Cotton Valley, Louisiana
Encyclopedia
Cotton Valley is a town
in central Webster Parish
, Louisiana
, United States
. The population was 1,189 at the 2000 census. It is located some twenty miles northwest of the parish seat of Minden
.
, became its first mayor
. Initially appointed, Roby was elected to the position on April 11, 1944, In 1946, Roby was succeeded by A.C. Borland, who served until 1968. Borland, an insurance agent, did not seek reelection and was succeeded by E.M. Hollingsworth.
In June 2010, the Minden Press-Herald
reported that Cotton Valley Town Clerk Myra Kilburn is in violation of the Louisiana Public Records Act (Revised Statutes 44:33). Kilburn has repeatedly ignored the newspaper's request for public records though the law requires that the information be released within seventy-two hours after the request is made. Kilburn said that she will accept whatever sanctions will be assessed against her. "I absolutely did what you are saying I did. . . . Looking up your records got a backseat," Kilburn told the Press-Herald.
Meanwhile, the three-term city alderman Charlene Lewis and the municipal legal counsel, Charles Jacobs, have both resigned after ethics complaints surfaced regarding Lewis' employment with Jacobs’ firm. Jacobs said that "too many personality conflicts exist for me to effectively serve . . . I’m just going to resign and be done with it." Jacobs said that Kilburn refused to listen to his legal advice regarding public records and that the municipality, which has financial problems, has not paid him.
member of the Webster Parish School Board. It was one of the first two pilot schools in Louisiana designated for the multi-handicapped. Jarrell Francis "Jerry" Heard (1923–2010), a native of Alexandria
who was reared in Ruston
, and later resided most of his adult life in Minden, was one of the first principals of the Marlon Pope center. A Purple Heart
recipient from the Pacific Ocean theater of World War II
, Heard developed a special rapport with handicapped children. His school stationary bore the biblical inscription: "When you have done it to the least of these, you have done it unto me." (Matthew 25:45) Heard earlier had taught in East Baton Rouge Parish and at E.S. Richardson Elementary School
near his home in Minden. A United Methodist, Heard died at the age of eighty-six of esophageal cancer
in Ponchatoula
in Tangipahoa Parish, where he had resided for his last years.
1947, a massive tornado
ripped through the town. Eighteen people died, and more than two hundred were injured.
A new branch library has opened off U.S. Highway 371. It replaces the former facility in the old office of Dr. John Pugh, a long-time Cotton Valley physician, who began his practice in 1901.
Cotton Valley High School sports the teams called the "Wildcats."
Cotton Valley has several churches, including First Baptist
, First United Methodist, Pentecostal, and Church of Christ
.
Among the businesses is the Ho-Made restaurant for both inside dining and carry-out and a part of the town's social fabric for decades.
According to the United States Census Bureau
, the town has a total area of 2.6 square miles (6.7 km²), all of it land.
of 2000, there were 1,189 people, 477 households, and 313 families residing in the town. The population density
was 451.2 people per square mile (173.9/km²). There were 568 housing units at an average density of 215.5 per square mile (83.1/km²). The racial makeup of the town was 56.01% White, 42.39% African American, 0.42% Native American, 0.08% from other races
, and 1.09% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 1.43% of the population.
There were 477 households out of which 28.1% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 41.9% were married couples
living together, 19.5% had a female householder with no husband present, and 34.2% were non-families. 31.4% of all households were made up of individuals and 15.5% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.48 and the average family size was 3.10.
In the town the population was spread out with 26.7% under the age of 18, 11.4% from 18 to 24, 23.7% from 25 to 44, 21.8% from 45 to 64, and 16.3% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 38 years. For every 100 females there were 90.2 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 86.5 males.
The median income for a household in the town was $22,000, and the median income for a family was $30,515. Males had a median income of $30,345 versus $21,635 for females. The per capita income
for the town was $12,662. About 25.9% of families and 30.2% of the population were below the poverty line, including 43.4% of those under age 18 and 22.4% of those age 65 or over.
Town
A town is a human settlement larger than a village but smaller than a city. The size a settlement must be in order to be called a "town" varies considerably in different parts of the world, so that, for example, many American "small towns" seem to British people to be no more than villages, while...
in central Webster Parish
Webster Parish, Louisiana
Webster Parish is a parish located in the U.S. state of Louisiana. The seat of the parish is Minden. In 2010, its population was 41,207....
