Caldwell Parish, Louisiana

Caldwell Parish is a parish located in the U.S. state of Louisiana. As of 2020, its population was 9,645.^[1] The parish seat is Columbia.^[2]

Caldwell Parish, Louisiana
Parish
Caldwell Parish Courthouse in Columbia
Seal
Location within the U.S. state of Louisiana
Coordinates: 32°05′N 92°07′W
Country	United States
State	Louisiana
Founded	1838
Named after	Local Caldwell family
Seat	Columbia
Largest village	Clarks
Area
• Total	541 sq mi (1,400 km2)
• Land	529 sq mi (1,370 km2)
• Water	11 sq mi (28 km2)  2.1%
Population  (2020)
• Total	9,645
• Density	18.2/sq mi (7.04/km2)
Time zone	UTC−6 (Central)
• Summer (DST)	UTC−5 (CDT)
Congressional district	5th
Website	www.caldwellparish.org

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the parish has a total area of 541 square miles (1,400 km²), of which 529 square miles (1,370 km²) is land and 11 square miles (28 km²) (2.1%) is water.^[3]

Major highways

• U.S. Highway 165
• Louisiana Highway 4

Adjacent parishes

• Jackson Parish (northwest)
• Ouachita Parish (north)
• Richland Parish (northeast)
• Franklin Parish (east)
• Catahoula Parish (southeast)
• La Salle Parish (south)
• Winn Parish (southwest)

Communities

Towns

• Columbia (parish seat)

Villages

• Clarks
• Grayson

Census-designated place

• Banks Springs

Unincorporated communities

• Bosco
• Copenhagen
• Corey
• Hebert
• Kelly
• Ward 5

Demographics

Historical population

Census	Pop.	Note	%±
1840	2,017		—
1850	2,815		39.6%
1860	4,833		71.7%
1870	4,820		−0.3%
1880	5,767		19.6%
1890	5,814		0.8%
1900	6,917		19.0%
1910	8,593		24.2%
1920	9,514		10.7%
1930	10,430		9.6%
1940	12,046		15.5%
1950	10,293		−14.6%
1960	9,004		−12.5%
1970	9,354		3.9%
1980	10,761		15.0%
1990	9,810		−8.8%
2000	10,560		7.6%
2010	10,132		−4.1%
2020	9,645		−4.8%
U.S. Decennial Census[4] 1790-1960[5] 1900-1990[6] 1990-2000[7] 2010-2013[8]

2020 census

Caldwell Parish, Louisiana – Racial and ethnic composition
Note: the US Census treats Hispanic/Latino as an ethnic category. This table excludes Latinos from the racial categories and assigns them to a separate category. Hispanics/Latinos may be of any race.

Race / Ethnicity (NH = Non-Hispanic)	Pop 1980[9]	Pop 1990[10]	Pop 2000[11]	Pop 2010[12]	Pop 2020[13]	% 1980	% 1990	% 2000	% 2010	% 2020
White alone (NH)	8,628	7,868	8,396	8,045	7,551	80.18%	80.20%	79.51%	79.40%	78.29%
Black or African American alone (NH)	1,958	1,760	1,884	1,735	1,528	18.20%	17.94%	17.84%	17.12%	15.84%
Native American or Alaska Native alone (NH)	1	9	47	19	19	0.01%	0.09%	0.45%	0.19%	0.20%
Asian alone (NH)	13	12	15	25	42	0.12%	0.12%	0.14%	0.25%	0.44%
Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander alone (NH)	x [14]	x [15]	0	0	3	x	x	0.00%	0.00%	0.03%
Other race alone (NH)	0	1	4	2	6	0.00%	0.01%	0.04%	0.02%	0.06%
Mixed race or Multiracial (NH)	x [16]	x [17]	57	84	275	x	x	0.54%	0.83%	2.85%
Hispanic or Latino (any race)	161	160	157	222	221	1.50%	1.63%	1.49%	2.19%	2.29%
Total	10,761	9,810	10,560	10,132	9,645	100.00%	100.00%	100.00%	100.00%	100.00%

As of the 2020 United States census, there were 9,645 people, 3,665 households, and 2,534 families residing in the parish. As of the census^[18] of 2000, there were 10,560 people, 3,941 households, and 2,817 families residing in the parish. The population density was 20 people per square mile (7.7 people/km²). There were 5,035 housing units at an average density of 10 per square mile (3.9/km²).

