Ascension Parish, Louisiana

{{Infobox U.S. county

| county = Ascension Parish

| state = Louisiana

| type = Parish

| seal =

| flag = Flag of Ascension Parish, Louisiana.svg

| founded year = 1807

| founded date =

| seat wl = Donaldsonville

| largest city wl = Prairieville

| area_total_sq_mi = 303

| area_land_sq_mi = 290

| area_water_sq_mi = 13

| area percentage = 3.75

| population_as_of = 2020

| population_total = 126500

| pop_est_as_of =

| population_est =

| population_density_sq_mi = auto

| time zone = Central

| footnotes =

| web = www.ascensionparish.net

| named for = Ascension of Jesus Christ

| ex image = DonaldsonvilleCourthouse.jpg

| ex image cap = Ascension Parish Courthouse in Donaldsonville

| district = 2nd

| district2 = 6th

| ex image size = 240px

}}

Ascension Parish ({{langx|fr|Paroisse de l'Ascension}}; {{langx|es|Parroquia de la Ascensión}}) is a parish located in the U.S. state of Louisiana. As of the 2020 census, the population was 126,500.{{Cite web|title=QuickFacts: Ascension Parish, Louisiana|url=https://www.census.gov/quickfacts/fact/table/ascensionparishlouisiana/POP010220|website=United States Census Bureau}} Its parish seat is Donaldsonville.{{cite web|url=http://www.naco.org/Counties/Pages/FindACounty.aspx |access-date=June 7, 2011 |title=Find a County |publisher=National Association of Counties |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110531210815/http://www.naco.org/Counties/Pages/FindACounty.aspx |archive-date=May 31, 2011 }} The parish was created in 1807.{{cite web|title=Ascension Parish|url=http://ccet.louisiana.edu/tourism/parishes/Acadiana_Parishes/ascension.html|publisher=Center for Cultural and Eco-Tourism|access-date=September 5, 2014}} Ascension Parish is part of the Baton Rouge metropolitan statistical area.

Ascension Parish is one of the 22 parishes that make up Acadiana, the heartland of the Cajun people and their culture. This is exhibited by the prevalence of the French or Cajun French language heard throughout the parish, as well as the many festivals celebrated by its residents, including the Boucherie Festival, Lagniappe Music and Seafood Festival, Crawfish Festival, and the Jambalaya Festival.{{Cite web|title=2021 Boucherie Festival|url=https://www.boucheriefestival.com/www.boucheriefestival.com|access-date=December 20, 2021|website=www.boucheriefestival.com|language=en-US}}{{Cite web |url=https://tourascension.com/events/lagniappe-music-seafood-festival/ |title=Lagniappe Music & Seafood Festival - Tour Ascension |access-date=February 22, 2019 |archive-date=February 22, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190222204740/https://tourascension.com/events/lagniappe-music-seafood-festival/ |url-status=dead }}https://tourascension.com/events/dreams-come-true-crawfish-festival/ {{Dead link|date=February 2022}}{{Cite web|title=Welcome to the Gonzales Jambalaya Festival Website!|url=http://www.jambalayafestival.net/home.html|access-date=December 20, 2021|website=Jambalaya Festival Association|language=en}} The largest incorporated city in Ascension Parish, Gonzales, is celebrated as the "Jambalaya Capital of the World".{{Cite web|url=http://www.gonzalesla.com/community-3/jambalaya-festival/|title=JAMBALAYA FESTIVAL | Gonzales Louisiana}}

History

Early European settlers of the area that was developed as Ascension and Gonzales were, for the most part, of French and Spanish ancestry. They settled among the Houma Indians who lived in the area.

