Egan, Louisiana facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Egan, Louisiana
Census-designated place
2009 aerial photo of Egan
Egan, Louisiana Location in Louisiana
Country	United States
State	Louisiana
Parish	Acadia
Area
• Total	4.86 sq mi (12.59 km2)
• Land	4.85 sq mi (12.56 km2)
• Water	0.01 sq mi (0.03 km2)
Elevation	24 ft (7 m)
Population  (2020)
• Total	618
• Density	127.45/sq mi (49.21/km2)
Time zone	UTC-6 (CST)
• Summer (DST)	UTC-5 (CDT)
ZIP Code	70531
Area code(s)	337
FIPS code	22-23025

Egan is a small place in Louisiana, United States. It's located in Acadia Parish, between the towns of Crowley and Jennings. Egan is an unincorporated community, which means it doesn't have its own local government like a city. It's also a census-designated place, which is an area the government defines for counting people.

Egan is found along Louisiana Highway 100. It is about two and a half miles north of Midland, near a small river called Bayou Jonas. In 2010, about 631 people lived there. The community is named after William M. Egan, a businessman from Crowley, Louisiana.

People in Egan

Egan is a small community. The number of people living there changes over time.

The most recent count in 2020 showed 618 people living in Egan.

Egan's Story

The area now known as Egan has an interesting past. It has had a few different names over the years.

Early Names of Egan

The town of Egan was first called Jonas Cove. Later, for a short time, it was known as Regan. This name came from the postmaster who worked there.

In 1899, the settlement got a new name: Canal Switch. This happened because workers building canals for W. W. Duson built a warehouse here. This warehouse helped rice farmers in the area. The Southern Pacific Railroad also had a special track, called a switch, to help ship goods. That's how it got the name Canal Switch.

How Egan Got Its Name

The final name change was in honor of William M. Egan. He was the president of a company that built a rice mill in the town. He also helped develop the town, so it was named after him.

Railroad History

In the early 1870s, a path for the Louisiana Western railroad was built. This path went from Lafayette to Egan. However, the railroad later decided to change its route. They moved it south of Egan to avoid building bridges over two bayous. The old path, built by people who were in prison, remained. The dirt from this old path was later used to build roads in Acadia Parish. Today, Interstate 10 was built on or very close to this old railroad path.

Early Businesses in Egan

In the spring of 1903, two men, John W. Smith and Frank Scanlan, bought a large piece of land. They bought 600 acres from W. W. Duson for $30,000. This land included almost all the building lots in the town. Smith and Scanlan owned a general store in Egan. It was called the Smith & Scanlan store. They sold many things like general goods, farm tools, grain, and animal feed. Sadly, the store burned down in February 1904 and was not rebuilt.

The Smith & Scanlan store was not the first store in Egan. In 1901, a store called A. Rose and Son was already open. Other important businessmen in Egan were the Truax brothers: G. E., Joe, E. D., and Frank. They were from Michigan and ran a sawmill before 1900. By 1902, the Truax Brothers general store was open. It even had a dance hall and a saloon. Later, the business split into two stores, run by G. E. and E. D. Truax. In 1909, the E. D. Truax store also had the post office inside.

Other businesses before World War I included the J. J. Regan store and warehouse. There was also J. N. and Dominique Leger's warehouse and feed company. The Egan branch of Farmer's Mercantile was also open. It was run by Armas Bourgeois, F. A. Roy, and Aurelien Hebert.

Churches in Egan

The first church in Egan was built in the summer of 1906. It belonged to the United Brethren in Christ Church. Catholic people in Egan would travel to the Iota church for Mass. This church was about six miles north of Egan.

First Families

Some of the first families to settle in the Egan area were the Regans, Trumps, Sensats, Legers, and Clements.

See also

In Spanish: Egan (Luisiana) para niños