Ponchatoula is the second-largest city in
Tangipahoa Parish
Tangipahoa Parish (; French: ''Paroisse de Tangipahoa'') is a parish located in the southeast corner of the U.S. state of Louisiana. As of the 2010 census, the population was 121,097. The parish seat is Amite City, while the largest city is ...
,
Louisiana
Louisiana , group=pronunciation (French: ''La Louisiane'') is a state in the Deep South and South Central regions of the United States. It is the 20th-smallest by area and the 25th most populous of the 50 U.S. states. Louisiana is borde ...
. The population was 6,559 at the
2010 census and 7,545 at the time of the 2020
population estimates program.
Etymology
It is speculated that the name is derived from the
Choctaw words ''Pashi'' meaning "hair" and perhaps ''itula'' or ''itola'' meaning "to fall" or "to hang" or "flowing" in the
Choctaw language
The Choctaw language (Choctaw: ), spoken by the Choctaw, an Indigenous people of the Southeastern Woodlands, is part of the Muskogean language family. Chickasaw is separate but closely related language to Choctaw.
The Choctaw Nation of Oklahom ...
History
William Akers
Ponchatoula was originally established as a small fishing village around 1820. Then in the year 1839 a man named William Akers moved into town and purchased over 1000 acres from the
United States Federal Government
The federal government of the United States (U.S. federal government or U.S. government) is the national government of the United States, a federal republic located primarily in North America, composed of 50 states, a city within a fe ...
. William began farming and harvesting the local virgin pine timber and pulling the logs to a nearby sawmill with teams of oxen. According to some sources William Akers had several Native Americans working in his timber crew and they provided the name ''Ponchatoula''. It was the Native American way of expressing the beauty of the location, with beautiful
Spanish moss
Spanish moss (''Tillandsia usneoides'') is an epiphytic flowering plant that often grows upon large trees in tropical and subtropical climates. It is native to much of Mexico, Bermuda, the Bahamas, Central America, South America, the Southern Un ...
hanging from the large oak trees.
As more settlers arrived in the area William began selling his land to those families. Then on February 12, 1861 Ponchatoula incorporated as a town. William Akers was appointed as the first mayor and is credited with founding the town.
In the 1880s Akers reported that he had sold nearly 700 acres of land and only had about 300 acres of land remaining. He was a leader in the
Temperance movement
The temperance movement is a social movement promoting temperance or complete abstinence from consumption of alcoholic beverages. Participants in the movement typically criticize alcohol intoxication or promote teetotalism, and its leaders emph ...
and fought hard to keep alcoholic beverages out of Ponchatoula. He was also a member of the local
Masonic Lodge
A Masonic lodge, often termed a private lodge or constituent lodge, is the basic organisational unit of Freemasonry. It is also commonly used as a term for a building in which such a unit meets. Every new lodge must be warranted or chartered ...
and was very active in the
Methodist Episcopal Church
The Methodist Episcopal Church (MEC) was the oldest and largest Methodist denomination in the United States from its founding in 1784 until 1939. It was also the first religious denomination in the US to organize itself on a national basis. In ...
.
Early 20th century
The train depot which was destroyed during the Civil War was rebuilt in 1895 as the area began to recover from the Civil War. At the turn of the 20th century Ponchatoula began to transform from the lumber industry into a commercial farming community. The main street began filling up with beautiful brick buildings as shops, banks and restaurants were built to accommodate the growing population. The main crop grown by the local farmers was the
strawberry. Many of the families who were major farmers during this era, which lasted about eighty years, have their last names engraved on a large
plaque
Plaque may refer to:
Commemorations or awards
* Commemorative plaque, a plate or tablet fixed to a wall to mark an event, person, etc.
* Memorial Plaque (medallion), issued to next-of-kin of dead British military personnel after World War I
* Pl ...
in front of city hall.
Geography
Ponchatoula is located at (30.439162, -90.442507)
and has an elevation of .
According to the
United States Census Bureau
The United States Census Bureau (USCB), officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the U.S. Federal Statistical System, responsible for producing data about the American people and economy. The Census Bureau is part of t ...
, the city has a total area of , all land.
