Caldwell Parish, Louisiana
Encyclopedia

Demographics

As of the census
Census
A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring and recording information about the members of a given population. It is a regularly occurring and official count of a particular population. The term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common...

of 2000, there were 10,560 people, 3,941 households, and 2,817 families residing in the parish. The population density
Population density
Population density is a measurement of population per unit area or unit volume. It is frequently applied to living organisms, and particularly to humans...

 was 20 people per square mile (8/km²). There were 5,035 housing units at an average density of 10 per square mile (4/km²). The racial makeup of the parish was 80.43% White
Race (United States Census)
Race and ethnicity in the United States Census, as defined by the Federal Office of Management and Budget and the United States Census Bureau, are self-identification data items in which residents choose the race or races with which they most closely identify, and indicate whether or not they are...

, 17.90% Black
Race (United States Census)
Race and ethnicity in the United States Census, as defined by the Federal Office of Management and Budget and the United States Census Bureau, are self-identification data items in which residents choose the race or races with which they most closely identify, and indicate whether or not they are...

 or African American
Race (United States Census)
Race and ethnicity in the United States Census, as defined by the Federal Office of Management and Budget and the United States Census Bureau, are self-identification data items in which residents choose the race or races with which they most closely identify, and indicate whether or not they are...

, 0.45% Native American
Race (United States Census)
Race and ethnicity in the United States Census, as defined by the Federal Office of Management and Budget and the United States Census Bureau, are self-identification data items in which residents choose the race or races with which they most closely identify, and indicate whether or not they are...

, 0.14% Asian
Race (United States Census)
Race and ethnicity in the United States Census, as defined by the Federal Office of Management and Budget and the United States Census Bureau, are self-identification data items in which residents choose the race or races with which they most closely identify, and indicate whether or not they are...

, 0.47% from other races
Race (United States Census)
Race and ethnicity in the United States Census, as defined by the Federal Office of Management and Budget and the United States Census Bureau, are self-identification data items in which residents choose the race or races with which they most closely identify, and indicate whether or not they are...

, and 0.61% from two or more races. 1.49% of the population were Hispanic
Race (United States Census)
Race and ethnicity in the United States Census, as defined by the Federal Office of Management and Budget and the United States Census Bureau, are self-identification data items in which residents choose the race or races with which they most closely identify, and indicate whether or not they are...

 or Latino
Race (United States Census)
Race and ethnicity in the United States Census, as defined by the Federal Office of Management and Budget and the United States Census Bureau, are self-identification data items in which residents choose the race or races with which they most closely identify, and indicate whether or not they are...

 of any race.

There were 3,941 households out of which 32.10% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 55.40% were married couples
Marriage
Marriage is a social union or legal contract between people that creates kinship. It is an institution in which interpersonal relationships, usually intimate and sexual, are acknowledged in a variety of ways, depending on the culture or subculture in which it is found...

 living together, 12.60% had a female householder with no husband present, and 28.50% were non-families. 25.40% of all households were made up of individuals and 11.70% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.50 and the average family size was 2.99.

In the parish the population was spread out with 24.70% under the age of 18, 9.60% from 18 to 24, 28.50% from 25 to 44, 23.30% from 45 to 64, and 13.90% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 37 years. For every 100 females there were 103.00 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 100.20 males.

The median income for a household in the parish was $26,972, and the median income for a family was $33,653. Males had a median income of $29,677 versus $19,475 for females. The per capita income
Per capita income
Per capita income or income per person is a measure of mean income within an economic aggregate, such as a country or city. It is calculated by taking a measure of all sources of income in the aggregate and dividing it by the total population...

 for the parish was $13,884. About 17.70% of families and 21.20% of the population were below the poverty line, including 27.10% of those under age 18 and 19.50% of those age 65 or over.

Cities and towns

  • Clarks
    Clarks, Louisiana
    Clarks is a rural village in Caldwell Parish, Louisiana, United States. The population was 1,071 at the 2000 census. Clarks is the largest community in Caldwell Parish....

