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2020 2020 was heavily defined by the COVID-19 pandemic, which led to global Social impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, social and Economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, economic disruption, mass cancellations and postponements of events, COVID- ...

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504 __NOTOC__ Year 504 (DIV) was a leap year starting on Thursday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Nicomachus without colleague (or, less frequently, year 1257 ...

, geocode = , iso_code = , blank_name =

FIPS code The Federal Information Processing Standards (FIPS) of the United States are a set of publicly announced standards that the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) has developed for use in computer systems of non-military, American ...

, blank_info = 22-38092 , blank1_name = , blank1_info = , blank2_name = , blank2_info = , blank_name_sec2 = , blank_info_sec2 = , blank1_name_sec2 = , blank1_info_sec2 = , blank2_name_sec2 = Wikimedia Commons , blank2_info_sec2 = , website = , footnotes = *Town is on former site of

Manila Village Manila Village (locally spelt Manilla;Jack A. Reynolds. "Manila Village" entry i"Louisiana Placenames of Romance Origin."LSU Historical Dissertations and Theses #7852. 1942. p. 329–330. frc, Cloque-Chênière, or ) was a settlement of Filipi ...

which was destroyed by hurricane in 1965 , image_blank_emblem = Jean Lafitte, Louisiana logo.png , blank_emblem_type = Logo Jean Lafitte is a

town A town is a human settlement. Towns are generally larger than villages and smaller than cities, though the criteria to distinguish between them vary considerably in different parts of the world. Origin and use The word "town" shares an ori ...

on Bayou Barataria in the

U.S. state In the United States, a state is a constituent political entity, of which there are 50. Bound together in a political union, each state holds governmental jurisdiction over a separate and defined geographic territory where it shares its sover ...

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 ...

. Located in

Jefferson Parish Jefferson may refer to: Names * Jefferson (surname) * Jefferson (given name) People * Thomas Jefferson (1743–1826), third president of the United States * Jefferson (footballer, born 1970), full name Jefferson Tomaz de Souza, Brazilian foot ...

, it is named after the

privateer A privateer is a private person or ship that engages in maritime warfare under a commission of war. Since robbery under arms was a common aspect of seaborne trade, until the early 19th century all merchant ships carried arms. A sovereign or deleg ...

Jean Lafitte Jean Lafitte ( – ) was a French pirate and privateer who operated in the Gulf of Mexico in the early 19th century. He and his older brother Pierre spelled their last name Laffite, but English language documents of the time used "Lafitte". Thi ...

. The population was 1,809 at the 2020 census. It is part of the

New Orleans New Orleans ( , ,New Orleans
Merriam-Webster. ; french: La Nouvelle-Orléans , es, Nuev ...

– Metairie–

Kenner Kenner Products, known simply as Kenner, was an American toy company founded in 1946. Throughout its history, the Kenner brand produced several highly recognizable toys and merchandise lines including action figures like the original series of ' ...

metropolitan statistical area In the United States, a metropolitan statistical area (MSA) is a geographical region with a relatively high population density at its core and close economic ties throughout the area. Such regions are neither legally Incorporated town, incorporate ...

History

Jean Lafitte was originally settled by Native Americans, then explored and settled by the French who established the area as a harbor for large vessels coming in and out of New Orleans. Today, the communities along Bayou Barataria are made up of Jean Lafitte, Lafitte, Crown Point and Barataria. The town of Jean Lafitte was officially incorporated in 1974, an effort led by Leo E. Kerner Jr., who became the town's first mayor. His son, Tim Kerner Sr., later served 7 terms as mayor from 1992 to 2020. In 2020, his son Tim Kerner, Jr. was elected as mayor. Under the leadership of Timothy Kerner Sr., the town built a number of civic and infrastructure improvements, including: a visitor center, museum, 1,300-seat auditorium, library, civic center, baseball park, senior center, medical clinic, art gallery, and nature trail. One of the mayor's major accomplishments was the creation of the Lafitte Area Independent Levee District that eventually secured over $300 million in funds to build tidal protection levees and flood walls. In 2012, a

historical marker A commemorative plaque, or simply plaque, or in other places referred to as a historical marker, historic marker, or historic plaque, is a plate of metal, ceramic, stone, wood, or other material, typically attached to a wall, stone, or other ...

for the community of

was placed in Jean Lafitte. Since mid-2013, Manila Plaza, located in front of Jean Lafitte Town Hall, has held several historical markers and commemorative plaques acknowledging important individuals in the area's

Filipino American Filipino Americans ( fil, Mga Pilipinong Amerikano) are Americans of Filipino ancestry. Filipinos and other Asian ethnicities in North America were first documented in the 16th century as slaves and prisoners on ships sailing to and from New S ...

history. The Philippine-Louisiana Historical Society participated in the dedication ceremony. While there were several settlements of

Filipinos Filipinos ( tl, Mga Pilipino) are the people who are citizens of or native to the Philippines. The majority of Filipinos today come from various Austronesian ethnolinguistic groups, all typically speaking either Filipino, English and/or othe ...

(sometimes called ''Manilamen'' or '' Tagalas'') along the Louisiana coast in the late 19th century, Manila Village was the largest. The residents there implemented a system of platforms on which they dried

shrimp Shrimp are crustaceans (a form of shellfish) with elongated bodies and a primarily swimming mode of locomotion – most commonly Caridea and Dendrobranchiata of the decapod order, although some crustaceans outside of this order are refer ...

