Union Parish, Louisiana
Parish in Louisiana, United States
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Union Parish (French: Paroisse de l'Union) is a parish located in the north central section of the U.S. state of Louisiana. As of the 2020 census, the population was 21,107.[1] The parish seat is Farmerville.[2] The parish was created on March 13, 1839, from a section of Ouachita Parish. Its boundaries have changed four times since then (in 1845, 1846, 1867, and 1873, respectively).[3]
Union Parish, Louisiana | |
|---|---|
| Parish of Union Paroisse de l'Union (French) | |
Union Parish Courthouse in Farmerville | |
 Location within the U.S. state of Louisiana | |
 Louisiana's location within the U.S. | |
| Country |  United States |
| State |  Louisiana |
| Region | North Louisiana |
| Founded | March 13, 1839 |
| Named after | Union of American states |
| Parish seat (and largest town) | Farmerville |
| Area | |
• Total | 905 sq mi (2,340 km2) |
| • Land | 877 sq mi (2,270 km2) |
| • Water | 28 sq mi (73 km2) |
| • percentage | 3.06 sq mi (7.9 km2) |
| Population (2020) | |
• Total | 21,107 |
| • Density | 24.1/sq mi (9.29/km2) |
| Time zone | UTC-6 (CST) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC-5 (CDT) |
| Area code | 318 |
| Congressional district | 4th |
Union Parish is part of the Monroe, LA Metropolitan Statistical Area.
Geography
According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the parish has a total area of 905 square miles (2,340 km2), of which 877 square miles (2,270 km2) is land and 28 square miles (73 km2) (3.1%) is water.[4]
Geographically north central Louisiana, Union Parish more closely resembles Lincoln Parish, to which Union is deeply tied culturally, politically, and educationally.[citation needed] Union Parish, along with Lincoln Parish to the southwest and Union County, Arkansas to the north, form the eastern boundary of the Ark-La-Tex region.
Major highways
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Adjacent parishes and counties
- Union County, Arkansas (northwest)
- Ashley County, Arkansas (northeast)
- Morehouse Parish (east)
- Ouachita Parish (southeast)
- Lincoln Parish (southwest)
- Claiborne Parish (west)
National protected areas
Communities
Towns
- Bernice
- Farmerville (parish seat and largest municipality)
- Marion
Villages
Unincorporated communities
- Alabama Landing
- Oakland
- Ouachita City
- Point
- Shiloh
- Truxno[5]
Demographics
| Census | Pop. | Note | %± |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1840 | 1,838 | — | |
| 1850 | 8,203 | 346.3% | |
| 1860 | 10,389 | 26.6% | |
| 1870 | 11,685 | 12.5% | |
| 1880 | 13,526 | 15.8% | |
| 1890 | 17,304 | 27.9% | |
| 1900 | 18,520 | 7.0% | |
| 1910 | 20,451 | 10.4% | |
| 1920 | 19,621 | −4.1% | |
| 1930 | 20,731 | 5.7% | |
| 1940 | 20,943 | 1.0% | |
| 1950 | 19,141 | −8.6% | |
| 1960 | 17,624 | −7.9% | |
| 1970 | 18,447 | 4.7% | |
| 1980 | 21,167 | 14.7% | |
| 1990 | 20,690 | −2.3% | |
| 2000 | 22,803 | 10.2% | |
| 2010 | 22,721 | −0.4% | |
| 2020 | 21,107 | −7.1% | |
| 2023 (est.) | 20,650 | [6] | −2.2% |
| U.S. Decennial Census[7] 1790-1960[8] 1900-1990[9] 1990-2000[10] 2010[11] | |||
Racial and ethnic composition
| Race / Ethnicity (NH = Non-Hispanic) | Pop 1980[12] | Pop 1990[13] | Pop 2000[14] | Pop 2010[15] | Pop 2020[16] | % 1980 | % 1990 | % 2000 | % 2010 | % 2020 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| White alone (NH) | 14,854 | 14,775 | 15,772 | 15,398 | 14,289 | 70.18% | 71.41% | 69.17% | 67.77% | 67.70% |
| Black or African American alone (NH) | 6,112 | 5,742 | 6,355 | 6,153 | 4,980 | 28.88% | 27.75% | 27.87% | 27.08% | 23.59% |
