Baton Rouge is the capital of Louisiana and located in East Baton Rouge Parish along the Mississippi River. The city is a large research, medical, technology and industrial center of the South. Baton Rouge is located 157 miles north of the Gulf of Mexico and 80 miles out of New Orleans.
Baton Rouge Diversity Statistics
It's very common to hear a French accent in Baton Rouge today, with more than one-third of the population of Louisiana having French ancestry. Interestingly, Baton Rouge did not develop ethnic neighborhoods like most developing cities but instead settlement based on wealth. This led Asians, Cajuns, Italians, and other Europeans to live side-by-side, although the black community was the exception.
Over the last 50 years, there has been a great deal of migration of black people from the rural areas to the urban area of Baton Rouge. In 1960, the city was only 30% black.
Baton Rouge Population Growth
Baton Rouge has been one of the fastest-growing cities in the South with a population that exploded briefly after Hurricane Katrina when it accepted about 200,000 displaced residents. It is still one of the fastest-growing metropolitan areas in the country among areas with a population under one million. Last year, the city was ranked number one in the country for economic growth.
The city is now experiencing stagnant population growth while the suburbs are proliferating. In 2013, the city's population was 229,400, about 580 less than the previous year and 0.03% down from 2010.
Baton Rouge Facts
- Baton Rouge is French for "Red Stick"
- Baton Rouge has been under seven governments: French, English, Spanish, West Floridian, Louisiana, Confederate, and American.
- Baton Rouge was an independent republic for 74 days.
- The city's port is the 9th largest in the U.S. in terms of shipped tonnage.
- Baton Rouge's State Capital Building is the tallest in the country.