Bossier City, Louisiana
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| City of Bossier City | |
| City | |
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| Country | United States |
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| State | Louisiana |
| Parish | Bossier |
| Elevation | 174 ft (53 m) |
| Coordinates | 32°31′04″N 93°41′29″W / 32.51778°N 93.69139°W |
| Area | 41.6 sq mi (107.7 km2) |
| - land | 40.8 sq mi (106 km2) |
| - water | 0.8 sq mi (2 km2), 1.92% |
| Population | 56,461 (2000) |
| Density | 1,382.6 /sq mi (533.8 /km2) |
| Incorporated | 1907 |
| Government | Mayor-council format |
| Mayor | Mayor Lorenz James "Lo" Walker |
| Timezone | CST (UTC-6) |
| - summer (DST) | CDT (UTC-5) |
| ZIP codes | 71111-2 |
| Area code | 318 |
  Location of Bossier City in Louisiana
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 Location of Louisiana in the United States
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| Website: http://www.bossiercity.org | |
Bossier City (French: Ville de Bossier) is a city in Bossier Parish, Louisiana, United States. [1] [2]
As of the 2000 Census, the city had a total population of 56,461. Bossier City is closely tied to its larger sister city Shreveport, located on the western bank of the Red River. The Shreveport-Bossier City metropolitan area is the center of the region known as the Ark-La-Tex.
Bossier is pronounced: Bōz-zher. It is not the parish seat. The parish courthouse is located instead in Benton to the north of Bossier City.
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[edit] History
[edit] 19th Century
In the 1830s Bossier City was known as Bennett's Bluff. Bennett's Bluff was named after William Bennett, who with his wife Mary Ciley and his business partner James Cane, owned a plantation near the Red River, in now south Bossier. The Cane & Bennett Trading Post had printed paper money and was successful, even though both Cane and Bennett died before the Civil War. Ciley remarried Cane after Bennett's death. The plantation then became known as Cane's Landing. Cane’s Landing had a ferry, and served as a shipping point. The post was run by the widowed Mrs. Cane. Steamboat loads of cotton, corn, and sweet potatoes were shipped to markets in the south and east, from the plantation port. Later on Cane's Landing would become known as Cane City.
In 1843, a section of land was divided out of the Great Natchitoches district and Claiborne Parish areas and was called Bossier Parish. The section of land was named in honor of Pierre Evariste John Baptiste Bossier. Pierre Bossier was a former creole general, who became a cotton farmer in Bossier Parish. He is considered one of the first settlers in the area.
In the 1840s, the Great Western Migration began and the parish grew in population. Many early settlers passed through the region on their way to the wild west. By 1850, over 200 wagons a week passed through Bossier City. Some of these settlers stayed, attracted by the soil and river valley. In 1850, the census listed the population at around 6,962.
[edit] Civil War
During the American Civil War, companies of Confederate soldiers left Cane's Landing aboard steamboats for the distant battlefields. Mrs. Cane hosted hundreds of Confederate officers and troops who were heading off to war. Mrs. Cane’s plantation was fortified to protect Shreveport by three batteries with Fort Kirby Smith in the center. The others were: Batteries Price, and Walker & Ewell.
Fort Smith stood near the now Bossier High School and protected the area from an eastern invasion. The Civil War hit Bossier Parish in 1861 and ended in Shreveport four years later, when the Trans-Mississippi Department surrendered.
[edit] Shed road
Shed Road, the first all-weather turnpike in the American South, was constructed in the 1870s and operated from 1874–1886. It extended for nine miles (14 km) from Red Chute to the Red River. There was a plantation at the end of the elevated and covered roadway, which was reached by a ferry boat. The covered road made the transportation of goods easier before the arrival of the railroads.
[edit] Classification as a city
Anna B., granddaughter of James and Mary, felt the area would prosper and began promoting the idea of a riverfront city. Anna B. and J. J. Stockwell sold lots in 1883. The area grew quickly, as did transportation through it.
Cane City was said as being incorporated by former Governor N.C. Blanchard and renamed as the Village of Bossier City. It has grown from an area of one square mile to a city containing over 35 square miles (91 km2) and 25,000 acres (100 km2). Continued growth led to Bossier City’s classification being changed from village to town by Governor John M. Parker. Later, Governor Earl Kemp Long issued a proclamation classifying Bossier City a city.
