Cameron, Louisiana
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Cameron is a
census-designated place A census-designated place (CDP) is a Place (United States Census Bureau), concentration of population defined by the United States Census Bureau for statistical purposes only. CDPs have been used in each decennial census since 1980 as the counte ...
(CDP) in and the
parish seat A county seat is an administrative center, seat of government, or capital city of a county or civil parish. The term is in use in five countries: Canada, China, Hungary, Romania, and the United States. An equivalent term, shire town, is used in ...
of Cameron Parish,
Louisiana Louisiana ( ; ; ) is a state in the Deep South and South Central regions of the United States. It borders Texas to the west, Arkansas to the north, and Mississippi to the east. Of the 50 U.S. states, it ranks 31st in area and 25 ...
, United States. It is part of the Lake Charles Metropolitan Statistical Area. After sustaining extreme damage from
Hurricane Rita Hurricane Rita was the most intense tropical cyclone on record in the Gulf of Mexico, tying with Hurricane Milton in 2024 Atlantic hurricane season, 2024, as well as being the fourth-most intense Atlantic hurricane ever recorded. Part of the ...
in 2005 and
Hurricane Ike Hurricane Ike () was a powerful tropical cyclone that swept through portions of the Greater Antilles and Northern America in September 2008, wreaking havoc on infrastructure and agriculture, particularly in Cuba and Texas. Ike took a sim ...
in 2008, in the 2010 Census Cameron was recorded as having a population of only 406, a 79% drop since 2000.


History

The town of Cameron was originally called Leesburg, although the post office was designated Cameron, like the parish. Its location at the mouth of the
Calcasieu River The Calcasieu River ( ; ) is a river on the Gulf Coast of the United States, Gulf Coast in southwestern Louisiana. Approximately long,U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map, accessed J ...
made it a transhipment location for mail, cattle, and other goods to be taken by ship to Lake Charles. After the sinking of the first successful oil well in Louisiana in 1901, Cameron became a center of petroleum extraction. In 1957, Cameron was nearly destroyed by
Hurricane Audrey Hurricane Audrey was one of the deadliest hurricanes in U.S. history, killing at least 416 people as it devastated the southwestern Louisiana coast in 1957. Along with Hurricane Alex (2010), Hurricane Alex in 2010 Atlantic hurricane season ...
. A storm surge of and winds of devastated nearby oilfields and caused the deaths of more than 300 residents of the town. Nearly fifty years later, in late September 2005,
Hurricane Rita Hurricane Rita was the most intense tropical cyclone on record in the Gulf of Mexico, tying with Hurricane Milton in 2024 Atlantic hurricane season, 2024, as well as being the fourth-most intense Atlantic hurricane ever recorded. Part of the ...
hit Cameron with winds and the highest storm surges ever recorded in the state, at Cameron and possibly in some locations. Much of the town was destroyed, but everyone had evacuated beforehand. On September 13, 2008,
Hurricane Ike Hurricane Ike () was a powerful tropical cyclone that swept through portions of the Greater Antilles and Northern America in September 2008, wreaking havoc on infrastructure and agriculture, particularly in Cuba and Texas. Ike took a sim ...
leveled Cameron with a storm surge while the town was still recovering from Rita in 2005. Ike destroyed more than 90 percent of the homes in the parish seat and caused catastrophic flooding in every part of the parish. After Rita and Ike, the parish instituted stricter building codes, and insurance rates rose dramatically, making rebuilding too expensive for many residents. The population of Cameron fell 79 percent between 2000 and 2010. By 2010, when the First Baptist Church was rebuilt, the town had lost its grocery stores and drug store and had only a gas station and a bank, and the post office and a restaurant, both housed in trailers. Most residents were still living in mobile homes. The main parish library, destroyed by Rita and again by Ike, was rebuilt on tall stilts; South Cameron Memorial Hospital, destroyed by Rita, was also rebuilt to withstand tropical storms. A new government complex was completed in 2015 but repairs to the parish courthouse were still needed. On August 27, 2020, at 1:00 am CDT, Hurricane Laura made landfall near Cameron with maximum sustained winds of , a category 4 storm on the Saffir-Simpson Hurricane Wind Scale. A storm surge measured between 9 and 12 feet inundated the immediate areas surrounding Cameron according to Louisiana Governor John Bel Edwards. Much of the town was again destroyed or severely damaged, including the hospital. Six weeks later, Hurricane Delta made landfall not too far east of Cameron as a category 2 storm. It caused further damage following Laura. Clean up from Laura was paused in preparation for Delta.


