Moss Bluff, Louisiana

Coordinates: 30°18′36″N 93°12′17″W / 30.31°N 93.20472°W / 30.31; -93.20472

Moss Bluff
Census-designated place
Country	United States
State	Louisiana
Parish	Calcasieu
Elevation	23 ft (7 m)
Coordinates	30°18′36″N 93°12′17″W / 30.31°N 93.20472°W / 30.31; -93.20472
Area	15.8 sq mi (40.9 km2)
- land	15.2 sq mi (39 km2)
- water	0.6 sq mi (2 km2), 3.8%
Population	10,535 (2000)
Density	692.6 / sq mi (267.4 / km2)
Timezone	CST (UTC-6)
- summer (DST)	CDT (UTC-5)
Area code	337
Location of Moss Bluff in Louisiana
Location of Louisiana in the United States

Moss Bluff is a census-designated place (CDP) in Calcasieu Parish, Louisiana, United States. The population was 10,535 at the 2000 census. Located just north of the city of Lake Charles, it is considered a suburb of that city. Moss Bluff is a burgeoning community, and is one of the communities in Calcasieu Parish besides Lake Charles experiencing growth. Several efforts have been made to incorporate Moss Bluff, but at current time the community is unincorporated.

Geography

Moss Bluff is located at 30°18′36″N 93°12′17″W / 30.31°N 93.20472°W / 30.31; -93.20472 (30.310003, -93.204753)^[1].

According to the United States Census Bureau, the CDP has a total area of 15.8 square miles (41 km²), of which, 15.2 square miles (39 km²) of it is land and 0.6 square miles (1.6 km²) of it (3.98%) is water.

Moss Bluff is intersected by U.S. Highway 171 and Louisiana Highway 378.

Demographics

As of the census^[2] of 2000, there were 10,535 people, 3,711 households, and 3,017 families residing in the CDP. The population density was 692.6 people per square mile (267.4/km²). There were 3,984 housing units at an average density of 261.9 per square mile (101.1/km²). The racial makeup of the CDP was 92.04% White, 5.89% African American, 0.39% Native American, 0.45% Asian, 0.01% Pacific Islander, 0.47% from other races, and 0.76% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 1.60% of the population.

There were 3,711 households out of which 44.0% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 67.0% were married couples living together, 11.0% had a female householder with no husband present, and 18.7% were non-families. 15.5% of all households were made up of individuals and 5.3% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.84 and the average family size was 3.16.

In the CDP the population was spread out with 29.9% under the age of 18, 9.0% from 18 to 24, 31.1% from 25 to 44, 22.1% from 45 to 64, and 7.8% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 34 years. For every 100 females there were 95.9 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 93.6 males.

The median income for a household in the CDP was $47,319, and the median income for a family was $54,137. Males had a median income of $41,226 versus $22,327 for females. The per capita income for the CDP was $19,483. About 7.3% of families and 8.3% of the population were below the poverty line, including 9.7% of those under age 18 and 12.5% of those age 65 or over.

Culture

Moss Bluff is the home of Sam Houston Jones State Park, a protected natural park of the state. Many people from the area enjoy camping there.

Former Louisiana State Representative Vic Stelly, author of the Stelly Plan, resides in Moss Bluff. So does Stelly's successor in the House, businessman Brett Geymann.

The area is the birthplace of singer Johnny Rebel (singer).

Education

Moss Bluff's elementary and junior high schools maintain some of the highest student populations in Calcasieu Parish. The single Moss Bluff high school, Sam Houston, competes in the Louisiana High School Athletic Association Class AAAA. Sam Houston High School boasts among its alumni Academy Award winning Art Director Ralph Eggleston (Toy Story, Finding Nemo, Monsters, Inc.) and David Filo, co-founder of Yahoo!.

References

1. ^ "US Gazetteer files: 2010, 2000, and 1990". United States Census Bureau. 2011-02-12. http://www.census.gov/geo/www/gazetteer/gazette.html. Retrieved 2011-04-23. 
2. ^ "American FactFinder". United States Census Bureau. http://factfinder.census.gov. Retrieved 2008-01-31.