Avoyelles Parish, Louisiana

Avoyelles Parish
Texas and Pacific Railroad Depot (Bunkie, Louisiana)
Flag of Avoyelles Parish
Map of Louisiana highlighting Avoyelles Parish
Location within the U.S. state of Louisiana
Map of the United States highlighting Louisiana
Louisiana's location within the U.S.
Coordinates: 31°04′N 92°00′W / 31.07°N 92°W / 31.07; -92
Country United States
State Louisiana
FoundedMarch 31, 1807
Named forAvoyel Native Americans
SeatMarksville
Largest cityMarksville
Area
 • Total
866 sq mi (2,240 km2)
 • Land832 sq mi (2,150 km2)
 • Water33 sq mi (90 km2)  3.8%
Population
 (2020)
 • Total
39,693
 • Density46/sq mi (18/km2)
Time zoneUTC−6 (Central)
 • Summer (DST)UTC−5 (CDT)
Congressional district5th
Websitewww.avoypj.org

Avoyelles (French: Paroisse des Avoyelles) is a parish located in central eastern Louisiana on the Red River where it effectively becomes the Atchafalaya River and meets the Mississippi River. As of the 2020 census, the population was 39,693.[1] The parish seat is Marksville.[2] The parish was created in 1807, with the name deriving from the French name for the historic Avoyel people, one of the local Indian tribes at the time of European encounter.[3]

Today the parish is the base of the federally recognized Tunica-Biloxi Indian Tribe, who have a reservation there. The tribe has a land-based gambling casino on their reservation. It is located in Marksville, the parish seat, which is partly within reservation land.

  1. ^ "Census - Geography Profile: Avoyelles Parish, Louisiana". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved January 21, 2023.
  2. ^ "Find a County". National Association of Counties. Archived from the original on May 31, 2011. Retrieved June 7, 2011.
  3. ^ "Avoyelles Parish". Center for Cultural and Eco-Tourism. Retrieved September 5, 2014.