Winn Parish, Louisiana

Winn Parish is a parish located in the U.S. state of Louisiana. As of the 2010 census, the population was 15,313.[1] Its seat is Winnfield.[2] The parish was founded in 1852.[3] It is last in alphabetical order of Louisiana's sixty-four parishes.

Winn Parish, Louisiana
Parish
Parish of Winn
Winn Parish Courthouse in Winnfield
Location within the U.S. state of Louisiana
Louisiana's location within the US
Country United States
State Louisiana
RegionNorth Louisiana
FoundedFebruary 24, 1852
Named forWalter Winn or Winfield Scott
Parish seat (and largest city)Winnfield
Area
 • Total2,480 km2 (957 sq mi)
 • Land2,500 km2 (950 sq mi)
 • Water17 km2 (6.7 sq mi)
 • percentage2 km2 (0.7 sq mi)
Population
 (2010)
 • Total15,313
 • Estimate 
(2018)
14,134
 • Density6.2/km2 (16/sq mi)
Time zoneUTC-6 (CST)
 • Summer (DST)UTC-5 (CDT)
Area code318
Congressional district5th
Winn Parish Enterprise newspaper office in Winnfield
The Evergreen Missionary Baptist Church and Cemetery, with a green roof and large bell, is located off U.S. Highway 71 in northwestern Winn Parish south of Saline Bayou. Country churches of this kind are common in North Louisiana.
Saline Bayou
Backwater flooding in Winn Parish led temporarily in June 2015 to a detour around U.S. Highway 71 at St. Maurice, Louisiana.

Winn is separated from Natchitoches Parish along U.S. Highway 71 by Saline Bayou, the first blackwater protected waterway in the American South.

History

Winn Parish was established in 1852 from lands which had belonged to the parishes of Catahoula, Natchitoches, and Rapides.[3]

During the Civil War, David Pierson, a young attorney, was elected to represent the parish at the Secession Convention called in January 1861 in Baton Rouge by Governor Thomas Overton Moore. Pierson voted against secession and refused, along with several others, to change his "no" vote at the end of the process when asked to do so to make the final tally unanimous.

There was little military action in Winn Parish during the Civil War, but there was a problem with conscripts fleeing into the wooded areas to avoid military duty. That these conscripts refused to fight for the Confederacy is understandable considering that Union support was higher in north Louisiana, and especially high in Winn Parish.[4] The Confederate States Army defeated a Union detachment sent to destroy a salt works in the parish. Winn Parish contributed to the $80,000 raised to build fortifications on the nearby Red River.[5]

After the 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. For seven years they preyed especially on travelers and migrants passing through the area.[6]

In April 1873, white Democrats forming a militia from Winn Parish joined with ex-Confederate veterans from Rapides and Grant parishes against Republican blacks in the Colfax massacre in neighboring Grant Parish.[7][8] They attacked freedmen defending the parish courthouse and two Republican officeholders in the aftermath to the disputed gubernatorial election of 1872. Among the 80–150 blacks killed were at least 50 who had surrendered; a total of three white men were killed in the confrontation.

Winn Parish is the home of the former Long family Democratic political dynasty, started by Huey Long. It is the birthplace of three governors of Louisiana. Governor Earl Long is buried in Winnfield in a public square known as the Earl K. Long State Park.

Since 1956, Winn Parish has had three sheriffs named "Jordan." R. Sanford Jordan, a Democrat, served from 1956 to 1976.[9] A second but unrelated Jordan, James Edward "Buddy" Jordan (1942–2012),[10] was the sheriff from 1992 to 2008, when he was defeated by a 10-vote margin by a fellow Democrat, Albert D. "Bodie" Little.[11] Subsequently, A. D. Little was forced from office in 2011 and convicted thereafter on federal drug charges.[12] Cranford Jordan, Jr. (born 1952), a nephew of Sanford Jordan, won the office on his third attempt in the November 2011 general election and took office in July 2012. Cranford Jordan is an Independent.[9]

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the parish has a total area of 957 square miles (2,480 km2), of which 950 square miles (2,500 km2) is land and 6.7 square miles (17 km2) (0.7%) is water.[13]

Major highways
  • U.S. Highway 71
  • U.S. Highway 84
  • U.S. Highway 167
  • Louisiana Highway 34
  • Louisiana Highway 126
  • Louisiana Highway 127
  • Louisiana Highway 156
  • Louisiana Highway 471
  • Louisiana Highway 499
  • Louisiana Highway 500
  • Louisiana Highway 501
  • Louisiana Highway 505
  • Louisiana Highway 1228

