New Roads, Louisiana facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
New Roads, Louisiana
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| City of New Roads | |
Location of New Roads in Pointe Coupee Parish, Louisiana.
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Location of Louisiana in the United States
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| Country | United States |
| State | Louisiana |
| Parish | Pointe Coupee |
| Area | |
| • Total | 4.58 sq mi (11.87 km2) |
| • Land | 4.58 sq mi (11.87 km2) |
| • Water | 0.00 sq mi (0.00 km2) |
| Elevation | 30 ft (9 m) |
| Population
(2020)
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| • Total | 4,549 |
| • Density | 992.80/sq mi (383.29/km2) |
| Time zone | UTC-6 (CST) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC-5 (CDT) |
| ZIP code |
70760
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| Area code(s) | 225 |
| GNIS feature ID | 2404366 |
| FIPS code | 22-55105 |
| Website | https://newroads.net |
New Roads is a city in Louisiana, United States. It is the main town of Pointe Coupee Parish. Long ago, it was known as Poste-de-Pointe-Coupée in French.
In 2020, about 4,549 people lived in New Roads. The city is part of the larger Baton Rouge area. Its ZIP code is 70760.
Contents
Discovering New Roads' Past
Le Poste de Pointe Coupée was one of the first places settled by Europeans in the Mississippi River Valley. French settlers started this trading post in the 1720s. It was located near the Mississippi River, above a curved lake called False River.
The first settlers were French people and French-speaking Creoles. More French settlers came from places like Fort de Chartres in Illinois. They brought many enslaved Africans from the French West Indies and Africa to work on large farms called plantations.
A historian named Gwendolyn Midlo Hall found many old French and Spanish records about the early slave trade in New Roads. These records gave details about the names and backgrounds of enslaved people. This information is now part of a special online database.
Early Leaders of Pointe Coupee
From 1729 to 1762, these were some of the leaders, called Commandants, of Pointe Coupee:
- 1729: Chevalier Henri du Loubois
- 1731: Jean Baptiste François Tisserand de Moncharvaux
- 1734–38: Claude Joseph de Favrot
- 1738–1742: Jean Louis Richard de la Houssaye
- 1742–1744: Claude Joseph de Favrot
- 1744–1753: Jean Joseph Delfau de Pontalba
- 1753: Chevalier Morlière
- 1753–1756: Francois Artaud
- 1756–1759: Pierre Benoist, Sieur Payen de Noyan de Chavoy
- 1759–1762: Jean Louis Richard de la Houssaye
Spanish Influence and New Roads
After France lost the Seven Years' War, this area became Spanish territory. In 1772, Governor Luis de Unzaga moved the main settlement to a new spot because of floods. This new place was called Post Unzaga.
Around 1776, the Spanish built a "New Road" (Chemin Neuf in French). This road connected the Mississippi River to False River. False River is a long, curved lake that used to be part of the Mississippi River.
In 1791, an uprising of enslaved people, called the Mina Conspiracy, began near New Roads. Another similar event, the Pointe Coupée Conspiracy, happened a few years later.
Becoming Part of the United States
In 1803, the United States bought this land from France in the Louisiana Purchase. More American settlers moved in, which changed the local culture.
In 1822, a free woman of color named Catherine Dispau created a small neighborhood from her land along False River. This area was at the end of the "new road" that connected False River to the old Mississippi River settlement. This is now the part of New Roads near West Main, New Roads, West Second, and St. Mary Streets. St. Mary's Catholic Church was founded there in 1823.
In 1847, New Roads became the official seat of Pointe Coupée Parish, and a courthouse was built. This helped the town grow. When the nearby port of Waterloo was abandoned due to flooding in the 1880s, New Roads became the main business center for the parish. The railroad arrived in 1898–99, bringing more industry.
The town's name changed several times. It was called "False River" and "St. Mary's" before finally being named "New Roads" when it was officially made a city in 1875. It was reincorporated in 1892 and got its official charter two years later.
For a long time, New Roads was a farming community. Farmers grew crops like sugar cane, cotton, and pecans. Today, the economy has grown to include healthcare, construction, and retail businesses.
Geography of New Roads
New Roads is located at 30°41′47″N 91°26′20″W / 30.69639°N 91.43889°W. It is about 30 feet (9 meters) above sea level.
The city covers about 4.6 square miles (11.87 square kilometers) of land. It is built on a flood-plain of the Mississippi River. The land slopes from about 36 feet (11 meters) high near False River to 25 feet (7.6 meters) low along Portage Canal.
New Roads has not flooded much since 1912. However, in the past, breaks in the Mississippi River levees caused floods in 1867, 1882, and 1884. The 1882 flood was the worst, with four feet of water in Main Street. During floods in 1912 and 1927, the southern part of the town stayed dry because a railroad embankment held back the water.
