Winn Parish, Louisiana

Winn Parish is a parish located in the U.S. state of Louisiana. As of the 2020 census, the population was 13,755. The parish seat and largest city is Winnfield. The parish was founded in 1852. It is last in alphabetical order of Louisiana's sixty-four parishes. Winn is separated from Natchitoches Parish along U.S. Highway 71 by Saline Bayou, the first blackwater protected waterway in the American South.

History


Winn Parish was established in 1852 from lands which had belonged to the parishes of Catahoula, Natchitoches, and Rapides.

During the Civil War, David Pierson, a young attorney, was elected to represent the parish at the Secession Convention called in January 1861 in Baton Rouge by Governor Thomas Overton Moore. Pierson voted against secession and refused, along with several others, to change his "no" vote at the end of the process when asked to do so to make the final tally unanimous.

That these conscripts refused to fight for the Confederacy is understandable considering that Union support was higher in north Louisiana, and especially high in Winn Parish. The Confederate States Army defeated a Union detachment sent to destroy a salt works in the parish. Winn Parish contributed to the $80,000 raised to build fortifications on the nearby Red River.

After the war, bandits roamed the Natchez Trace or Harrisonburg Road that ran through the lower part of the parish. Among the worst were the West and Kimbrell clan. For seven years they preyed especially on travelers and migrants passing through the area.

In April 1873, white Democrats forming a militia from Winn Parish joined with ex-Confederate veterans from Rapides and Grant parishes against Republican blacks in the Colfax massacre in neighboring Grant Parish. They attacked freedmen defending the parish courthouse and two Republican officeholders in the aftermath to the disputed gubernatorial election of 1872. Among the 80–150 blacks killed were at least 50 who had surrendered; a total of three white men were killed in the confrontation.

Geography
According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the parish has a total area of 957 sqmi, of which 950 sqmi is land and 6.7 sqmi (0.7%) is water.

Major highways

 * [[Image:US 71.svg|25px]] U.S. Highway 71
 * [[Image:US 84.svg|25px]] U.S. Highway 84
 * [[Image:US 167.svg|25px]] U.S. Highway 167
 * [[Image:Louisiana 34 (2008).svg|25px]] Louisiana Highway 34
 * [[Image:Louisiana 126 (2008).svg|25px]] Louisiana Highway 126
 * [[Image:Louisiana 127 (2008).svg|25px]] Louisiana Highway 127
 * [[Image:Louisiana 156 (2008).svg|25px]] Louisiana Highway 156
 * [[Image:Louisiana 471 (2008).svg|25px]] Louisiana Highway 471
 * [[Image:Louisiana 499 (2008).svg|25px]] Louisiana Highway 499
 * [[Image:Louisiana 500 (2008).svg|25px]] Louisiana Highway 500
 * [[Image:Louisiana 501 (2008).svg|25px]] Louisiana Highway 501
 * [[Image:Louisiana 505 (2008).svg|25px]] Louisiana Highway 505
 * [[Image:Louisiana 1228 (2008).svg|25px]] Louisiana Highway 1228

Adjacent parishes

 * Jackson Parish (north)
 * Caldwell Parish (northeast)
 * La Salle Parish (southeast)
 * Grant Parish (south)
 * Natchitoches Parish (west)
 * Bienville Parish (northwest)

National protected area

 * Kisatchie National Forest (part)
 * Saline Bayou

City

 * Winnfield (parish seat and largest municipality)

Town

 * Tullos (partial)

Villages

 * Atlanta
 * Calvin
 * Dodson
 * Sikes

Census-designated places

 * Jordan Hill
 * Joyce
 * Saint Maurice

Other communities

 * Packton
 * Tannehill
 * Wheeling

Demographics
As of the 2020 United States census, there were 13,755 people, 5,483 households, and 3,661 families residing in the parish.

Education
Winn Parish School Board operates local public schools in all of the county.

Corrections
Winn Correctional Center is in an unincorporated section of Winn Parish. Corrections Corporation of America, under contract with Louisiana Department of Public Safety and Corrections, once operated the prison.

National Guard
"A" Company of the Louisiana National Guard 199th Forward Support Battalion was previously located in Winnfield, Louisiana. The unit deployed twice to Iraq as part of the 256TH IBCT in 2004-5 and 2010. The unit's Winnfield Armory was closed.

Politics
Winn Parish, Louisiana, has distinguished itself as a notable indicator of statewide electoral outcomes. This parish has consistently mirrored the state's choice for the presidential winner in 15 consecutive elections since 1964.

Notable people

 * O.K. Allen, governor of Louisiana
 * Huey Long, governor of Louisiana
 * Earl Kemp Long, governor of Louisiana