| Native American or Alaska Native alone (NH) | 18 | 18 | 40 | 53 | 59 | 0.09% | 0.09% | 0.18% | 0.23% | 0.28% |
| Asian alone (NH) | 14 | 22 | 58 | 31 | 38 | 0.07% | 0.11% | 0.25% | 0.14% | 0.18% |
| Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander alone (NH) | x [17] | x [18] | 11 | 16 | 6 | x | x | 0.05% | 0.07% | 0.03% |
| Other race alone (NH) | 5 | 0 | 8 | 2 | 30 | 0.02% | 0.00% | 0.04% | 0.01% | 0.14% |
| Mixed race or Multiracial (NH) | x [19] | x [20] | 98 | 125 | 570 | x | x | 0.43% | 0.55% | 2.70% |
| Hispanic or Latino (any race) | 164 | 133 | 461 | 943 | 1,135 | 0.77% | 0.64% | 2.02% | 4.15% | 5.38% |
| Total | 21,167 | 20,690 | 22,803 | 22,721 | 21,107 | 100.00% | 100.00% | 100.00% | 100.00% | 100.00% |
2020 census
As of the 2020 census, Union Parish had a population of 21,107 and 4,899 families, and the median age was 44.9 years. 21.2% of residents were under the age of 18 and 21.6% of residents were 65 years of age or older. For every 100 females there were 98.6 males, and for every 100 females age 18 and over there were 96.9 males age 18 and over.[21]
There were 8,759 households in the parish, of which 27.6% had children under the age of 18 living in them. Of all households, 46.8% were married-couple households, 20.1% were households with a male householder and no spouse or partner present, and 28.1% were households with a female householder and no spouse or partner present. About 29.4% of all households were made up of individuals and 13.3% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older.[21]
The racial makeup of the parish was 68.5% White, 23.7% Black or African American, 0.4% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.2% Asian, <0.1% Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander, 3.4% from some other race, and 3.8% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino residents of any race comprised 5.4% of the population.[22]
<0.1% of residents lived in urban areas, while 100.0% lived in rural areas.[23]
There were 10,334 housing units, of which 15.2% were vacant. Among occupied housing units, 78.7% were owner-occupied and 21.3% were renter-occupied. The homeowner vacancy rate was 1.4% and the rental vacancy rate was 9.8%.[21]
Politics
Located in far northern Louisiana next to the Arkansas state line, Union Parish is heavily Republican in most competitive elections, particularly at the presidential level, last voting for a Democratic presidential nominee in 1952 when Adlai Stevenson received 52% of the vote. In the most recent election in 2020, incumbent President Donald Trump received 8,407 votes (75.1 percent) of the parish total to 2,654 (23.7 percent) for former Vice President Joe Biden.[24]
| Year | Republican | Democratic | Third party(ies) | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| No. | % | No. | % | No. | % | |
| 1912 | 11 | 1.39% | 696 | 87.66% | 87 | 10.96% |
| 1916 | 22 | 1.95% | 1,106 | 97.96% | 1 | 0.09% |
| 1920 | 98 | 7.43% | 1,221 | 92.57% | 0 | 0.00% |
| 1924 | 7 | 0.79% | 875 | 99.09% | 1 | 0.11% |
| 1928 | 422 | 27.97% | 1,085 | 71.90% | 2 | 0.13% |
| 1932 | 58 | 2.48% | 2,285 | 97.52% | 0 | 0.00% |
| 1936 | 272 | 13.27% | 1,778 | 86.73% | 0 | 0.00% |
| 1940 | 371 | 11.55% | 2,842 | 88.45% | 0 | 0.00% |
| 1944 | 803 | 31.27% | 1,765 | 68.73% | 0 | 0.00% |
| 1948 | 259 | 9.07% | 724 | 25.35% | 1,873 | 65.58% |
| 1952 | 1,894 | 47.96% | 2,055 | 52.04% | 0 | 0.00% |
| 1956 | 1,384 | 40.49% | 878 | 25.69% | 1,156 | 33.82% |
| 1960 | 2,017 | 49.64% | 1,034 | 25.45% | 1,012 | 24.91% |
| 1964 | 4,534 | 79.70% | 1,155 | 20.30% | 0 | 0.00% |
| 1968 | 1,113 | 16.50% | 1,336 | 19.80% | 4,297 | 63.70% |
| 1972 | 4,322 | 70.20% | 1,465 | 23.79% | 370 | 6.01% |
| 1976 | 4,139 | 52.36% | 3,600 | 45.54% | 166 | 2.10% |
