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43-671: The McNeely House is a historic house located at 305 Main Street in Colfax in Grant Parish, Louisiana . It was built in 1883 as a two-story brick and frame large Creole -style cottage, and was expanded with small side wings in 1893. It has a second story gallery with square posts whose upper two-thirds are turned into Doric columns. The house was listed on the National Register of Historic Places on March 31, 1983. This article about

86-589: A property in Louisiana on the National Register of Historic Places is a stub . You can help Misplaced Pages by expanding it . Colfax, Louisiana Colfax is a town in, and the parish seat of, Grant Parish , Louisiana , United States, founded in 1869. Colfax is part of the Alexandria, Louisiana metropolitan area . The largely African American population of Colfax counted 1,558 at the 2010 census . Colfax

129-564: A Fusionist/ Democratic slate. Freedmen were defending Republican officials at the county courthouse and had gathered there as tensions rose in a post-election dispute. A contemporary report by the U.S. military documented the three white fatalities and 105 black victims by name, with 15-20 unidentified blacks found in the Red River . The disproportionate number of deaths between whites and blacks, and documented accounts that at least 50 black prisoners were executed while unarmed and under control of

172-492: A household in the town was $ 17,500, and the median income for a family was $ 20,000. Males had a median income of $ 25,313 versus $ 14,310 for females. The per capita income for the town was $ 10,155. About 36.3% of families and 41.0% of the population were below the poverty line , including 59.0% of those under age 18 and 25.3% of those age 65 or over. A facility burning explosives and munitions waste first opened in Colfax in 1985, and

215-559: Is dramatically moderated. Native American cultures along the river were diverse, developing specialized adaptations to the many different environments. Starting near the headwaters, the Plains division of the Lipan Apache dominated the western Red River area until the 18th century, when they were displaced by invading Comanche from the north. The middle part of the Red River was dominated by

258-405: Is most known for a Reconstruction Era massacre known as the Colfax massacre which took place Easter , April 13, 1873, to quell black voting. One hundred-fifty African Americans and three whites were killed in one of the most egregious acts of terrorism during Reconstruction. A white militia was led against freedmen by Christopher Columbus Nash , who claimed to have been elected sheriff on

301-530: Is recognized to mark this area of influence, with plantations and churches founded by Louisiana Creoles. Some of the sites are designated as destinations on the Louisiana African American Heritage Trail , established from 2008 onwards. The area along the lower Red River of Grant Parish, Louisiana and neighboring parishes had a mixture of hill-country farms and cotton plantations. In the early 19th century, settlers found that much of

344-428: Is water. As of the 2020 United States census , there were 1,428 people, 686 households, and 470 families residing in the town. As of the census of 2000, there were 1,659 people, 600 households, and 408 families residing in the town. The population density was 1,111.3 inhabitants per square mile (429.1/km ). There were 709 housing units at an average density of 474.9 per square mile (183.4/km ). The racial makeup of

387-769: The American Civil War .) In April 1815, Captain Henry Miller Shreve was the first person to bring a steamboat, the Enterprise , up the Red River. Fulton and Livingston, who claimed the exclusive right to navigate Louisiana waters by steamboat, sued Shreve in the District Court of New Orleans. The judge ruled that the monopoly claimed by the plaintiffs was illegal. That decision, along with a similar outcome in Gibbons v. Ogden , freed navigation on every river, lake or harbor in

430-512: The Denison Dam . The lake is also fed by the Washita River from the north. Beyond the dam it runs generally east towards Arkansas and receives Oklahoma's Muddy Boggy Creek on the left bank before turning southward near Texarkana . Soon after, the waterway crosses south into Louisiana . The sister cities of Shreveport and Bossier City were developed on either bank of the river, as were

473-535: The Governor of Texas blocked traffic from entering his state on the new bridge. The Red River Bridge Company of Texas owned the original toll bridge and had a dispute over its purchase deal. Oklahoma Governor William H. Murray sent the Oklahoma National Guard to reopen the bridge that July. Texas had to retreat when lawyers determined that Oklahoma had jurisdiction over both banks of the river. In June 2015,

