Thibodaux, Louisiana

Thibodaux, Louisiana
City
Downtown
Nickname: Queen City of Lafourche
Country	United States
State	Louisiana
Parish	Lafourche
Elevation	13 ft (4.0 m)
Coordinates	29°47′32″N 90°49′12″W / 29.79222°N 90.82000°W / 29.79222; -90.82000Coordinates: 29°47′32″N 90°49′12″W / 29.79222°N 90.82000°W / 29.79222; -90.82000
Area	5.5 sq mi (14.2 km2)
- land	5.5 sq mi (14 km2)
- water	0.0 sq mi (0 km2), 0%
Population	14,567 (2010)
Density	2,636.8/sq mi (1,018.1/km2)
Incorporated	1830
Mayor	Tommy Eschete[1]
Timezone	CST (UTC-6)
- summer (DST)	CDT (UTC-5)
ZIP codes	70301, 70302, 70310
Area code	985
Location of Thibodaux in Louisiana
Location of Louisiana in the United States
Website: http://ci.thibodaux.la.us

Thibodaux (/ˈtɪbədoʊ/ TIB-ə-doh) is a city in and the parish seat of Lafourche Parish, Louisiana, United States,^[2] along the banks of Bayou Lafourche in the northwestern part of the parish. The population was 14,567 at the 2010 census. Thibodaux is a principal city of the Houma–Bayou Cane–Thibodaux Metropolitan Statistical Area.

ZIP codes for Thibodaux are 70301, 70302, and 70310. Thibodaux's area code is 985. Thibodaux is nicknamed "Queen City of Lafourche."

History

The first European colonists were French, who settled here in the 18th century when the area was claimed as part of La Louisiane. They imported African slaves as workers and developed sugar cane plantations.

This was incorporated as a town in 1830 under the name Thibodauxville, in honor of local planter Henry Schuyler Thibodaux. He provided land for the village center and served as acting governor of Louisiana in 1824.^[3] The area was developed in the antebellum period for sugar cane plantations, and Thibodaux was the trading center of the agricultural area.

The name was changed to Thibodeaux in 1838. The current spelling Thibodaux was officially adopted in 1918.

In 1896, the first rural free delivery of mail in Louisiana began in Thibodaux. It was the second such RFD in the United States.

Civil War

In October 1862, following the Battle of Georgia Landing (Labadieville), Thibodaux was occupied by the Union Army under Godfrey Weitzel. Before they left the city, the Confederates under General Alfred Mouton (later killed in the Battle of Mansfield in De Soto Parish), burned the depot, the bridges, sugar, and supplies that they could not carry with them.^[4] In 1863, the Union under James P. Major temporarily abandoned Thibodaux but soon returned.

Winters reports that

"terrified Negroes and whites raced into the town announcing that 3,000 Confederate cavalrymen were en route to attack Thibodaux and Lafourche Crossing. Union Colonel Thomas W. Cahill ordered an immediate retreat. The bayou bridges were burned, three field guns were destroyed, and as many of the men and the horses as possible were loaded . . . and ordered to Raceland. . . . Ammunition was destroyed, horses abandoned, and four field pieces were left behind.^[5]

Once the area was under Union control, they ordered the slaves freed and to be paid wages. Planters in Thibodaux complained about having to negotiate labor contracts for the black workers. Alexander F. Pugh, a large sugar planter near Thibodaux, complained that

"Negroes and federal officers took up too much time in negotiating new labor contracts. Part of the delay was occasioned by the fact that the Negroes were dissatisfied with the settlements from the past year, and additional delays were brought about because of changes in labor rules and regulations."^[6] Pugh wrote in his diary: "I have agreed with the Negroes today to pay them monthly wages. It was very distasteful to me, but I could do no better. Everybody else in the neighborhood has agreed to pay the same, and mine [laborers] would listen to nothing else."^[7]

Thibodaux Massacre

In the late 19th century, after having taken back control of the state government following the Reconstruction era by use of paramilitary forces such as the White League, which suppressed black voting, white Democrats continued to consolidate their power over the state government. In the late 1880s they were challenged temporarily by a biracial coalition of Populists and Republicans.

From 1880, through the Louisiana Sugar Producer's Association, some 200 major planters worked to regain more control of their workers, adopting uniform pay, withholding 80 percent of the workers' pay until after harvest, making them accept scrip redeemable only at plantation stores. There was repeated labor unrest as cane workers struck intermittently against conditions.

The Knights of Labor organized a chapter in 1886 in Shreveport, and attracted many cane workers seeking better conditions. A sugar cane workers' strike culminated in the "Thibodaux massacre" of November 22, 1887, one of the bloodiest labor disputes in U.S. history. The strike for higher wages of 10,000 workers (1,000 of whom were white) was organized by the Knights of Labor during "rolling period," a critical element of the sugar cane harvest. Planters were alarmed both by outside labor organizations and the thought of losing their total crops.

