Shreveport, Louisiana was founded in 1836 by the Shreve Town Company, a corporation established to develop a town at the juncture of the newly navigable Red River and the Texas Trail, an overland route into the newly independent Republic of Texas and, prior to that time, into Mexico.^[5]

Shreveport is the commercial and cultural center of the Ark-La-Tex, the area where Arkansas, Louisiana, and Texas meet. Many people in the community refer to the two cities of Shreveport and Bossier City, which are separated only by the Red River, as "Shreveport-Bossier".

[edit] History

Main article: History of Shreveport

[edit] Early settlers

The town was founded in 1836 by the Shreve Town Company, a development corporation established to start a town at the meeting point of the Red River and the Texas Trail. The Red River was cleared and made newly navigable by Captain Henry Miller Shreve, who commanded the United States Army Corps of Engineers. A 180-mile (289 km) long natural logjam, the Great Raft, had previously obstructed passage to shipping. Shreve used a specially modified riverboat, the Heliopolis, to remove the logjam. The company and the village of Shreve Town were named in Shreve's honor.^[6]

Map of Shreveport in 1920

Shreve Town was originally contained within the boundaries of a section of land sold to the company by the indigenous Caddo Indians in the year of 1835. In 1838, Caddo Parish was created from the large Natchitoches Parish (pronounced "NACK-a-tish") and Shreve Town became the parish seat. Shreveport remains the parish seat of Caddo Parish today. On March 20, 1839, the town was incorporated as "Shreveport". Originally, the town consisted of 64 city blocks, created by eight streets running west from the Red River and eight streets running south from Cross Bayou, one of its tributaries.

Shreveport soon became a center of steamboat commerce, mostly cotton and agricultural crops. Shreveport also had a slave market, though slave trading was not as widespread as in other parts of the state. Both slaves and freedmen worked on the river steamboats which plied the Red River, and as stevedores loading and unloading cargo. By 1860, Shreveport had a free population of 2,200 and 1,300 slaves within the city limits.

Skyline of Shreveport in 1953

During the U.S. Civil War, Shreveport was capital of Louisiana (1863-1865). The city was a Confederate stronghold and was the site of the headquarters of the Trans-Mississippi Department of the Confederate Army. Isolated from events in the east, the Civil War continued in the Trans-Mississippi theater for several weeks after Robert E. Lee's surrender in April 1865, and the Trans-Mississippi was the last Confederate Command to surrender (May 26, 1865). Confederate President Jefferson Davis attempted to flee to Shreveport when he left Richmond but was captured in Georgia en route.

The Red River, opened by Shreve in the 1830s, remained navigable until 1914 when disuse, owing to the rise of the railroad, once again resulted in the river becoming unnavigable. In 1994, the Red River was restored to navigability by the Army Corps of Engineers with the completion of a series of lock and dam structures and a navigation channel. Today, Shreveport-Bossier City is again being developed as a port and shipping center.

[edit] Twentieth century

By the 1910s, Huddie William Ledbetter - also known as "Leadbelly" (1889-1949), a blues singer and guitarist who eventually achieved worldwide fame - was performing for Shreveport audiences in St. Paul's Bottoms, the notorious red light district of Shreveport which operated legally from 1903 to 1917. Ledbetter began to develop his own style of music after exposure to a variety of musical influences on Shreveport's Fannin Street, a row of saloons, brothels, and dance halls in the Bottoms.

Skyline of Shreveport in 1953

Shreveport was also home to the "Louisiana Hayride" radio program, broadcast weekly from the city's Municipal Auditorium. During its heyday from 1948 to 1960, this program spawned the careers of some of the greatest names in American music. The Hayride featured names such as Hank Williams, Sr. and Elvis Presley (who got his start at this venue).

In 1963, headlines across the country reported that Sam Cooke was arrested after his band tried to register at a “whites only” Holiday Inn in Shreveport.^[7] In the months following, Cooke recorded the civil rights era song, A Change Is Gonna Come.

The coming of riverboat gambling to Shreveport in the mid-1990s spurred a revitalization of the downtown and riverfront areas. Many downtown streets were given a facelift through the "Streetscape" project, where brick sidewalks and crosswalks were built and various artistic statues, sculptures, and mosaics were added. The Texas Street Bridge was lit up with controversial neon lights,^[8] initially accompanied by a green laser which was eventually abandoned.^{[citation needed]}

[edit] Geography

Shreveport is located at 32°28′5″N, 93°46′16″W (32.468003, -93.771115)^[9] and has an elevation of 144 feet (43.9 m).^[10] According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 117.8 square miles (305.1 km²), of which, 103.1 square miles (267.1 km²) of it is land and 14.6 square miles (37.9 km²) of it (12.44%) is water.