Adjacent parishes

National protected area

Demographics
Historical population
CensusPop.%±
18606,876—
18704,954−28.0%
18805,84618.0%
18907,08221.1%
19009,64836.2%
191018,35790.3%
192016,119−12.2%
193014,766−8.4%
194016,92314.6%
195016,119−4.8%
196016,034−0.5%
197016,3692.1%
198017,2535.4%
199016,269−5.7%
200016,8943.8%
201015,313−9.4%
Est. 201814,134[14]−7.7%
U.S. Decennial Census[15]
1790–1960[16] 1900–1990[17]
1990–2000[18] 2010–2013[1]

As of the census[19] 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. 35.9% were of American, 7.2% Irish and 4.9% English ancestry according to Census 2000.

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.

Education

Winn Parish School Board operates local public schools.

There is also the Huey P. Long Campus of Louisiana Technical College in Winnfield. The facility is being relocated from downtown to north of Winnfield on U.S. Highway 167. Funding for the structure was obtained by former State Senator Mike Smith of Winnfield.

New Winn Parish Library

A new Winn Parish Library opened in Winnfield in 2014. The 11,000 square-foot building cost $2.5 million and houses 75,000 books, 420 periodicals, and sixteen computer stations. There are also facilities for children, special-needs citizens, genealogy and history buffs, and access to on-line higher-education studies.[20]

Public libraries in Louisiana began as early as 1920, with the establishment of the Louisiana Library Commission, the forerunner to the State Library of Louisiana. Assistance from the Carnegie Foundation began in 1925. The Winn Parish facility opened in 1937 during the administration of Governor Richard Leche in a former bank building on Main Street. Winn was the first of three parishes to vote a library tax millage. In 1940, property owners voted for a three-mil maintenance tax for the library. After World War II, the library was moved to a wooden building, also on Main Street and one block west of the parish courthouse. In 1954, a brick structure replaced the wooden building at the same location, a project pushed by the then library director, Ruby Hanks. After sixty years, the new library now sits at the corner of Main and St. John streets. Construction of the facility was financed by a $2 million bond issue approved by voters in 2012. It is maintained by a now eight=mil property tax.[20]

There are also branch libraries in Atlanta, Calvin, Dodson, and Sikes, with a total collection in the branches of nearly 80,000 books.[20]

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.[21]

National Guard

A Company 199TH FSB (Forward Support Battalion) previously resided in Winnfield, Louisiana. This unit deployed twice to Iraq as part of the 256TH IBCT in 2004-5 and 2010.  The unit's Winnfield Armory was closed.

Communities
Map of Winn Parish, with municipal labels and districts

City
  • Winnfield (parish seat and largest municipality)

Town

Villages

Census-designated places

Unincorporated communities

Hospital
  • Winn Parish Medical Center

Politics
Presidential elections results
Presidential elections results[23]
Year Republican Democratic Third parties
2016 72.3% 4,608 25.8% 1,644 1.9% 120
2012 69.5% 4,541 29.4% 1,919 1.1% 74
2008 68.4% 4,632 30.2% 2,047 1.4% 93
2004 67.1% 4,366 31.6% 2,056 1.3% 85
2000 63.3% 4,028 34.1% 2,167 2.6% 166
1996 37.6% 2,803 50.6% 3,779 11.8% 881
1992 38.8% 2,932 46.9% 3,537 14.3% 1,080
1988 59.0% 4,165 38.3% 2,699 2.7% 193
1984 63.9% 4,934 34.1% 2,633 2.1% 160
1980 52.3% 3,944 45.2% 3,411 2.6% 192
1976 46.6% 3,209 51.4% 3,543 2.0% 137
1972 70.4% 4,235 24.8% 1,490 4.8% 291
1968 16.7% 1,050 19.5% 1,230 63.8% 4,015
1964 78.5% 4,366 21.5% 1,193
1960 44.9% 1,839 27.1% 1,108 28.1% 1,149
1956 49.6% 1,736 35.0% 1,225 15.5% 542
1952 46.5% 1,915 53.5% 2,206
1948 11.4% 333 32.1% 940 56.6% 1,657
1944 38.6% 881 61.4% 1,403
1940 13.0% 382 87.0% 2,552
1936 9.6% 254 90.4% 2,393
1932 1.6% 36 96.7% 2,172 1.7% 38
1928 31.5% 533 68.5% 1,161
1924 13.1% 120 86.9% 797
1920 19.7% 291 65.2% 963 15.1% 223
1916 5.5% 50 94.6% 868
1912 2.5% 26 57.8% 600 39.8% 413