Among the projects and plans carried out by Luis de Unzaga 'le Conciliateur' while he was governor of Louisiana between 1769 and 1777 was the promotion of new settlements by Europeans, among them were French Acadians and Malaga in the fertile Mississippi region and more specifically in the Unzaga Post or 'Puesto de Unzaga' that he created in 1771 in Pointe Coupee, the parish of Saint Gabriel in 1773 and Fort Manchac in 1776; the Ascension people occupied land at the confluence of the aforementioned European settlements.Cazorla, Frank (2019) The governor Louis de Unzaga (1717-1793) Pioneer in the Birth of the United States of America and in Liberalism. Foundation Malaga, pages 48-56, 64-72, 83

During the historic 2016 Louisiana Floods, around one-third of all homes in Ascension Parish were flooded; 15,000 homes and businesses took on water, mostly in the Galvez-St. Amant area, prompting a visit to St. Amant by then-presidential candidate, Donald J. Trump.{{Cite web|url=https://www.theadvocate.com/baton_rouge/news/article_873dd256-6303-11e6-ae03-1fa2840fc417.html|title = Ascension officials: 15,000 homes, busineses [sic] flooded so far; levee overtopped}}{{Cite web|url=https://www.theadvocate.com/louisiana_flood_2016/article_c30c8178-661a-11e6-81c9-3f4b02af0c03.html|title = Donald Trump, Mike Pence meet Louisiana flood victims, tour hard-hit Baton Rouge neighborhoods}}

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the parish has a total area of {{convert|303|sqmi}}, of which {{convert|290|sqmi}} is land and {{convert|13|sqmi}} (4.2%) is water.{{cite web|url=https://www.census.gov/geo/maps-data/data/docs/gazetteer/counties_list_22.txt |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130928155956/http://www.census.gov/geo/maps-data/data/docs/gazetteer/counties_list_22.txt |url-status=dead |archive-date=September 28, 2013 |publisher=United States Census Bureau |access-date=August 20, 2014 |date=August 22, 2012 |title=2010 Census Gazetteer Files }} It is the fourth-smallest parish in Louisiana by total area.

=Waterways=

Alligator Bayou
Amite River
Amite River Diversion Canal
Anderson Canal
Babin Canal
Bayou Antoine
Bayou Manchac
Bayou Narcisse
Bayou Pierre
Bayou {{Not a typo|Reponds}} Pas
Bayou Conway
Bayou Francois
Bayou Lafourche
Bayou Napoleon
Bayou Verret
Bayou Vicknair
Black Bayou
Blind River
Boudreau Bayou
Boyle Bayou
Braud Bayou
Cocodrie Bayou
Cotton Bayou
Crowley Ditch
Duckroost Bayou
Flat Lake
Grand Goudine Bayou
Hackett Canal
Heath Bayou
Henderson Bayou
Jim Bayou
Johnson Bayou
Lake Millet
Lake Villars
Laurel Ridge Canal
McCall Bayou
Mississippi River
Muddy Creek
New River
New River Canal
Old New River
Panama Canal
Pipeline Canal
Rocky Canal
Roddy Bayou
Saveiro Canal
Sides Bayou
Smith Bayou
Spanish Lake
Welsh Gully

=Major highways=

=Adjacent parishes=

Communities

=Cities=

Donaldsonville (parish seat)
Gonzales

=Town=

Sorrento

=Census-designated places=

=Unincorporated communities=

Demographics

{{US Census population

|1810= 2219

|1820= 3728

|1830= 5246

|1840= 6951

|1850= 10752

|1860= 11484

|1870= 11577

|1880= 16895

|1890= 19545

|1900= 24142

|1910= 23887

|1920= 22155

|1930= 18438

|1940= 21215

|1950= 22387

|1960= 27927

|1970= 37086

|1980= 50068

|1990= 58214

|2000= 76627

|2010= 107215

|align-fn=center

|footnote=U.S. Decennial Census{{cite web|url=https://www.census.gov/programs-surveys/decennial-census.html |title=U.S. Decennial Census |publisher=United States Census Bureau |access-date=August 20, 2014 }}
1790-1960{{cite web|url=http://mapserver.lib.virginia.edu|title=Historical Census Browser|publisher=University of Virginia Library|access-date=August 20, 2014}} 1900-1990{{cite web|url=https://www.census.gov/population/cencounts/la190090.txt|title=Population of Counties by Decennial Census: 1900 to 1990|publisher=United States Census Bureau|access-date=August 20, 2014}}
1990-2000{{cite web|url=https://www.census.gov/population/www/cen2000/briefs/phc-t4/tables/tab02.pdf|title=Census 2000 PHC-T-4. Ranking Tables for Counties: 1990 and 2000|publisher=United States Census Bureau|access-date=August 20, 2014}} 2010-2019{{cite web|title=State & County QuickFacts|url=http://quickfacts.census.gov/qfd/states/22/22005.html|publisher=United States Census Bureau|access-date=August 20, 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110607074616/http://quickfacts.census.gov/qfd/states/22/22005.html|archive-date=June 7, 2011|url-status=dead}}