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516-678: The Little Red River , Prairie Dog Town Fork Red River , Salt Fork Red River , North Fork Red River , Cross Bayou , Pease River , Washita River , Kiamichi River , Wichita River , Little Wichita River , Little River , Sulphur River , Bayou Brevelle , Loggy Bayou (through Lake Bistineau and Dorcheat Bayou ), the Blue River , as well as the Ouachita River (also known as the Black River at that point) not far (at Acme, Louisiana ) from

559-731: The Louisiana Army Ammunition Plant , 95 miles north. Terry Ralph Brown , has been the District 22 state representative from Colfax; he is one of only two Independents in the Louisiana House of Representatives . His family moved to Colfax in 1817. In 2016, Brown sponsored a bill to ban open burning of hazardous waste in Louisiana. Public schools in Grant Parish are operated by the Grant Parish School Board . As

602-573: The Red River Expedition to explore parts of the new lands of the 1803 Louisiana Purchase by traveling up the Red River. Jefferson wrote that the river was "in truth, next to the Missouri, the most interesting water of the Mississippi", in a letter to explorer William Dunbar . Having threaded the maze of bayous at the river's confluence, and the " Great Raft " of lodged driftwood, the expedition

645-410: The Red River flooded parts of northeast Texas, southwest Arkansas, southeast Oklahoma and Louisiana, from Denison Dam , to just south of Alexandria, Louisiana . The river reached its highest level in over 70 years, cresting in most of the affected areas at around 6–9 feet over the flood levels. At 4 PM on June 9, the river reached its maximum height of 37.14 feet. In 1943, Denison Dam was built on

688-637: The Wichita and Tonkawa . This area was prairie , where Native Americans constructed portable and temporary tepees for housing. They practiced limited farming and followed game in seasonal, nomadic hunting cycles. By the time of European contact, the eastern Piney Woods of the lower river courses were dominated by the numerous historic tribes of the Caddo Confederacy . They found plentiful game and fish, and also had good land for cultivating staple crops. In 1806, President Thomas Jefferson commissioned

731-658: The Fusion-Democrats and the Republicans held inaugurations and certified their own slates of local officers. Following the events of 1873, in 1874 Nash gathered many of the same men to establish the White League , a white supremacist paramilitary organization that operated on behalf of Democrats and eventually had chapters in many areas of Louisiana. It worked to intimidate and attack black voters, to run Republicans out of office, and to suppress black voting. On April 13, 1921,

774-512: The Red River Boundary Compact adopted in 1999 by the states of Oklahoma and Texas . This set the jurisdictional boundary between these states at the vegetation line on the south bank, but left title of adjacent property owners at the south bank. (The Red River actively meanders, as shown by a comparison of maps of the political boundaries defined by the river's course decades ago and currently.) The Red River Campaign (March–May 1864)

817-548: The Red River is very arid and receives little precipitation . As a result, much of the river above the Texas–Oklahoma border is intermittent, and until the river is past its great bend south in Arkansas, the flow varies widely. Most of the agriculture in the basin is sustained by groundwater , which is recharged with rainfall and riverflow. The lower course of the river flows through a series of marshes and swamps , where its flow

860-455: The Red River. The Red River's watershed covers 65,590 square miles (169,900 km ) and is the southernmost major river system in the Great Plains . Its drainage basin is mostly in the states of Texas and Oklahoma, but also covers parts of New Mexico, Arkansas and Louisiana. Its basin is characterized by flat, fertile agricultural land, with only a few major cities. The drainage basin of

903-683: The United States from interference by monopolies. When John Quincy Adams became Secretary of State in 1817, one of his highest priorities was to negotiate with Spain about the boundaries of the Louisiana Purchase. He negotiated with Luis de Onís , the Spanish Minister to the United States, and finally concluded the Adams–Onis Treaty , also known as the Treaty of 1819. The treaty defined

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946-660: The downriver cities of Alexandria and Pineville . After being joined from the north by the Black River (downstream name of the Ouachita River , its largest tributary) about 1.5 miles south of Acme , the river broadens into a complex network of marshlands west of the Mississippi River. Its waters eventually become a tributary of the Atchafalaya River and flow generally southward into the Gulf of Mexico . Tributaries include

