Slidell, Louisiana

Slidell
City
City of Slidell
Heritage Park in Slidell
Nickname(s): The Camellia City (official), The Dell
Slidell Location of Slidell in Louisiana
Coordinates: 30°16′45″N 89°46′40″W / 30.27917°N 89.77778°W / 30.27917; -89.77778Coordinates: 30°16′45″N 89°46′40″W / 30.27917°N 89.77778°W / 30.27917; -89.77778
Country	United States
States	Louisiana
Parish	St. Tammany
Government
• Type	Mayor
• Body	Freddy Drennan
Population (2010)
• Total	27,068
• Density	1,828.9/km2 (1/sq mi)
Time zone	CST (UTC-6)
• Summer (DST)	CDT (UTC-5)
ZIP code	70458, 70459, 70460, 70461, 70469
Area code(s)	985
Website	myslidell.com

Slidell /slaɪˈdɛl/ is the largest city situated on the northeast shore of Lake Pontchartrain and St. Tammany Parish, Louisiana, United States. The population was 27,068 at the 2010 census.^[1] Greater Slidell has a population of about 90,000.^[2] It is part of the New Orleans−Metairie−Kenner Metropolitan Statistical Area.

History

Beginning

One of the earlier settlers to the area was John William Gause. Along with a younger brother, Wesley Coke Asbury Gause, Judge Wingate, and several others, they left Shallotte, North Carolina, on February 18, and arrived at Pearlington, Mississippi, on April 14, 1836. Wesley and his family decided to remain there, while John and family decided to cross the Pearl River, and built a log cabin on the west bank, just a little further south. He then began a lumber mill, in the fledgling town later to be known as Slidell. His traveling back and forth from lumber yard to home created a road, known today as Gause Boulevard, a major east/west street in the town. The lumber yard was located at the northwest area of where Gause Boulevard crosses the railroad track. The log cabin was built at the very east end of the road, just a few yards from the river. The house stood until the late 1990s, and a small family burial plot still remains, where John is buried between his two wives, Lydia Russ and Johanna Frederica VanHeemskerk.

Slidell was founded on the north shore of Lake Pontchartrain in 1882 and 1883 during construction of the New Orleans and Northeastern Railroad (N.O.N.E.).^[3] The N.O.N.E. line connected New Orleans to Meridian, Mississippi. The town was named in honor of American politician and Confederate ambassador to France John Slidell, father-in-law of real estate developer Baron Frederic Emile d'Erlanger and officially chartered by the Louisiana State Legislature in 1888.^[3]

Twentieth century

Around 1910, Slidell began a period of economic and industrial growth. A large creosote plant was built, and Slidell became home to the Fritz Salmen Brickyard, a major producer of bricks later named St. Joe Brick. A lumber mill and shipyard were also built. Following the construction of Interstate 10, Interstate 59, and Interstate 12, Slidell became a major crossroads for those traversing the Gulf States.

In 1915, the creosote plant burned to the ground, killing 55 workers and 3 firefighters. The plant was rebuilt on Bayou Lane, closer to a water source and closer to a fire station. Eventually, creosote polluted the bayou which was a source of drinking water for many of Slidell's residents. The creosote plant was abandoned in 1986 and became an EPA Superfund site. The canal was dredged and waste incinerated until completion of the cleanup in 1996. At that time a boat launch was built and Heritage Park was constructed on the former site.

With the advent of the U.S. space program in the 1960s, NASA opened the Michoud Assembly Facility in New Orleans, the John C. Stennis Space Center in nearby Bay St. Louis, Mississippi, and a NASA computer center on Gause Boulevard. This nearly tripled Slidell's population over a period of ten years, and the city became a major suburb of New Orleans. Slidell is also the location of the National Weather Service forecast office for the New Orleans and Baton Rouge area.^[4] Slidell is the headquarters of Vesco Tennis Courts, a privately held firm specializing in construction of hard surfaces for outdoor sports facilities.^[5]

The city hosts several parade krewes each Carnival season.^[6][7]

In 2005, Slidell suffered extensive damage from the effects of Hurricane Katrina, as the storm made final landfall on the morning of August 29. The municipal area is located about 2 miles (3 km) inland, and parts of the city experienced a storm surge in excess of 10 feet (3.0 m). The unincorporated areas of St. Tammany Parish, to the south and east, often commonly referred to as Slidell, experienced a storm surge of 13 to 16 feet (4.0 to 4.9 m).^[8]

Geography

Slidell is located at 30°16′45″N 89°46′40″W / 30.27917°N 89.77778°W / 30.27917; -89.77778 (30.279040, -89.777744)^[9] and has an elevation of 13 feet (4.0 m).^[10] It is in southeastern St. Tammany Parish, located approximately 3 miles (5 km) north of Lake Pontchartrain.