The golden spike, commemorated the completion of the east-west Vicksburg, Shreveport and Pacific Railroad. It was driven at Bossier City on July 12, 1884, by Julia "Pansy" Rule. It is the first such spike to be driven by a woman. The north-south Shreveport and Arkansas Railroad was completed on April 6, 1888. The Louisiana-Arkansas Railroad was completed on November 2, 1909. The Dixie Overland Highway from the east to west coast was built in 1918. These railroads and highways combined to make Bossier City a hub for future activity.
The discovery of petroleum crude oil, to the south, in 1908, thrust Bossier City into the nationwide oil boom. Bossier's central location to the rural oil fields made it a major player in the oil patch. Several international oil companies are located here. The advantages brought by black gold fueled many civic, social and economic improvements.
A fire on June 23, 1925, consumed one-half of downtown Bossier City. Local citizens were unable to battle the blaze. The loss spurred civic improvements including a modern water system, capable of fighting such fires, a new City Hall, a modern fire alarm system, modern sidewalks and the first city park.
In the 1930s construction began on Barksdale AFB. The first unit assigned to Barksdale was the 20th Pursuit Group. Before World War II, Barksdale was a training school for the Army Air Corps. During WWII Barksdale trained pilots, navigators, and bombardiers. Later the base became one of the key bases of the Strategic Air Command in the new Air Force. Barksdale is the headquarters for the 8th Air Force. The land that base is built was purchased by local residents who donated the land to the U.S. Army.
Around the 1890s Cane City had a population of around 600 and has now become Bossier City with a population that was 56,461 as of the 2000 Census. First a cotton exporting river landing, next a railroad town, then an airbase and oil-boom town, now known for its tourism and recreational gaming.[3][4]
[edit] Geography
Bossier City is located at 32°31′4″N 93°41′29″W / 32.51778°N 93.69139°W (32.517651, -93.691397)[5] and has an elevation of 174 feet (53.0 m)[6].
According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 41.6 square miles (107.8 km²), of which, 40.8 square miles (105.8 km²) of it is land and 0.8 square miles (2.0 km²) of it (1.90%) is water.
[edit] Demographics
As of the census[7] of 2000, there were 56,461 people,[2] 21,197 households, and 14,901 families residing in the city. The population density was 1,382.6 people per square mile (533.8/km²). There were 23,026 housing units at an average density of 563.9/sq mi (217.7/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 71.44% White, 22.74% African American, 0.57% Native American, 1.73% Asian, 0.11% Pacific Islander, 1.44% from other races, and 1.97% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 3.95% of the population.
There were 21,197 households, out of which 36.8% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 50.4% were married couples living together, 15.8% had a female householder with no husband present, and 29.7% were non-families. Nearly 24.7% of all households were made up of individuals, and 8.4% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.58 and the average family size was 3.09.
In the city of Bossier City, the population was spread out with 28.2% under the age of 18, 11.0% from 18 to 24, 30.4% from 25 to 44, 19.4% from 45 to 64, and 11.0% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 32 years. For every 100 females there were 94.5 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 90.6 males.
The median income for a household in the city was $36,561, and the median income for a family was $42,642. Males had a median income of $30,632 versus $22,174 for females. The per capita income for the city was $17,032. About 11.4% of families and 14.8% of the population were below the poverty line, including 20.9% of those under age 18 and 11.3% of those age 65 or over.
[edit] Education
Bossier City residents are zoned to Bossier Parish Schools.
[edit] Schools
Public schools are:
- Airline high school
- Apollo elementary school
- Bellaire elementary school
- Benton high school
- Benton middle school
- Bossier high school
- Carrie Martin elementary school
- Central Park elementary school
- Cope middle school
- Curtis elementary school
- Elm Grove middle school
- Greenacres middle school
- Haughton high school
- Haughton middle school
- Kerr elementary school
- Legacy elementary school
- Meadowview elementary school
- Parkway high school
- Plain Dealing middle & high school
- Plantation Park elementary school
- Platt elementary school
- Princeton elementary school
- Rodes elementary school
- Rusheon middle school
- R. V. Kerr elementary school
- Stockwell Place elementary school
- Sun City elementary school
- W.T. Lewis elementary school
- Waller elementary school
[edit] Media
[edit] Newspapers
Bossier City is served by the Bossier Press-Tribune and Shreveport Times. In addition, The Forum Newsweekly, City Lights and SB Magazine are newsmagazines in the Shreveport-Bossier area.
[edit] Television
[edit] Notable natives and residents
- Malouf Abraham, Jr., a retired allergist and art collector from Canadian, Texas, was stationed at Barksdale during the middle 1960s.