In 2000, the racial makeup of the parish was 80.43% White, 17.90% Black or African American, 0.45% Native American, 0.14% Asian, 0.47% from other races, and 0.61% from two or more races. 1.49% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race. In 2020, its racial makeup was 78.29% non-Hispanic white, 15.84% African American, 0.2% Native American, 0.445 Asian, 0.03% Pacific Islander, 2.91% multiracial or other, and 2.29% Hispanic or Latino of any race.^[1]

Law enforcement

The Caldwell Parish Sheriff's Office is the primary law enforcement agency of the parish.^[19]

Politics

Caldwell Parish has been a Republican stronghold since the 1960s. Bill Clinton carried it in 1992 and 1996, which was partly due to heavy third-party presence in those presidential elections. Since then, the Republican strength in the Parish has improved in every single election, with Donald Trump obtaining nearly 86% of the vote in 2024.

United States presidential election results for Caldwell Parish, Louisiana^[20]

Year	Republican		Democratic		Third party(ies)
	№	%	№	%	№	%
1912	18	3.57%	366	72.62%	120	23.81%
1916	20	3.47%	554	96.01%	3	0.52%
1920	128	19.19%	539	80.81%	0	0.00%
1924	77	14.72%	442	84.51%	4	0.76%
1928	288	26.42%	802	73.58%	0	0.00%
1932	86	5.58%	1,448	93.96%	7	0.45%
1936	235	14.63%	1,371	85.37%	0	0.00%
1940	318	16.01%	1,668	83.99%	0	0.00%
1944	505	30.66%	1,142	69.34%	0	0.00%
1948	151	8.64%	777	44.45%	820	46.91%
1952	961	45.27%	1,162	54.73%	0	0.00%
1956	587	35.17%	468	28.04%	614	36.79%
1960	716	35.08%	694	34.00%	631	30.92%
1964	2,534	80.62%	609	19.38%	0	0.00%
1968	490	13.19%	973	26.19%	2,252	60.62%
1972	2,306	76.99%	508	16.96%	181	6.04%
1976	1,890	49.66%	1,830	48.08%	86	2.26%
1980	2,653	57.91%	1,786	38.99%	142	3.10%
1984	3,341	69.33%	1,348	27.97%	130	2.70%
1988	2,997	65.74%	1,423	31.21%	139	3.05%
1992	1,752	37.40%	2,061	44.00%	871	18.60%
1996	1,842	40.40%	2,117	46.44%	600	13.16%
2000	2,817	65.09%	1,359	31.40%	152	3.51%
2004	3,308	69.61%	1,384	29.12%	60	1.26%
2008	3,696	75.54%	1,118	22.85%	79	1.61%
2012	3,640	77.18%	1,016	21.54%	60	1.27%
2016	3,822	81.46%	788	16.79%	82	1.75%
2020	3,976	83.49%	745	15.64%	41	0.86%
2024	3,724	85.93%	580	13.38%	30	0.69%

Notable people

• Buddy Caldwell, Louisiana State Attorney General, 2008–2016
• Graves B. Erskine, Marine Corps General Officer (4-Star)
• Garland Gregory, LA Tech Football
• Pam Kelly, recipient of the Wade Trophy
• John J. McKeithen, Governor of Louisiana (1964–1972)
• W. Fox McKeithen, Louisiana House of Representatives (1984–1988)
• Clay Parker, LSU baseball pitcher and football punter (1981-1985)
• Neil Riser, Louisiana State Senator elected in 2007
• Chet D. Traylor, Louisiana Supreme Court, 1997–2009

Gallery

• 
  Martin Homeplace Museum outside Columbia
• 
  The Caldwell Parish Library is located behind the courthouse in Columbia
• 
  Caldwell Parish High School
• 
  Caldwell Memorial Hospital in Columbia
• 
  Long Lake in Caldwell Parish; a landowner builds a pier with slide and diving board.

See also

• United States portal

• National Register of Historic Places listings in Caldwell Parish, Louisiana