Grant Parish, Louisiana | |
|---|---|
| Parish of Grant | |
 Grant Parish Courthouse in Colfax | |
 Location within the U.S. state ofLouisiana | |
 Louisiana's location within theU.S. | |
| Country |  United States |
| State |  Louisiana |
| Region | Central Louisiana |
| Founded | 1869 |
| Named after | Ulysses S. Grant |
| Parish seat | Colfax |
| Largest town | Montgomery (area) Colfax (population) |
| Area | |
• Total | 665 sq mi (1,720 km2) |
| • Land | 643 sq mi (1,670 km2) |
| • Water | 22 sq mi (57 km2) |
| • percentage | 3.3 sq mi (8.5 km2) |
| Population (2020) | |
• Total | 22,169 |
| • Density | 34.5/sq mi (13.3/km2) |
| Time zone | UTC-6 (CST) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC-5 (CDT) |
| Area code | 318 |
| Congressional district | 5th |
Grant Parish is aparish located in the North Central portion of theU.S. state ofLouisiana. As of the2020 census, the population was 22,169.[1] Theparish seat isColfax.[2] The parish was founded in 1869 during theReconstruction era.[3]
Grant Parish is part of theAlexandria, LAMetropolitan Statistical Area andRed River Valley. From 1940 to 1960, the parish had a dramatic population loss, as manyAfrican Americans from the plantation areas left in theGreat Migration to seek better opportunities in the North and West. Such migration continued until about 1970. One of the eleven parishes organized during Reconstruction, Grant was created from parts ofWinn andRapides parishes.
Grant Parish is the site ofUnited States Penitentiary, Pollock.
Grant Parish was originally a part of the more populousRapides Parish to the south. Prior to theAmerican Civil War, the center of activity focused upon "Calhoun's Landing," named for thecotton andsugar planterMeredith Calhoun, a native ofSouth Carolina. Calhoun also published the formerNational Democratnewspaper in what became Colfax, designated as the seat of government of the new parish.[4]
Grant was one of several new parishes created by theReconstruction legislature in an attempt to build theRepublican Party in the state. Founded in 1869, it had a slight majority offreedmen, many of whom had worked on cotton plantations in the area. It was named for U.S. PresidentUlysses S. Grant.[5] The parish seat of Colfax was named for Grant's first vice president,Schuyler M. Colfax (whose name is pronounced COAL-facks) ofIndiana. However, the town of Colfax is pronounced CAHL-facks. The parish came into existence on March 4, 1869, which also was the day of President Grant's first inauguration.[6] The parish encompassed both cotton plantations and pinewoods. It was one of several areas along the Red River that had considerable violence during Reconstruction, as whites tried to maintain social control.
The gubernatorial election of 1872 was disputed in the state, and both the Democrats and Republicans certified their slates of local officers. Two inaugurations were held. The election was finally settled in favor of the Republican candidates, but the decision was disputed in certain areas. As social tensions rose, Republican officials took their places at the courthouse in Colfax. They were defended by freedmen and state militia (mostly made up of freedmen), who feared aDemocratic Party takeover of the parish. Amid widespread rumors, whites organized a militia and advanced on the courthouse on Easter Sunday, 1873. In the ensuing violence, three whites and 120-150 blacks were killed, including 50 that night who were held as prisoners. Leading late 20th-century historians renamed the Colfax Riot, the original state designation, as theColfax Massacre. The total number of freedmen deaths were never established because some of the bodies were thrown into the river and woods.
The white militia was led byChristopher Columbus Nash, aConfederate officer who had been aprisoner of war atJohnson's Island inOhio. It consisted of veterans from Grant and neighboring parishes. The following year, Nash gathered many of the white militia members as the basis of the first chapter of theWhite League. Other chapters quickly grew up across the state. The White League's organized violence in support of the Democratic Party included widespread intimidation of black voters. The League was integral to white Democrats' regaining power in the state by 1876. Soon after, they effectivelydisfranchised most blacks, a situation that persisted until after federal enforcement ofCivil Rights-era legislation of the mid-1960s.