|2020=126500}}

class="wikitable" style="text-align:center;"

|+Ascension Parish, Louisiana – Racial and ethnic composition
{{nobold|Note: the US Census treats Hispanic/Latino as an ethnic category. This table excludes Latinos from the racial categories and assigns them to a separate category. Hispanics/Latinos may be of any race.}}

!Race / Ethnicity (NH = Non-Hispanic)

!Pop 2000{{Cite web|title=P004 Hispanic or Latino, and Not Hispanic or Latino by Race – 2000: DEC Summary File 1 – Ascension Parish, Louisiana|url=https://data.census.gov/table?q=p004&g=050XX00US22005&tid=DECENNIALSF12000.P004|website=United States Census Bureau}}

!Pop 2010{{Cite web|title=P2 Hispanic or Latino, and Not Hispanic or Latino by Race – 2010: DEC Redistricting Data (PL 94-171) – Ascension Parish, Louisiana|url=https://data.census.gov/table?q=p2&g=050XX00US22005&tid=DECENNIALPL2010.P2|website=United States Census Bureau}}

!{{partial|Pop 2020}}{{Cite web|title=P2 Hispanic or Latino, and Not Hispanic or Latino by Race – 2020: DEC Redistricting Data (PL 94-171) – Ascension Parish, Louisiana|url=https://data.census.gov/cedsci/table?q=p2&g=050XX00US22005&tid=DECENNIALPL2020.P2|website=United States Census Bureau}}

!% 2000

!% 2010

!{{partial|% 2020}}

White alone (NH)

|58,378

|75,949

|style='background: #ffffe6; |79,645

|76.18%

|70.84%

|style='background: #ffffe6; |62.96%

Black or African American alone (NH)

|15,466

|23,727

|style='background: #ffffe6; |30,296

|20.18%

|22.13%

|style='background: #ffffe6; |23.95%

Native American or Alaska Native alone (NH)

|191

|297

|style='background: #ffffe6; |266

|0.25%

|0.28%

|style='background: #ffffe6; |0.21%

Asian alone (NH)

|249

|995

|style='background: #ffffe6; |1,681

|0.32%

|0.93%

|style='background: #ffffe6; |1.33%

Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander alone (NH)

|18

|61

|style='background: #ffffe6; |32

|0.02%

|0.06%

|style='background: #ffffe6; |0.03%

Other race alone (NH)

|40

|133

|style='background: #ffffe6; |355

|0.05%

|0.12%

|style='background: #ffffe6; |0.28%

Mixed race or Multiracial (NH)

|402

|1,029

|style='background: #ffffe6; |3,842

|0.52%

|0.96%

|style='background: #ffffe6; |3.04%

Hispanic or Latino (any race)

|1,883

|5,024

|style='background: #ffffe6; |10,383

|2.46%

|4.69%

|style='background: #ffffe6; |8.21%

Total

|76,627

|107,215

|style='background: #ffffe6; |126,500

|100.00%

|style='background: #ffffe6; |100.00%

In 1810, the parish had a population of 2,219; since then, its population has steadily increased despite some decades of population decline. In 1900, the parish's population reached a first historic high of 24,142 before increasing again to 58,214 at the 1990 U.S. census. At the 2010 census, Ascension Parish's population grew to 107,215; and at the 2020 United States census, there were 126,500 people, 44,267 households, and 32,305 families residing in the parish.{{Cite web|title=Explore Census Data|url=https://data.census.gov/cedsci/table?g=0500000US22005&tid=DECENNIALPL2020.P2|access-date=December 28, 2021|website=data.census.gov}}

