Mamou is a town in Evangeline 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. The population was 3,242 at the 2010 census, down from 3,566 in

2000 2000 was designated as the International Year for the Culture of Peace and the World Mathematics, Mathematical Year. Popular culture holds the year 2000 as the first year of the 21st century and the 3rd millennium, because of a tende ...

Geography

Mamou is located in south-central Evangeline Parish. Louisiana Highway 13 follows the western border of the town, leading north to Reddell and south to Eunice. Ville Platte, 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 ...

, is to the northeast. 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 ...

, Mamou has a total area of , all land.

History

Many stories exist regarding the origin of the name "Mamou". One may have been the legendary Indian, Chief Mamou. It is certain that this vast

prairie Prairies are ecosystems considered part of the temperate grasslands, savannas, and shrublands biome by ecologists, based on similar temperate climates, moderate rainfall, and a composition of grasses, herbs, and shrubs, rather than trees, as the ...

was known as "Mamou Prairie" as far back as the 18th century and that Anglo-Americans first called it "Mammouth Prairie" because of its immense size. When the French came, they called it "Mamou" for

mammoth A mammoth is any species of the extinct elephantid genus ''Mammuthus.'' They lived from the late Miocene epoch (from around 6.2 million years ago) into the Holocene until about 4,000 years ago, with mammoth species at various times inhabi ...

.mamou.htm
/ref> "Mamou" is also a family name found in

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

.neworleansproduction.com
Within this vast stretch of prairie, the town site of Mamou was platted in 1907 by Curley C. Duson of Eunice. He was president of the Mamou Town Site Company which opened an office on the corner of Seventh and Chestnut. Lot auctions were held weekly and lots were sold for $50. The original village covered one square mile. On January 11, 1911, Mamou was incorporated.

Cotton Cotton (), first recorded in ancient India, 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 ...

was the major crop for many years on the prairie. By 1915, the village boasted four

cotton gin A cotton gin—meaning "cotton engine"—is a machine that quickly and easily separates cotton fibers from their seeds, enabling much greater productivity than manual cotton separation.. Reprinted by McGraw-Hill, New York and London, 1926 (); ...

s producing thousands of bales of cotton; however, the decline in the demand for cotton led local farmers toward the growing of

rice Rice is a cereal grain and in its Domestication, domesticated form is the staple food of over half of the world's population, particularly in Asia and Africa. Rice is the seed of the grass species ''Oryza sativa'' (Asian rice)—or, much l ...

that is now the major crop of the area.

Demographics

As of the 2020 United States census, there were 2,936 people, 1,128 households, and 615 families residing in the town.

Education

Public schools in Evangeline Parish are operated by the Evangeline Parish School Board. Three campuses serve the town of Mamou – Mamou Elementary School (Grades PK–4), Mamou Upper Elementary (Grades 5–8), and Mamou High School (Grades 9–12). Mamou Upper Elementary and Mamou High School are located on the same campus.

Culture

Mamou is located at the heart of Louisiana's

Cajun The Cajuns (; French: ''les Cadjins'' or ''les Cadiens'' ), also known as Louisiana ''Acadians'' (French: ''les Acadiens''), are a Louisiana French ethnicity mainly found in the US state of Louisiana and surrounding Gulf Coast states. Whi ...

country. The town is famous for its music and musicians, and bills itself as "The Cajun Music Capital of the World".lsue.edu
Consequently, Mamou figures into a number of song titles (such as "'Tit Galop Pour Mamou," "Valse de Grand Mamou," "Mamou Two-Step," and "Mamou Hot Step") and lyrics such as "Somewhere Over China" by

Jimmy Buffett James William Buffett (December 25, 1946 – September 1, 2023) was an American singer-songwriter, author, and businessman. He was known for his tropical rock sound and persona, which often portrayed a lifestyle described as "island escapis ...

, as well as band names (such as Steve Riley and the Mamou Playboys). Mamou is also home of the world-famous Fred's Lounge, which features live

Cajun music Cajun music (), an emblematic music of Louisiana played by the Cajuns, is rooted in the ballads of the French-speaking Acadians of Canada. Although they are two separate genres, Cajun music is often mentioned in tandem with the Creole-based ...

every Saturday morning.fredsociety.com
Each year the town holds a

Courir de Mardi Gras The (, ) is a traditional Mardi Gras event held in many Cajun and Creole communities of French Louisiana on the Tuesday before Ash Wednesday. is Louisiana French for " Fat Tuesday Run". This rural Mardi Gras celebration is based on early begg ...

Notable people

* Danny Ardoin,

Major League Baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball league composed of 30 teams, divided equally between the National League (baseball), National League (NL) and the American League (AL), with 29 in the United States and 1 in Canada. MLB i ...

player * Jacqueline Ceballos, feminist and activist * Lewis Elliott Chaze, journalist and author * Austin Deculus, professional football player in the NFL * Chris Duhon, professional

basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appro ...

player * Drastik, Hip-hop artist * Malcolm Frank, former NFL and

CFL The Canadian Football League (CFL; , LCF) is a professional Canadian football league in Canada. It comprises nine teams divided into two divisions, with four teams in the East Division and five in the West Division. The CFL is the highest pr ...

defensive back * Mayeus Lafleur, Cajun musician * Barry Manuel, Major League Baseball,

Louisiana State University Louisiana State University and Agricultural and Mechanical College, commonly referred to as Louisiana State University (LSU), is an American Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Baton Rouge, Louis ...

All-American * Jimmy C. Newman, singer * Steve Riley, Cajun and zydeco accordionist, singer, and bandleader *

Keith Sonnier Keith Sonnier (July 31, 1941 – July 18, 2020) was a postminimalist sculptor, Performance art, performance artist, video and light artist. Sonnier was one of the first artists to use light in sculpture in the 1960s. With his use of neon in combin ...

, visual artist

References

External links

Mamou from Louisiana State University at Eunice's Central Acadiana Gateway site
{{authority control Towns in Evangeline Parish, Louisiana Towns in Louisiana Populated places established in 1907