In December 2016, a courthousenativity scene in Colfax drew a complaint from theNew Orleans chapter of theAmerican Civil Liberties Union. In a letter to the Grant Parish Police Jury, the ACLU said that officials must include secular symbols of theChristmas holiday if a nativity scene is placed alone on public property. District Attorney Jay Lemoine objected to the ACLU challenge in a statement toAlexandria Town Talk: "There have been various holiday displays presented both inside and outside the courthouse over many years. This year, as in years past, they include both secular and non-secular symbols. It is unfortunate that some are offended by these displays during this holiday season, as that was not the intent."[7]
According to theU.S. Census Bureau, the parish has a total area of 665 square miles (1,720 km2), of which 643 square miles (1,670 km2) is land and 22 square miles (57 km2) (3.3%) is water.[8]
The most famous fossil sites within Louisiana are Creola Bluff at Montgomery Landing Site in the parish.[9] The Montgomery Landing Site was a 500 meters (1,600 ft) long and 14 meters (46 ft) high bluff that was the cutbank on the east side of theRed River. It exposed the top of the Cockfield Formation, the Moodys Branch Formation, and Tullos Member of the Yazoo Clay. In 1979, it was the site of a large whale skeleton discovery.[9]
| Census | Pop. | Note | %± |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1870 | 4,517 | — | |
| 1880 | 6,188 | 37.0% | |
| 1890 | 8,270 | 33.6% | |
| 1900 | 12,902 | 56.0% | |
| 1910 | 15,958 | 23.7% | |
| 1920 | 14,403 | −9.7% | |
| 1930 | 15,709 | 9.1% | |
| 1940 | 15,933 | 1.4% | |
| 1950 | 14,263 | −10.5% | |
| 1960 | 13,330 | −6.5% | |
| 1970 | 13,671 | 2.6% | |
| 1980 | 16,703 | 22.2% | |
| 1990 | 17,526 | 4.9% | |
| 2000 | 18,698 | 6.7% | |
| 2010 | 22,309 | 19.3% | |
| 2020 | 22,169 | −0.6% | |
| U.S. Decennial Census[10] 1790-1960[11] 1900-1990[12] 1990-2000[13] 2010[14] | |||
| Race / Ethnicity(NH = Non-Hispanic) | Pop 1980[15] | Pop 1990[16] | Pop 2000[17] | Pop 2010[18] | Pop 2020[19] | % 1980 | % 1990 | % 2000 | % 2010 | % 2020 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| White alone (NH) | 13,715 | 14,739 | 15,859 | 17,361 | 16,678 | 82.11% | 84.10% | 84.82% | 77.82% | 75.23% |
| Black or African American alone (NH) | 2,782 | 2,521 | 2,212 | 3,441 | 3,060 | 16.66% | 14.38% | 11.83% | 15.42% | 13.80% |
| Native American orAlaska Native alone (NH) | 24 | 78 | 157 | 205 | 193 | 0.14% | 0.45% | 0.84% | 0.92% | 0.87% |
| Asian alone (NH) | 26 | 29 | 24 | 53 | 67 | 0.16% | 0.17% | 0.13% | 0.24% | 0.30% |
| Native Hawaiian orPacific Islander alone (NH) | x[20] | x[21] | 5 | 8 | 6 | x | x | 0.03% | 0.04% | 0.03% |
| Other race alone (NH) | 4 | 6 | 5 | 3 | 42 | 0.02% | 0.03% | 0.03% | 0.01% | 0.19% |
| Mixed race or Multiracial (NH) | x[22] | x[23] | 85 | 307 | 790 | x | x | 0.45% | 1.38% | 3.56% |
| Hispanic or Latino (any race) | 152 | 153 | 213 | 931 | 1,333 | 0.91% | 0.87% | 1.14% | 4.17% | 6.01% |
| Total | 16,703 | 17,526 | 18,560 | 22,309 | 22,169 | 100.00% | 100.00% | 100.00% | 100.00% | 100.00% |
As of the2020 United States census, there were 22,169 people, 6,989 households, and 4,651 families residing in the parish.
As of thecensus[24] of 2000, there were 18,698 people, 7,073 households, and 5,276 families residing in the parish. The population density was 29 inhabitants per square mile (11/km2). There were 8,531 housing units at an average density of 13 per square mile (5.0/km2). The racial makeup of the parish was 85.43%White, 11.88%Black orAfrican American, 0.89%Native American, 0.14%Asian, 0.03%Pacific Islander, 0.36% fromother races, and 1.28% from two or more races. 1.14% of the population wereHispanic orLatino of any race.
The decreases in population from 1910 to 1920, and from 1940 to 1960, were chiefly caused by different phases of theGreat Migration, as African Americans leftsegregation and oppression of the South to seek better opportunities in the North, during the first phase, and in the West, especiallyCalifornia's defense industry, in the second phase. Tens of thousands of migrants left Louisiana during times of agricultural difficulties and the collapse of agricultural labor after mechanization.[25]
In 2000, there were 7,073 households, out of which 36.50% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 57.20% weremarried couples living together, 12.90% had a female householder with no husband present, and 25.40% were non-families. 22.60% of all households were made up of individuals, and 10.10% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.61 and the average family size was 3.06.
In the parish the population was spread out, with 28.30% under the age of 18, 7.90% from 18 to 24, 28.10% from 25 to 44, 23.00% from 45 to 64, and 12.70% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 36 years. For every 100 females there were 96.10 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 93.00 males.
The median income for a household in the parish was $29,622, and the median income for a family was $34,878. Males had a median income of $31,235 versus $20,470 for females. Theper capita income for the parish was $14,410. About 16.90% of families and 21.50% of the population were below thepoverty line, including 27.30% of those under age 18 and 16.20% of those age 65 or over.
