Rayville, Louisiana

Rayville is a town in and the parish seat of Richland Parish in northeastern Louisiana, United States. The population, which is 69 percent African American, was 4,234 at the 2000 census, but it had declined by nearly 21 percent in 2020 to 3,347.

The City Hall, located next to the U.S. Post Office across from U.S. Highway 80, is named for former Rayville Mayor Joe Kalil (1922–1996).

History
Rayville was named for John Ray.

Geography
Rayville is located at 32.47361°N, -91.7575°W (32.473580, -91.757387).

According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 2.3 square miles (5.9 km$2$), of which 2.2 square miles (5.8 km$2$) is land and 0.04 square mile (0.1 km$2$) (1.32%) is water.

Demographics
As of the 2020 United States census, there were 3,347 people, 1,248 households, and 892 families residing in the town.

Education
Public schools in Richland Parish are operated by the Richland Parish School Board. Three campuses serve the town of Rayville - Rayville Elementary School (Grades PK-6), Rayville Junior High School (Grades 7-8), and Rayville High School (Grades 9-12). Rayville is also served by Riverfield Academy (Grades PK-12) a non-denominational private school.

Notable people

 * Ralph Abraham, was elected in the 114th Congress to serve the 5th Congressional District of LA.
 * Garland Boyette, football player
 * Reggie Burnette, Green Bay Packers and Tampa Bay Buccaneers player
 * Charles "Bubba" Chaney, state representative from Rayville
 * Benny Gay Christian, state representative from Rayville, 1964 to 1974
 * Bunny Greenhouse, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers whistleblower
 * Elvin Hayes, Hall of Fame basketball player
 * Edgar Jones, Baltimore Ravens football player
 * Ernie Ladd, professional wrestler and football player who played for the San Diego Chargers, Kansas City Chiefs, and the Houston Oilers. Inducted into the Chargers Hall of Fame in 1981 and the WWE Hall of Fame in 1995. He attended Grambling State University.
 * Roosevelt Potts, Indianapolis Colts
 * Stanley Williams, one of the early leaders of the Crips.