New Roads' Climate
New Roads has a warm climate. Summers are hot and humid, while winters are mild. The city gets a good amount of rain throughout the year. Snow is very rare.
| Climate data for New Roads, Louisiana (1991–2020 normals, extremes 1942–present) | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
| Record high °F (°C) | 85 (29) |
86 (30) |
89 (32) |
95 (35) |
98 (37) |
107 (42) |
102 (39) |
105 (41) |
105 (41) |
96 (36) |
89 (32) |
85 (29) |
107 (42) |
| Mean daily maximum °F (°C) | 61.1 (16.2) |
65.1 (18.4) |
72.1 (22.3) |
78.7 (25.9) |
85.8 (29.9) |
90.7 (32.6) |
92.4 (33.6) |
92.4 (33.6) |
88.8 (31.6) |
80.7 (27.1) |
70.8 (21.6) |
63.3 (17.4) |
78.5 (25.8) |
| Daily mean °F (°C) | 51.5 (10.8) |
55.2 (12.9) |
61.7 (16.5) |
68.4 (20.2) |
76.0 (24.4) |
81.8 (27.7) |
83.8 (28.8) |
83.6 (28.7) |
79.8 (26.6) |
70.3 (21.3) |
60.2 (15.7) |
53.6 (12.0) |
68.8 (20.4) |
| Mean daily minimum °F (°C) | 41.9 (5.5) |
45.3 (7.4) |
51.3 (10.7) |
58.0 (14.4) |
66.1 (18.9) |
72.9 (22.7) |
75.2 (24.0) |
74.8 (23.8) |
70.7 (21.5) |
59.9 (15.5) |
49.6 (9.8) |
43.9 (6.6) |
59.1 (15.1) |
| Record low °F (°C) | 8 (−13) |
13 (−11) |
23 (−5) |
32 (0) |
39 (4) |
50 (10) |
58 (14) |
55 (13) |
46 (8) |
29 (−2) |
22 (−6) |
8 (−13) |
8 (−13) |
| Average precipitation inches (mm) | 6.53 (166) |
5.19 (132) |
4.49 (114) |
5.07 (129) |
5.21 (132) |
5.55 (141) |
4.62 (117) |
4.36 (111) |
4.06 (103) |
4.21 (107) |
3.91 (99) |
5.34 (136) |
58.54 (1,487) |
| Average snowfall inches (cm) | 0.0 (0.0) |
0.1 (0.25) |
0.0 (0.0) |
0.0 (0.0) |
0.0 (0.0) |
0.0 (0.0) |
0.0 (0.0) |
0.0 (0.0) |
0.0 (0.0) |
0.0 (0.0) |
0.0 (0.0) |
0.0 (0.0) |
0.1 (0.25) |
| Average precipitation days (≥ 0.01 in) | 9.1 | 8.2 | 7.8 | 7.0 | 7.9 | 9.7 | 10.9 | 9.6 | 7.0 | 6.1 | 6.4 | 8.5 | 98.2 |
| Average snowy days (≥ 0.1 in) | 0.0 | 0.1 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.1 |
| Source: NOAA | |||||||||||||
New Roads' Population and People
| Historical population | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Census | Pop. | %± | |
| 1900 | 770 | — | |
| 1910 | 1,352 | 75.6% | |
| 1920 | 1,294 | −4.3% | |
| 1930 | 1,473 | 13.8% | |
| 1940 | 2,255 | 53.1% | |
| 1950 | 2,818 | 25.0% | |
| 1960 | 3,965 | 40.7% | |
| 1970 | 3,945 | −0.5% | |
| 1980 | 3,924 | −0.5% | |
| 1990 | 5,303 | 35.1% | |
| 2000 | 4,966 | −6.4% | |
| 2010 | 4,831 | −2.7% | |
| 2020 | 4,549 | −5.8% | |
| U.S. Decennial Census | |||
New Roads has a diverse population. In 2020, there were 4,549 people living in the city. The population has changed over the years, as shown in the table above.
| Race | Number | Percentage |
|---|---|---|
| Black or African American (non-Hispanic) | 2,592 | 56.98% |
| White (non-Hispanic) | 1,749 | 38.45% |
| Native American | 2 | 0.04% |
| Asian | 42 | 0.92% |
| Pacific Islander | 1 | 0.02% |
| Other/Mixed | 104 | 2.29% |
| Hispanic or Latino | 59 | 1.3% |
In 2020, there were 1,692 households in New Roads. About 33.2% of these households had children under 18 living with them. The average household had 2.61 people.
Famous People from New Roads
Many interesting people have connections to New Roads:
- Hewitt Leonidas Bouanchaud: A politician who served as Lieutenant Governor.
- Brian J. Costello: A writer and humanitarian who has written many books about Louisiana.
- Shelton Fabre: A bishop in the Roman Catholic Church.
- Ernest J. Gaines: A famous African-American fiction writer.
- Jonas Gaines: A baseball pitcher who played in the Negro leagues.
- J. Thomas Jewell: A politician who was a member and Speaker of the Louisiana House of Representatives.
- John Archer LeJeune: A Lieutenant General in the United States Marines. Camp LeJeune in North Carolina is named after him.
- Catherine D. Kimball: A former chief justice of the Louisiana Supreme Court.
- Clyde Kimball: A former member of the Louisiana House of Representatives.
- DeLesseps Story Morrison: A former Mayor of New Orleans.
- Julien Poydras: A merchant and statesman who helped start Louisiana's first public schools.
- Albin Provosty: A district attorney and state senator.
- Patrick Queen: A middle linebacker for the Baltimore Ravens football team.
- Major General D. Keith Waddell: The 50th Adjutant General of the Louisiana National Guard.
See also
In Spanish: New Roads para niños
