/. 

Coordinates: 30°38′N 90°24′W / 30.63°N 90.40°W / 30.63; -90.40