ST. BERNARD PARISH, LOUISIANA

'St. Bernard Parish' (French: ''Paroisse de Saint-Bernard'') is a parish located in the U.S. state of Louisiana. As of 2000, its population was 67,229. In 2006, because of the effects of Hurricane Katrina, its population was estimated to be 25,489^[1]
The parish seat is Chalmette, the largest city in the parish. The most populated portion of the parish, in the areas near the Mississippi River, is part of the New Orleans metropolitan area.

Contents

Geography

Major Highways

Adjacent parishes and features

History

Hurricane Katrina and Its Aftermath

Demographics

Communities

Historical

Education

References

External links

Geography

The parish has a total area of 4,646 km² (1,794 mi²). 1,204 km² (465 mi²) of it is land and, at 3,441 km² (1,329 mi²) water. At 74.07% water, St. Bernard has the largest percentage of area in water of any parish in Louisiana.
The parish of St. Bernard comprises an area of 680 square miles, and embraces numerous small islands. The parish may be classed among the alluvial lands of the state. The ridges comprise the arable lands of the parish and have an area of 37,000 acres (150 km²). The principle streams are the Bayous Terre aux Boeufs and La Loutre. There are numerous smaller streams which are efficient drainage canals. The dominant tree species is bald cypress, of which the most valuable trees have been cut and manufactured.

Major Highways

★ Louisiana Highway 39

★ Louisiana Highway 46

★ Louisiana Highway 47

Adjacent parishes and features

★ Lake Borgne (north)

★ Mississippi River (south & west)

★ Gulf of Mexico (east)

★
★ Hancock County, Mississippi (water border)

★
★ Harrison County, Mississippi (water border)

★ Plaquemines Parish (south)

★ Orleans Parish (west & northwest)

History

St. Bernard Parish contains a small community of Spanish descent. Sometimes referred to, informally, as "Spanish Cajuns", the ''Isleños'' are descended from Canary Islanders who arrived around 1780. This linguistically isolated group eventually developed its own dialect. This settlement was first called ''La Concepion'' and ''Neuva Galvez'' by the Spanish officials, but later renamed ''Terre aux Boeufs'' (French), ''Tierra de Bueyes'' (Spanish) or "land of cattle". However, by the end of the 1780s, 'St. Bernard', the patron saint of Bernardo de Galvez, was used in documents describing the area. ^[2]
The chief historical attraction in St. Bernard Parish is the Chalmette National Historical Park (or Chalmette Battlefield), at which the Battle of New Orleans took place on January 8, 1815. Many street names near the battlefield bear the names of the chief participants, or take a pirate theme (since the pirate Jean Lafitte was considered to be a hero in the battle). Before Hurricane Katrina, there was a high school named in honor of (then Colonel) Andrew Jackson, who was the American commanding officer in the battle. The school reopened for the 2006-2007 school year as an elementary school.
From 1919 to 1969, the parish was effectively ruled as part of the fiefdom of Leander Perez, a local official in neighboring Plaquemines Parish.

During the Great Mississippi Flood of 1927, city and state leaders used dynamite to breach a levee at Caernarvon, thirteen miles below Canal Street, in order to save the city of New Orleans from flooding. However, this action resulted in the flooding of most of Eastern St. Bernard Parish and parts of Plaquemines Parish, causing widespread destruction. This action was also unnecessary, as the levees breached in over 100 other places.

