Jean Lafitte, Louisiana

History

Jean Lafitte was initially settled by Native Americans and later explored and settled by the French, who established it as a harbor for large vessels coming in and out of New Orleans. Today, the communities along Bayou Barataria include Jean Lafitte, Crown Point and Barataria.

The town of Jean Lafitte was officially incorporated in 1974, an effort led by Leo E. Kerner Jr., who became the town's first mayor. His son, Tim Kerner Sr., later served 7 terms as mayor from 1992 to 2020. In 2020, his son Tim Kerner, Jr. was elected as mayor.

Under the leadership of Timothy Kerner Sr., the town built a number of civic and infrastructure improvements, including: a visitor center, museum, 1,300-seat auditorium, library, civic center, baseball park, senior center, medical clinic, art gallery, and nature trail. One of the mayor's major accomplishments was the creation of the Lafitte Area Independent Levee District that eventually secured over $300 million in funds to build tidal protection levees and flood walls.

In 2012, a historical marker for the community of Manila Village was placed in Jean Lafitte. Since mid-2013, Manila Plaza, located in front of Jean Lafitte Town Hall, has held several historical markers and commemorative plaques acknowledging important individuals in the area's Filipino American history. The Philippine-Louisiana Historical Society participated in the dedication ceremony.

While there were several settlements of Filipinos (sometimes called Manilamen or Tagalas) along the Louisiana coast in the late 19th century, Manila Village was the largest. The residents there implemented a system of platforms on which they dried shrimp, as forerunners of Louisiana's 21st-century dried shrimp industry. This community-on-stilts thrived for nearly a century, until it was destroyed by Hurricane Betsy in 1965.

In 2014, the town of Jean Lafitte unveiled a historical marker sponsored by the Jefferson Parish Historical Commission at the town's visitor center. The historical marker reads: “Named for legendary privateer Jean Lafitte, who helped the United States win the Battle of New Orleans and used area bayous for his smuggling operations. Home to a thriving seafood industry. Incorporated in 1974 as a village. Became a town in 1977. First mayor of village and town was Leo E. Kerner, Jr., 1974-1991.”

Geography

According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 6.3 sqmi, of which 6.0 sqmi is land and 0.3 sqmi (4.47%) is water.

Demographics

According to the 2020 United States census, there were 1,809 people, 604 households, and 446 families residing in the town. At the 2019 American Community Survey, the racial and ethnic makeup of Jean Lafitte was 95.4% non-Hispanic white, 0.1% Black or African American, 0.7% American Indian or Alaska Native, 0.5% some other race, and 3.4% two or more races. By 2020, its composition was 82.42% non-Hispanic white, 1.11% Black or African American, 2.32% Native American, 1.22% Asian, 7.85% other races and ethnicities, and 5.09% Hispanic and Latino American, representing the demographic increase of Asians and Latinos nationwide. The median age of the town in 2019 was 39.7 and the median household income was $55,671 with a poverty rate of 17.1%. Of the 656 housing units in the township, males had a median income of $54,400 versus $39,830 for females.

Government

The United States Postal Service operates a post office in Jean Lafitte.

Education

Lafitte residents are zoned to Jefferson Parish Public Schools.

Residents from K-5 are zoned to Leo E. Kerner Elementary School (formerly Lafitte Elementary School). 6-12 are zoned to Fisher Middle-High School.

The Leo. E. Kerner Jr. City Park Multi-Purpose Complex is located in Jean Lafitte. Jefferson Parish Library operates the Lafitte Library inside the complex. The over 4500 sqft facility, which is almost three times larger than the previous library facility, opened on March 4, 2010. The previous library facility sustained damage during Hurricane Katrina and Hurricane Rita, and the library contents were destroyed. The American Library Association donated $200,000 to the State of Louisiana, and the Louisiana Library Association's Disaster Relief Program awarded $20,000 of that to Jefferson Parish Library; the funds were used to rebuild the Lafitte Library. The previous library building became the Sheriff Harry Lee Police Station.

References

References

1. (September 11, 2014). "Landrieu's GOP Endorsements Pale In Comparison To 2008 Election". thehayride.com.
2. "2019 U.S. Gazetteer Files". United States Census Bureau.
3. "Explore Census Data".
4. "About Us".
5. (March 11, 2020). "Jean Lafitte's legend lives on in town {{!}} Access Code 70067".
6. (February 24, 2018). "Left to Louisiana's Tides, a Village Fights for Time". The New York Times.
7. Pia Lee-Brago. (July 1, 2012). "Pinoy fishermen honored at marker unveiling in Louisiana". [[University of New Orleans]].
8. Arceneaux, Lara L. (July 12, 2013). "Filipino contributions to Lafitte remembered with historical marker". Times-Picayune.
9. Welch, Michael Patrick. (October 27, 2014). "NOLA Filipino History Stretches for Centuries".
10. (July 17, 2014). "WWL TV: Town of Jean Lafitte honored with historical marker".
11. "Census of Population and Housing". Census.gov.
12. "P004: Hispanic or Latino, and Not Hispanic or Latino by Race – 2000: DEC Summary File 1 – Jean Lafitte town, Louisiana".
13. "P2: Hispanic or Latino, and Not Hispanic or Latino by Race – 2010: DEC Redistricting Data (PL 94-171) – Jean Lafitte town, Louisiana".
14. "P2: Hispanic or Latino, and Not Hispanic or Latino by Race – 2020: DEC Redistricting Data (PL 94-171) – Jean Lafitte town, Louisiana".
15. "2020 Race and Population Totals".
16. "Geographic Profile of Jean Lafitte, Louisiana".
17. (August 12, 2021). "US census: Hispanic and Asian-American driving US population growth". BBC News.
18. "LAFITTE — Post Office™". [[U.S. Census Bureau]].
19. "2020 CENSUS - SCHOOL DISTRICT REFERENCE MAP: Jefferson Parish, LA". [[U.S. Census Bureau]].
20. "[http://www.jefferson.lib.la.us/branches/jplpage.lafitte.html Lafitte Library] {{Webarchive. link. (January 29, 2011 ." [[Jefferson Parish Library]]. Retrieved on September 28, 2010.)