Ponchatoula is located along
Interstate 55
Interstate 55 (I-55) is a major Interstate Highway in the central United States. As with most primary Interstates that end in a five, it is a major cross-country, north–south route, connecting the Gulf of Mexico to the Great Lakes. The h ...
and
Louisiana Highway 22
Louisiana Highway 22 (LA 22) is a state highway located in southeastern Louisiana. It runs in a general east–west direction from the junction of LA 75 and LA 942 in Darrow to U.S. Highway 190 (US 190) in Mandeville.
T ...
, equidistant from
and
Baton Rouge. In the early 1900s, Ponchatoula was one of only two ways to reach New Orleans by land, thus earning the moniker "Gateway to New Orleans."
Demographics
2020 census
As of the
2020 United States census
The United States census of 2020 was the twenty-fourth decennial United States census. Census Day, the reference day used for the census, was April 1, 2020. Other than a pilot study during the 2000 census, this was the first U.S. census to of ...
, there were 7,822 people, 2,863 households, and 1,726 families residing in the city.
2000 census
As of the 2000
census
A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording and calculating information about the members of a given population. This term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common censuses in ...
,
there were 5,180 people, 1,984 households, and 1,372 families residing in the city. The
population density
Population density (in agriculture: Stock (disambiguation), standing stock or plant density) is a measurement of population per unit land area. It is mostly applied to humans, but sometimes to other living organisms too. It is a key geographical ...
was 1,226.7 people per square mile (473.9/km
2). There were 2,175 housing units at an average density of 515.1 per square mile (199.0/km
2). The racial makeup of the city was 62.20%
White
White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no hue). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully reflect and scatter all the visible wavelengths of light. White o ...
, 36.83%
African American
African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American" generally denotes descendants of ens ...
, 0.19%
Native American, 0.12%
Asian
Asian may refer to:
* Items from or related to the continent of Asia:
** Asian people, people in or descending from Asia
** Asian culture, the culture of the people from Asia
** Asian cuisine, food based on the style of food of the people from Asi ...
, 0.15% from
other races
Other often refers to:
* Other (philosophy), a concept in psychology and philosophy
Other or The Other may also refer to:
Film and television
* ''The Other'' (1913 film), a German silent film directed by Max Mack
* ''The Other'' (1930 film), a ...
, and 0.50% from two or more races.
Hispanic
The term ''Hispanic'' ( es, hispano) refers to people, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or Hispanidad.
The term commonly applies to countries with a cultural and historical link to Spain and to viceroyalties forme ...
or
Latino
Latino or Latinos most often refers to:
* Latino (demonym), a term used in the United States for people with cultural ties to Latin America
* Hispanic and Latino Americans in the United States
* The people or cultures of Latin America;
** Latin A ...
of any race were 0.85% of the population.
There were 1,984 households, out of which 34.9% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 41.2% were
married couples living together, 23.1% had a female householder with no husband present, and 30.8% were non-families. 27.1% of all households were made up of individuals, and 11.5% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.60 and the average family size was 3.16.
In the city, the population was spread out, with 29.8% under the age of 18, 9.9% from 18 to 24, 26.9% from 25 to 44, 21.0% from 45 to 64, and 12.4% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 33 years. For every 100 females, there were 85.9 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 79.1 males.
The median income for a household in the city was $22,244, and the median income for a family was $29,583. Males had a median income of $30,285 versus $18,952 for females. The
per capita income
Per capita income (PCI) or total income measures the average income earned per person in a given area (city, region, country, etc.) in a specified year. It is calculated by dividing the area's total income by its total population.
Per capita i ...
for the city was $12,157. About 27.9% of families and 31.7% of the population were below the
poverty line
The poverty threshold, poverty limit, poverty line or breadline is the minimum level of income deemed adequate in a particular country. The poverty line is usually calculated by estimating the total cost of one year's worth of necessities for t ...
, including 46.9% of those under age 18 and 15.1% of those age 65 or over.
Education
Tangipahoa Parish School System operates public schools:
*
Ponchatoula High School (near Ponchatoula)
*Ponchatoula Junior High School
*Martha Vineyard Elementary School (near Ponchatoula)
*D. C. Reeves Elementary School
*Tucker Elementary School
*Perrin Early Learning Center
Visitor attractions
Ponchatoula hosts Louisiana's
Strawberry Festival each April and an
Oktoberfest
The Oktoberfest (; bar, Wiesn, Oktobafest) is the world's largest Volksfest, featuring a beer festival and a travelling carnival. It is held annually in Munich, Bavaria, Germany. It is a 16- to 18-day folk festival running from mid- or ...
each autumn.