Having historic settlement by French and Spanish colonials during the periods of French and Spanish Louisiana, Ascension Parish's racial and ethnic composition has remained predominantly non-Hispanic white throughout a portion of its history. With the greater diversification of the United States at the 2020 census,{{Cite web |date=October 4, 2021 |title=New Census Reflects Growing U.S. Population Diversity, with Children in the Forefront |url=https://carsey.unh.edu/publication/new-census-reflects-growing-US-population-diversity |access-date=January 17, 2023 |website=Carsey School of Public Policy {{!}} UNH |language=en}}{{Cite web |date=August 12, 2021 |title=America is becoming more urban, more diverse and less white, 2020 Census reveals |url=https://www.pbs.org/newshour/show/america-is-becoming-more-urban-more-diverse-and-less-white-2020-census-reveals |access-date=January 17, 2023 |website=PBS NewsHour |language=en-us}} non-Hispanic white residents were 62.96% of the total population. Black or African American Louisianians and others made up 23.95% of the population, followed by Hispanics or Latinos of any race (8.21%), Asians (1.33%), multiracial Americans (3.32%), Native Americans (0.21%), and Pacific Islanders (0.03%).

Among its residents at the 2021 American Community Survey's 1-year estimates program, households had a median income of $72,662 and mean income of $92,143.{{Cite web |title=2021 ACS Income Estimates |url=https://data.census.gov/table?q=income&g=0500000US22005 |access-date=January 17, 2023 |website=data.census.gov}} Families had a median income of $85,632; married-couple families $111,445; and non-family households $32,498. Overall, residents of Ascension Parish are wealthier than nearby East Baton Rouge Parish.

Religiously and spiritually, Christianity is the dominant religion for the parish. According to the Association of Religion Data Archives in 2020, the Roman Catholic Church was the single-largest Christian denomination for the parish, served primarily by the Roman Catholic Diocese of Baton Rouge. The overall Catholic population in Ascension Parish was 39,260 in 2020. Non-denominational or inter-denominational Christian churches—whether independent Bible churches, United and Uniting, etc.—were the second largest Christian group in the parish with 9,430 members. Collectively, Baptists throughout the Southern Baptist Convention, Full Gospel Baptist Church Fellowship, and National Baptist Convention of America made up 5,043 religious adherents.{{Cite web |title=Maps and data files for 2020 {{!}} U.S. Religion Census {{!}} Religious Statistics & Demographics |url=https://www.usreligioncensus.org/index.php/node/1639 |access-date=January 17, 2023 |website=www.usreligioncensus.org}} Parish-wide Protestant statistics reflect an increase in non- or inter-denominational Christianity throughout Louisiana, outgrowing Methodism as the second-largest Protestant group for the state per the Association of Religion Data Archives 2020 religion census; the growth of non/inter-denominational Christianity for the area represented a broader trend nationwide, where the movement began to constitute the largest segment of American Protestantism.{{Cite web |last=Silliman |first=Daniel |title=‘Nondenominational’ Is Now the Largest Segment of American Protestants |url=https://www.christianitytoday.com/news/2022/november/religion-census-nondenominational-church-growth-nons.html |access-date=February 16, 2023 |website=News & Reporting |language=en}}

Education

Ascension Parish School Board operates the local public schools. The parish is also home to private schools and—since 1998, to River Parishes Community College.

Media

Two newspapers are based in Ascension Parish's two cities, Donaldsonville and Gonzales. The Gonzales Weekly Citizen is a bi-weekly newspaper formed after the merger of The Gonzales Weekly (founded 1920) and The Ascension Citizen (founded 1996). The Donaldsonville Chief, founded in 1871, is the parish's longest-continually-published newspaper.