, Louisiana
Louisiana
Louisiana is a state located in the southern region of the United States of America. Its capital is Baton Rouge and largest city is New Orleans. Louisiana is the only state in the U.S. with political subdivisions termed parishes, which are local governments equivalent to counties...
, United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. The population was 1,189 at the 2000 census. It is located some twenty miles northwest of the parish seat of Minden
Minden, Louisiana
Minden is a city in the American state of Louisiana. It serves as the parish seat of Webster Parish and is located twenty-eight miles east of Shreveport, the seat of Caddo Parish. The population, which has been stable since 1960, was 13,027 at the 2000 census...
.
Overview
Municipal matters
Cotton Valley was established in the mid-19th century but was not incorporated until 1944, when J.B. Roby, a DemocratDemocratic Party (United States)
The Democratic Party is one of two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Republican Party. The party's socially liberal and progressive platform is largely considered center-left in the U.S. political spectrum. The party has the lengthiest record of continuous...
, became its first mayor
Mayor
In many countries, a Mayor is the highest ranking officer in the municipal government of a town or a large urban city....
. Initially appointed, Roby was elected to the position on April 11, 1944, In 1946, Roby was succeeded by A.C. Borland, who served until 1968. Borland, an insurance agent, did not seek reelection and was succeeded by E.M. Hollingsworth.
In June 2010, the Minden Press-Herald
Minden Press-Herald
The Minden Press-Herald is a Monday-Friday daily newspaper published in Minden, the seat of Webster Parish in northwestern Louisiana, by Specht Newspapers, Inc...
reported that Cotton Valley Town Clerk Myra Kilburn is in violation of the Louisiana Public Records Act (Revised Statutes 44:33). Kilburn has repeatedly ignored the newspaper's request for public records though the law requires that the information be released within seventy-two hours after the request is made. Kilburn said that she will accept whatever sanctions will be assessed against her. "I absolutely did what you are saying I did. . . . Looking up your records got a backseat," Kilburn told the Press-Herald.
Meanwhile, the three-term city alderman Charlene Lewis and the municipal legal counsel, Charles Jacobs, have both resigned after ethics complaints surfaced regarding Lewis' employment with Jacobs’ firm. Jacobs said that "too many personality conflicts exist for me to effectively serve . . . I’m just going to resign and be done with it." Jacobs said that Kilburn refused to listen to his legal advice regarding public records and that the municipality, which has financial problems, has not paid him.
Marlon Pope Special Learning Center
Cotton Valley is the home of the Marlon Pope Special Learning Center, named for Chester Marlon Pope (1929–1987), a former RepublicanRepublican 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...
member of the Webster Parish School Board. It was one of the first two pilot schools in Louisiana designated for the multi-handicapped. Jarrell Francis "Jerry" Heard (1923–2010), a native of Alexandria
Alexandria, Louisiana
Alexandria is a city in and the parish seat of Rapides Parish, Louisiana, United States. It lies on the south bank of the Red River in almost the exact geographic center of the state. It is the principal city of the Alexandria metropolitan area which encompasses all of Rapides and Grant parishes....
who was reared in Ruston
Ruston, Louisiana
Ruston is a city in and the parish seat of Lincoln Parish, Louisiana, United States. The population was 20,546 at the 2000 census. Ruston is near the eastern border of the Ark-La-Tex and is the home of Louisiana Tech University. Its economy caters to its college population...
, and later resided most of his adult life in Minden, was one of the first principals of the Marlon Pope center. A 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...
recipient from the Pacific Ocean theater of World War II
Pacific Ocean theater of World War II
The Pacific Ocean theatre was one of four major naval theatres of war of World War II, which pitted the forces of Japan against those of the United States, the British Commonwealth, the Netherlands and France....
, Heard developed a special rapport with handicapped children. His school stationary bore the biblical inscription: "When you have done it to the least of these, you have done it unto me." (Matthew 25:45) Heard earlier had taught in East Baton Rouge Parish and at E.S. Richardson Elementary School
E.S. Richardson Elementary School
E.S. Richardson Elementary School is a pre-kindergarten through fifth grade campus which serves parts of the eastern section of the small city of Minden, the seat of Webster Parish in northwestern Louisiana. The school opened in the 1949-1950 academic year, with Wayne Wynn Williams, Sr. , as the...
near his home in Minden. A United Methodist, Heard died at the age of eighty-six of esophageal cancer
Cancer
Cancer , known medically as a malignant neoplasm, is a large group of different diseases, all involving unregulated cell growth. In cancer, cells divide and grow uncontrollably, forming malignant tumors, and invade nearby parts of the body. The cancer may also spread to more distant parts of the...
in Ponchatoula
Ponchatoula, Louisiana
Ponchatoula is a city in Tangipahoa Parish, Louisiana, United States. The population was 5,180 at the 2000 census. Ponchatoula calls itself the "Strawberry Capital of the World". It is part of the Hammond Micropolitan Statistical Area. The current mayor is Bob Zabbia.-Geography:Ponchatoula is...
in Tangipahoa Parish, where he had resided for his last years.