Geography

Cameron is located in south-central Cameron Parish along the
Gulf of Mexico The Gulf of Mexico () is an oceanic basin and a marginal sea of the Atlantic Ocean, mostly surrounded by the North American continent. It is bounded on the northeast, north, and northwest by the Gulf Coast of the United States; on the southw ...
at an elevation of above sea level. State highways 27 and 82 pass through the community as Marshall Street, crossing the Calcasieu Ship Channel just west of town. Highway 82 leads east to
Abbeville Abbeville (; ; ) is a commune in the Somme department and in Hauts-de-France region in northern France. It is the of one of the arrondissements of Somme. Located on the river Somme, it was the capital of Ponthieu. Geography Location A ...
and west to
Port Arthur, Texas Port Arthur is a city in the state of Texas, United States of America, located east of metro Houston. Part of the Beaumont–Port Arthur metropolitan area, the city lies primarily in Jefferson County, with a small extension in Orange County. ...
. Highway 27 leads west then north to
Sulphur Sulfur (American spelling and the preferred IUPAC name) or sulphur (English in the Commonwealth of Nations, Commonwealth spelling) is a chemical element; it has Symbol (chemistry), symbol S and atomic number 16. It is abundance of the chemical ...
. Lake Charles is to the north. According to the
United States Census Bureau The United States Census Bureau, officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the Federal statistical system, U.S. federal statistical system, responsible for producing data about the American people and American economy, econ ...
, the CDP has a total area of , of which is land and , or 9.31%, is water.


Climate


Demographics

As of the
census A census (from Latin ''censere'', 'to assess') is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording, and calculating population information about the members of a given Statistical population, population, usually displayed in the form of stati ...
of 2000, there were 1,965 people, 695 households, and 510 families residing in the CDP. The population density was . There were 800 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the CDP was 82.49%
White White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no chroma). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully (or almost fully) reflect and scatter all the visible wa ...
, 11.86%
African American African Americans, also known as Black Americans and formerly also called Afro-Americans, are an Race and ethnicity in the United States, American racial and ethnic group that consists of Americans who have total or partial ancestry from an ...
, 0.56% Native American, 0.31% Asian, 0.05%
Pacific Islander Pacific Islanders, Pasifika, Pasefika, Pacificans, or rarely Pacificers are the peoples of the list of islands in the Pacific Ocean, Pacific Islands. As an ethnic group, ethnic/race (human categorization), racial term, it is used to describe th ...
, 3.36% from other races, and 1.37% from two or more races.
Hispanic The term Hispanic () are people, Spanish culture, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or broadly. In some contexts, Hispanic and Latino Americans, especially within the United States, "Hispanic" is used as an Ethnici ...
or Latino of any race were 5.55% of the population. There were 695 households, out of which 37.8% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 52.5% were
married couples Marriage, also called matrimony or wedlock, is a culturally and often legally recognised union between people called spouses. It establishes rights and obligations between them, as well as between them and their children (if any), and b ...
living together, 14.5% had a female householder with no husband present, and 26.6% were non-families. 21.2% of all households were made up of individuals, and 6.3% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.77 and the average family size was 3.17. In the CDP, the population was spread out, with 27.5% under the age of 18, 10.8% from 18 to 24, 31.1% from 25 to 44, 21.5% from 45 to 64, and 9.1% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 34 years. For every 100 females, there were 102.8 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 104.2 males. The median income for a household in the CDP was $30,370, and the median income for a family was $33,661. Males had a median income of $24,762 versus $26,406 for females. The
per capita income Per capita income (PCI) or average income measures the average income earned per person in a given area (city, region, country, etc.) in a specified year. In many countries, per capita income is determined using regular population surveys, such ...
for the CDP was $13,499. About 17.0% of families and 19.4% 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 ...
, including 18.1% of those under age 18 and 13.6% of those age 65 or over.


