Richland Parish, Louisiana Facts for Kids

Quick facts for kids Richland Parish
Parish
Alto Presbyterian Church
Location within the U.S. state of Louisiana
Louisiana's location within the U.S.
Country	United States
State	Louisiana
Founded	September 29, 1878
Named for	Fertile (rich) land in the area
Seat	Rayville
Largest town	Rayville
Area
• Total	576 sq mi (1,490 km²)
• Land	559 sq mi (1,450 km²)
• Water	9.375 sq mi (24.28 km²) 1.6%
Population (2020)
• Total	20,043
• Density	34.797/sq mi (13.435/km²)
Time zone	UTC−6 (Central)
• Summer (DST)	UTC−5 (CDT)

Richland Parish is a parish located in the North Louisiana Delta Country in the U.S. state of Louisiana, known for its fertile, flat farmland, cane brakes, and open spaces. The parish had a population of 20,043 at the 2020 United States census. The name Richland was chosen due to the rich production from farming. The parish seat and largest community is Rayville.

History

The parish was officially created on September 29, 1868. Rayville, Louisiana, the parish seat, was named for John Ray, a politician from Monroe with large land holdings in present-day Rayville.

Richland Parish is home to the first public parish library in the State of Louisiana, the Rhymes Memorial Library. The library was built in 1925 by the Lambda Kappa Club of Rayville. R.R. Rhymes donated the original building in memory of his wife, Nonnie Roark Rhymes.

Geography

Bayou Macon flows through the western areas of Richland. Other tributaries in the parish include Crew Lake, and the Lafourche Diversion Canal are located in the western portion of the parish. Boeuf River flows from the northern end to the southern end in the center of the parish.

Adjacent parishes

Morehouse Parish (north)
West Carroll Parish (northeast)
Madison Parish (east)
Franklin Parish (south)
Caldwell Parish (southwest)
Ouachita Parish (west)

Parks and wildlife management areas

Poverty Point Reservoir State Park
Russell Sage Wildlife Management Area

Communities

Towns

Delhi
Rayville (parish seat and largest municipality)

Village

Mangham

Unincorporated areas

Census-designated place

Start

Unincorporated communities

Alto
Archibald
Bardel
Bee Bayou
Buckner
Charlieville
Crew Lake
Dehlco
Dunn
Four Forks
Gilleyville
Girard
Holly Ridge
Jonesburg
Mitchiner
New Light
Rhymes
Sacksonia
Warden

Transportation

Bridge crossing the Boeuf River on Hwy 15 near Alto, LA

	Interstates and State Highways
	Interstate 20
	U.S. Highway 80
	Louisiana Highway 15
	Louisiana Highway 17
	Louisiana Highway 132
	Louisiana Highway 133
	Louisiana Highway 135
	Louisiana Highway 585

	Air, Rail, Levee
	Rayville Municipal Airport
	Delhi Municipal Airport
	Monroe Regional Airport
	Kansas City Southern Railroad
	Tensas Basin Levee District

Demographics

Historical population
Census	Pop.	%±
1870	5,110	—
1880	8,440	65.2%
1890	10,230	21.2%
1900	11,116	8.7%
1910	15,769	41.9%
1920	20,860	32.3%
1930	26,374	26.4%
1940	28,829	9.3%
1950	26,672	−7.5%
1960	23,824	−10.7%
1970	21,774	−8.6%
1980	22,187	1.9%
1990	20,629	−7.0%
2000	20,981	1.7%
2010	20,725	−1.2%
2020	20,043	−3.3%
U.S. Decennial Census 1790–1960 1900–1990 1990–2000 2010

2020 census

Richland Parish racial composition
Race	Num.	Perc.
White (non-Hispanic)	11,667	58.21%
Black or African American (non-Hispanic)	7,303	36.44%
Native American	53	0.26%
Asian	50	0.25%
Other/Mixed	570	2.84%
Hispanic or Latino	400	2.0%

As of the 2020 United States census, there were 20,043 people, 7,459 households, and 4,972 families residing in the parish.

Education

Public schools

Delhi Elementary
Delhi Junior High
Delhi High School
Holly Ridge Elementary
Mangham Elementary
Mangham Junior High
Mangham High School
Rayville Elementary
Rayville Junior High
Rayville, High School
Start Elementary

Private schools

Riverfield Academy, K–12

Charter schools

Delhi Charter, K–12

Community and technical colleges

Louisiana Delta Community College, (with campus locations in neighboring Tallulah, Winnsboro, Lake Providence, Bastrop, Monroe, and West Monroe.)

Regional universities

University of Louisiana at Monroe
Louisiana Tech University, (Ruston)
Grambling State University, (Grambling)

Notable people

Julia Letlow, from Start, elected Member of Congress in the United States House of Representatives.
Luke Letlow, from Start, elected to the United States House of Representatives, but died of a heart attack caused by COVID-19 before he could be seated.
Ralph Abraham, from Alto, elected Member of Congress in United States House of Representatives.
Harry W. Addison was a Southern author and humorist who resided in Rayville from 1945 to 1957.
Jamar Adcock, a politician and banker in Monroe, born in Richland Parish
Terry Doughty, is a federally appointed judge for the Western District of Louisiana.
Elvin Hayes, Hall of Fame basketball player, born in Rayville
Arlene Howell, Miss Louisiana USA 1958, Miss USA 1958
Ralph E. King, Winnsboro physician who represented Richland Parish in the Louisiana State Senate from 1944 to 1952 and again from 1956 to 1960
William L. Kirk, of Rayville was a United States Air Force four-star general who served as Commander in Chief, U.S. Air Forces in Europe/Commander, Allied Air Forces Central Europe.
Ernie Ladd, a football player/professional wrestler, born in Rayville
Moses J. Liddell was appointed by President Grover Cleveland as a judge for the Supreme Court of the Montana Territory.
Wiley Person Mangham, an American publisher and editor. He is the namesake for t
Tim McGraw, Country musician, born in Delhi, and raised in Start
Robert Max Ross, was a Republican politician and activist who qualified to run for governor, U.S. Senate, and the U.S. House, for the purpose of advancing the two-party system in Louisiana, at a time it did not exist.
Francis C. Thompson served in the Louisiana House of Representatives from 1975 until 2008; since in the Louisiana State Senate

Tim McGraw, a famous country musician.
Ralph Abraham, U.S. House of Representatives.
Elvin Hayes, NBA's 50th Anniversary All-Time Team.
Wiley Person Mangham, American Publisher and Editor.

Gallery

Former Rayville High School, operated by the Richland Parish School Board and originally designed by the Shreveport architect Edward F. Neild, was renovated into an apartment complex
Holly Ridge High School in Holly Ridge in rural Richland Parish
Veteran's Memorial in Mangham
Rhymes Memorial Library in Rayville was the first parish wide public library in Louisiana.
Poverty Point Reservoir in Delhi.
Start Baptist Church
Richland Parish Courthouse, in Rayville
Alto Presbyterian Church, built in 1873
Richland Parish Detention Center near Alto, Louisiana
First Baptist Church in Delhi
Northeast Louisiana Veterans Cemetery