Acadia Parish, Louisiana

Acadia Parish (: Paroisse de l'Acadie) is a located in the  of. The is. In 2000, the population was 58,861. The parish was founded from parts of in 1887 after an election to determine the parish seat, ending when Crowley beat  and Prairie Hayes.

The name of the county is derived from the former colony of  in, many of whose French-speaking inhabitants were deported to Louisiana in the  of  (see s).

The late minister and   coauthored Acadia Parish, Louisiana: A  to . His collection of s and memorabilia of the Crowley area can be accessed from the of the Acadia Parish Library in Crowley.

Geography
The parish covers 1,703 (658 ) of which 1,697 km² (655 sq mi) 0.35% is land and 6 km² (2 sq mi) water.

Major Highways

 * [[Image:I-10.svg|20px]]
 * [[Image:US 90.svg|20px]]
 * [[Image:LA 13.PNG|20px]]
 * [[Image:LA 35.PNG|20px]]

Adjacent parishes

 * (northeast)
 * (east)
 * (south)
 * (west)
 * (west)

Demographics
As of the of 2000, there were 58,861 people, 21,142 households, and 15,666 families residing in the parish. The was 35/km² (90/sq mi). There were 23,209 housing units at an average density of 14/km² (35/sq mi). The racial makeup of the parish was 80.73%, 18.25% or , 0.20% , 0.15% , 0.01% , 0.20% from , and 0.47% from two or more races. 0.91% of the population were or  of any race. 19.04% reported speaking or  at home.

There were 21,142 households out of which 38.50% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 54.50% were living together, 14.90% had a female householder with no husband present, and 25.90% were non-families. 22.60% of all households were made up of individuals and 10.30% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.74 and the average family size was 3.22.

In the parish the population was spread out with 29.80% under the age of 18, 9.60% from 18 to 24, 27.40% from 25 to 44, 20.90% from 45 to 64, and 12.30% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 34 years. For every 100 females there were 93.50 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 88.80 males.

The median income for a household in the parish was $26,684, and the median income for a family was $31,812. Males had a median income of $29,353 versus $17,179 for females. The for the parish was $13,424. 24.50% of the population and 21.00% of families were below the. 30.30% of those under the age of 18 and 25.20% of those 65 and older were living below the poverty line.

Community Names
More information on these communities can be found at http://www.acadia.lib.la.us/newpage1.htm

Education
Acadia Parish is served by.

Acadia Parish Library operates branches in the parish.