, as forerunners of Louisiana's 21st-century

dried shrimp Dried shrimp are shrimp that have been sun-dried and shrunk to a thumbnail size. They are used in many East Asian, Southeast Asian and South Asian cuisines, imparting a unique umami taste. A handful of shrimp is generally used for dishes. The fla ...

industry. This community-on-stilts thrived for nearly a century, until it was destroyed by

Hurricane Betsy Hurricane Betsy was an intense and destructive tropical cyclone that brought widespread damage to areas of Florida and the central United States Gulf Coast in September 1965. The storm's erratic nature, coupled with its intensity and minim ...

in 1965. In 2014, the town of Jean Lafitte unveiled a historical marker sponsored by the Jefferson Parish Historical Commission at the town's visitor center. The historical marker reads: “Named for legendary privateer

, who helped the United States win the Battle of New Orleans and used area bayous for his smuggling operations. Home to a thriving seafood industry. Incorporated in 1974 as a village. Became a town in 1977. First mayor of village and town was Leo E. Kerner, Jr., 1974-1991.”

Geography

The town of Jean Lafitte is located at (29.735587, -90.122053). 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 the ...

, the town has a total area of , of which is land and (4.47%) is water.

Demographics

According to 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 1,809 people, 604 households, and 446 families residing in the town. At the 2019

American Community Survey The American Community Survey (ACS) is a demographics survey program conducted by the U.S. Census Bureau. It regularly gathers information previously contained only in the long form of the decennial census, such as ancestry, citizenship, educati ...

, the racial and ethnic makeup of Jean Lafitte was 95.4%

non-Hispanic white Non-Hispanic whites or Non-Latino whites are Americans who are classified as "white", and are not of Hispanic (also known as "Latino") heritage. The United States Census Bureau defines ''white'' to include European Americans, Middle Eastern Amer ...

, 0.1% Black or African American, 0.7% American Indian or Alaska Native, 0.5% some other race, and 3.4%

two or more races 2 (two) is a number, numeral and digit. It is the natural number following 1 and preceding 3. It is the smallest and only even prime number. Because it forms the basis of a duality, it has religious and spiritual significance in many cultur ...

. By 2020, its composition was 82.42% non-Hispanic white, 1.11% Black or African American, 2.32% Native American, 1.22% Asian, 7.85% other races and ethnicities, and 5.09% Hispanic and Latino American, representing the demographic increase of Asians and Latinos nationwide. The median age of the town in 2019 was 39.7 and the median household income was $55,671 with a poverty rate of 17.1%. Of the 656 housing units in the township, males had a median income of $54,400 versus $39,830 for females.

Education

Lafitte residents are zoned to

Jefferson Parish Public Schools Jefferson Parish Public Schools is a school district based in Harvey in unincorporated Jefferson Parish, Louisiana, United States.Metairie, LA Secondary schools ;7-12 schools *Fisher Middle-High Schoolbr>- Jean Lafitte, Louisiana, Jean Lafitte ...

. Residents from K-6 are zoned to Leo E. Kerner Elementary School (formerly Lafitte Elementary School). 7-12 are zoned to

Fisher Middle-High School Fisher Middle-High School is a secondary school in Jean Lafitte, an unincorporated area in Jefferson Parish, Louisiana. It is a part of Jefferson Parish Public Schools Jefferson Parish Public Schools is a school district based in Harvey in unincor ...

. The Leo. E. Kerner Jr. City Park Multi-Purpose Complex is located in Jean Lafitte.

Jefferson Parish Library Jefferson Parish Library (JPL) is the library system of Jefferson Parish, Louisiana. It has its headquarters in the East Bank Regional Library in Metairie, an unincorporated area in the parish.Hurricane Katrina Hurricane Katrina was a destructive Category 5 Atlantic hurricane that caused over 1,800 fatalities and $125 billion in damage in late August 2005, especially in the city of New Orleans and the surrounding areas. It was at the time the cost ...

and

Hurricane Rita Hurricane Rita was the most intense tropical cyclone on record in the Gulf of Mexico and the fourth-most intense Atlantic hurricane ever recorded. Part of the record-breaking 2005 Atlantic hurricane season, which included three of the top ten L ...

, and the library contents were destroyed. The American Library Association donated $200,000 to the State of Louisiana, and the Louisiana Library Association's Disaster Relief Program awarded $20,000 of that to Jefferson Parish Library; the funds were used to rebuild the Lafitte Library. The previous library building became the Sheriff Harry Lee Police Station.Lafitte Library
"

Jefferson Parish Library Jefferson Parish Library (JPL) is the library system of Jefferson Parish, Louisiana. It has its headquarters in the East Bank Regional Library in Metairie, an unincorporated area in the parish.Jean Lafitte National Historical Park and Preserve Jean Lafitte National Historical Park and Preserve (french: Parc historique national et réserve Jean Lafitte) protects the natural and cultural resources of Louisiana's Mississippi River Delta region. It is named after French pirate Jean Lafitt ...

- Barataria Preserve

References

External links

Town of Jean Lafitte

Leo E. Kerner Elementary School
{{authority control Towns in Louisiana Towns in Jefferson Parish, Louisiana Towns in New Orleans metropolitan area