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 15.2 square miles (39.4 km²), of which 14.8 square miles (38.4 km²) is land and 0.35 square miles (0.9 km²), or 2.39%, is water.^[11]

Climate

Slidell has a humid subtropical climate, with short, generally mild winters (slightly cooler than the Southshore part of the New Orleans area) and hot, humid summers. Precipitation in winter usually accompanies the passage of a cold front. Hurricanes pose a threat to the area, and the city is vulnerable because of its low elevation.^[12][13]

Demographics

2010

According to the 2010 US Census,^[1] 27,068 people, 10,050 households, and 7,145 families. live in the city. The racial makeup of the city was 76.0% White, 17.0% African American, 0.5% Native American, 1.6% Asian, 0.0% Pacific Islander, 2.7% from other races, and 2.3% from two or more races. Hispanics or Latinos of any race were 6.3% of the population.

Of the 10,050 households, 31.6% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 48.9% were married couples living together, 16.2% had a female householder with no husband present, and 28.9% were non-families. 23.4% of all households were made up of individuals and 9.4% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.66 and the average family size was 3.13.

In the city the population was spread out with 28.0% under the age of 19, 6% from 20 to 24, 26% from 25 to 44, 26.1% from 45 to 64, and 14% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 37.3 years. For every 100 females there were 94.1 males.

There were 11,155 housing units, of which 7,226 (64.8%) were owner-occupied, and 2,824(25.3%) were renter-occupied. The homeowner vacancy rate was 3.6%; the rental vacancy rate was 11.0%. 19,170 people (70.8%) lived in owner-occupied housing units and 7,583 people (28.0%) lived in renter-occupied housing units.

2000

As of the census^[17] of 2000, there were 25,695 people, 9,480 households, and 7,157 families residing in the city. The population density was 2,178.5 people per square mile (841.5/km²). There were 10,133 housing units at an average density of 859.1 per square mile (131.8/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 83.13% White, 13.56% African American, 0.49% Native American, 0.72% Asian, 2.05% Hungarian, 0.05% Pacific Islander, 0.62% from other races, and 1.43% from two or more races. Hispanics or Latinos of any race were 2.67% of the population.

Of the 9,480 households, 36.0% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 57.4% were married couples living together, 14.0% had a female householder with no husband present, and 24.5% were non-families. 20.4% of all households were made up of individuals and 8.7% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.67 and the average family size was 3.09.

In the city the population was spread out with 27.0% under the age of 18, 7.6% from 18 to 24, 28.5% from 25 to 44, 23.3% from 45 to 64, and 13.7% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 37 years. For every 100 females there were 92.0 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 86.0 males.

The median income for a household in the city was $42,856, and the median income for a family was $48,298. Males had a median income of $40,211 versus $26,050 for females. The per capita income for the city was $19,947. About 9.5% of families and 11.8% of the population were below the poverty line, including 17.6% of those under age 18 and 7.9% of those age 65 or over.

Economy

Slidell is the global headquarters for Automotive manufacturer and Military contractor Textron Marine & Land Systems.

Education

Public schools in Slidell are operated by the St. Tammany Parish Public Schools. There are three public high schools in Slidell: Northshore High School, Salmen High School, and Slidell High School, and two private high schools: Pope John Paul II High School and First Baptist Christian School.

Salmen High School's football team won the 4A State Championship in 1994 and 1995. The girls' basketball team and baseball team went on to win state championships in 1996, bringing a total of three state championships to Salmen High School for the 1995-96 academic year. The football team garnered the state championship in 2001. Northshore High School's baseball team was the state champion in 2009, and the Northshore girls' swimming team were champions in 2009 and 2010. Slidell High School's powerlifting team finished as national runners-up in 2000. In 2001, the Tigers won the USAPL national championship, and followed it up with a third-place finish in 2002.

Transportation

The train station in downtown Slidell

Amtrak's daily Crescent train connects Slidell with New York City, Washington, D.C., Atlanta, Birmingham, and New Orleans. The Slidell Amtrak station is situated on Front Street in Olde Towne Slidell, with a beautiful view of one of the city's parks, Heritage, which is complete with playground equipment for younger children and open spaces for people to play football. There are also numerous fishing spots.