TheFederal Bureau of PrisonsU.S. Penitentiary, Pollock is located in anunincorporated area in the parish, nearPollock.[26][27]
Today Grant Parish is majority white and votes stronglyRepublican.Mitt Romney polled 7,082 votes (81.7 percent) in his 2012 race against theDemocratU.S. PresidentBarack H. Obama, who trailed with 1,422 votes (16.4 percent).[28] In 2008,U.S. SenatorJohn McCain ofArizona swept the parish, with 6,907 votes (80.7 percent) to Obama's 1,474 (17.2 percent).[29] In every election since then, the Republican candidate has broken the record for the strongest performance by a candidate from that party in Parish history.
In 1992,George Herbert Walker Bush carried Grant Parish but was unsuccessful in his bid for reelection. He polled 3,214 votes (40.8 percent) to Democratic Governor Bill Clinton of Arkansas's 3,122 (39.6 percent). This son of the South carried numerous other Republican-leaning jurisdictions. Ross Perot, who later founded theReform Party, polled 1,174 (14.9 percent).[30] In 1996, RepublicanRobert J. Dole narrowly won in Grant Parish over U.S. PresidentBill Clinton, a son of the South, with 3,117 votes (42.8 percent) to 2,980 (40.9 percent).Ross Perot polled another 1,055 (14.5 percent).[31]
The last Democrat to win in Grant Parish at the presidential level was formerGovernorJimmy Carter ofGeorgia in his 1976 defeat of U.S. PresidentGerald R. Ford, Jr., who had Bob Dole as his vice-presidential partner.[32][33]
| Year | Republican | Democratic | Third party(ies) | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| No. | % | No. | % | No. | % | |
| 1912 | 15 | 2.09% | 446 | 62.20% | 256 | 35.70% |
| 1916 | 31 | 4.59% | 640 | 94.81% | 4 | 0.59% |
| 1920 | 109 | 13.92% | 674 | 86.08% | 0 | 0.00% |
| 1924 | 167 | 21.92% | 595 | 78.08% | 0 | 0.00% |
| 1928 | 505 | 33.05% | 1,023 | 66.95% | 0 | 0.00% |
| 1932 | 81 | 3.96% | 1,966 | 96.00% | 1 | 0.05% |
| 1936 | 511 | 21.67% | 1,847 | 78.33% | 0 | 0.00% |
| 1940 | 232 | 8.39% | 2,534 | 91.61% | 0 | 0.00% |
| 1944 | 556 | 22.28% | 1,939 | 77.72% | 0 | 0.00% |
| 1948 | 273 | 9.61% | 1,120 | 39.44% | 1,447 | 50.95% |
| 1952 | 1,443 | 35.29% | 2,646 | 64.71% | 0 | 0.00% |
| 1956 | 1,630 | 46.06% | 1,542 | 43.57% | 367 | 10.37% |
| 1960 | 1,254 | 32.30% | 1,219 | 31.40% | 1,409 | 36.30% |
| 1964 | 3,292 | 69.36% | 1,454 | 30.64% | 0 | 0.00% |
| 1968 | 1,113 | 20.18% | 932 | 16.90% | 3,470 | 62.92% |
| 1972 | 3,626 | 76.51% | 859 | 18.13% | 254 | 5.36% |
| 1976 | 2,280 | 37.16% | 3,670 | 59.81% | 186 | 3.03% |
| 1980 | 3,611 | 50.52% | 3,290 | 46.03% | 247 | 3.46% |
| 1984 | 5,334 | 65.88% | 2,588 | 31.96% | 175 | 2.16% |
| 1988 | 4,402 | 60.76% | 2,628 | 36.27% | 215 | 2.97% |
| 1992 | 3,214 | 40.80% | 3,122 | 39.63% | 1,542 | 19.57% |
| 1996 | 3,117 | 42.75% | 2,980 | 40.87% | 1,195 | 16.39% |
| 2000 | 4,784 | 67.81% | 2,099 | 29.75% | 172 | 2.44% |
| 2004 | 5,911 | 73.97% | 1,977 | 24.74% | 103 | 1.29% |
| 2008 | 6,907 | 80.71% | 1,474 | 17.22% | 177 | 2.07% |
| 2012 | 7,082 | 81.71% | 1,422 | 16.41% | 163 | 1.88% |
| 2016 | 7,408 | 83.98% | 1,181 | 13.39% | 232 | 2.63% |
| 2020 | 8,117 | 86.42% | 1,157 | 12.32% | 118 | 1.26% |
| 2024 | 7,925 | 87.88% | 996 | 11.04% | 97 | 1.08% |
Public schools in Grant Parish are operated by theGrant Parish School Board.
A Company 199TH FSB (Forward Support Battalion) resides inColfax, Louisiana. This unit deployed twice toIraq as part of the256TH IBCT in 2004-5 and 2010.
| Name | Address | Zip | Aged |
|---|---|---|---|
| Grant Parish Detention Center | Richardson Drive,Colfax, Louisiana | 71417 | 18+ |
Places adjacent to Grant Parish, Louisiana | ||||||||||||||||
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Municipalities and communities ofGrant Parish, Louisiana,United States | ||
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| Villages | ||
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| Other unincorporated communities | ||
| Indian reservation | ||
| Footnotes | +This populated place also has portions in an adjacent county or counties | |
31°35′N92°34′W / 31.59°N 92.56°W /31.59; -92.56
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