Sicily Island is a
village
A village is a clustered human settlement or community, larger than a hamlet but smaller than a town (although the word is often used to describe both hamlets and smaller towns), with a population typically ranging from a few hundred ...
in
Catahoula Parish,
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 ...
, United States. The population was 336 at the
2020 census.
Geography
Sicily Island is located in northeastern Catahoula Parish at (31.846573, -91.658925).
passes through the village, leading north to
Winnsboro and southeast to
Natchez, Mississippi.
Louisiana State Highway 8 leads southwest to
Harrisonburg, the Catahoula Parish seat.
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 ...
, Sicily Island has a total area of , all land.
Despite its name, Sicily Island is not an island; instead, nearby lakes and rivers gave the area a shape early settlers considered reminiscent of the island of
Sicily
(man) it, Siciliana (woman)
, population_note =
, population_blank1_title =
, population_blank1 =
, demographics_type1 = Ethnicity
, demographics1_footnotes =
, demographi ...
.
History
In the early 1700s, the area that would become Sicily Island was the site of a
Natchez Natchez may refer to:
Places
* Natchez, Alabama, United States
* Natchez, Indiana, United States
* Natchez, Louisiana, United States
* Natchez, Mississippi, a city in southwestern Mississippi, United States
* Grand Village of the Natchez, a site o ...
settlement. In January 1731, towards the end of the
Natchez Revolt
The Natchez revolt, or the Natchez massacre, was an attack by the Natchez Native American people on French colonists near present-day Natchez, Mississippi, on November 29, 1729. The Natchez and French had lived alongside each other in the ...
, French forces besieged the Natchez fort, compelling the surrender of 45 men and 450 women and children. Although the bulk of the Natchez leaders and warriors escaped, the siege marked the last major engagement of the war.
In 1881, a Jewish
agricultural colony was created in Sicily Island with the support of the
Am Olam Am Olam was a movement among Russian Jews to establish agricultural colonies in America. The name means "Eternal People" and is taken from the title of an essay by Peretz Smolenskin. It was founded in Odessa in 1881 by Mania Bakl (Maria Bahal) and ...
organization. The colony was mostly made up of immigrants from
Yelisavetgrad
Kropyvnytskyi ( uk, Кропивницький, Kropyvnytskyi ) is a city in central Ukraine on the Inhul river with a population of . It is an administrative center of the Kirovohrad Oblast.
Over its history, Kropyvnytskyi has changed its name ...
who were fleeing the
pogroms that began that same year. By 1882, the colony was completely disbanded as the
Mississippi River
The Mississippi River is the second-longest river and chief river of the second-largest drainage system in North America, second only to the Hudson Bay drainage system. From its traditional source of Lake Itasca in northern Minnesota, it fl ...
flooded, destroying most farms.
"Sicily Island, Louisiana"
, ''Encyclopedia of Southern Jewish Communities''
Demographics
As of the 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 ...
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 ...
, 54.53% 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 ...
, 0.22% 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 0.44% 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 0.88% of the population.
There were 197 households, out of which 27.4% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 34.0% were married couples living together, 19.8% had a female householder with no husband present, and 43.7% were non-families. 41.1% of all households were made up of individuals, and 21.3% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.30 and the average family size was 3.23.
In the village, the population was spread out, with 30.0% under the age of 18, 7.1% from 18 to 24, 26.5% from 25 to 44, 20.3% from 45 to 64, and 16.1% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 36 years. For every 100 females, there were 81.9 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 82.2 males.
The median income for a household in the village was $14,783, and the median income for a family was $23,036. Males had a median income of $25,750 versus $14,821 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 village was $11,972. About 45.5% of families and 47.1% 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 61.6% of those under age 18 and 12.1% of those age 65 or over.
Notable people
* Cecil R. Blair, Louisiana State Senator
The Louisiana State Senate (french: Sénat de Louisiane) is the upper house of the state legislature of Louisiana. All senators serve four-year terms and are assigned to multiple committees.
Composition
The Louisiana State Senate is compose ...
from Rapides Parish
Rapides Parish () (french: Paroisse des Rapides) is a parish located in the U.S. state of Louisiana. As of the 2010 census, the population was 131,613. The parish seat is Alexandria, which developed along the Red River of the South. ''Rapides ...
, grew up in Sicily Island and graduated from Sicily Island High School in 1934.
* S. S. DeWitt, member of the Louisiana House from 1964-1972 from Tensas Parish
Tensas Parish (french: Paroisse des Tensas) is a parish located in the northeastern section of the State of Louisiana; its eastern border is the Mississippi River. As of the 2010 census, the population was 5,252. It is the least populated paris ...
, was born in Sicily Island and graduated from Sicily Island High School in 1931.
* J.C. "Sonny" Gilbert, cotton
Cotton is a soft, fluffy staple fiber that grows in a boll, or protective case, around the seeds of the cotton plants of the genus '' Gossypium'' in the mallow family Malvaceae. The fiber is almost pure cellulose, and can contain minor pe ...
planter, former member of both the Louisiana House of Representatives (1972–1976) and the Louisiana State Senate (1960–1972), and former director of Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries The Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries (LDWF) is a state agency of Louisiana that maintains state wildlife and fishery areas. The agency is headquartered in the capital city of Baton Rouge.
Mission
The Louisiana Department of Wildlife ...
, resided in Sicily Island until his death in 2014.
* Joe Raymond Peace
Joe Raymond Peace Jr. (born June 5, 1945) is an American former college football coach.
Peace served as head football coach at Louisiana Tech University.
Head coaching record
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Peace, Joe Raymond
194 ...
, football coach
* William S. Peck, Jr., member of the Louisiana House of Representatives from 1956 to 1964
* William S. Peck, Sr., member of the Louisiana House from 1920 to 1928
* Sonny Simmons
Huey "Sonny" Simmons (August 4, 1933 – April 6, 2021) was an American jazz musician.
Biography
Simmons was born on August 4, 1933 in Sicily Island, Louisiana. He grew up in Oakland, California, where he began playing the English horn. (Along w ...
, jazz
Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, with its roots in blues and ragtime. Since the 1920s Jazz Age, it has been recognized as a m ...
musician, born in Sicily Island in 1933
*Coy Wilton Wynn, news correspondent for Associated Press and Time magazine
* Todd Guice graduated from Sicily Island High School and served as President of the LHSAA.
Photo gallery
Image:Sicily Island, LA, Fire Department IMG 0292.JPG, Sicily Island Fire Department
Image:Catahoula Parish Library, Sicily Island IMG 0296.JPG, Catahoula Parish branch library in Sicily Island
Image:Sicily Island, LA, United Methodist Church IMG 0291.JPG, Sicily Island United Methodist Church
The United Methodist Church (UMC) is a worldwide mainline Protestant denomination based in the United States, and a major part of Methodism. In the 19th century, its main predecessor, the Methodist Episcopal Church, was a leader in evangelic ...
Image:First Baptist Church, Sicily Island, LA IMG 0297.JPG, First Baptist
Baptists form a major branch of Protestantism distinguished by baptizing professing Christian believers only ( believer's baptism), and doing so by complete immersion. Baptist churches also generally subscribe to the doctrines of soul compe ...
Church in Sicily Island
Image:Sicily Island, LA, State Bank IMG_0287.JPG, Sicily Island State Bank
References
External links
Sicily Island Progress
Community Progress Site for Sicily Island, LA
DiscoverCatahoula.com
Community Website for Catahoula Parish, LA
{{authority control
Villages in Louisiana
Villages in Catahoula Parish, Louisiana