Satelitte Image of Shreveport

[edit] Landscape

Shreveport's landscape sits on a low elevation overlooking the Red River. Pine forests, cotton fields, wetlands, and waterways mark the outskirts of the city.

[edit] Climate

Shreveport has a humid subtropical climate (Koppen climate classification Cfa). Rainfall is abundant with the normal annual rain just over 51 inches, with monthly averages ranging less than 3 inches in August to more than 5 inches in May and June. Severe thunderstorms with heavy rain, hail and occasional tornadoes occur in the area during the spring. The winter months are normally mild with an average of 39 days of freezing or below-freezing temperatures per year, though ice and sleet storms do occur. Summer months are very warm and humid, with maximum temperatures exceeding 95 degrees about 32 days per year, with high to very high relative average humidity sometimes exceeding the 90 percent level.

Month	Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec	Year
Average high °F (°C)	56 (13)	61 (16)	69 (20)	77 (25)	83 (28)	90 (32)	93 (33)	93 (33)	88 (31)	79 (26)	67 (19)	59 (15)	76 (24)
Average low °F (°C)	36 (2)	39 (3)	46 (7)	54 (12)	62 (16)	70 (21)	73 (22)	72 (22)	66 (18)	55 (12)	45 (7)	38 (3)	55 (12)
Average precipitation: inches (cm)	4.1 (10)	4.0 (10)	3.7 (9)	4.6 (11)	5.1 (12)	4.1 (10)	3.6 (9)	2.5 (6)	3.1 (7)	3.7 (9)	4.1 (10)	4.2 (10)	46.9 (119)

Source: Weatherbase^[11]

[edit] Neighborhoods

Shreveport encompasses many different neighborhoods and districts. Below is a list of the various areas in Greater Shreveport.

Victorian style house near downtown

Allendale
Anderson Island
Blanchard
Broadmoor
Cedar Grove
Cooper Road
Cross Lake

Greenwood
Highland
Ingleside
Jack Quarters
Jewella-South Park
Hyde Park
Keithville

Lakeside
Ledbetter Heights
LSUS-University Area
Madison Park
Mooretown
Pines Road
Queensborough

Riverfront District
Shreve Island
Shreve City
South Highlands
Southern Hills
Southern Trace
Spring Lake

[edit] Demographics

Shreveport-Bossier City MSA Historical populations
Census	Pop.	%±
1970	336,000	—
1980	376,789	12.1%
1990	376,330	−0.1%
2000	392,302	4.2%

As of the census^[12] of 2000, there were 200,145 people,^[2] 78,662 households, and 50,422 families residing in the city limits. The population density was 1,940.5 people per square mile (749.2/km²). There were 86,802 housing units, at an average density of 324.9/km² (841.6/sq mi). The racial makeup of the city was 50.80% African American, 46.66% White, 0.79% Asian, 0.31% Native American, 0.03% Pacific Islander, 0.45% from other races, and 0.95% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 1.55% of the population. From 1990 to 2000, the city's white non-Hispanic population declined from 53.6% to 45.9%, a -7.7% decline. By 2004, among all groups, Shreveport lost 0.8% of its 2000 census population.

There were 78,662 households, out of which 30.1% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 38.3% were married couples living together, 21.5% had a female householder with no husband present, and 35.9% were non-families. 30.8% of all households were made up of individuals, and 10.9% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.48 and the average family size was 3.12. Population ages ranked as follows: 26.9% under the age of 18, 10.7% from 18 to 24, 27.4% from 25 to 44, 21.1% from 45 to 64, and 13.9% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 34 years. The city ranks third in the nation of cities over 100,000 population with significant gender disparity: for every 100 females there were only 87.4 males, and for every 100 females age 18 and over, there were just 82.1 males. According to 2005 FBI statistics, Shreveport ranks 18th in overall crime rate among cities of 100,000-250,000 persons, with a murder rate of 19.6 per 100,000 population.

The median income for a household in the city was $30,526, 72.4% of the national median of $42,148, and the median income for a family was $37,126. Males had a median income of $31,278 versus $21,659 for females. The per capita income for the city was $17,759. About 18.7% of families and 22.8% of the population were below the poverty line, including 33.3% of those under age 18 and 16.3% of those age 65 or over.

Shreveport Federal Courthouse

[edit] Government and politics

Main article: Politics of Shreveport

Founded in 1836 and incorporated in 1871, Shreveport is the parish seat of Caddo Parish. It is part of the First Judicial District, housing the Parish courthouse. It also houses the Second Circuit Court of Appeal, which consists of nine elected judges representing 20 Parishes in Northwest Louisiana. A portion of east Shreveport extends into Bossier Parish due to the changing course of the Red River.

