Union Parish, Louisiana

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the parish has a total area of 905 sqmi, of which 877 sqmi is land and 28 sqmi (3.1%) is water.

Geographically north central Louisiana, Union Parish more closely resembles Lincoln Parish, to which Union is deeply tied culturally, politically, and educationally. Union Parish, along with Lincoln Parish to the southwest and Union County, Arkansas to the north, form the eastern boundary of the Ark-La-Tex region.

Major highways

• [[Image:US 63.svg|25px]] U.S. Highway 63
• [[Image:US 167.svg|25px]] U.S. Highway 167
• [[Image:Louisiana 2 (2008).svg|25px]] Louisiana Highway 2
• [[Image:Louisiana 15 (2008).svg|25px]] Louisiana Highway 15
• [[Image:Louisiana 33 (2008).svg|25px]] Louisiana Highway 33

Adjacent parishes and counties

• Union County, Arkansas (northwest)
• Ashley County, Arkansas (northeast)
• Morehouse Parish (east)
• Ouachita Parish (southeast)
• Lincoln Parish (southwest)
• Claiborne Parish (west)

National protected areas

• D'Arbonne National Wildlife Refuge (part)
• Upper Ouachita National Wildlife Refuge (part)

Communities

Towns

• Bernice
• Farmerville (parish seat and largest municipality)
• Marion

Villages

• Conway
• Downsville
• Junction City
• Lillie
• Spearsville

Unincorporated communities

• Alabama Landing
• Oakland
• Ouachita City
• Point
• Shiloh
• Truxno

Demographics

| align-fn = center 1790-1960 1900-1990 1990-2000 2010

Racial and ethnic composition

2020 census

As of the 2020 census, Union Parish had a population of 21,107 and 4,899 families, and the median age was 44.9 years. 21.2% of residents were under the age of 18 and 21.6% of residents were 65 years of age or older. For every 100 females there were 98.6 males, and for every 100 females age 18 and over there were 96.9 males age 18 and over.

There were 8,759 households in the parish, of which 27.6% had children under the age of 18 living in them. Of all households, 46.8% were married-couple households, 20.1% were households with a male householder and no spouse or partner present, and 28.1% were households with a female householder and no spouse or partner present. About 29.4% of all households were made up of individuals and 13.3% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older.

The racial makeup of the parish was 68.5% White, 23.7% Black or African American, 0.4% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.2% Asian,

There were 10,334 housing units, of which 15.2% were vacant. Among occupied housing units, 78.7% were owner-occupied and 21.3% were renter-occupied. The homeowner vacancy rate was 1.4% and the rental vacancy rate was 9.8%.

Politics

Located in far northern Louisiana next to the Arkansas state line, Union Parish is heavily Republican in most competitive elections, particularly at the presidential level, last voting for a Democratic presidential nominee in 1952 when Adlai Stevenson received 52% of the vote. In the most recent election in 2020, incumbent President Donald Trump received 8,407 votes (75.1 percent) of the parish total to 2,654 (23.7 percent) for former Vice President Joe Biden.

School

Residents are assigned to Union Parish Public Schools.

Law enforcement

The Union Parish Sheriff's Office is the primary law enforcement agency of Union Parish, Louisiana. It is headquartered in Farmerville. The current Sheriff of Union Parish is Dusty Gates, who was first sworn as the sheriff following long time Sheriff Bob Buckley's death in September 2013.

Border monument

In 1931, a monument was erected at the Union Parish border with Union County, Arkansas. In 1975, State Representative Louise B. Johnson passed a law to refurbish the monument. The completed restoration was unveiled in 2009.

Notable people

Two Louisiana governors came from the Shiloh Community in Union Parish:

• William Wright Heard, 1900–1904
• Ruffin Pleasant, 1916-1920

Two Arkansas governors were natives of Union Parish:

• George Washington Donaghey, Governor of Arkansas from 1909 to 1913
• Tom Jefferson Terral, Governor of Arkansas from 1925 to 1927

Other Union Parish residents have included:

• Lonnie O. Aulds, state representative from 1968 to 1972
• George Washington Bolton (1841-1931), state representative from 1888 to 1896 from Alexandria
• Jay McCallum - Chief Judge of the Louisiana 3rd Judicial District Court
• Lee Emmett Thomas, Speaker of the Louisiana House of Representative

Sources

Many facts concerning events in early Union Parish history come from the conveyance, probate, and lawsuit records on file in the Union Parish courthouse, as well as records of the United States Land Offices available in the National Archives. Other sources include:

1. Williams, E. Russ, Jr., Spanish Poste d’Ouachita: The Ouachita Valley in Colonial Louisiana 1783–1804, and Early American Statehood, 1804–1820, Williams Genealogical Publications, Monroe, LA, 1995.

