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The population of Southwest Louisiana is over 277,000. It is comprised of Calcasieu, Cameron, Allen, Beauregard and Jefferson Davis parishes. Calcasieu Parish, also known as the Lake Charles Metropolitan Statistical Area (MSA), is the center of the area with a population of 179,400. It is situated midway on Interstate 10, approximately 2 hours from Houston, TX and Baton Rouge, LA. Other cities in the area are DeQuincy, Iowa, Sulphur, Vinton and Westlake.
Allen Parish, created in 1912, is one of the newest parishes in the state. It is covered by dense forest and has rich agriculture as well as cattle and timber production. Comprised of the towns and cities of Elizabeth, Kinder, Oakdale, Oberlin, Reeves and the Coushatta Indian Reservation, it has a population of 24,300.
Forestry and livestock are thriving enterprises in primarily rural Beauregard Parish. Comprised of the cities of DeRidder, Dry Creek, Fields, Longville, Merryville, Singer, Sugartown and Ragley, it has a population of 31,500.
Cameron Parish, Southwest Louisiana's largest parish based on land area, is almost entirely Gulf marshland. Its economy is based on oil, natural gas, agriculture, fishing and trapping. The coastal town of Cameron has been the nation's leading commercial fishing port. The cities of Hackberry, Grand Lake, Grand Chenier, Johnson Bayou and Creole, comprise the rest of the parish. It has a population of 10,200.
Jefferson Davis Parish is among the foremost oil producing parishes in Louisiana with 15 oil and gas producing fields. It has a population of 31,600 and is comprised of Jennings, Elton, Lacassine, Welsh, Lake Arthur and Fenton. |
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