Culture

Cameron is on the Creole Nature Trail, a
National Scenic Byway A National Scenic Byway is a road recognized by the United States Department of Transportation for one or more of six "intrinsic qualities": archeological, cultural, historic, natural, recreational, and scenic. The program was established by Co ...
. Cameron is home to the Louisiana Fur and Wildlife Festival held in January.


Government

The
United States Postal Service The United States Postal Service (USPS), also known as the Post Office, U.S. Mail, or simply the Postal Service, is an independent agencies of the United States government, independent agency of the executive branch of the federal governmen ...
Cameron Post Office is located at 144 Adam Roux Street in the CDP.


Education

The Cameron Parish School Board serves the town. Prior to
Hurricane Rita Hurricane Rita was the most intense tropical cyclone on record in the Gulf of Mexico, tying with Hurricane Milton in 2024 Atlantic hurricane season, 2024, as well as being the fourth-most intense Atlantic hurricane ever recorded. Part of the ...
's impact in September 2005, Cameron Elementary School served pre-kindergarten through 7th grade students, while high schoolers attended Johnson Bayou High School. Hurricane Rita damaged both schools and also South Cameron High School, a K–12 school in Creole. Students from both high schools shared Grand Lake High School's campus with Grand Lake for nearly a year. In fall 2006, using portable buildings, high school students returned to the Johnson Bayou campus while Cameron Elementary, South Cameron Elementary, and South Cameron High School students were consolidated on the South Cameron High School campus.
Hurricane Ike Hurricane Ike () was a powerful tropical cyclone that swept through portions of the Greater Antilles and Northern America in September 2008, wreaking havoc on infrastructure and agriculture, particularly in Cuba and Texas. Ike took a sim ...
in 2008 caused varying degrees of damage to every school and library in Cameron Parish. Most were flooded by storm surge and sustained wind damage, and as a result, all schools were closed. Four new schools were built over the following seven years, the last being a new Johnson Bayou High School near Cameron. The Cameron Parish Public Library operated the main Cameron Parish Library in Cameron. negative effects from a hurricane mean the library is not open. The current building opened after a previous one was razed by
Hurricane Ike Hurricane Ike () was a powerful tropical cyclone that swept through portions of the Greater Antilles and Northern America in September 2008, wreaking havoc on infrastructure and agriculture, particularly in Cuba and Texas. Ike took a sim ...
, with yet another one razed by
Hurricane Rita Hurricane Rita was the most intense tropical cyclone on record in the Gulf of Mexico, tying with Hurricane Milton in 2024 Atlantic hurricane season, 2024, as well as being the fourth-most intense Atlantic hurricane ever recorded. Part of the ...
before it. In 2020 Rick Rojas of ''
The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...
'' described the current library as "like a fortress on stilts". For a period beginning on April 1, 2010, the ex-Wendell Electric and Hardware Store served as the library. Cameron Parish is in the service area of Sowela Technical Community College.


References


External links

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Louisiana Fur and Wildlife Festival
{{authority control Census-designated places in Cameron Parish, Louisiana Census-designated places in Louisiana Hurricane Ike Hurricane Rita Parish seats in Louisiana Census-designated places in the Lake Charles metropolitan area Populated coastal places in Louisiana