989-745: The former Colfax High School was consolidated into Grant High School in Dry Prong , the only remaining school in the town is Colfax Elementary School. Red River of the South The south bank of the Red River formed part of the US–Mexico border from the Adams–Onís Treaty (in force 1821) until the Texas Annexation and the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo . The Red River is the second-largest river basin in

1032-416: The history of Reconstruction, especially in the Red River area and Louisiana. The association is raising funds to restore a bank in Colfax near the former courthouse site to use as a museum, archives and interpretive center. Colfax is located in western Grant Parish at 31°31′11″N 92°42′30″W  /  31.51972°N 92.70833°W  / 31.51972; -92.70833 (31.519783, -92.708446), on

1075-528: The militia's victory "marked the end of carpetbag misrule in the South." Because of similar insurgent paramilitary violence in other areas of the state, especially during campaigns and elections, federal troops remained in Louisiana until 1877, when they were removed on orders of U.S. President Rutherford B. Hayes . In 2007, the Red River Heritage Association was founded to collect and interpret

1118-524: The mouth. The Red River is salty through tributaries above Lake Texoma . The saltiness is caused by a natural phenomenon that dates back to ancient times. About 250 million years ago, an inland sea blanketed parts of what is now those states. As time passed, that sea evaporated, leaving salt deposits – mostly sodium chloride. Rock and silt eventually buried the deposits, but the salt continues to leach through natural seeps in tributaries above Lake Texoma, sending as much as 3,450 tons of salt per day flowing down

1161-460: The north about 10 mi (16 km) west-southwest of Frederick, Oklahoma to form the Red River proper. The combined river proceeds to follow a winding course east through one of the most arid parts of the Great Plains , receiving the Wichita River about 25 miles northeast of the city of Wichita Falls . Near Denison , the river exits the eastern end of Lake Texoma , a reservoir formed by

1204-707: The north, which drains into the North Canadian River ). It turns and flows southeast through Palo Duro Canyon in Palo Duro Canyon State Park at an elevation of 3,440 feet (1,050 m), and past Newlin, Texas , to cross the Oklahoma state line. About 2 miles south of Elmer, Oklahoma , the Salt Fork of the Red River joins from the north. These combined waters receive the North Fork Red River from

1247-535: The northeast side of the Red River , and has an elevation of 95 feet (29.0 m) above sea level. Louisiana Highway 8 passes through the center of town, leading east 2 miles (3 km) to U.S. Route 71 and south 12 miles (19 km) to Boyce . Alexandria is 26 miles (42 km) to the southeast. According to the United States Census 2010 , Colfax has a total area of 1.5 square miles (3.9 km ), of which 0.01 square miles (0.02 km ), or 0.54%,

1290-516: The raft further connected the Red and Atchafalaya rivers, accelerating the development of the Atchafalaya River channel. The Red River Bridge War of 1931 was a boundary conflict between Oklahoma and Texas over an existing toll bridge and a new free bridge crossing the Red River. A joint project to build a free bridge between Durant, Oklahoma and Denison, Texas turned into a major dispute when

1333-614: The river is 1,360 miles (2,190 km), with a mean flow of over 57,000 cubic feet per second (1,600 m /s) at the mouth. The Red River begins at the junction of Buck Creek and Prairie Dog Town Fork , in Harmon County, Oklahoma . Specialists have debated whether the North Fork or the Prairie Dog Town Fork is the true stem. Because of a cartographic error, the land between the north and south forks were claimed by both

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1376-524: The river's length in Louisiana was unnavigable because of a collection of fallen trees that formed a Great Raft over 160 miles (260 km) long. In 1839, Captain Henry Miller Shreve began clearing the log jam, but it was not completely cleared until the 1870s, when dynamite became available. The river was thereafter navigable, but north of Natchitoches it was restricted to small craft. Removal of