The governor called in the State militia at the planters' request, who protected strikebreakers and evicted black workers. The strike was broken in Terrebone Parish.

Paramilitary forces closed off Thibodaux, where numerous black workers had taken refuge. On November 22, they began action against the black workers and their families, killing at least 50. Casualties including wounded and missing were told as in the hundreds, but the numbers will always be uncertain. The cane workers returned to the plantations. In the following months, Knights of Labor organizers continued to disappear.^[8][9] The massacre and subsequent disenfranchisement of blacks, and imposition of Jim Crow, ended labor organizing of cane workers until the 1940s.

Geography

Thibodaux is located at 29°47′32″N 90°49′12″W / 29.79222°N 90.82000°W / 29.79222; -90.82000 (29.7922, -90.8200)^[10] and has an elevation of 13 feet (4.0 m).^[11]

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 5.47 square miles (14.2 km²), all land.

Demographics

Charles C. Elkins Hall is one of twenty-eight sites in Thibodaux listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

As of the census^[14] of 2000, there were 14,431 people, 5,500 households, and 3,355 families residing in the city. The population density was 2,636.8 people per square mile (1,018.6/km²). There were 6,004 housing units at an average density of 1,097.0 per square mile (423.8/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 64.04% White, 33.76% African American, 0.37% Native American, 0.64% Asian, 0.02% Pacific Islander, 0.26% from other races, and 0.90% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 1.03% of the population.

There were 5,500 households out of which 29.7% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 38.1% were married couples living together, 19.4% had a female householder with no husband present, and 39.0% were non-families. 31.1% of all households were made up of individuals and 11.5% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.42 and the average family size was 3.10.

In the city the population was spread out with 24.6% under the age of 18, 17.3% from 18 to 24, 25.1% from 25 to 44, 18.9% from 45 to 64, and 14.1% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 31 years. For every 100 females there were 85.9 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 79.3 males.

The median income for a household in the city was $26,697, and the median income for a family was $36,551. Males had a median income of $31,464 versus $21,144 for females. The per capita income for the city was $16,966. About 20.6% of families and 25.1% of the population were below the poverty line, including 36.3% of those under age 18 and 18.2% of those age 65 or over.

Arts and culture

St. Valérie's relics in St. Joseph Co-Cathedral

The Roman Catholic patron saints of Thibodaux are Saint Valérie, an early Christian martyr, and Saint Vitalis of Milan, her husband, also a martyr. A life-sized reliquary of Saint Valérie, containing an arm bone, was brought to Thibodaux in 1868 and is displayed in her shrine in St. Joseph Co-Cathedral in Thibodaux. A smaller reliquary, with a relic of St. Vitalis, is displayed near St. Valérie's reliquary. St. Valérie has traditionally been invoked for intercession in protecting Thibodaux from hurricanes.

Richard D'Alton Williams, a well-known 19th-century Irish patriot, poet, and physician, died of tuberculosis in Thibodaux in 1862, and is buried in St. Joseph Cemetery. His headstone was erected that year by Irish members of the 8th New Hampshire Volunteer Infantry, then encamped in Thibodaux. A famous Mississippi blues musician, Eddie "Guitar Slim" Jones, is buried in Thibodaux, where he often played, and where his manager, Hosea Hill, resided. Two-term Governor of Louisiana; Francis T. Nicholls is buried in the Episcopal Cemetery on Jackson Street.

Government

The mayor of Thibodaux is elected at-large and is currently Tommy Eschete.^[1] The city council of seven is elected from five single-member districts, and two at-large members.^[15] Thibodaux is in Parish Council Districts 1, 2, 3, and 4.^[16]

In the Louisiana Legislature, Thibodaux is represented by Rep. Jerome Richard (I-Thibodaux) and Sen. Joel Chaisson (D-Destrehan). In the United States Congress, it is represented by Rep. Garret Graves (R-Baton Rouge), Sen. Bill Cassidy (R- Baton Rouge) and Sen. David Vitter (R-Metairie).

Education

Residents are zoned to schools in the Lafourche Parish Public Schools .

Zoned elementary schools include:

• South Thibodaux Elementary School
• Thibodaux Elementary School
• W.S. Lafargue Elementary School

Zoned middle schools include:

• East Thibodaux Middle School
• West Thibodaux Middle School
• Sixth Ward Middle School

Thibodaux residents are zoned to Thibodaux High School.

Catholic schools include:

• Edward Douglas White Catholic High School
• St. Genevieve Catholic Elementary
• St. Joseph Catholic Elementary

Colleges:

• Nicholls State University

From 1950 until 1968 C.M. Washington High School served as the school for black people in Thibodaux.^[17]

Media

The local newspaper is The Daily Comet. It was founded in 1889 as Lafourche Comet. It was owned by The New York Times Company from 1979 until 2011, when it sold the newspaper, along with the rest of its regional newspapers, to Halifax Media Group.

Cable television is serviced in Thibodaux by Charter Communications.