  • Columbia
    Columbia, Louisiana
    Columbia is a town in and the parish seat of Caldwell Parish, Louisiana, United States. The population was 477 at the 2000 census.-Geography:Columbia is located at ....

  • Grayson
    Grayson, Louisiana
    Grayson is a village in Caldwell Parish, Louisiana, United States. The population was 531 at the 2000 census.Grayson has an elementary school, but high school students attend the nearby Caldwell Parish High School in the parish seat of Columbia. Across from the elementary school and the Grayson...


Education

The Caldwell Parish School Board
Caldwell Parish School Board
Caldwell Parish School Board is a school district headquartered in Columbia, Louisiana, United States.The district serves Caldwell Parish.-The four day school week:...

 serves the parish. There are four elementary schools in the parish but only one high school, Caldwell Parish High School, located between Columbia and Grayson.

Notable natives and residents

  • Buddy Caldwell
    Buddy Caldwell
    James David Caldwell, Sr., or Buddy Caldwell , is the Republican attorney general of the U.S. state of Louisiana. Prior to serving as attorney general, Caldwell was the district attorney for Madison, East Carroll, and Tensas parishes from 1979 to 2008...

    , Louisiana State Attorney General, elected in 2007

  • Graves B. Erskine
    Graves B. Erskine
    General Graves Blanchard Erskine was a United States Marine Corps officer who led the 3rd Marine Division during the Battle of Iwo Jima in World War II.-Early years:...

    , U.S. Marine Corps general; combat officer in World War I
    World War I
    World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...

    , having received the Silver Star
    Silver Star
    The Silver Star is the third-highest combat military decoration that can be awarded to a member of any branch of the United States armed forces for valor in the face of the enemy....

     and Purple Heart
    Purple Heart
    The Purple Heart is a United States military decoration awarded in the name of the President to those who have been wounded or killed while serving on or after April 5, 1917 with the U.S. military. The National Purple Heart Hall of Honor is located in New Windsor, New York...

    ; U.S. Commander of the 3rd Marine Division in World War II
    World War II
    World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...

     in the Battle of Iwo Jima
    Battle of Iwo Jima
    The Battle of Iwo Jima , or Operation Detachment, was a major battle in which the United States fought for and captured the island of Iwo Jima from the Empire of Japan. The U.S...

    , having earned the Distinguished Service Medal

  • J.D. DeBlieux
    J.D. DeBlieux
    Joseph Davis DeBlieux, known as J.D. DeBlieux ,was a Democratic member of the Louisiana State Senate who represented East Baton Rouge Parish from 1956 to 1960 and again from 1964 to 1976. DeBlieux is remembered as a crusader for civil rights in Louisiana politics during the latter years of the era...

    , Louisiana State Senator representing East Baton Rouge Parish, 1956-1960 & 1964-1976

  • Hubert D. Humphreys
    Hubert D. Humphreys
    Hubert Davis Humphreys was an historian formerly affiliated with Louisiana State University in Shreveport who specialized in archives, oral history, and studies of his native North Louisiana....

    , Louisiana historian and native of Grayson
    Grayson, Louisiana
    Grayson is a village in Caldwell Parish, Louisiana, United States. The population was 531 at the 2000 census.Grayson has an elementary school, but high school students attend the nearby Caldwell Parish High School in the parish seat of Columbia. Across from the elementary school and the Grayson...


  • Jack Keahey
    Jack Keahey
    Jack Lynn Keahey, Jr. , was a businessman, boat builder, welder, mechanic, politician, and civic leader in Columbia, the seat of Caldwell Parish, in northeastern Louisiana. He was best known as the president of the Tensas Basin Levee Board...

    , former president of the Caldwell Parish School Board and the Louisiana School Boards Association; national president of Aerial Applicators Association, and former president of the Tensas Basin Levee Board

  • Pam Kelly
    Pam Kelly
    Pamela Kelly-Flowers is a former American women's basketball player at Louisiana Tech University. She won two national championships for the Lady Techsters. She was named to the All-American team in 1980, 1981, and 1982, her school's only three-time All-American...