| 1980 | 5,130 | 55.77% | 3,841 | 41.76% | 227 | 2.47% |
| 1984 | 6,585 | 67.73% | 2,916 | 29.99% | 222 | 2.28% |
| 1988 | 5,900 | 62.97% | 3,210 | 34.26% | 259 | 2.76% |
| 1992 | 4,434 | 44.04% | 4,005 | 39.78% | 1,630 | 16.19% |
| 1996 | 4,418 | 46.30% | 4,260 | 44.64% | 865 | 9.06% |
| 2000 | 5,772 | 61.78% | 3,205 | 34.30% | 366 | 3.92% |
| 2004 | 7,457 | 69.57% | 3,089 | 28.82% | 172 | 1.60% |
| 2008 | 7,619 | 70.10% | 3,103 | 28.55% | 146 | 1.34% |
| 2012 | 7,561 | 70.23% | 3,075 | 28.56% | 130 | 1.21% |
| 2016 | 7,972 | 73.18% | 2,691 | 24.70% | 231 | 2.12% |
| 2020 | 8,407 | 75.06% | 2,654 | 23.69% | 140 | 1.25% |
| 2024 | 8,176 | 78.05% | 2,206 | 21.06% | 93 | 0.89% |
School
Residents are assigned to Union Parish Public Schools.
Law enforcement
| Union Parish Sheriff's Office | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Abbreviation | UPSO |
| Motto | Service Before Self |
| Agency overview | |
| Formed | 1839 |
| Jurisdictional structure | |
| General nature | |
| Operational structure | |
| Headquarters | Farmerville, Louisiana |
| Agency executive |
|
| Website | |
| http://www.unionsheriff.com/ | |
The Union Parish Sheriff's Office is the primary law enforcement agency of Union Parish, Louisiana. It is headquartered in Farmerville. The current[as of?] Sheriff of Union Parish is Dusty Gates, who was first sworn as the sheriff following long time Sheriff Bob Buckley's death in September 2013.[26]
Border monument
In 1931, a monument was erected at the Union Parish border with Union County, Arkansas. In 1975, State Representative Louise B. Johnson passed a law to refurbish the monument. The completed restoration was unveiled in 2009.[27]
Notable people
Two Louisiana governors came from the Shiloh Community in Union Parish:
- William Wright Heard, 1900–1904
- Ruffin Pleasant, 1916-1920
Two Arkansas governors were natives of Union Parish:
- George Washington Donaghey, Governor of Arkansas from 1909 to 1913
- Tom Jefferson Terral, Governor of Arkansas from 1925 to 1927
Other Union Parish residents have included:
- Lonnie O. Aulds, state representative from 1968 to 1972[28]
- George Washington Bolton (1841-1931), state representative from 1888 to 1896 from Alexandria[29]
- Jay McCallum - Chief Judge of the Louisiana 3rd Judicial District Court[30]
- Lee Emmett Thomas, Speaker of the Louisiana House of Representative[31]
See also
Sources
Many facts concerning events in early Union Parish history come from the conveyance, probate, and lawsuit records on file in the Union Parish courthouse, as well as records of the United States Land Offices available in the National Archives. Other sources include:
1) Williams, E. Russ, Jr., Spanish Poste d’Ouachita: The Ouachita Valley in Colonial Louisiana 1783–1804, and Early American Statehood, 1804–1820, Williams Genealogical Publications, Monroe, LA, 1995.
2) Williams, E. Russ, Jr., Encyclopedia of Individuals and Founding Families of the Ouachita Valley of Louisiana From 1785 to 1850: Organized into Family Groups with Miscellaneous Materials on Historical Events, Places, and Other Important Topics, Part Oe A – K, Williams Genealogical and Historical Publications, Monroe, LA, 1996.
3) Williams, E. Russ, Jr., Encyclopedia of Individuals and Founding Families of the Ouachita Valley of Louisiana From 1785 to 1850: Organized into Family Groups with Miscellaneous Materials on Historical Events, Places, and Other Important Topics, Part Two L – O, Williams Genealogical and Historical Publications, Monroe, LA, 1997.
4) Williams, Max Harrison, Union Parish (Louisiana) Historical Records: Police Jury Minutes, 1839–1846, D’Arbonne Research and Publishing Co., Farmerville, LA, 1993.