Law, government and politics

{{PresHead|place=Ascension Parish, Louisiana|source={{Cite web|url=http://uselectionatlas.org/RESULTS|title=Dave Leip's Atlas of U.S. Presidential Elections|last=Leip|first=David|website=uselectionatlas.org|access-date=February 16, 2018}}}}

{{PresRow|1968|American Independent|1,338|3,203|6,004|Louisiana}}

On March 8, 2017, Ascension Parish President Kenneth Paul "Kenny" Matassa (born September 12, 1949), a Republican,{{cite web|url=https://voterportal.sos.la.gov/Home/Home?uid=4430|title=Kenneth Matassa, September 1949|publisher=Louisiana Secretary of State Tom Schedler|access-date=March 13, 2017}}{{Dead link|date=November 2018 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }} along with Olin Glenn Berthelot (born August 1948), a Democratic{{cite web|url=https://voterportal.sos.la.gov/Home/Home?uid=4430|title=Olin Berthelot, August 1948|publisher=Louisiana Secretary of State|access-date=March 13, 2017}}{{Dead link|date=November 2018 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }} businessman from Gonzales, faced indictment in an attempted bribery scheme. The pair is charged with encouraging a candidate to withdraw from a local election on November 8, 2016.

The grand jury released its true bill to Judge Tess Stromberg of the 23rd Judicial District Court in Ascension, Assumption, and St. James parishes. Among those who testified in the case were Democratic Gonzales City Council member Neal Bourqueat. Matassa and Berthelot allegedly bribed the Democrat A. Wayne Lawson with offers of money and a government job to drop out of the city council race in Division E against Bourque, who nevertheless won reelection with 61 percent of the ballots cast.{{cite web|url=https://voterportal.sos.la.gov/Graphical|title=Official Results: Ascension Parish|publisher=Louisiana Secretary of State Tom Schedler|access-date=March 13, 2017}}

Matassa and Berthelot turned themselves in to authorities and posted a $5,000 bond. Reports, meanwhile, surfaced of a move before the parish council calling for Matassa to resign. He cannot be forced from the office, however, unless convicted of the crime. Matassa and Berthelot could have received up to two years in state prison either with or without hard time and/or a fine of $2,000.{{cite news|url=http://www.theadvocate.com/baton_rouge/news/article_9a93369e-058c-11e7-ac43-6f6e1133b12d.html|title=Ascension Parish President Kenny Matassa, Gonzales businessman indicted in bribery scandal|date=March 10, 2017|author=David Mitchell|newspaper=The Baton Rouge Advocate|access-date=March 13, 2017}} Matassa was instead acquitted in July 2018 of the election bribery allegations and returned to his duties as parish president with a legal cloud lifted from his shoulders.{{cite news|url=https://www.theadvocate.com/baton_rouge/news/article_9e172662-86e7-11e8-9aa9-af3841459c0b.html|newspaper=The Baton Rouge Advocate|title=Ascension Parish President Kenny Matasse acquitted in bribery trial: 'I believe in the legal system'|date=July 14, 2018|author=David Mitchell|access-date=July 25, 2018}}

National Guard

The 922nd Engineer Company (Horizontal), a unit of the 769th Engineer Battalion and the 225th Engineer Brigade. The 1021st Vertical Engineer Company also resides in Gonzales, Louisiana.

References

External links

[http://www.ascensionparish.net/ Ascension Parish government's website]
[https://web.archive.org/web/20090205154055/http://ascensionsheriff.com/ Ascension Parish Sheriff's website]
[http://www.weeklycitizen.com/ Weekly Citizen newspaper]
[http://www.myapl.org/ Ascension Parish Library]
[https://archive.today/20121205034115/http://www.nps.gov/history/nr/travel/louisiana/ Explore the History and Culture of Southeastern Louisiana, a National Park Service Discover Our Shared Heritage Travel Itinerary]
[http://www.2theadvocate.com/news/Census-shows-shift.html Census shows shift] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110707062421/http://www.2theadvocate.com/news/Census-shows-shift.html |date=July 7, 2011 }}
[http://globalradiokkay.com Radio station website]

{{Geographic Location

|Centre = Ascension Parish, Louisiana

|North = East Baton Rouge Parish

|Northeast = Livingston Parish

|East = St. John the Baptist Parish

|Southeast =

|South = St. James Parish

|Southwest = Assumption Parish

|West = Iberville Parish

|Northwest =

}}

{{Coord|30.20|-90.91|display=title|type:adm2nd_region:US-LA_source:UScensus1990}}