Minden is a small city in and the parish seat of Webster 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 located twenty-eight miles east of Shreveport. As of the 2020 census, the city had a total population of 11,928. The Main Street district of Minden is recognized as a Louisiana Main Street Community, a Louisiana Cultural Products District, and is sited on the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government's official United States National Register of Historic Places listings, list of sites, buildings, structures, Hist ...

. Minden is the core and principal city of the Minden Micropolitan Statistical Area, consisting of all of Webster Parish, which is part of the

Shreveport–Bossier City–Minden CSA The Shreveport–Bossier City–Minden combined statistical area is made up of four parishes in North Louisiana, northwestern Louisiana. The statistical area consists of the Shreveport–Bossier City metropolitan statistical area and the Webster P ...

History

Minden was established in 1836 by Charles Veeder. The town's name is derived from the German city of

Minden Minden () is a middle-sized town in the very north-east of North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany, the largest town in population between Bielefeld and Hanover. It is the capital of the district () of Minden-Lübbecke, situated in the cultural region ...

. The city of Minden was used as a blueprint for the fictional city of Bon Temps, the setting of the

Southern Vampire Mysteries ''The Southern Vampire Mysteries'', also known as ''The True Blood Novels'' and ''The Sookie Stackhouse Novels'', is a series of books written by The New York Times Best Seller list, bestselling author Charlaine Harris. The first installment, '' ...

series by Charlaine Harris. During the

Civil War A civil war is a war between organized groups within the same Sovereign state, state (or country). The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government policies.J ...

, a large Confederate encampment was located inside of Minden. It housed about 15,000 Confederate soldiers. The town served as a supply depot for the Confederate Army. Close to thirty Confederate soldiers who died in the Battles of Mansfield and Pleasant Hill are buried in the Old Minden Cemetery. In the Great Blizzard of 1899, Minden experienced the coldest temperature ever recorded in Louisiana, when the temperature fell on February 13, 1899, to . During the

Great Depression The Great Depression was a severe global economic downturn from 1929 to 1939. The period was characterized by high rates of unemployment and poverty, drastic reductions in industrial production and international trade, and widespread bank and ...

, one of the two Minden banks failed and a fire destroyed a major section of the downtown area (1931). File:Louisiana - Miden - NARA - 23940431 (cropped).jpg, Aftermath of the 1933 tornado File:Louisiana - Miden - NARA - 23940433 (cropped).jpg, Aftermath of the 1933 tornado On May 1, 1933, a

tornado A tornado is a violently rotating column of air that is in contact with the surface of Earth and a cumulonimbus cloud or, in rare cases, the base of a cumulus cloud. It is often referred to as a twister, whirlwind or cyclone, although the ...

occurred in the town, destroying 20% of the homes.

Geography

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 city has a total area of 31.0 km² (12.0 mi²). 30.8 km (11.9 mi²) of it is land and 0.2 km (0.1 mi²) of it is water. The total area is 0.75% water.

Climate

Minden holds the records for both the highest and lowest temperature recorded in Louisiana in February, which is also the coldest temperature recorded in Louisiana in general. On February 13, 1899, the temperature dropped to -16 °F (-26.7 °C).

Demographics

2020 census

As of the 2020 United States census, there were 11,928 people, 5,189 households, and 3,126 families residing in the city.

Government

Media

Television

Minden is part of the Shreveport

media market A media market, broadcast market, media region, designated market area (DMA), television market area, or simply market is a region where the population can receive the same (or similar) television station, television and radio broadcasting, ra ...

for television.

Notable people

Gene Austin Lemeul Eugene Lucas (June 24, 1900 – January 24, 1972), better known by his stage name Gene Austin, was an American singer and songwriter, one of the early " crooners". His recording of " My Blue Heaven" sold over 5 million copies and was for ...

, entertainer, singer and songwriter * Louis Dunbar, basketball player and member of the

Harlem Globetrotters The Harlem Globetrotters is an American Exhibition game, exhibition basketball team. They combine athleticism, theater, entertainment, and comedy in their style of play. Over the years, they have played more than 26,000 exhibition games in 124 ...

* L'Jarius Sneed, NFL cornerback for the Kansas City Chiefs

References

{{authority control Cities in Louisiana Cities in the Ark-La-Tex Cities in Webster Parish, Louisiana Parish seats in Louisiana Populated places established in 1836 County seats in the Ark-La-Tex 1836 establishments in Louisiana