2. Williams, E. Russ, Jr., Encyclopedia of Individuals and Founding Families of the Ouachita Valley of Louisiana From 1785 to 1850: Organized into Family Groups with Miscellaneous Materials on Historical Events, Places, and Other Important Topics, Part Oe A – K, Williams Genealogical and Historical Publications, Monroe, LA, 1996.

3. Williams, E. Russ, Jr., Encyclopedia of Individuals and Founding Families of the Ouachita Valley of Louisiana From 1785 to 1850: Organized into Family Groups with Miscellaneous Materials on Historical Events, Places, and Other Important Topics, Part Two L – O, Williams Genealogical and Historical Publications, Monroe, LA, 1997.

4. Williams, Max Harrison, Union Parish (Louisiana) Historical Records: Police Jury Minutes, 1839–1846, D’Arbonne Research and Publishing Co., Farmerville, LA, 1993.

References

References

1. "Census - Geography Profile: Union Parish, Louisiana". [[United States Census Bureau]].
2. "Find a County". National Association of Counties.
3. "" + theTitle + "".
4. (August 22, 2012). "2010 Census Gazetteer Files". United States Census Bureau.
5. "Truxno Populated Place Profile / Union Parish, Louisiana Data".
6. "U.S. Decennial Census". United States Census Bureau.
7. "Historical Census Browser". University of Virginia Library.
8. "Population of Counties by Decennial Census: 1900 to 1990". United States Census Bureau.
9. "Census 2000 PHC-T-4. Ranking Tables for Counties: 1990 and 2000". United States Census Bureau.
10. "State & County QuickFacts". United States Census Bureau.
11. "1980 Census of Population - General Population Characteristics - Louisiana - Table 14 - Persons by Race and Table 15 - Total Persons and Spanish Origin Persons by Type of Spanish Origin and Race (p. 20/12-20/20)".
12. "1990 Census of Population - General Population Characteristics - Louisiana - Table 6 - Race and Hispanic Origin".
13. "P004: Hispanic or Latino, and Not Hispanic or Latino by Race – 2000: DEC Summary File 1 – Union Parish, Louisiana".
14. "P2: Hispanic or Latino, and Not Hispanic or Latino by Race – 2010: DEC Redistricting Data (PL 94-171) – Union Parish, Louisiana".
15. "P2: Hispanic or Latino, and Not Hispanic or Latino by Race – 2020: DEC Redistricting Data (PL 94-171) – Union Parish, Louisiana".
16. included in the Asian category in the 1980 Census
17. included in the Asian category in the 1990 Census
18. not an option in the 1980 Census
19. not an option in the 1990 Census
20. (2021). "2020 Decennial Census Demographic Profile (DP1)".
21. (2021). "2020 Decennial Census Redistricting Data (Public Law 94-171)".
22. (2023). "2020 Decennial Census Demographic and Housing Characteristics (DHC)".
23. "Louisiana Secretary of State".
24. Leip, David. "Dave Leip's Atlas of U.S. Presidential Elections".
25. LAKANA. (September 19, 2013). "Dusty Gates Sworn In As New Union Parish Sheriff".
26. "Matthew Hamil, "Monument Forgotten by Time"". [[Monroe News Star]], August 31, 2009.
27. "Membership of the Louisiana House of Representatives, 1812-2012". legis.la.gov.
28. "Bolton, George Washington". [[Louisiana Historical Association]]: A Dictionary of Louisiana Biography.
29. "Louisiana: McCallum, Jay Bowen", ''Who's Who in American Politics, 2003-2004'', 19th ed., Vol. 1 (Alabama-Montana) (Marquis Who's Who: New Providence, NJ, 2003), p. 787
30. "Thomas, Lee Emmett". [[Louisiana Historical Association]], A Directory of Louisiana Biography (lahistory.org).