The city of Shreveport has a mayor-council government. The City's elected officials are: the mayor, and members of the city council.

Under the mayor-council government, the mayor serves as the executive officer of the city. As the city's chief administrator and official representative, the mayor is responsible for the general management of the city and for seeing that all laws and ordinances are enforced.

[edit] Economy

Main article: Economy of Shreveport

Regions Tower, the tallest building in Downtown Shreveport.

Shreveport was once a major player in United States oil business and at one time could boast Standard Oil of Louisiana as a locally based company. The Louisiana branch was later absorbed by Standard Oil of New Jersey. In the 1980s, the oil and gas industry suffered a large economic downturn, and many companies cut back jobs or went out of business, including a large retail shopping mall, South Park Mall, which closed in the late 1990's and is now Summer Grove Baptist Church. Shreveport suffered severely from this recession, and many residents left the area.

Today the city has largely transitioned to a service economy. In particular, the area has seen a rapid growth in the gaming industry, hosting various riverboat gambling casinos, and was second only to New Orleans in Louisiana tourism before Hurricane Katrina. Nearby Bossier City is home to one of the three horse racetracks in the state, Harrah's Louisiana Downs. Casinos in Shreveport-Bossier include Sam's Town Casino, Eldorado Casino, Horseshoe Casino, Boomtown Casino, and Diamond Jacks Casino (formerly Isle of Capri). The Shreveport-Bossier Convention & Tourist Bureau is the official tourism information agency for the region. The bureau maintains a comprehensive database of restaurants, accommodations, attractions and events.

In May 2005, the Louisiana Boardwalk, a 550,000 square foot (51,000 m²) shopping and entertainment complex, opened across the Red River in Bossier City, featuring outlet shopping, several restaurants, a 14-screen movie theater, a bowling complex, and a Bass Pro Shop.

A new 350,000 square-foot convention center was recently completed in downtown Shreveport with an 800 space parking garage. An adjoining 12-story Hilton Hotel was recently completed and opened in early June 2007. The hotel has been extremely controversial in that while it is managed by Hilton Hotels, it is actually owned by the city and paid for with public funds. The Shreveport Convention Center is managed by SMG.

Shreveport has started a film industry with its very own sound stage and the largest wave pool^[clarify] for movie production (see List of Movies Made in Shreveport).

Centenary College entrance

[edit] Education

Main article: Caddo Public Schools (Louisiana)

Caddo Public Schools is a school district based in Shreveport. The district serves all of Caddo Parish.

Its founding superintendent was Clifton Ellis Byrd, a Virginia native, who assumed the chief administrative position in 1907 and continued until his death in 1926. C.E. Byrd High School, which was established in 1925 and is located on Line Avenue in Shreveport, bears his name.

Shreveport has two principal colleges, the Methodist-affiliated Centenary College (founded at Jackson, Louisiana in 1825; relocated to Shreveport in 1908) and Louisiana State University at Shreveport, which opened as a two-year institution in 1967. It became four-year in 1976. There is also the only medical school in north Louisiana: Louisiana State University Health Sciences Center Shreveport, which opened in 1969. Shreveport also has one of the largest nursing schools in North Louisiana: the Northwestern State University College of Nursing.

[edit] Culture

Further information: People from Shreveport

Northwest Louisiana is an amazing region with parishes rich in charm and heritage. A perfect weave of many groups, interests, and traditions make up the fabric of this prosperous locale. You’ll find the folks here hospitable and hardworking. Everyone takes part and has pride in making sure Greater Shreveport maintains its status as an All-America City and its reputation as America’s Caring Community.^[13]

[edit] Visual and performing arts

The historic Strand Theater

Shreveport Symphony Orchestra
Shreveport Opera
Shreveport Metropolitan Ballet
The Strand Theatre
R.W. Norton Art Gallery
Multicultural Center of the South
Louisiana State Exhibit Museum
Robinson Film Center
Barnwell Memorial Garden and Art Center
East Bank Theatre - Bossier City
Shreveport Little Theatre
Artspace Shreveport Directed by William Joyce
Meadows Museum of Art - Centenary College
Southern University Museum of Art

Texas Street Bridge crossing over the Red River

[edit] Events and tourism

Cinco De Mayo fiesta Shreveport
Red River Revel is a yearly event featuring local music, food and entertainers.
Mudbug Madness a celebration of the crawfish
Holiday in Dixie
Louisiana State Fair
Independence Bowl
Louisiana Film Festival - Centenary College
Shriner's Circus
Mardi Gras

