Newellton, Louisiana
   HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

Newellton is a
town A town is a type of a human settlement, generally larger than a village but smaller than a city. The criteria for distinguishing a town vary globally, often depending on factors such as population size, economic character, administrative stat ...
in northern Tensas Parish in the northeastern part of the
U.S. state In the United States, a state is a constituent political entity, of which there are 50. Bound together in a political union, each state holds governmental jurisdiction over a separate and defined geographic territory where it shares its so ...
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 886 in the 2020 census, a decline of 596 persons, or 40 percent, from the
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 ...
tabulation of 1,482. Newellton is west of the
Mississippi River The Mississippi River is the main stem, primary river of the largest drainage basin in the United States. It is the second-longest river in the United States, behind only the Missouri River, Missouri. From its traditional source of Lake Ita ...
on Lake St. Joseph, an ox-bow lake. Further south toward St. Joseph, the parish seat of government, is another ox-bow lake, Lake Bruin, a part of which is the popular
Lake Bruin State Park Lake Bruin State Park is a state park in Louisiana located on the shore of Lake Bruin, an oxbow lake near the town of St. Joseph in Tensas Parish. History Lake Bruin was originally part of the Mississippi River before it changed its course. ...
.


History

Newellton itself was founded in the early 19th century by the Routh family, for whom the defunct Routhwood Elementary School was named. John David Stokes Newell Sr., a planter and lawyer in St. Joseph, the seat of Tensas Parish, named the settlement for his father, Edward D. Newell, a native of
North Carolina North Carolina ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It is bordered by Virginia to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, South Carolina to the south, Georgia (U.S. stat ...
who relocated to Tensas Parish in 1834."John ... and Edward Newell",
Louisiana Historical Association The Louisiana Historical Association is an organization established in 1889 in 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 n ...
, ''A Dictionary of Louisiana Biography'', Vol. 2 (1988), p. 600
Newellton was designated 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 ...
in 1904. On April 4, 1951, under Mayor T. T. Hargrove, Newellton was upgraded to a town through the state Lawrason Act. In March 2014, Newellton became debt-free.


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 town has a total area of , of which is land and (12.64%) is water.


Demographics

As of the 2020 United States census, there were 886 people, 403 households, and 245 families residing in the town.


Politics

In 2012, the former Newellton mayor,
Democrat Democrat, Democrats, or Democratic may refer to: Politics *A proponent of democracy, or democratic government; a form of government involving rule by the people. *A member of a Democratic Party: **Democratic Party (Cyprus) (DCY) **Democratic Part ...
Alex Davis (born 1942), did not seek a fourth term. The first African American in the position, Davis unseated the 34-year incumbent Edwin G. Preis Sr., a white businessman, in the
nonpartisan blanket primary A nonpartisan primary, top-two primary, or jungle primary is a primary election in which all candidates for the same elected office run against each other at once, regardless of political party. This distinguishes them from partisan primaries, w ...
held on October 7, 2000. Davis received 366 votes (56.8 percent) to Preis' 184 (28.6 percent), and Floyd Aaron "Coonie" McVay's 94 votes (14.6 percent). A native of Oak Grove in
West Carroll Parish West Carroll Parish () is a parish located in the northeastern part of the U.S. state of Louisiana. As of the 2020 census, the population was 9,751. The parish seat is Oak Grove. The parish was founded in 1877, when Carroll Parish was di ...
, McVay was formerly the Newellton police chief. He died in 2012 at the age of eighty. The current mayor is the African-American Democrat Timothy Durell Turner, the former District 1 alderman, who won the election held on December 8, 2012, by a single vote, 217-216, over the Republican candidate, James Carroll Fuller Sr. (1936-2021), the former District 5 alderman. Fuller, who is white, is a former resident of Braxton, Mississippi, and Denham Springs, Louisiana. Fuller had led Turner, 259 (44.7 percent) to 207 (35.8 percent), in the higher-turnout primary election held on November 6, with another 113 votes (19.5 percent) then cast for a second Democrat, Knola Ransome. In 2016, Fuller again challenged Turner and once again lost by one vote, 210 for Fuller and 211 for Turner. Fuller earlier was among 582 Louisiana elected officials named to former
Governor A governor is an politician, administrative leader and head of a polity or Region#Political regions, political region, in some cases, such as governor-general, governors-general, as the head of a state's official representative. Depending on the ...
Bobby Jindal Piyush "Bobby" Jindal (born June 10, 1971) is an American politician who served as the 55th governor of Louisiana from 2008 to 2016. A member of the Republican Party, Jindal previously served as a U.S. representative from Louisiana from 2005 t ...
's "Kitchen Cabinet Leadership Team". Two other Tensas Parish officials appointed to the panel were Assessor Irby Gamble and Coroner Keith D. Butler, both of St. Joseph. The Newellton police chief, Johnny Gales (1951-2021), a Democrat, was reelected in 2012. There are five municipal alderman, one of whom, Lavone G. Garner from District 5, is a Republican. She was elected to succeed Carroll Fuller, who left the council with his first race for mayor. , there were four police officers and Chief Gales in Newellton, with two marked cars and one unmarked, and eighteen volunteer
firefighter A firefighter (or fire fighter or fireman) is a first responder trained in specific emergency response such as firefighting, primarily to control and extinguish fires and respond to emergencies such as hazardous material incidents, medical in ...
s. The town clerk is Rhonda King (born 1953).