The town is noted for its many
antique shops along Pine Street (
LA 22), open year-round. Eleven of the
Ponchatoula Commercial Historic District buildings are determined to be historically significant and listed on the
National Register of Historic Places
The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic ...
. Ponchatoula is small, but it has a number of attractions including a sign on the outskirts of town with how many miles it lies from
South Dakota
South Dakota (; Sioux: , ) is a U.S. state in the North Central region of the United States. It is also part of the Great Plains. South Dakota is named after the Lakota and Dakota Sioux Native American tribes, who comprise a large porti ...
's
Wall Drug
Wall Drug Store, often called simply Wall Drug, is a roadside attraction and tourist stop located in the town of Wall, South Dakota, adjacent to Badlands National Park. Wall Drug consists of a collection of cowboy-themed stores, including a drug ...
store.
Across Highway 22 from Hardhide is the Collinswood School Museum, a former one-room schoolhouse which exhibits local artifacts and quilts. Between the school museum and the tracks stands the Strawberry Train, which is a steam engine and single passenger car roped off in such a way that children can safely climb into the engine and the car.
The Chamber of Commerce office is located on Highway 22 at the railroad tracks and has information about these and other sights in Ponchatoula and the surrounding area.
Strawberry Festival
The first
Strawberry Festival was held in April 1972 on the first block of North 6th Street and was co-sponsored by the Ponchatoula Jaycees and the Ponchatoula Chamber of Commerce. The first festival was small and only had 11 booths. It was a two-day event beginning with a baseball game between
Southeastern Louisiana University
Southeastern Louisiana University (Southeastern) is a public university in Hammond, Louisiana. It was founded in 1925 by Linus A. Sims as Hammond Junior College. Sims succeeded in getting the campus moved to north Hammond in 1928, when it becam ...
and
Wisconsin State. Today it is the second largest event in the state, after
Mardi Gras. During the 1980s the local economy changed to tourism, when farming no longer earned enough to sustain the town. The mayor at the time devised a plan to open antique shops where former businesses had been located. There are still about six of these shops in operation. This gave the town a second nickname, "America's Antique City."
Notable people
*
Irwin Davis
Irwin Vincent Davis was an athletic director and head football coach at Saint Francis University, from which he retired in 1979. He was inducted into the Saint Francis University Athletics Hall of Fame in 1996.
Early years
Born in Ponchatoula, Lo ...
, football player, coach, and administrator
*
Dennis Paul Hebert Sr., state representative for Tangipahoa Parish, 1972-1996
*
Michael I. Jordan, researcher in Machine Learning and Artificial Intelligence
*
Steve Pugh, politician and florist, member of the
Louisiana House of Representatives (2008–2020)
*
Trevante Rhodes
Trevante Nemour Rhodes (born February 10, 1990) is an American actor. He won several accolades and achieved recognition in 2016 for his performance as Chiron in the Academy Award-winning film '' Moonlight''. He has since starred in '' The Pred ...
, actor, sprinter
*
Bernie Smith, baseball player
*
Irma Thomas
Irma Thomas ( Lee; born February 18, 1941) is an American singer from New Orleans. She is known as the "Soul Queen of New Orleans".
Thomas is a contemporary of Aretha Franklin and Etta James, but never experienced their level of commercial succ ...
, singer
*
Reggie Walker, football player
*
Earl Wilson, baseball player
See also
*
Hammond, Louisiana
*
Manchac, Louisiana
Manchac (also known as Akers) is an unincorporated community in Tangipahoa Parish, Louisiana, United States.
Etymology
Dr. John R. Swanton, a linguist who worked with Native American languages, suggested that the name Manchac is derived from '' ...
*
Ponchatoula High School
*
Ponchatoula Creek
*
USS ''Ponchatoula'' (AOG-38)
*
USNS ''Ponchatoula'' (T-AO-148)
References
External links
City of Ponchatoula - Official Website of the City of Ponchatoula, LA''The Ponchatoula Times''Ponchatoula Chamber of CommercePonchatoula Strawberry Festival''MyHammond–MyPonchatoula'' directory
{{authority control
Cities in Louisiana
Louisiana African American Heritage Trail
Populated places established in 1820
1820 establishments in Louisiana
Cities in Tangipahoa Parish, Louisiana
List of place names of Choctaw origin in the United States