Notable people
  • Morris N. Abrams, educator[24]
  • O.K. Allen, governor of Louisiana
  • Bryant W. Bailey, politician, Winn Parish sheriff from 1908 to 1912
  • William C. Edenborn, inventor and industrialist[25]
  • T. H. Harris, Louisiana state superintendent of education from 1908 to 1940
  • Huey Long, governor of Louisiana
  • Earl Kemp Long, governor of Louisiana
  • Charlton Lyons, Republican candidate for governor in 1964, practiced law in Winnfield prior to 1930
  • Keith M. Pyburn, state representative for Caddo Parish from 1948 to 1952; born and resided in Dodson in Winn Parish from 1910 to 1925
  • Terry Reeves, district attorney for Winn Parish from 1991 until his death in office in 2005[26]
  • Calvin Marion Robinson, sheriff of Winn Parish prior to 1956
  • Roy Sanders, educator and state representative from Natchitoches Parish from 1948 to 1952; born in Winn Parish
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See also

References
  1. "State & County QuickFacts". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved August 18, 2013.
  2. "Find a County". National Association of Counties. Retrieved June 7, 2011.
  3. "Winn Parish". Center for Cultural and Eco-Tourism. Retrieved September 5, 2014.
  4. King, William Henry, 1828–1903. (2006). No pardons to ask, nor apologies to make : the journal of William Henry King, Gray's 28th Louisiana Infantry Regiment. Joiner, Gary D., Joiner, Marilyn S., Cardin, Clifton D. (Clifton Dale), 1957– (1st ed.). Knoxville: University of Tennessee Press. ISBN 1-57233-461-4. OCLC 61204291.CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  5. John D. Winters, The Civil War in Louisiana, Baton Rouge: Louisiana State University Press, 1963, ISBN 0-8071-0834-0, pp. 164, 310
  6. LeJeune, Keagan (2016). Legendary Louisiana Outlaws: The Villains and Heroes of Folk Justice. Baton Rouge: LSU Press. pp. 48–49. ISBN 9780807162590.
  7. Keith, Leeanna, The Colfax Massacre: The Untold Story of Black Power, White Terror, & The Death of Reconstruction, New York: Oxford University Press, 2007
  8. Lane, Charles (2008). The Day Freedom Died: The Colfax Massacre, the Supreme Court, and the Betrayal of Reconstruction. New York: Henry Holt & Company.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)
  9. "Tom Kelly, "Third Sheriff Jordan elected in Winn Parish," 2011". thepineywoods.com. Retrieved March 4, 2012.
  10. Buddy Jordan obituary, Alexandria Daily Town Talk, February 23, 2012
  11. Louisiana Secretary of State, General election returns, November 17, 2007
  12. ""Former Sheriff of Winn Parish Found Guilty: Federal Jury Convicts A. D. "Bodie" Little of Drug Charges Tonight," February 24, 2012" (PDF). justice.gov. Retrieved March 4, 2012.
  13. "2010 Census Gazetteer Files". United States Census Bureau. August 22, 2012. Archived from the original on September 28, 2013. Retrieved September 2, 2014.
  14. "Population and Housing Unit Estimates". Retrieved October 26, 2019.
  15. "U.S. Decennial Census". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved September 2, 2014.
  16. "Historical Census Browser". University of Virginia Library. Retrieved September 2, 2014.
  17. "Population of Counties by Decennial Census: 1900 to 1990". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved September 2, 2014.
  18. "Census 2000 PHC-T-4. Ranking Tables for Counties: 1990 and 2000" (PDF). United States Census Bureau. Retrieved September 2, 2014.
  19. "U.S. Census website". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved January 31, 2008.
  20. Tom Kelly, "New library open in Winnfield", The Piney Woods Journal, November 2014, pp. 1, 2
  21. "Winn Corr. Center Archived 2008-09-15 at the Wayback Machine." Louisiana Department of Public Safety and Corrections. Accessed September 14, 2008.
  22. U.S. Geological Survey Geographic Names Information System: Packton
  23. Leip, David. "Dave Leip's Atlas of U.S. Presidential Elections". uselectionatlas.org. Retrieved March 7, 2018.
  24. "Abrams, Morris Newton". Louisiana Hoistorical Association, A Dictionary of Louisiana Biography (lahistory.org). Archived from the original on November 10, 2010. Retrieved December 24, 2010.
  25. Brock, Eric J. "William Edenborn". Find A Grave Memorial. www.findagrave.com. Retrieved August 23, 2010.
  26. Ron Manley. "Terry Ray Reeves". findagrave.com. Retrieved May 17, 2015.

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