Castor, Louisiana

Castor is a village in Bienville Parish in north Louisiana, United States. The population was 209 at the 2000 census but increased 23% to 258 in 2010. The median age was 32.2 years. The village was established in 1900. The name "Castor" refers to the genus Castoridae or beaver, a Latin term, contrary to an oral tradition of the word being Native American in origin.

Castor's ZIP code is 71016. A number of surrounding smaller villages, both incorporated and not, including Roy, utilize the ZIP code of Castor.

History

During the Civil War, Castor supplied salt for the Confederacy. A salt works was operated west of Castor by Alfred P. King. Burrell Hicks Matthews and Alfred P. King ran a post office here called "Salt Spring" between 1849 and 1866. The area supplied hundreds of young men as soldiers during the Civil War, including the Castor Guards and the Bienville Rifles.

Dr. Dempsey Sullivan was a physician who saw patients from horseback. His daughter, Willie Sullivan, married Sam Smith, and the couple had 21 children. All but one of the children who died are interred at the New Ebenezer Cemetery. Mrs. Bonnie Daniel and Mrs. Merlene Young lived the furthest away in Weatherford and Kerrville, Texas, respectively, but they too are buried at Ebenezer.

The Sam and Willie Sullivan Smith family, one of the oldest in Castor, lost six members in a tornado in 1950. Mr. and Mrs. Smith, Elaine Smith, Celia Sullivan (Mrs. Smith's sister), Dottie Jo Knotts, and Prentice Little were all killed. The homestead was wiped clean except for a bucket on the water well which remained undisturbed. The Smith family sold most of its land to Jerry "Cotton" Guin, an employee of Libbey Glass in Shreveport, who raised bees there until 2009.

The Louisiana rails to trails project, which extends from Sibley to Winnfield, deconstructed the once Kansas City Southern Railway track to make a recreational nature trail that, on completion, runs through the center of Castor.

The first school in Castor was located in the former Masonic lodge near the site of the present United Methodist Church. By 1912, Castor State Bank joined a small group of businesses on North Front Street. The bank and other buildings burned in 1929. A new bank building, a two-story brick structure, opened with the upper floor reserved for the Masonic lodge. This bank closed in 1933, but the top floor was still maintained by the lodge and the Order of the Eastern Star, which had been chartered in Castor on June 6, 1912. In the winter of 1983, fire destroyed this building, and the lodge records were lost. A new lodge hall was constructed in 1985 across from the Methodist Church.

In the late evening of April 23, 2000, Castor was struck by a tornado with a half-mile-wide path of destruction, which caused massive damage. There were no severe injuries, but the infrastructure damage caused the closure of most small businesses as well as the public school for a period of weeks. Most of the affected buildings were demolished or renovated because of the severe damage.

Discovered in 2007-2008, the Haynesville Shale, one of the largest natural gas deposits in the United States, sits underneath northwest Louisiana, including Castor.MyOilPro.com - Haynesville shale oil & gas leasing in the ark-la-tex
/ref> A large pocket of the Haynesville Shale was developed at the edge of the village, but an industrial/production accident involving the site damaged the pocket, making it unusable for the time being.

Geography

According to the United States Census Bureau, the village has a total area of , all land.

Landscape

The active area or center of Castor is the four-way intersection of LA 4/LA 153 and LA 507, but the city limits extend from the light for about a quarter mile in all directions.

Castor Creek is a tributary of Black Lake Bayou, which flows approximately southwest of Castor.

Demographics

As of the census of 2000, there were 209 people, 88 households, and 52 families residing in the village. The population density was . There were 101 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the village was 85.17% White, 11.96% African American, 2.87% from other races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 3.83% of the population.

There were 88 households, out of which 30.7% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 46.6% were married couples living together, 10.2% had a female householder with no husband present, and 39.8% were non-families. 38.6% of all households were made up of individuals, and 23.9% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.38 and the average family size was 3.25.

In the village, the population was spread out, with 30.1% under the age of 18, 5.3% from 18 to 24, 30.1% from 25 to 44, 14.8% from 45 to 64, and 19.6% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 36 years. For every 100 females, there were 97.2 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 87.2 males.

The median income for a household in the village was $23,125, and the median income for a family was $35,000. Males had a median income of $23,750 versus $35,833 for females. The per capita income for the village was $11,963. About 17.3% of families and 20.3% of the population were below the poverty line, including 20.8% of those under the age of eighteen and 15.7% of those 65 or over.

Gallery

Castor, LA, entrance sign IMG 1614.JPG, Castor entrance sign
Bienville Parish Library in Castor, LA IMG 5786.JPG, Castor branch of the Bienville Parish Library
Castor High School, Castor, LA IMG 0055.JPG, Castor School Complex
Revised photo of Castor General Store IMG 2133.JPG, Castor General Store
First United Methodist Church, Castor, LA IMG 5783.JPG, First United Methodist Church of Castor
Revised First Baptist Church of Castor, LA IMG 5788.JPG, The First Baptist Church of Castor is located adjacent to the public school complex.
Revised photo, New Ebenezer Baptist Church, Castor, LA IMG 0726.JPG, New Ebenezer Baptist Church south of Castor
New Ebenezer Cemetery IMG 1623.JPG, Entrance to New Ebenezer Cemetery
Graves at Old Castor Cemetery, Castor, LA IMG 6270.JPG, Graves at the Old Castor Cemetery

Education

Castor has one school located on Front Street. The complex contains a Pre-K and Kindergarten, elementary, middle, and high school buildings.

Roads

Running through Castor are three main highways: Hwy 153 (known in Castor as Front Street), Hwy 507 and Hwy 4 which intersect in the middle of Castor at a 4-way-stop caution light.

Media

The primary source of news in Castor is the ''Shreveport Times''. There are also the ''Ringgold Progress'' and the ''Bienville Democrat'', which is published in Arcadia.

Cable television does not reach into Castor area. Viewers rely on antennas or satellites for coverage.

Economy

Castor has several businesses: the General Store, a gasoline station, flower shop, a cafe, a beauty shop, a laundromat, a branch of the Bank of Montgomery (formerly Bank of Ringgold), United States Post Office, retirement homes, and a mobile home park. The majority of working adults commute to one of the more urban areas nearby for employment.

Notable people

* Jamie Fair, member of the Louisiana House of Representatives from 1980–1984
* Lee Smith, pitcher, Major League Baseball, inducted into the Hall of Fame in 2019

References

{{Authority control

Villages in Bienville Parish, Louisiana
Villages in Louisiana