St. James Parish

History

St. James is one of the state's nineteen original parishes, created by act of the territorial legislature, March 31, 1807. The original seat of government was the community of St. James, on the west bank of the Mississippi, but this was moved in 1869 to what is now Convent, on the east bank.

St. James Parish is part of the Acadian Coast. While it is possible that some Acadians did arrive prior to 1755 or between 1755 and 1764, the first documented group of Acadians [4 families: 20 individuals] arrived in New Orleans in February 1764. The arrival was documented in a letter dated April 6, 1764, from Governor D'Abbadie to his superior in France. They were settled along the Mississippi River in present-day St. James.

St. James is known for its tradition, Bonfires on the Levee, which takes place every Christmas Eve. Residents build large bonfires along the River levee, lighting them all at nightfall. The townsfolk tell the children that the purpose of this tradition is so Papa Noel can easily see his way down the Mississippi as he is delivering gifts.

St. James is the only cultivation site in the world for Perique tobacco, introduced by an Acadian exile, Pierre Chenet, whose nickname was "Perique." It has been produced by his descendants for nearly two centuries (now covering only a 300-acre (1.2 km2) tract) and is in great demand by large tobacco companies.

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the parish has a total area of 258 square miles (670 km2), of which 242 square miles (630 km2) is land and 16 square miles (41 km2) (6.4%) is water. It is the fourth-smallest parish in Louisiana by land area and second-smallest by total area.

Major highways

Interstate 10

U.S. Highway 61

Louisiana Highway 18

Louisiana Highway 20

Louisiana Highway 44

Louisiana Highway 70 (Sunshine Bridge across Mississippi River)

Louisiana Highway 641

Louisiana Highway 642

Louisiana Highway 643

Louisiana Highway 644

Louisiana Highway 3125

Louisiana Highway 3127

Louisiana Highway 3193

Louisiana Highway 3213 (Gramercy Bridge across Mississippi River)

Louisiana Highway 3214

Louisiana Highway 3219

Louisiana Highway 3274

Adjacent parishes

Ascension Parish (north)

St. John the Baptist Parish (east)

Lafourche Parish (south)

Assumption Parish (west)

Communities

Gramercy

Lutcher (largest town)

Vacherie

Demographics

As of the 2020 United States census, there were 20,192 people, 7,719 households, and 5,732 families residing in the parish. Its racial and ethnic makeup in 2020 was 49.11% non-Hispanic white, 46.98% Black and African American, 0.145 Native American, 0.14% Asian, 1.93% other or mixed race, and 1.7% Hispanic or Latin American of any race. In 2019, the racial and ethnic makeup was 48.2% non-Hispanic white, 49.6% Black and African American, 0.2% Asian, 0.4% two or more races, and 1.7% Hispanic or Latin American of any race. At the 2010 census, the racial and ethnic composition of the parish was 50.6% Black or African American, 48.0% White, 0.2% Native American, 0.1% Asian, 0.4% of some other race and 0.7% of two or more races. 1.2% were Hispanic or Latin American (of any race). An estimated 15.2% of the parish were of French ancestry at the 2019 census estimates. In 2000, 93.78% of the population spoke only English at home, while 4.97% spoke French or Cajun French .

There were 7,719 households and 8,919 housing units in 2019, and the median household income was $51,603; the median housing value was $158,500 and the median rent was $644. From 2015 to 2019, the parish had a poverty rate of 17.0%. In 2000, the median income for a household in the parish was $35,277, and the median income for a family was $41,751. Males had a median income of $37,487 versus $21,712 for females. The per capita income for the parish was $14,381. 20.70% of the population and 18.00% of families were below the poverty line. Out of the total people living in poverty, 27.70% are under the age of 18 and 15.10% are 65 or older.

According to the Association of Religion Data Archives in 2020, the Roman Catholic Church dominated the parish, with Christianity being the area's predominant religion since colonization. Roman Catholics numbered 19,342 while the National Baptist Convention of the United States of America had 2,180 members. Non/inter-denominational Protestants among the congregationalist, Bible, and United and Uniting churches numbered 1,060.

Economy

Approximately 85% of reported air pollution in the parish is produced by industries located in two small majority African American communities: Convent and St James. These include the Shell Convent Refinery, an Occidental Chemical Factory, American Styrenics, and Mosaic Fertilizer.

Formosa Plastic Group plans to build a $9.4 billion petrochemical plant in the parish. The proposed plant site includes a plantation and the graves of enslaved people. The project has become the focal point of an environmental justice protest because of the expectant rise in pollution and the disrespect of the historic nature of the land involved.

Education

St. James Parish Public Schools serves all of St. James Parish.

Politics

The current parish president is Peter “Pete” Dufresne (D), who took office at the beginning of 2020. In 2016, his predecessor Timmy Roussel was indicted on corruption charges, when he was accused of having parish employees build a private natural gas line.

St. James Parish has been strongly Democratic for a century. However, Donald Trump performed well during his two campaigns, coming within ten points of carrying the parish in 2016 and within five points in 2020. Trump would later win the parish in the 2024 election, the first Republican to do so since 1972. The last Republican to win a majority of the parish's vote until 2024 was Warren G. Harding in 1920, when Louisiana's Acadian population revolted against Woodrow Wilson because of his bitter disagreement with French President Georges Clemenceau. Dwight D. Eisenhower won a 17-vote plurality in 1956, and Richard Nixon also won a plurality in his 2,900-plus-county 1972 landslide.