Napoleonville, is a

village A village is a human settlement or community, larger than a hamlet but smaller than a town with a population typically ranging from a few hundred to a few thousand. Although villages are often located in rural areas, the term urban v ...

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 ...

Assumption Parish Assumption Parish (, ) is a parish located in the U.S. state of Louisiana. As of the 2020 census, the population was 21,039. Its parish seat is Napoleonville. Assumption Parish was established in 1807, as one of the original parishes of the ...

, in the U.S. state of

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 ...

. The population was 660 at the 2010 census. It is part of the Pierre Part Micropolitan Statistical Area. The village is best known as the location where the film '' Because of Winn-Dixie'', based on Kate DiCamillo's Newbery Prize-winning novel, was shot. The book was set in (fictional) Naomi, Florida.

History

As early as 1807 the community that later became Napoleonville was known as "Canal". This canal extended west from Napoleonville to Lake Verret. The village that later developed was named by a former French soldier who served under

Napoleon Bonaparte Napoleon Bonaparte (born Napoleone di Buonaparte; 15 August 1769 – 5 May 1821), later known by his regnal name Napoleon I, was a French general and statesman who rose to prominence during the French Revolution and led Military career ...

. The French veteran, Pierre Charlet, is buried in the cemetery of Our Lady of the Assumption Catholic Church in the nearby community of Plattenville in Assumption Parish. The first permanent settlements in this region were made by the French and Spanish (including

Isleños Isleños () are the Kinship, descendants of Canarian people, Canarian settlers and immigrants to present-day Louisiana, Puerto Rico, Texas, Cuba, the Dominican Republic, Venezuela, and other parts of the Americas. In these places, the name ''i ...

) about the middle of the 18th century along Bayou Lafourche, between the present towns of Donaldsonville and Napoleonville. From 1755 to 1785, the population was increased by the immigration of the exiled

Acadians The Acadians (; , ) are an ethnic group descended from the French colonial empire, French who settled in the New France colony of Acadia during the 17th and 18th centuries. Today, most descendants of Acadians live in either the Northern Americ ...

who settled in the area, clearing the land and building comfortable homes. The town was officially incorporated on March 11, 1878.www.lsuagcenter.com "The History of Assumption Parish"

Geography

Napoleonville is located at (29.937778, -91.026750). 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 village has a total area of , all land.

Demographics

As of the 2020 United States census, there were 540 people, 229 households, and 137 families residing in the village.

Notable people

Troy E. Brown Troy Earl Brown (born August 22, 1971) is a Democratic Party (United States), Democratic former member of the Louisiana State Senate. From 2012 to 2017, when he resigned his seat in scandal, Brown represented Louisiana's 2nd State Senate distri ...

, former member of the

Louisiana State Senate The Louisiana State Senate (; ) is the upper house of Louisiana’s legislature. Senators serve four-year terms and participate in various committees. Composition The Louisiana State Senate has 39 members elected from single-member districts ...

and native of Napoleonville * Paul Carmouche, former

district attorney In the United States, a district attorney (DA), county attorney, county prosecutor, state attorney, state's attorney, prosecuting attorney, commonwealth's attorney, or solicitor is the chief prosecutor or chief law enforcement officer represen ...

for Caddo Parish * Papa Celestin, jazz bandleader * Philip H. Gilbert, politician, former

lieutenant governor A lieutenant governor, lieutenant-governor, or vice governor is a high officer of state, whose precise role and rank vary by jurisdiction. Often a lieutenant governor is the deputy, or lieutenant, to or ranked under a governor — a "second-in-comm ...

* Joe Harrison, state representative * Brandon Jacobs, retired NFL running back * Samuel A. LeBlanc I, state representative, state court judge, justice of the

Louisiana Supreme Court The Supreme Court of Louisiana (; ) is the supreme court, highest court and court of last resort in the U.S. state of Louisiana. The modern Supreme Court, composed of seven justices, meets in the French Quarter of New Orleans. The Supreme ...

from 1949 to 1954 *

Charlie Melançon Charles Joseph Melançon (; born October 3, 1947) is an American politician and former secretary of the Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries. From 2005 to 2011, he was the United States House of Representatives, U.S. representative for ...

, former U.S. representative * Jordan Mills, NFL offensive lineman * J.C. Politz, sportscaster * Tramon Williams, NFL cornerback * Kim Willoughby, Team USA Volleyball (2008 Beijing Olympics)

National Guard

The village is home to the 928th

Sapper A sapper, also called a combat engineer, is a combatant or soldier who performs a variety of military engineering duties, such as breaching fortifications, demolitions, bridge-building, laying or clearing minefields, preparing field defenses ...

Company, a

combat engineer A combat engineer (also called pioneer or sapper) is a type of soldier who performs military engineering tasks in support of land forces combat operations. Combat engineers perform a variety of military engineering, Tunnel warfare, tunnel and l ...

unit of the 769th Engineer

Battalion A battalion is a military unit, typically consisting of up to one thousand soldiers. A battalion is commanded by a lieutenant colonel and subdivided into several Company (military unit), companies, each typically commanded by a Major (rank), ...

of the Louisiana Army National Guard which in turn is headquartered at

Baton Rouge Baton Rouge ( ; , ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital city of the U.S. state of Louisiana. It had a population of 227,470 at the 2020 United States census, making it List of municipalities in Louisiana, Louisiana's second-m ...

. Both of these units belong to the 225th Engineer Brigade headquartered at Louisiana National Guard Training Center Pineville near Pineville.

Twin towns

The town maintains twinning links with: *

Pontivy Pontivy (; ) is a Communes of France, commune in the Morbihan Departments of France, department in Brittany (administrative region), Brittany in north-western France. It lies at the confluence of the river Blavet and the Canal de Nantes à Brest. ...

(Napoléonville in 1804), France since 1989

References

{{authority control Populated places established in 1807 Villages in Assumption Parish, Louisiana Villages in Louisiana Parish seats in Louisiana Louisiana Isleño communities