Ruston, Louisiana
| Ruston | |||
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Location in Louisiana
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| Basic data | |||
| State : | United States | ||
| State : | Louisiana | ||
| Parish : | Lincoln Parish | ||
| Coordinates : | 32 ° 31 ′ N , 92 ° 38 ′ W | ||
| Time zone : | Central ( UTC − 6 / −5 ) | ||
| Residents : | 21,859 (as of 2010) | ||
| Population density : | 485.8 inhabitants per km 2 | ||
| Area : | 46.8 km 2 (approx. 18 mi 2 ) of which 45 km 2 (approx. 17 mi 2 ) is land |
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| Height : | 102 m | ||
| Postcodes : | 71270, 71272, 71273 | ||
| Area code : | +1 318 | ||
| FIPS : | 22-66655 | ||
| GNIS ID : | 2404660 | ||
| Website : | www.ruston.org | ||
Ruston is a city and the Parish Seat of Lincoln Parish in the US state of Louisiana . Almost 22,000 people live in an area of around 47 square kilometers. As one of the largest cities in the region, Rustin is home to Louisiana Tech University .
Ruston is part of the Ark-La-Tex socio-economic region , which includes parts of the four states of Arkansas , Louisiana, Oklahoma, and Texas .
geography
Ruston is located in northern Louisiana, about 90 kilometers south of the Arkansas border. The city is located about 30 kilometers southeast of Lake Claiborne and 20 kilometers southwest of Lake Bayou D'Arbonne .
Nearby cities include Arcadia (22 km west), Jonesboro (26 km south), Gibsland (35 km west), Claiborne (35 km east) and Monroe (40 km east). The closest larger city is Shreveport with about 200,000 inhabitants, just under 80 kilometers west of Ruston.
history
During the reconstruction phase after the American Civil War , the area of the new Lincoln Parish received news of the construction of a railway line from Vicksburg in Mississippi via Shreveport to the Pacific Ocean in the west, which was to connect the Deep South with the Wild West . The sheriff of Lincoln Parish, Robert Edwin Russ, then donated 2.6 square kilometers of land to the city and enabled it to be connected to the rail network. The city name Ruston is derived from the name of this sheriff (short for Russ Town ).
Commercial and residential lots were built in 1883 and then sold for about $ 375 per lot. An industry quickly developed which, like many parts of the central United States, was dominated by sawmills for the lumber industry.
As the city slowly took shape, churches, shops, civil organizations, and schools began to emerge. Cotton farms in particular now played a large part in the booming economy. In 1900 a second railway line was built, which now ran in a north-south direction and in turn attracted various companies and businesses. During the First World War as the academic and economic center of the region. The GI Bill of Rights , enacted after the Second World War , which was intended to enable soldiers to reintegrate into working life, again brought numerous new residents to the city, which provided a boost in the local economy and local universities.
In the 1960s, Interstate 20 was built and passed Ruston, so that the city was now much more accessible, especially from the west and east. Despite a crisis in the oil industry, the city continued to grow, mainly due to the expansion of the Technical University. During the 100th anniversary celebrations that took place during this period, it was decided to restore the historic city center. Since then, almost 15 buildings have been added to the National Register of Historic Places .
traffic
Ruston is traversed in a north-south orientation by US Highway 167 , which leads to El Dorado and Little Rock in Arkansas in the north and to Alexandria and Lafayette in the south . From Ruston to El Dorado it runs on the same route as US Highway 63 . In an east-west orientation, the city is crossed by US Highway 80 , which runs from Dallas in the west to near Savannah in Georgia . Both highways meet in the city center.
A little further north and largely parallel to the route of Highway 80 runs Interstate 20 , which runs over a length of around 2500 kilometers through six states and connects the Midwest with the east coast.
About five kilometers southeast of the city center is the Ruston Regional Airport on an area of almost 96 hectares. It has a 1524 meter long runway and is mainly served by regional air traffic. It also serves as the helicopter landing pad and academic aviation center for Louisiana Tech University. In 2009, 86,000 flight missions were counted.
education
The Louisiana Tech University ( Louisiana Tech for short ) with about 11,000 students is located in Ruston. In addition, the Grambling State University , which was founded in 1901 and was formerly a college for blacks and now houses almost 5,000 students, is located here . The city also has Ruston High School .
Demographics
The 2000 census showed a population of 20,546 people, spread over 7621 households and 4244 families. The population density was nearly 439 people per square kilometer. 56.9% of the population were white, 38.9% black, 2.4% Asian, 1.3% Hispanic or Latin American, 0.2% American Indian, and less than 0.1% Pacific islander. 0.6% came from a different ethnicity, 0.9% had two or more ethnicities. For every 100 women there were 93 men. The median age was 24 and the per capita income was over 14,500 US dollars, which meant that almost a third of the population lived below the poverty line.
By the 2010 census , the population rose to 21,859.
Personalities
- Trace Adkins (* 1962) is a country singer and attended Louisiana Tech.
- Terry Bradshaw (* 1948) is a retired American football player and a member of the Pro Football Hall of Fame . He also attended Louisiana Tech.
- PJ Brown (* 1969) is a retired basketball player and attended Louisiana Tech.
- Fred Dean (* 1952) is a retired football player and Hall of Fame member. He attended both Ruston High School and Louisiana Tech.
- James Graves (* 1963) is a marksman and was born in Ruston.
- Aaron Holiday (* 1996) is a basketball player and was born in Ruston.
- Karl Malone (* 1963) is a former basketball player and is considered one of the best power forwards of all time. He attended Louisiana Tech and lived temporarily in Ruston.
- Paul Millsap (* 1985) is an active basketball player with the Atlanta Hawks and attended Louisiana Tech.
- Ryan Moats (* 1982) is a former football player and attended Louisiana Tech.
- Willie Roaf ( b.1970 ) is a former football player, Hall of Fame member and has been called to the Pro Bowl eleven times . He attended Louisiana Tech.
- Matt Stover (* 1968) is a former football player and winner of the Super Bowl XXXV . He attended Louisiana Tech.
Web links
- The city of Ruston site (English)
- City Tourist Office (English)
- Statistical data on Ruston (English)