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Walker is a city in Livingston 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. As of the 2020 census the population was placed at 6,374 (up from 6,138 in 2010), making Walker and Denham Springs the only parish municipalities classified as cities.


History

The area now known as Walker was founded by Michael Joseph Milton, Jr. (1795-1863) and “several slaves” in 1825. Michael Milton married in 1832 in Livingston Parish. He and his wife, Martha Clark Milton (1803-1878) developed 343 acres from a Land Grant for his service in the War of 1812. The Milton family was a pioneering family from
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 ...
and a first family in
Virginia Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern and Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States between the East Coast of the United States ...
who settled in an area in
Alabama Alabama ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern and Deep South, Deep Southern regions of the United States. It borders Tennessee to the north, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia to the east, Florida and the Gu ...
, and in
Florida Florida ( ; ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders the Gulf of Mexico to the west, Alabama to the northwest, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia to the north, the Atlantic ...
before establishing the new community in the piney woods east of the
Amite River The Amite River () is a tributary of Lake Maurepas in Mississippi and Louisiana in the United States. It is about long. It starts as two forks in southwestern Mississippi and flows south through Louisiana, passing Greater Baton Rouge, Louisia ...
and Denham Springs. In this sense, Walker, Louisiana, by virtue of its establishment, traces its roots to the founding of the nation in
Jamestown, Virginia The Jamestown settlement in the Colony of Virginia was the first permanent British colonization of the Americas, English settlement in the Americas. It was located on the northeast bank of the James River, about southwest of present-day Willia ...
. The Federal government recognized the growth of the settlement and opened a post office as Milton Old Field in 1856. Michael Milton was appointed as postmaster in 1858. In 1890, the post office was renamed after Dr. William Elliott Walker, M.D., a legislator from nearby Springfield, who had also served as a lieutenant colonel in the Confederate States of America. Walker became a city in 2011, by proclamation of Louisiana Governor
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 ...
.


Geography

Walker is located at (30.489423, -90.862872). 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 5.8 square miles (14.9 km), all land. The city is located roughly 20 miles east of
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 ...
, the Louisiana State Capitol.


Demographics

As of the 2020 United States census, there were 6,374 people, 2,449 households, and 1,557 families residing in the city. According to the 2010
census A census (from Latin ''censere'', 'to assess') is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording, and calculating population information about the members of a given Statistical population, population, usually displayed in the form of stati ...
, there were 6,138 people, 2,297 households, and 1,693 families residing in the city. The racial makeup of the city was 85.2%
White White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no chroma). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully (or almost fully) reflect and scatter all the visible wa ...
, 10.8%
African American African Americans, also known as Black Americans and formerly also called Afro-Americans, are an Race and ethnicity in the United States, American racial and ethnic group that consists of Americans who have total or partial ancestry from an ...
, 0.3% Native American, 0.07% Asian, 1.6% from other races, and 1.4% from two or more races.
Hispanic The term Hispanic () are people, Spanish culture, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or broadly. In some contexts, Hispanic and Latino Americans, especially within the United States, "Hispanic" is used as an Ethnici ...
or Latino of any race were 2.9% of the population. According to the 2000 census, the population density was . There were 1,905 housing units at an average density of . There were 1,758 households, out of which 39.6% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 59.4% were
married couples Marriage, also called matrimony or wedlock, is a culturally and often legally recognised union between people called spouses. It establishes rights and obligations between them, as well as between them and their children (if any), and b ...
living together, 11.1% had a female householder with no husband present, and 24.9% were non-families. 21.3% of all households were made up of individuals, and 8.5% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.73 and the average family size was 3.18. In the town the population was spread out, with 29.8% under the age of 18, 9.7% from 18 to 24, 31.4% from 25 to 44, 19.5% from 45 to 64, and 9.6% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 32 years. For every 100 females, there were 97.9 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 91.6 males. The median income for a household in the town was $38,298, and the median income for a family was $43,750. Males had a median income of $32,907 versus $21,775 for females. The
per capita income Per capita income (PCI) or average income measures the average income earned per person in a given area (city, region, country, etc.) in a specified year. In many countries, per capita income is determined using regular population surveys, such ...
for the town was $16,056. About 5.9% of families and 9.6% of the population were below the
poverty line The poverty threshold, poverty limit, poverty line, or breadline is the minimum level of income deemed adequate in a particular country. The poverty line is usually calculated by estimating the total cost of one year's worth of necessities for ...
, including 5.8% of those under age 18 and 20.6% of those age 65 or over.


Education

Walker is within the Livingston Parish Public Schools and includes Walker High School. The Livingston Parish Literacy and Technology Center in Walker is named for Sally Clausen, former Louisiana commissioner of education, and her brother, Thomas G. Clausen, state education superintendent from 1984 to 1988.


Notable people

* Jefferson D. Hughes, III, associate 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 ...
since 2013, Walker resident * Mike DeJean, Former Major League Pitcher, grew up in Walker and graduated from Walker High School. * Julie Cantrell, editor and best-selling novelist, attended K-12 in Walker. * Brian Thomas Jr., American football wide receiver for the LSU Tigers


References


External links


City of Walker
{{authority control Cities in Louisiana Cities in Livingston Parish, Louisiana Cities in the Baton Rouge metropolitan area