Slidell is located on the southwest corner of the intersection of Interstate 10, Interstate 12, Interstate 59, and U.S. Highway 11. The I-10 Twin Span Bridge runs from Slidell over Lake Pontchartrain to New Orleans East.

Slidell Airport (ICAO: KASD, FAA LID: ASD) is a city-owned public-use airport located four nautical miles (7 km) northwest of the central business district of Slidell, a city in St. Tammany Parish, Louisiana, United States.

Although most U.S. airports use the same three-letter location identifier for the FAA and IATA, this airport is assigned ASD by the FAA but has no designation from the IATA (which assigned ASD to Andros Town Airport on Andros Island in the Bahamas).

Notable people

• John Besh, chef and owner of LaProvence Restaurant, Restaurant August and Luke; finalist on the Food Network show Iron Chef America^[18]
• Clarence "Gatemouth" Brown, Grammy Award-winning instrumentalist^[19]
• P. J. Brown, NBA player^[20]
• Tony Canzoneri, world boxing champion^[21]
• Arthur Chevrolet, co-founder of the automobile company that bears his name and participant in the inaugural Indianapolis 500^[22]
• Rich Clementi, mixed martial arts fighter and UFC and Bellator MMA veteran who trains and resides in Slidell^[23]
• Chris Duhon, former Duke University and NBA point guard; played basketball at Salmen High School^[24]
• Mike Fontenot, MLB infielder; played at Salmen High School and LSU^[25]
• Matt Forté, NFL running back; played at Tulane University in New Orleans and at Slidell High School^[26]
• Sharon Hewitt, Republican state senator for parts of St. Tammany, Orleans, Plaquemines, and St. Bernard parishes, effective January 2016
• Gerry E. Hinton, chiropractor and former state senator^[27]
• Rodney Holman, former tight end for Cincinnati Bengals and Detroit Lions^[28]
• Arthur Jones, inventor, TV producer, adventurer and animal trapper.^[29]
• Juvenile, Southern rapper^[30]
• LaRon Landry, strong safety for Washington Redskins and LSU
• Paul Mauffray, conductor
• Logan Morrison, outfielder for the Seattle Mariners; played baseball at Northshore High School^[31]
• Lee Harvey Oswald, assassin of JFK, lived in Slidell
• Xavier Paul, outfielder for the Cincinnati Reds^[32]
• The Residents, avant-garde music group (who originally claimed to be from Shreveport)
• Ed Scogin, State representative, 1972–1992; St. Tammany Parish police juror, 1968–1972
• Will Harris^[33] MLB pitcher, former LSU infielder, played baseball at Slidell High School.
• Kim Crosby, racing driver, former Principal at Slidell Junior high^[34]
• Victor Arroyo, television personality, contestant on the CBS series Big Brother 18
• Jayne Mansfield, actress and public figure, was killed in a car accident on U.S. Highway 90, just outside of Slidell, on June 29, 1967.

References

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Slidell, Louisiana.

• City of Slidell official website
• Northshore Deals website
• Homes For Sale In Slidell
• St. Petersburg Times Travel article
• Photographs of Hurricane Katrina's destruction in Slidell

Municipalities and communities of St. Tammany Parish, Louisiana, United States
Parish seat: Covington
Cities	Covington Mandeville Slidell
Towns	Abita Springs Madisonville Pearl River
Villages	Folsom Sun
CDPs	Eden Isle Lacombe
Unincorporated communities	Bush Bonfouca Chinchuba Colt Goodbee Saint Benedict Talisheek

State of Louisiana
Baton Rouge (capital)
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Society	Culture Crime Demographics Economy Education Politics Radio Stations
Regions	Acadiana Ark-La-Tex Central Louisiana Florida Parishes Greater New Orleans Northwest Louisiana North Louisiana Southwest Louisiana
Cities	Alexandria Baton Rouge Bossier City Hammond Houma Kenner Lafayette Lake Charles Monroe Natchitoches New Iberia New Orleans Opelousas Ponchatoula Ruston Shreveport Slidell Sulphur
CDPs	Chalmette Harvey LaPlace Marrero Metairie Moss Bluff Terrytown
Metros	Alexandria Baton Rouge Houma–Bayou Cane–Thibodaux Lafayette Lake Charles Monroe New Orleans Shreveport‑Bossier City
Parishes	See: List of parishes in Louisiana