Miscellany
On New Year's EveNew Year's Eve
New Year's Eve is observed annually on December 31, the final day of any given year in the Gregorian calendar. In modern societies, New Year's Eve is often celebrated at social gatherings, during which participants dance, eat, consume alcoholic beverages, and watch or light fireworks to mark the...
1947, a massive tornado
Tornado
A tornado is a violent, dangerous, rotating column of air that is in contact with both the surface of the earth and a cumulonimbus cloud or, in rare cases, the base of a cumulus cloud. They are often referred to as a twister or a cyclone, although the word cyclone is used in meteorology in a wider...
ripped through the town. Eighteen people died, and more than two hundred were injured.
A new branch library has opened off U.S. Highway 371. It replaces the former facility in the old office of Dr. John Pugh, a long-time Cotton Valley physician, who began his practice in 1901.
Cotton Valley High School sports the teams called the "Wildcats."
Cotton Valley has several churches, including First Baptist
Baptist
Baptists comprise a group of Christian denominations and churches that subscribe to a doctrine that baptism should be performed only for professing believers , and that it must be done by immersion...
, First United Methodist, Pentecostal, and Church of Christ
Church of Christ
Churches of Christ are autonomous Christian congregations associated with one another through common beliefs and practices. They seek to base doctrine and practice on the Bible alone, and seek to be New Testament congregations as originally established by the authority of Christ. Historically,...
.
Among the businesses is the Ho-Made restaurant for both inside dining and carry-out and a part of the town's social fabric for decades.
Geography
Cotton Valley is located at 32°48′52"N 93°25′17"W (32.814421, -93.421299).According to the United States Census Bureau
United States Census Bureau
The United States Census Bureau is the government agency that is responsible for the United States Census. It also gathers other national demographic and economic data...
, the town has a total area of 2.6 square miles (6.7 km²), all of it land.
Demographics
As of the censusCensus
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 1,189 people, 477 households, and 313 families residing in the town. 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 451.2 people per square mile (173.9/km²). There were 568 housing units at an average density of 215.5 per square mile (83.1/km²). The racial makeup of the town was 56.01% White, 42.39% African American, 0.42% Native American, 0.08% 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 1.09% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 1.43% of the population.
There were 477 households out of which 28.1% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 41.9% 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, 19.5% had a female householder with no husband present, and 34.2% were non-families. 31.4% of all households were made up of individuals and 15.5% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.48 and the average family size was 3.10.
In the town the population was spread out with 26.7% under the age of 18, 11.4% from 18 to 24, 23.7% from 25 to 44, 21.8% from 45 to 64, and 16.3% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 38 years. For every 100 females there were 90.2 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 86.5 males.
The median income for a household in the town was $22,000, and the median income for a family was $30,515. Males had a median income of $30,345 versus $21,635 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 town was $12,662. About 25.9% of families and 30.2% of the population were below the poverty line, including 43.4% of those under age 18 and 22.4% of those age 65 or over.
Notable natives and residents
- Roger CarrRoger CarrRoger Dale Carr is a former National Football League wide receiver who played mainly for the Baltimore Colts...
, former National Football LeagueNational Football LeagueThe National Football League is the highest level of professional American football in the United States, and is considered the top professional American football league in the world. It was formed by eleven teams in 1920 as the American Professional Football Association, with the league changing...
wide receiver who played for ten seasons with the Baltimore ColtsHistory of the Indianapolis ColtsThe Indianapolis Colts are a professional football team based in Indianapolis, Indiana. They play in the AFC South division of the National Football League. They have won 3 NFL championships and 2 Super Bowls....
, Seattle SeahawksSeattle SeahawksThe Seattle Seahawks are a professional American football team based in Seattle, Washington. They are currently members of the Western Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League . The team joined the NFL in 1976 as an expansion team...
and San Diego ChargersSan Diego ChargersThe San Diego Chargers are a professional American football team based in San Diego, California. they were members of the Western Division of the American Football Conference in the National Football League...