- Robert Adley is a Bossier City native and businessman who is a Republican member of the Louisiana State Senate. A former Democrat, Adley also served in the Louisiana House of Representatives from 1980-1996. He resides in the parish seat of Benton.
- Robert E. "Bob" Barton, former member of the Louisiana House of Representatives (1996-2000)
- Walter O. Bigby, attorney; member of the Louisiana House (1968-1979), called the "Dean of the House"
- Sherry Boucher, former Hollywood actress and Realtor in Bossier Parish
- Henry Burns is a freshman Republican member of the Louisiana House of Representatives from District 9 (Bossier Parish). He owns the Wooden Spoon bakery in Bossier City. A Haughton resident, he is also a former member of the Bossier Parish School Board.
- George Carlin was stationed at Barksdale Air Force Base and held a job in Shreveport.
- Herman "Wimpy" Jones, a state senator from 1956-1960, also served briefly on the Bossier City Council and Planning Commission and operated the Southern Kitchen restaurant
- Jared Leto was born in Bossier City on December 26, 1971. He is an actor (featured in various movies such as Requiem for a Dream, Lord of War, Fight Club, and Chapter 27, among others) and is also the frontman and rhythm guitarist of the popular alternative rock band 30 Seconds to Mars.
- Shannon Leto, drummer of 30 Seconds to Mars and older brother of Jared Leto, was born in Bossier City in 1970.
- Billy Montgomery, though a native of Natchitoches, represented parts of Bossier Parish in the Louisiana House of Representatives from 1988-2008. He is a Democrat-turned-Republican.
- Rupert Peyton, journalist, historian, former Louisiana state representative from Caddo Parish
- Alex Porteau, a professional wrestler who worked for both WWE and WCW, was born in Bossier City in 1969.
- B.J. Ryan is a closer in Major League Baseball for the Toronto Blue Jays of the American League. Previously, Ryan played with the Cincinnati Reds (1999) and Baltimore Orioles (1999–2005).
- Jeffrey D. Sadow, political scientist, columnist, professor at Louisiana State University in Shreveport
- Eddy Shell (1937-2008) was in 1967 a founding faculty member Bossier Parish Community College and a Republican member of the Bossier Parish Police Jury from 1992 until his death
- Jane H. Smith is the first woman principal, school superintendent, and state legislator from Bossier Parish.
- Lorenz Walker is the Mayor of Bossier City.
- Todd Walker, a professional baseball player, graduated from Airline High School.
- Randy Walker, a professional American football player who played for the Green Bay Packers in 1974, graduated from Bossier High School and later Northwestern State University. Walker still holds many punting/kicking records at both schools.
- Zachary A. Smith a professional Hollywood Talent Manager to numerous Stars, Induction President for C.P.A. of Ca, Currently residing in Santa Monica, Ca
- David Toms, a professional golfer, graduated from Airline High School.
- V.V. Whittington, president of defunct Bossier Bank and Trust Company, Louisiana state senator from 1928-1932
[edit] Military
Bossier City is the location of Barksdale Air Force Base, home of the 2nd Bomb Wing, 8th Air Force, and 917th Wing. It was established February 2, 1933 and is one of the area's largest employers. Barksdale encompasses 22,000 acres (89 km²) and hosts the majority of the B-52 Stratofortresses used by the United States Air Force.
[edit] Sports and gambling
Bossier City is the home of the Bossier-Shreveport Battle Wings af2 arena football team as well as the Bossier-Shreveport Mudbugs of the Central Hockey League.
The city is a mecca of gambling, with casinos along the Red River and horse racing at Harrah's Louisiana Downs, which opened in 1974.
[edit] References
- ^ "Bossier City, Louisiana (LA) Detailed Profile" (notes), City Data, 2007, webpage: C-BC.
- ^ a b "Census 2000 Data for the State of Louisiana" (town list), US Census Bureau, May 2003, webpage: C2000-LA.
- ^ City of Bossier City Centennial
- ^ City of Bossier City
- ^ "US Gazetteer files: 2000 and 1990". United States Census Bureau. 2005-05-03. http://www.census.gov/geo/www/gazetteer/gazette.html. Retrieved 2008-01-31.
- ^ "US Board on Geographic Names". United States Geological Survey. 2007-10-25. http://geonames.usgs.gov. Retrieved 2008-01-31.
- ^ "American FactFinder". United States Census Bureau. http://factfinder.census.gov. Retrieved 2008-01-31.
[edit] External links
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