Representation in other media

The family name "Thibodaux" is mentioned in Hank Williams' "Jambalaya (On The Bayou)". In 1972 Leon Russell had the song "Cajun Love Song" in which Thibodaux is mentioned. It is also mentioned in the 1970s Jerry Reed song "Amos Moses," in the 1990s George Strait song "Adalida," in Dan Baird's 1992 song "Dixie Beauxderaunt," the 1999 Jimmy Buffett song "I will Play for Gumbo," the 2008 Toby Keith song "Creole Woman," and its name is the title of a song by jazz songstress Marcia Ball.

Notable people

• Eric Andolsek, player for the Detroit Lions.^[18]
• Charlton Reid Beattie, U.S. federal judge; practiced law in Thibodaux.
• Rezin Bowie, Louisiana politician and inventor of the Bowie knife; resided six years on Acadia Plantation near Thibodaux.
• Adrian Joseph Caillouet, U.S. federal judge.
• Kody Chamberlain, comic book writer and artist.^[19]
• Monnie T. Cheves - professor at Nichols State University; member of the Louisiana House of Representatives from Natchitoches Parish from 1952 to 1960^[20]
• Thomas G. Clausen - professor at Nicholls State University from 1967 to 1972; last elected state superintendent of education, 1984-1988^[21]
• Mark Davis, professional basketball player.^[22]
• Charles deGravelles, Louisiana State Republican Chairman; grew up in Thibodaux.
• Ronald Dominique, serial killer.
• Francis Dugas, state representative from Lafourche Parish from 1956 to 1960; Robert F. Kennon's running-mate for lieutenant governor in 1963
• Alan Faneca, American football offensive lineman, nine-time Pro-Bowler, Super Bowl champion (XL)^[23]
• Jeremy Gaubert, winner of 2009 World Poker Open.
• Mary Gauthier, folk singer-songwriter; grew up in Thibodaux.
• Jarvis Green, defensive end for the Denver Broncos.^[24]
• Drew Granier, baseball player
• Walter Guion, U.S. Senator from Louisiana.
• Sandy Holloway, District 3 member of the Louisiana Board of Elementary and Secondary Education; long-term Thibodaux resident.
• Damian Johnson, player for the Minnesota Golden Gophers men's basketball team.^[25]
• Philip Barton Key, Jr. (1804-1854), planter and state legislator.
• Clay Knobloch, former Lieutenant Governor of Louisiana.
• Louis La Garde, soldier, medical doctor and author.
• Theodore K. Lawless, dermatologist, medical researcher, and philanthropist.
• Oliver Marcelle, baseball player.
• Graham Patrick Martin, actor TV: Major Crimes, The Closer, Two and a Half Men; Movies: The Anna Nicole Story, Bukowski, Somewhere Slow.
• Whitmell P. Martin, a U.S. Representative from Louisiana; moved to Thibodaux.
• Jordan Mills, football player
• Numa F. Montet, U.S. Representative from Louisiana.
• Doug Moreau, football player.
• Drake Nevis, football player.
• Francis T. Nicholls, two-term Governor of Louisiana; moved to Ridgefield Plantation near Thibodaux.
• Harvey Peltier, Jr., state senator from 1964 to 1976;^[26] first president of the University of Louisiana System trustees from 1975 until his death in 1980^[27]
• Harvey Peltier, Sr., member of both houses of the Louisiana State Legislature from Thibodaux, 1924-1940^[28]
• Jerome "Dee" Richard, current member of the Louisiana House of Representatives from Thibodaux; one of two Independents in the legislature^[29]
• John Robichaux, jazz musician.^[30]
• Greg Robinson, offensive lineman for the St. Louis Rams
• Junius P. Rodriguez, academic and author.
• Tom Roussel, football player.
• Dustin Schuetter, actor, producer, director and screenwriter.
• Theodore Ward, noted African-American playwright.^[31]
• Edward Douglass White, Chief Justice of the United States.^[32]
• Edward Douglass White Sr., Governor of Louisiana.^[33]
• Alfred C. Williams, state representative for East Baton Rouge Parish since 2012; former Thibodaux resident^[34]

References

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Thibodaux, Louisiana.

• City of Thibodaux
• Thibodaux Chamber of Commerce website

Municipalities and communities of Lafourche Parish, Louisiana, United States
Parish seat: Thibodaux
City	Thibodaux
Towns	Golden Meadow Lockport
CDPs	Bayou Blue‡ Bayou Country Club Chackbay Choctaw Cut Off Des Allemands‡ Galliano Kraemer Lafourche Crossing Larose Lockport Heights Mathews Raceland
Other Unincorporated communities	Acadia Delta Farms Gheens Port Fourchon Theriot Valentine
Footnotes	‡This populated place also has portions in an adjacent parish or parishes

State of Louisiana
Baton Rouge (capital)
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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 Hammond Houma–Bayou Cane–Thibodaux Lafayette Lake Charles Monroe New Orleans Shreveport–Bossier City
Parishes	See: List of parishes in Louisiana