. - John Ardis CawthonJohn Ardis CawthonJohn Ardis Cawthon was an educator and regional historian from Ruston in Lincoln Parish in north Louisiana, who was affiliated with Louisiana Tech University from 1939–1940, 1948, and from January 12, 1954, until retirement on May 31, 1972...
, education professor and regional historian at Louisiana Tech UniversityLouisiana Tech UniversityLouisiana Tech University, often referred to as Louisiana Tech, LA Tech, or Tech, is a coeducational public research university located in Ruston, Louisiana. Louisiana Tech is designated as a Tier 1 school in the national universities category by the 2012 U.S. News & World Report college rankings...
taught at Cotton Valley High School from 1934-1935. - The Cox FamilyThe Cox FamilyThe Cox Family is an American Bluegrass family group from Cotton Valley in Webster Parish in northwestern Louisiana, United States.-Members:*Evelyn Cox - guitar, vocals*Lynn Cox - - bass, vocals...
consists of Cotton Valley natives noted for their bluegrassBluegrass musicBluegrass music is a form of American roots music, and a sub-genre of country music. It has mixed roots in Scottish, English, Welsh and Irish traditional music...
, CountryCountry musicCountry music is a popular American musical style that began in the rural Southern United States in the 1920s. It takes its roots from Western cowboy and folk music...
and gospel musicGospel musicGospel music is music that is written to express either personal, spiritual or a communal belief regarding Christian life, as well as to give a Christian alternative to mainstream secular music....
. The quartet has been performing since 1976, with each child joining the group as he developed his own paths. They have entertained all over the United States and in Great BritainGreat BritainGreat Britain or Britain is an island situated to the northwest of Continental Europe. It is the ninth largest island in the world, and the largest European island, as well as the largest of the British Isles...
. They earned two Grammy AwardGrammy AwardA Grammy Award — or Grammy — is an accolade by the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences of the United States to recognize outstanding achievement in the music industry...
s and a gold record. The Coxes contributed to the soundtrackSoundtrackA soundtrack can be recorded music accompanying and synchronized to the images of a motion picture, book, television program or video game; a commercially released soundtrack album of music as featured in the soundtrack of a film or TV show; or the physical area of a film that contains the...
for the film O Brother, Where Art Thou?O Brother, Where Art Thou?O Brother, Where Art Thou? is a 2000 comedy film directed by Joel and Ethan Coen and starring George Clooney, John Turturro, Tim Blake Nelson, John Goodman, Holly Hunter, and Charles Durning. Set in 1937 rural Mississippi during the Great Depression, the film's story is a modern satire loosely...
. - E.D. GleasonE.D. GleasonErnest Dewey Gleason, known as E. D. Gleason , was a Democratic member of the Louisiana House of Representatives from the Evergreen Community near Minden in Webster Parish in northwestern Louisiana. Gleason served from 1952 until his death at the end of his second term...
, a member of the Louisiana House of RepresentativesLouisiana State LegislatureThe 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...
from Webster Parish from 1952 until his death in 1959, graduated in 1918 from Cottton Valley High School. - Andrew Jackson Hodges, Sr., the industrialist who founded what is now the Hodges Gardens State ParkHodges Gardens State ParkHodges Gardens State Park, previously known as Hodges Gardens, Park and Wilderness Area, is located on between Florien and Hornbeck, near the Toledo Bend Reservoir of the Sabine River in Sabine Parish, in west central Louisiana. The park is located on U.S. Highway 171 some fifteen miles south of...
near ManyMany, LouisianaMany is a town in and the parish seat of Sabine Parish, Louisiana, United States. The population was 2,889 at the 2000 census. The town was named for John B. Many, the commander of nearby Fort Jesup.-History:...
in Sabine Parish, was born in Cotton Valley. - Lonnie Milton Simpson, retired Webster Parish educator, who was the long-term principal of William G. Stewart Elementary SchoolWilliam G. Stewart Elementary SchoolWilliam G. Stewart Elementary School is a defunct elementary school, which formerly served the western portion of the small city of Minden, the seat of Webster Parish in northwestern Louisiana, with public school pre-kindergarten through fifth grade. The institution was located at 215 North Middle...
in Minden, was reared in Cotton Valley and has researched the history of the town.