1419-523: The south bank of the river as the boundary between the United States and Spain, as of when it was surveyed and demarcated following 1819. That boundary continued to be recognized when Mexico gained its independence from Spain in 1821, and ongoingly when Texas became independent from Mexico in 1835–1836. It remained an official boundary until the United States Congress consented in October 2000 to

1462-601: The south fork. Today, the southern Prairie Dog Town Fork is considered the main fork, though the North Fork is as long and normally has a greater water flow. The southern fork is generally considered the main stem of the Red River and about 120 miles (190 km) long. It is formed in Randall County, Texas , near the county seat of Canyon , by the confluence of Tierra Blanca Creek and intermittent Palo Duro Creek (not to be confused with another Palo Duro Creek 75 miles to

1505-489: The southern Great Plains . It rises in two branches in the Texas Panhandle and flows east, where it serves as the border between the states of Texas and Oklahoma . It forms a short border between Texas and Arkansas before entering Arkansas. It forms much of the eastern border of Miller County, Arkansas , turning south near Fulton and flowing into Louisiana , where it feeds the Atchafalaya River. The total length of

1548-641: The state of Texas and the United States federal government . In 1852, Randolph B. Marcy 's expedition had followed the Prairie Dog Town Fork. Originally called Greer County, Texas , the US Supreme Court ruled that it belonged to the United States, which at the time oversaw the Oklahoma Territory . That territory was later incorporated into the state of Oklahoma , whose southern border follows

1591-553: The town was 67.81% African American , 30.98% White , 0.06% Native American , 0.06% Pacific Islander , 0.06% from other races , and 1.02% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 0.54% of the population. There were 600 households, out of which 33.3% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 30.3% were married couples living together, 32.5% had a female householder with no husband present, and 32.0% were non-families. 30.3% of all households were made up of individuals, and 12.8% had someone living alone who

1634-560: The white citizens of Colfax unveiled a 12-foot (3.7 m) marble obelisk that read, "In Loving Remembrance, Erected to the Memory of the Heroes, Stephen Decatur Parish, James West Hadnot, Sidney Harris. Who fell in the Colfax Riot, fighting for White Supremacy, April 13, 1873." In 1950 the state commerce department erected a historical marker identifying the site of the "Colfax Riot"; it says that

1677-493: The white militia, 20th-century historians redefined the "riot" as a "massacre". The event is significant because blacks, who comprised the majority in the parish, organized to defend themselves and their political rights and were mass murdered. The riot arose from the disputed gubernatorial election of 1872, finally determined in the favor of the Republican William Pitt Kellogg by the federal government. Both

1720-449: Was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.55 and the average family size was 3.16. In the town, the population was spread out, with 29.1% under the age of 18, 8.4% from 18 to 24, 24.4% from 25 to 44, 19.5% from 45 to 64, and 18.6% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 36 years. For every 100 females, there were 77.8 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 73.1 males. The median income for

1763-594: Was fought along the Red River Valley in Louisiana during the American Civil War . It was part of a failed attempt by the Union to occupy eastern Texas. Confederate commander Richard Taylor succeeded in repelling an army under Nathaniel Banks that was three times bigger than his own. In Louisiana, the area of present-day Natchitoches Parish was settled by French Creole and mixed-race Louisiana Creole people , starting before 1800. The Cane River National Heritage Area

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1806-420: Was licensed in 1993. Clean Harbors acquired it in 2002 from Safety-Kleen. The plant disposes of explosives and munitions waste by open burns from ammunition plants or defense contractors at "at least 42 locations across 22 states". In July 2017 it has been described as "the only commercial facility in the nation" allowed to do so without environmental emissions controls. It has been burning propellant waste from

1849-762: Was stopped by the Spanish near present-day New Boston, Texas . In 1806, Lieutenant Zebulon Pike , under orders to ascertain the source of the Red River, ascended the Arkansas River , made his way downstream on what turned out to be the Rio Grande , and was sent home by the Spanish authorities. A more successful exploration of the river's upper reaches to both its sources came with the 1852 expedition under Capt. Randolph Barnes Marcy , assisted by Brevet Capt. George B. McClellan . (A decade later McClellan became an important general in

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