Start is a

census-designated place A census-designated place (CDP) is a Place (United States Census Bureau), concentration of population defined by the United States Census Bureau for statistical purposes only. CDPs have been used in each decennial census since 1980 as the counte ...

in Richland Parish,

Louisiana Louisiana ( ; ; ) is a state in the Deep South and South Central regions of the United States. It borders Texas to the west, Arkansas to the north, and Mississippi to the east. Of the 50 U.S. states, it ranks 31st in area and 25 ...

, United States. The population was 982 at the 2020 census, up from 905 in 2010.

History

Prior to the creation of Richland Parish in 1868, the area now recognized as Start was situated in Morehouse Parish. After the new parish of Richland was formed, this area was often referred to as Ward 3, Crew Lake, Charleston, or Wynn Island. Start officially derived its name in 1918 when the United States Postal Service officially accepted it as new name of the community. Charleston was originally submitted, but this name was rejected. The owner of a small mercantile store in Start named James M. Morgan was granted permission to receive mail at his store, but the area would need a permanent name. James Morgan's daughter, Rachel, suggested that they name the community Start, because they were making a new start. This name was officially approved by the USPS on September 7, 1918. Louisiana Public Broadcasting aired a segment in 2006 on ''Louisiana: The State We're In'', detailing how the community came up with the name of Start. In the summer on 1923, the Richland Parish School Board passed a motion to advertise for bids on a new high school building, to be known once constructed as Start High School. Marie Robinson was the sole graduate of Start's first graduating class, held in the spring of 1925. Up until November 29, 1930 mail was continually delivered to both Start and Crew Lake, (located directly west of Start.) After this date, Crew Lake ceased to also serve as a post office location, and the primary hub for mail became Start. In 1937, Congressman Newt V. Mills announced that the

Resettlement Administration The Resettlement Administration (RA) was a New Deal U.S. federal agency created May 1, 1935. It relocated struggling urban and rural families to communities planned by the federal government. On September 1, 1937, it was succeeded by the Farm S ...

, (a

New Deal The New Deal was a series of wide-reaching economic, social, and political reforms enacted by President Franklin D. Roosevelt in the United States between 1933 and 1938, in response to the Great Depression in the United States, Great Depressi ...

program initiated under President

Franklin D. Roosevelt Franklin Delano Roosevelt (January 30, 1882April 12, 1945), also known as FDR, was the 32nd president of the United States, serving from 1933 until his death in 1945. He is the longest-serving U.S. president, and the only one to have served ...

), had purchased the 3,000 acre Millsaps Plantation. This program provided for approximately 40 new families to move in to the Start community.

Geography

Start is located near the Boeuf River to the east and Lafourche Diversion Canal to its west. A small tributary called Crew Lake flows through the community.

Demographics

2020 census

As of the census of 2020, there were 982 people living in the CPD, for a population density of 279.0 people per square mile (107.8/km²). There were 426 housing units. The racial makeup of the CPD was 90.3%

White White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no chroma). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully (or almost fully) reflect and scatter all the visible wa ...

, 6.0%

Black Black is a color that results from the absence or complete absorption of visible light. It is an achromatic color, without chroma, like white and grey. It is often used symbolically or figuratively to represent darkness.Eva Heller, ''P ...

African American African Americans, also known as Black Americans and formerly also called Afro-Americans, are an Race and ethnicity in the United States, American racial and ethnic group that consists of Americans who have total or partial ancestry from an ...

, 0.1% Native American, 0.0% Asian, 0.0%

Pacific Islander Pacific Islanders, Pasifika, Pasefika, Pacificans, or rarely Pacificers are the peoples of the list of islands in the Pacific Ocean, Pacific Islands. As an ethnic group, ethnic/race (human categorization), racial term, it is used to describe th ...

, 0.8% from some other race, and 2.7% from two or more races. 1.3% of the population were

Hispanic The term Hispanic () are people, Spanish culture, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or broadly. In some contexts, Hispanic and Latino Americans, especially within the United States, "Hispanic" is used as an Ethnici ...

or Latino of any race. There were 555 households, out of which 37.3% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 35.1% were

married couples Marriage, also called matrimony or wedlock, is a culturally and often legally recognised union between people called spouses. It establishes rights and obligations between them, as well as between them and their children (if any), and b ...

living together, 6.3% had a male householder with no spouse present, and 29.9% had a female householder with no spouse present. 18.0% of all households were made up of individuals, and 11.5% were someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 1.66, and the average family size was 2.04. 12.0% of the CPD's population were under the age of 18, 72.8% were 18 to 64, and 15.2% were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 47.5. For every 100 females, there were 100.0 males. According to the U.S. Census

American Community Survey The American Community Survey (ACS) is an annual demographics survey program conducted by the United States Census Bureau. It regularly gathers information previously contained only in the long form of the United States census, decennial census ...

, for the period 2016-2020 the estimated median annual income for a family in the CPD was $66,667. About 31.1% of the population were living below the

poverty line The poverty threshold, poverty limit, poverty line, or breadline is the minimum level of income deemed adequate in a particular country. The poverty line is usually calculated by estimating the total cost of one year's worth of necessities for ...

, including 44.1% of those under age 18 and 45.7% of those age 65 or over. About 46.7% of the population were employed, and 20.4% had a bachelor's degree or higher.

Infrastructure

* I-20, Exit 132 *

US 80 U.S. Route 80 or U.S. Highway 80 (US 80) is a major east–west United States Numbered Highway in the Southern United States, much of which was once part of the early auto trail known as the Dixie Overland Highway. As the "0" in the ...

* Louisiana Highway 133 The

Kansas City Southern Railway The Kansas City Southern Railway Company is an American Class I railroad. Founded in 1887, it operated in 10 Midwestern United States, Midwestern and Southeastern United States, Southeastern U.S. states: Illinois, Missouri, Kansas, Oklahoma, Ark ...

also passes through the community, running east and west.

Education

Start Elementary School, which is operated by the Richland Parish School Board, is a public school for Pre Kindergarten through the eight grade.

Notable people

Julia Letlow Julia Janelle Letlow ( ; née Barnhill; born March 16, 1981) is an American politician and academic administrator serving as the U.S. representative for Louisiana's 5th congressional district since 2021. Letlow is the first Republican Party (Unit ...

, member of the

United States House of Representatives The United States House of Representatives is a chamber of the Bicameralism, bicameral United States Congress; it is the lower house, with the U.S. Senate being the upper house. Together, the House and Senate have the authority under Artic ...

, elected in a

special election A by-election, also known as a special election in the United States and the Philippines, or a bypoll in India, is an election used to fill an office that has become vacant between general elections. A vacancy may arise as a result of an incumben ...

to fill her husband's term * Luke Letlow, former member-elect to the

who died of COVID-19 in December 2020. *

Tim McGraw Samuel Timothy McGraw (born May 1, 1967) is an American country singer and actor. He has released 17 studio albums (11 for Curb Records, five for Big Machine Records and one for Arista Nashville). 10 of those albums have reached number one on ...

, country singer

References

External links

{{authority control Census-designated places in Louisiana Unincorporated communities in Richland Parish, Louisiana Unincorporated communities in Louisiana