Assumption Parish, in the heart of Louisiana’s “Sugar Bowl” is located about 60 miles west of New Orleans and 30 miles south of Baton Rouge. The southern tip of the parish is about 25 miles from the Gulf of Mexico. The parish has a length of 25 miles and a width of 18 miles. Elevations range from 23 feet above sea level along the high natural levee of Bayou Lafourche near Donaldsonville to near sea level in the swamps south of Lake Verret. The total area of the parish is 236,962 acres, of which 21,654 acres is water. The population of Assumption Parish in 1970 was 19,654. Under French and Spanish rule, Assumption formed a part of the “Lafourche Settlement.”
The first permanent settlements in this region were made by the French and Spanish about the middle of the 18th century along the Lafourche, between the present towns of Donaldsonville and Napoleonville. From 1755 to 1764, the population was increased by the immigration of the exiled Acadians who entered the area clearing the land and building comfortable homes. Many of their descendents are still numerous in the parish today. In 1785, Assumption had a population of 646. By an act of the legislature of Orleans territory in 1807, Assumption was created as the 8th parish of the territory. The parish received its name from a parish church established in 1793 in Plattenville. Napoleonville, situated on Bayou Lafourche, at about the center of the parish, is the parish seat. Napoleonville has always been the parish seat. The courthouse was built in 1895. The town was officially incorporated on March 11, 1878 and was named by a soldier who served under Napoleon Bonaparte. Other communities in the parish are Belle Rose, Paincourtville, Pierre Part, Plattenville, Labadieville and Bayou L’Ourse.
Sugarcane is the primary agricultural product as well as the primary industry. In proportion to its area, Assumption Parish produces more sugar than any parish of Louisiana. Although sugarcane is an agricultural pursuit, the grinding and refining of cane is a large industrial activity for the parish. The parish has two sugar mills. Westfield and Lula factories grind approximately 2.1 millions tons of sugarcane annually.
Sugar production and sugar mills supply the largest employment, especially during harvest season, but there are also a number of other industries primarily related to the oil and gas business - especially boat and ship building and fabricators. Oil and gas have been produced in the parish since 1943.
The parish boasts of a tremendous crawfish industry. Pond-cultivated crawfish harvesting begins as early as December. In early spring, harvesting pond crawfish picks up speed and the “wild crop” comes in. Bountiful supplies are continuous through June. The community of Pierre Part is the real crawfish capital of the U. S.
Bayou Lafourche is an important Mississippi River distributary that flows southward through the parish from Donaldsonville. The bayou is 107 miles long from Donaldsonville to its mouth emptying into the Gulf of Mexico. The road along the western bank of Bayou Lafourche (LA 1) has been described as the longest street in the world.
The recreational potential in Assumption is an outdoors man’s dream. Grand Bayou, Bayou Corne, Bayou Pierre Part, Lake Verret and others offer water sports and fishing. Swamps and woodlands provide excellent hunting areas. Bayou Lafourche, which runs the full length of the parish, provides fresh water for the parish-wide purification and distribution system and also provides boating and water sports.
Stop in Assumption Parish and visit with us. You’re always welcome!