Livonia, Louisiana Explained

Livonia, Louisiana
Official Name:Town of Livonia
Settlement Type:Town
Image Map1:Louisiana in United States (US48).svg
Map Caption1:Location of Louisiana in the United States
Coordinates:30.5603°N -91.5503°W
Subdivision Type:Country
Subdivision Name:United States
Subdivision Type1:State
Subdivision Name1:Louisiana
Subdivision Type2:Parish
Subdivision Name2:Pointe Coupee
Established Title:Founded
Leader Title:Mayor
Leader Name:Rhett Pourciau (D)
Unit Pref:Imperial
Area Footnotes:[1]
Area Total Km2:4.90
Area Total Sq Mi:1.89
Area Land Km2:4.90
Area Land Sq Mi:1.89
Area Water Km2:0.00
Area Water Sq Mi:0.00
Elevation Ft:26
Population As Of:2020
Population Total:1212
Population Density Km2:247.11
Population Density Sq Mi:639.92
Timezone1:CST
Utc Offset1:-6
Timezone1 Dst:CDT
Utc Offset1 Dst:-5
Postal Code Type:ZIP code
Postal Code:70755
Area Code:225
Blank Name:GNIS feature ID
Blank Info:543403
Blank1 Name:FIPS code
Blank1 Info:22-44690
Blank2 Name Sec2:Wikimedia Commons

[2] [3] Livonia (pronounced Le Vone ya) is a town in Pointe Coupee Parish, Louisiana, United States. The population was 1,442 at the 2010 census, up from 1,339 in 2000. It is part of the Baton Rouge Metropolitan Statistical Area.

According to a 2007 Louisiana Legislative report,[4] Livonia derived 41.18% of its revenue, an average of roughly $349 per capita, from fines and forfeitures in the 2005 fiscal year.

District 17 State Senator Rick Ward, III, was born in Livonia and resides in Maringouin, in neighboring Iberville Parish.

Its main police agency is the Livonia Police Department.

History

Early history

The area of present-day Livonia has been occupied by several American Indian tribes, including Chitimacha, Houma, Tunica-Biloxi, Attakapas, and Coushatta and the site of the conical Livonia Mound. With a base of 165 feet and nearly 31 (30.7) feet tall, is the tallest of 10 remaining Indian burial mounds in Pointe Coupee Parish. Dated to the Coles Creek archaeological culture (400AD-1100AD) period,[5] the mound sits between La 77 and La 78, 150 feet from Bayou Grosse Tête. A second low-rise unnamed mound (destroyed by the mid-1900s) is located 200 feet southeast and a third was reportedly south of these on the water's edge.[6]

Colonial history

See main article: New France, Expulsion of the Acadians and Louisiana Purchase. France ruled the Livonia area as part of Louisiana from 1699 to 1763, when the area was ceded to Spain. Spain controlled the area until 1800 when Napoleon took control of Louisiana for France. Some French Canadians migrated to Louisiana earlier, but the majority came between 1755 and 1764 after being expelled from Acadia. Some of the French culture remains in Livonia, as shown by the 2000 census that revealed 5.6% of the parish spoke French, Cajun French, or Louisiana Creole French. The land was sold to the United States in 1803 as part of the Louisiana Purchase.

Foundation

The Post office opened 1846[7] and was named by first postmaster James B. Johnson for his native Livonia, Pennsylvania.[8]

Geography

Livonia is located at (30.560159, -91.550165).[9]

According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 1.8sqmi, all land.

Demographics

Race!scope="col"
NumberPercentage
White (non-Hispanic)99682.18%
Black or African American (non-Hispanic)1209.9%
Native American20.17%
Other/Mixed524.29%
Hispanic or Latino423.47%
As of the 2020 United States census, there were 1,212 people, 572 households, and 323 families residing in the town.

Education

School

Culture

The town is host to the annual Livonia Lions Club Mardi Gras parade which is held the weekend before Mardi Gras Day.

Probably one of Livonia's most famous international tourists was Edward VIII, the Duke of Windsor, who arrived by train following the Mardi Gras celebration in New Orleans, Louisiana in 1950.[10]

See also

Notes and References

  1. Web site: 2020 U.S. Gazetteer Files. United States Census Bureau. March 20, 2022.
  2. Henry of Livonia. 10.1163/1877-5888_rpp_sim_09569.
  3. Book: Louisiana. Office of Public Health. Louisiana. Office of Public Health. Safe Drinking Water Program. Louisiana. Department of Environmental Quality.. Report ... pursuant to Senate Concurrent Resolution 92 of the 2008 regular legislative session. 2009. Louisiana Dept. of Health and Hospitals. 407907045.
  4. http://www.thenewspaper.com/rlc/docs/2007/la-speedtraps.pdf Louisiana speed traps
  5. https://www.angelfire.com/la3/livoniamound/ archaeological dating
  6. https://web.archive.org/web/20140530044109/http://www.margaretmedia.com/documents/PtCoupeeChap1.pdf Livonia mound
  7. http://webpmt.usps.gov/pmt011.cfm?stat_state_name=LOUISIANA Livonia Post Office
  8. http://pointecoupeetour.tripod.com/brochure.html Naming of Livonia Post Office
  9. Web site: US Gazetteer files: 2010, 2000, and 1990. United States Census Bureau. April 23, 2011. February 12, 2011.
  10. Lockhart, John M. "Did You Know?", The Riverside Reader, January 14, 2008, p. 1