Bienville Parish, Louisiana

Major highways

Interstates

• Interstate 20
• U.S. Highway 80
• U.S. Highway 371
• Louisiana Highway 4
• Louisiana Highway 9

Adjacent parishes

• Claiborne Parish (north)
• Lincoln Parish (northeast)
• Jackson Parish (east)
• Winn Parish (southeast)
• Natchitoches Parish (south)
• Red River Parish (southwest)
• Bossier Parish (west)
• Webster Parish (northwest)

Towns

• Arcadia (parish seat and largest municipality)
• Gibsland
• Mount Lebanon
• Ringgold

Villages

• Bienville
• Bryceland
• Castor
• Jamestown
• Lucky
• Saline

Unincorporated communities

• Brown
• Fryeburg
• Roy
• Sparta
• Taylor

2020 census

As of the 2020 census, there were 12,981 people in the parish, the median age was 43.9 years, 22.4% of residents were under the age of 18, 21.3% of residents were 65 years of age or older, and for every 100 females there were 91.3 males and for every 100 females age 18 and over there were 89.2 males age 18 and over.^[10]

The racial makeup of the parish was 53.5% White, 40.9% Black or African American, 0.5% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.2% Asian, <0.1% Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander, 0.5% from some other race, and 4.4% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino residents of any race comprised 1.6% of the population.^[11]

<0.1% of residents lived in urban areas, while 100.0% lived in rural areas.^[12]

There were 5,459 households in the parish, of which 28.9% had children under the age of 18 living in them. Of all households, 38.6% were married-couple households, 20.9% were households with a male householder and no spouse or partner present, and 35.6% were households with a female householder and no spouse or partner present. About 33.2% of all households were made up of individuals and 16.0% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older.^[10]

There were 6,816 housing units, of which 19.9% were vacant. Among occupied housing units, 72.7% were owner-occupied and 27.3% were renter-occupied. The homeowner vacancy rate was 0.8% and the rental vacancy rate was 8.3%.^[10]

Racial and ethnic composition

2000 census

At the 2000 census, there were 15,752 people, 6,108 households, and 4,214 families residing in the parish.^[22] The population density was 19 people per square mile (7.3 people/km²). There were 7,830 housing units at an average density of 10 per square mile (3.9/km²).

In 2000, the racial makeup of the parish was 54.92% White, 43.78% Black or African American, 0.27% Native American, 0.15% Asian, 0.32% from other races, and 0.55% from two or more races. 0.95% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.

At the 2000 census, there were 6,108 households, out of which 31.00% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 46.70% were married couples living together, 17.70% had a female householder with no husband present, and 31.00% were non-families. 28.80% of all households were made up of individuals, and 14.10% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.52 and the average family size was 3.09.

A tabulated 27.30% of the population were under the age of 18, 8.00% were 18 to 24, 24.60% were 25 to 44, 22.50% were 45 to 64, and 17.60% were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 38 years. For every 100 females there were 91.20 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 85.80 males. The median income for a household in the parish was $23,663, and the median income for a family was $30,241. Males had a median income of $28,022 versus $18,682 for females. The per capita income for the parish was $12,471. About 21.80% of families and 26.10% of the population were below the poverty line, including 34.00% of those under age 18 and 23.20% of those age 65 or over.