Notable people

* Andrew F. Brimmer (1926-2012), economist and first African American to serve as governor of the
Federal Reserve System The Federal Reserve System (often shortened to the Federal Reserve, or simply the Fed) is the central banking system of the United States. It was created on December 23, 1913, with the enactment of the Federal Reserve Act, after a series of ...
who was born in Newellton *
Sarah Dorsey Sarah Anne Dorsey (née Ellis; February 16, 1829 – July 4, 1879) was an American novelist and historian. She published several novels and a highly regarded biography of Henry Watkins Allen, governor of Louisiana during the years of the America ...
, author, historian, and benefactor of
Jefferson Davis Jefferson F. Davis (June 3, 1808December 6, 1889) was an American politician who served as the only President of the Confederate States of America, president of the Confederate States from 1861 to 1865. He represented Mississippi in the Unite ...
, lived at the Routh Plantation near Newellton in the early 1850s. * C.B. Forgotston (born in Newellton in 1945; died 2016) was a
lawyer A lawyer is a person who is qualified to offer advice about the law, draft legal documents, or represent individuals in legal matters. The exact nature of a lawyer's work varies depending on the legal jurisdiction and the legal system, as w ...
in Hammond and a state
government A government is the system or group of people governing an organized community, generally a State (polity), state. In the case of its broad associative definition, government normally consists of legislature, executive (government), execu ...
watchdog and
political activist A political movement is a collective attempt by a group of people to change government policy or social values. Political movements are usually in opposition to an element of the status quo, and are often associated with a certain ideology. Some ...
. Forgotston graduated from Newellton High School in 1962. He was a frequent guest on ''The Moon Griffon Show'' radio talk program. * Clyde V. Ratcliff (1879-1952), member of the Louisiana State Senate from 1944 to 1948; planter in Newellton * Thomas M. Wade (1860-1929), member of Louisiana House of Representatives from 1888 to 1904, Louisiana State Board of Education, and Tensas Parish School Board; Tensas school superintendent for some twenty years after 1904


Gallery

File:Newellton crossroads IMG_1269.JPG, Numerous businesses in downtown Newellton have been closed for many years. File:Tensas State Bank in Newellton IMG_1273.JPG, The Tensas State Bank building in Newellton File:U.S. Post Office in Newellton, LA IMG 7456.JPG, U.S. Post Office at 930 Verona Street in Newellton File:Newellton Elevator IMG_1274.JPG, Newellton Grain Elevator File:Winter Quarters, Photo 2 IMG_1260.JPG, Winter Quarters State Historic Site near Newellton File:Dixie Dandy in Newellton, LA IMG_7454.JPG, Dixie Dandy grocery has existed in Newellton since 1967. File:Newellton Place Apartments, Newellton, LA IMG_7479_1.jpg, The Newellton Place Apartments is among newer housing available in Newellton. File:Revised copy, Newellton Union Church, Newellton, LA IMG_0233.JPG, The historic Newellton Union Church (established 1890) is a nondenominational congregation at 1916 Highway 605. File:First Baptist Church, Newellton, LA IMG 1263.JPG, First Baptist Church at 1822 Highway 605 in Newellton (2008 photo) File:Renovated First Baptist Church of Newellton, LA IMG_0235.JPG, Renovated First Baptist Church (2010 photo) File:Newellton Elementary School (Former Newellton High School), Newellton, LA IMG 0225.jpg, The former
Newellton High School The Tensas Parish School Board is an entity responsible for the operation of Public school (government funded), public schools in Tensas Parish, Louisiana, Tensas Parish in northeastern Louisiana, United States. Schools *Grades 7-12 **Tensa ...
now houses Newellton Elementary at 400 Verona Street. File:Abandoned Routhwood Elementary School, Newellton, LA IMG_0228.JPG, The abandoned former Routhwood Elementary School in Newellton File:Defunct Tensas Medical Center, Newellton, LA IMG_0222.JPG, Abandoned Tensas Medical Center on Verona Street in Newellton File:Legion Memorial Cemetery, Newellton, LA (2016) IMG_0086_(2).JPG, Legion Memorial Cemetery off Louisiana Highway 605 north of Newellton, was established in 1943.


References


Further reading

*"John ... and Edward Newell", ''A Dictionary of Louisiana Biography'', Vol. 2 (1988), p. 600


External links


Newellton Progress
Community Progress Site for Newellton, LA * http://www.thenewsstar.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060520/NEWS01/605200312/1002 * http://newelltonla.com/ {{authority control Towns in Louisiana Towns in Tensas Parish, Louisiana