Natchitoches (Louisiana)
| Natchitoches | |||
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Location in Louisiana
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| Basic data | |||
| Foundation : | 1714 | ||
| State : | United States | ||
| State : | Louisiana | ||
| Parish : | Natchitoches Parish | ||
| Coordinates : | 31 ° 45 ′ N , 93 ° 6 ′ W | ||
| Time zone : | Central ( UTC − 6 / −5 ) | ||
| Residents : | 18,323 (as of 2010) | ||
| Population density : | 327.2 inhabitants per km 2 | ||
| Area : | 65 km 2 (approx. 25 mi 2 ) of which 56 km 2 (approx. 22 mi 2 ) are land |
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| Height : | 36 m | ||
| Postal code : | 71457 | ||
| Area code : | +1 318 | ||
| FIPS : | 22-53545 | ||
| GNIS ID : | 2404352 | ||
| Website : | www.natchitochesla.gov | ||
Natchitoches is a city and Parish Seat of Natchitoches Parish in the US state of Louisiana . About 18,000 people live in an area of around 65 square kilometers.
Natchitoches is part of the Ark-La-Tex socio-economic region , which includes parts of the four states of Arkansas , Louisiana, Oklahoma, and Texas .
geography
Natchitoches is located in the northwest of the state of Louisiana, about 60 kilometers from the western border with Texas and 140 kilometers from the northern border with Arkansas. About two kilometers northeast of the city runs one of the longest rivers in the world, the Red River , which arises in northern Texas and flows into the Atchafalaya River after almost 2,000 kilometers , which in turn feeds the Mississippi River . In the west of the urban area is the almost nine square kilometers Sibley Lake . The Kisatchie National Forest extends almost 10 kilometers east of the urban area over 2,400 square kilometers .
Nearby cities include Coushatta (35 km northwest), Many (37 km southwest), Simpson (42 km south), Mansfield (60 km northwest) and Alexandria (65 km southeast).
history
Natchitoches was founded in 1714 by the French-Canadian soldier and explorer Louis Juchereau de St. Denis. It is the first permanent settlement within the Louisiana Purchase , an area of 2.1 million square kilometers in the central part of the United States that now belongs to 14 US states and three Canadian states. The city was established as a French branch on the Red River for trade with Spain-controlled Mexico. Therefore, French settlers moved to this area as early as 1699. The post office was built near a village of the Natchitoches Indians , from which the city name is derived.
After the Louisiana Purchase in 1803, the entire region was in a population boom. Several plantations and fields have been established along the Red River. Over the years, the flow of the Red River changed and bypassed the city, which lost its lucrative connection to the Mississippi River and instead had a lake more than 50 kilometers wide, the Cane River Lake . The lake crosses downtown Natchitoches as well as the plantation land. During Spring Break it is used as a training facility for various sports teams from the University of St. Thomas (Minnesota) , Kansas State University , the University of Kansas , Wichita State University , Murray State University , Washington University in St. Louis and Northwestern State University .
During the American Civil War , the city was set on fire by soldiers from the Northern States who were previously unable to take the nearby city of Shreveport . A cavalry of the Confederate States of America pursued the fugitive soldiers and arrived in time to prevent the complete destruction to the city.
In 1965, a pipeline explosion killed 17 people. A plane crashed near the city after the collision with a tree, in which the singer Jim Croce also died. Just an hour earlier he had given a concert at Northwest State University. In 1998 the prehistoric whale Natchitochia , which was found south of the city in 1943, was named after her.
economy
In the 1970s, Natchitoches experienced a downturn that ended with 65% of the business district's jobs remaining vacant. Thanks to efforts to restore the economy, that percentage is now around 1%.
East of the city is the port on the Red River, an important traffic and trade hub. Mainly construction timber, which is the largest and most important industry in the region, is shipped via the port.
In addition, Natchitoches has a national fish farm where six types of fish are raised.
Since Interstate 49 was built , many businesses that were previously downtown have moved outside of the city. Since then, numerous hotels and petrol stations have been built in this area.
The city is home to the Kaffie-Frederick, Inc., General Mercantile, Louisiana's oldest general store . It was opened in 1863 by settlers from Alexandria . Several nationwide reality TV shows were filmed there.
tourism
The Cane River National Heritage Area , in which the city is also located, covers an area of 470 square kilometers, on which numerous historic and historically significant buildings and plantations from the years of the first settlement and cultivation of the region can be found. As part of the Louisiana African American Heritage Trail, it continues to attract large numbers of tourists.
More than a million tourists come to Natchitoches every year. It was awarded in 2006 for the extensive restoration of the historic city center and is recommended for retirees. About 10% of these tourists come just because of the famous Natchitoches Christmas Festival , which has been held annually since 1927 and includes a light show with several hundred thousand lights and fireworks. Another attraction is the Bayou Pierre Alligator Park , where tourists can feed alligators, among other things.
The Natchitoches Events Center , which opened in 2005, offers 3700 square meters of space for meetings and 1500 square meters of space for exhibitions.
Natchitoches has over ten national chain hotels and nearly 30 bed-and-breakfast inns.
traffic
Louisiana Highway 1 runs through the north of the city and connects to US Highway 84 in the north and south , which in turn ends in Goldthwaite , Texas, in the west and to Opp in Alabama in the east . At its southeasternmost intersection, it meets Louisiana Highway 6 . In the southwest the city is crossed by Interstate 49 , which runs from Lafayette in Louisiana to Shreveport. US Highway 71 runs about five kilometers northeast of the city .
To the southwest of the city center is the Natchitoches Regional Airport .
Demographics
The 2010 census showed a population of 18,323 people, spread over 6,705 households and 3,631 families. The population density was almost 320 people per square kilometer. 59.2% of the population were blacks, 37.2% white, 1.3% Hispanics or Latin Americans, 0.8% Asians, 0.7% Native Americans, and under 0.1% Pacific islanders. 0.7% came from a different ethnicity, 1.1% had two or more ethnicities. The median age was over 24 and the per capita income was over $ 12,500, which meant that over a third of the population lived below the poverty line.
education
Natchitoches is one of several campuses run by Northwestern State University , which has approximately 10,000 students. There is also a campus for the Louisiana Scholars' College and the Louisiana Technical College . There are also four elementary schools , five high schools , a laboratory school and a magnet school in the city . There is also a private school, a Louisiana School for Math, Science, and the Arts and three public libraries.
Personalities
- Joanna Cassidy (* 1945) is an actress and owns a house in Natchitoches. She is best known from short appearances in television series.
- Kate Chopin (1850-1904) was a writer and wrote the famous novel The Awakening . She owned a plantation south of the city in the late 19th century; nowadays a lot of her works are here.
- Joe Dumars (* 1963) is a retired Detroit Pistons basketball player and attended high school in Natchitoches. He won two championships, was called up to the NBA All-Star Team six times and became world champion in 1994.
- Marques Johnson (* 1956) is a retired basketball player and was born in the city. He has been called up to the NBA All-Star Team four times and is considered a pioneer of point forward .
- Henry Hopkins Sibley (1816–1886) was born in Natchitoches and was an officer in the United States, the Confederate States and the Egyptian Khedive .
- Vince Williams (1957-1997) was an American actor.
Web links
- The city of Natchitoches website (English)
- Tourist guide of the city of Natchitoches (English)
- Statistical data on Natchitoches (English)