    , recipient of the Wade Trophy
    Wade Trophy
    The Wade Trophy is an award presented annually to the best women's basketball player in National Collegiate Athletic Association Division I competition. It is named after three–time national champion Delta State University coach Lily Margaret Wade. The award debuted in 1978 as the first–ever...

    , the most valuable women's collegiate basketball player in the nation

  • John J. McKeithen, governor of Louisiana (1964–1972); Louisiana Public Service Commission
    Louisiana Public Service Commission
    Louisiana Public Service Commission is an independent regulatory agency which manages public utilities and motor carriers in Louisiana. The commission has five elected members chosen in single-member districts for staggered six-year terms...

    er (1955–1964); state representative
    Louisiana State Legislature
    The Louisiana State Legislature is the state legislature of the U.S. state of Louisiana. It is bicameral body, comprising the lower house, the Louisiana House of Representatives with 105 representatives, and the upper house, the Louisiana Senate with 39 senators...

     (1948–1952); U.S. Army combat officer (1942–1945) having received two Bronze Stars in the battles of Okinawa
    Battle of Okinawa
    The Battle of Okinawa, codenamed Operation Iceberg, was fought on the Ryukyu Islands of Okinawa and was the largest amphibious assault in the Pacific War of World War II. The 82-day-long battle lasted from early April until mid-June 1945...

     and Iwo Jima
    Battle of Iwo Jima
    The Battle of Iwo Jima , or Operation Detachment, was a major battle in which the United States fought for and captured the island of Iwo Jima from the Empire of Japan. The U.S...


  • W. Fox McKeithen
    W. Fox McKeithen
    Walter Fox McKeithen served five terms as Secretary of State of Louisiana between 1988 and 2005. He is best remembered for merging the state's election divisions into one department and for the promotion of historical preservation.-Son of a governor:He was born Walter Fox McKeithen in Columbia in...

    , Louisiana House of Representatives
    Louisiana State Legislature
    The Louisiana State Legislature is the state legislature of the U.S. state of Louisiana. It is bicameral body, comprising the lower house, the Louisiana House of Representatives with 105 representatives, and the upper house, the Louisiana Senate with 39 senators...

     (1984–1988); five-term Louisiana Secretary of State (1988–2005)

  • Neil Riser
    Neil Riser
    Hartwell Neil Riser, Jr., known as Neil Riser , is a funeral home owner in Columbia, the seat of Caldwell Parish in northeastern Louisiana, who is a Republican member of the Louisiana State Senate. On January 14, 2008, Riser succeeded outgoing Democratic Senator Noble Ellington. Riser is the first...

    , Louisiana State Senator
    Louisiana State Legislature
    The Louisiana State Legislature is the state legislature of the U.S. state of Louisiana. It is bicameral body, comprising the lower house, the Louisiana House of Representatives with 105 representatives, and the upper house, the Louisiana Senate with 39 senators...

     elected in 2007 from the 32nd District, which includes Caldwell Parish, the first Republican
    Republican Party (United States)
    The Republican Party is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Democratic Party. Founded by anti-slavery expansion activists in 1854, it is often called the GOP . The party's platform generally reflects American conservatism in the U.S...

     from this district since Reconstruction

  • Chet D. Traylor
    Chet D. Traylor
    Chet D. Traylor is a retired associate justice of the Louisiana Supreme Court from Monroe, Louisiana, who was defeated in the Republican primary election on August 28, 2010, for the U.S. Senate seat held since 2005 by the incumbent David Vitter of New Orleans...

    , Louisiana Supreme Court
    Louisiana Supreme Court
    The Supreme Court of Louisiana is the highest court and court of last resort in the U.S. state of Louisiana. The modern Supreme Court, composed of seven justices, meets in the French Quarter of New Orleans....

    , 1997–2009

See also

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