Hurricane Katrina and Its Aftermath

On August 29, 2005, St. Bernard was devastated by Hurricane Katrina. The storm damaged virtually every structure in the parish. The eye of Katrina passed over the eastern portion of the parish, pushing a 25-foot storm surge into the Mississippi River Gulf Outlet ("MRGO"). This surge destroyed the parish levees. Almost the entire parish was flooded, most areas getting between 5 and 12 feet of standing water. There may have been as many as '''two''' homes untouched by flood waters. The water rose suddenly and violently, during a period that witnesses have reported as no more than fifteen minutes. In many areas, houses were smashed or washed off their foundations by storm surge higher than their roofs.
For more than two months after the storm, much of the parish remained without proper services, including electricity, water, and sewage. Parish President Henry "Junior" Rodriguez, declared all of the parish's homes unlivable. Emergency Communities offered one reason for hope in the first year after Hurricane Katrina. In the parking lot of a destroyed off-track betting parlor, EC built the Made with Love Cafe and Grill, a free kitchen and community center serving 1500 meals per day. Made with Love, housed in a geodesic dome, also offered food and clothing distribution, and emotionally supportive volunteers. Upon leaving, EC has offered logistical support for the founding of a new long-term community center for St. Bernard.
As of late November 2005, it was estimated that the Parish had some 7,000 full-time residents, with some 20,000 commuting to spend the day working, cleaning up, or salvaging in the parish and spending their nights elsewhere. By mid-December some businesses had returned to the Parish, most notably the ExxonMobil plant in Chalmette and the Domino Sugar plant in Arabi, together with a handful of small local stores and businesses.
At the start of January 2006, it was estimated that some 8,000 people were living in the Parish.
Since June 2006, Camp Hope has been housing volunteers assisting residents of St. Bernard Parish in their recovery from Hurricane Katrina. It is located at the W. Smith Elementary School, 6701 E. St. Bernard Highway, Violet, LA 70092.
Another community-building organization created in the aftermath of the hurricane is the H.O.P.E. Project (www.keep-hope.org), a small collective aiding in rebuilding Violet. The group ran a supply distribution center as well as a daycare and is now focused on construction.
A grass roots organization, the St. Bernard Project (www.stbernardproject.org), opened its doors in September 2006. A fully volunteer-run organization funded by the United Way, they help residents get back into their homes by working on the houses, providing tools, support and where possible, funding.
As of October 2006, the population was estimated to be 25,489^[1]

Demographics

As of the census² of 2000, there are 67,229 people (an increase of 598 or 0.9% over the previous decade), 25,123 households, and 18,289 families residing in the parish. The population density was 56/km² (145/mi²). There were 26,790 housing units at an average density of 22/km² (58/mi²). The racial makeup of the parish was 88.29% White, 7.62% Black or African American, 0.49% Native American, 1.32% Asian, 0.02% Pacific Islander, 0.73% from other races, and 1.52% from two or more races. 5.09% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.
There were 25,123 households out of which 33.70% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 53.40% were married couples living together, 14.60% had a female householder with no husband present, and 27.20% were non-families. 22.90% of all households were made up of individuals and 10.10% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.64 and the average family size was 3.12.
In the parish the population was spread out with 25.20% under the age of 18, 9.20% from 18 to 24, 29.20% from 25 to 44, 22.60% from 45 to 64, and 13.80% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 37 years. For every 100 females there were 93.60 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 90.10 males.
The median income for a household in the parish was $35,939, and the median income for a family was $42,785. Males had a median income of $34,303 versus $24,009 for females. The per capita income for the parish was $16,718. About 10.50% of families and 13.10% of the population were below the poverty line, including 16.50% of those under age 18 and 11.40% of those age 65 or over.

Communities

There are no incorporated areas in St. Bernard Parish.

★ Greater New Orleans

★
★ Arabi

★
★ Chalmette -- parish seat and parish's population center

★
★
★ Versailles

★
★ Meraux

★
★ Violet

★ Eastern St. Bernard

★
★ Caernarvon

★
★ Contreras

★
★ Delacroix

★
★ Hopedale

★
★ Kenilworth

★
★ Poydras

★
★ Reggio

★
★ Sebastopol

★
★ Shell Beach

★
★ Toca

★
★ Verret

★
★ Yscloskey

Historical

★ Fazendeville

★ Proctorville

★ St. Malo

Education

Public schools in the parish are operated by the St. Bernard Parish Public Schools agency.
Due to Hurricane Katrina, the parish's 20 plus public schools have been consolidated as one school, the St. Bernard Unified School, or SBUS. Starting in the 2006-2007 school year, the St. Bernard Unified School will break up into several different schools.
The parish is served by Nunez Community College.

References

1. New Orleans population still cut by more than half
2. Din, Gilbert "The Canary Islanders of Louisiana", 1988
3. New Orleans population still cut by more than half

External links

★ Official website of the St. Bernard's Parish Government

★ St. Bernard Chamber of Commerce

★ The Isleños of St. Bernard Parish

★ H.O.P.E. Project of Violet, Louisiana

★ Post-Katrina cleanup and volunteer efforts

★ Hurricane Katrina Journal by Samantha Perez of St. Bernard Parish

★ St Bernard Health Statistics, History, and Vital Information

★ Chalmation.net St. Bernard Internet Portal

★ St. Bernard Parish Net Online Guide to St. Bernard Parish