[edit] Recreation and attractions

Louisiana Boardwalk in Bossier City

Louisiana Boardwalk - Bossier City
J. Bennett Johnston Waterway Regional Visitor Center - history of Red River
Sci-Port Discovery Center and IMAX Theater
Water Town USA (Shreveport)|Water Town USA
Riverwalk Park
Clyde Fant Park named for Mayor Fant (1946–1954; 1958–1970) along the Red River.
Cross Lake
The Gardens of the American Rose Center
The National Rose Garden the world's largest rose garden.
Azalea Gardens of the R.W. Norton Art Gallery
Touchstone Wildlife & Art Museum - Haughton, Louisiana
Yogie and Friends Exotic Cat Sanctuary
Chimp Haven
Barnwell Garden & Art Center
Shreveport Municipal Auditorium first performance of Elvis Presley
Spring Street Museum

Statue of Elvis Presley in front of the Municipal Auditorium

Pioneer Heritage Center at LSUS
8th Air Force Museum - Barksdale Airforce Base, Bossier City
Antique, Classic Vehicle and Firefighters Museum of Shreveport
Spirit of the Red River
Shreveport-Bossier Personal Training & Fitness

[edit] Movie Production

Main article: List of Movies Made in Shreveport

Shreveport has high rate of production as compare to other Louisiana cities, helping it to garner the title of Hollywood South. Currently Louisiana is ranked only behind California and New York in volume of film production. Millennium Films has recently built a studio lot in Shreveport. The cities of New Orleans and Baton Rouge have also seen more movies filmed in their metropolitan areas.

Just a few of the movies shot in Shreveport include:

The Guardian (2006): Ashton Kutcher and Kevin Costner
Not Like Everyone Else (2006) (TV Movie)
Factory Girl (2006): Sienna Miller and Guy Pierce
Blonde Ambition (2007): Jessica Simpson
The Cleaner (2007): Samuel L. Jackson
The Last Lullaby (2007): Tom Sizemore
Wonderful World (2007): Matthew Broderick
Welcome Home Roscoe Jenkins(2008): Michael Clarke Duncan, Martin Lawrence
The Untitled Ice Cube Movie (2008): Ice Cube, Keke Palmer, and Fred Durst
The Year One (2008): Jack Black and Michael Cera
Deadly Exchange (2009): John McTiernan

[edit] Sports

thumb|100px|left

Shreveport and Bossier City share an af2 arena football team, the Bossier-Shreveport Battle Wings, as well as a Central Hockey League team, the Bossier-Shreveport Mudbugs.

Shreveport is the home of the Shreveport Aftershock of the Independent Women's Football League. The Aftershock play in the Midsouth Division of the Eastern Conference of the IWFL. The home field for the Aftershock is Independence Stadium.^[14]

Baseball in Shreveport has an extensive past. The current team is a Minor League Baseball team known as the Shreveport Sports. Baseball teams in Shreveport have gone through 8 different name changes and 7 different leagues all since 1895.

Shreveport's rugby team, the Shreveport Rugby Football Club, was founded in 1977 and participates in the Texas Rugby Football Union.

Shreveport had an expansion team, the Shreveport Steamer, of the defunct World Football League in 1974. They played in State Fair Stadium (now known as Independence Stadium) from September 1974 till October 1975. The Shreveport Steamer were originally the Houston Texans and moved to Shreveport in September 1974. In 1974 they had a record of 7-12-1 and in 1975 5-7. Shreveport also had a CFL football team in the mid-1990's known as the Shreveport Pirates. Bernard Glieberman, a Detroit real estate developer, owned the Ottawa Rough Riders and in 1994, he sold the team and then purchased the expansion franchise that ultimately wound up in Shreveport. He was allowed to take a handful of Ottawa players with him, including quarterback Terrence Jones. However, the Pirates were another American CFL team that ultimately became unsuccessful. Their first victory did not come until the 15th week of their initial season, and in 1995, all their victories were against Canadian teams. By 1996 the team had folded up.

CenturyTel Center

Shreveport is the birthplace of several football stars. Terry Bradshaw, a former quarterback for Louisiana Tech & the Pittsburgh Steelers, Jacob Hester, a running back for the 2007 NCAA National Champions LSU; Josh Booty, a former shortstop for the Florida Marlins and former quarterback for the Cleveland Browns and Oakland Raiders and his younger brother John David Booty, quarterback for USC Shreveport was also mentioned as a potential city to temporarily house the NFL's New Orleans Saints in 2005 after Hurricane Katrina, but was passed over for San Antonio and LSU Stadium. The Saints did play a game in Shreveport against the Dallas Cowboys during the 2006 NFL preseason.

Shreveport has hosted the NCAA postseason Independence Bowl since 1976. [1]

[edit] Media/press

[[Image:Times-half.jpg|thumb|200px|left|The Shreveport Times Newspaper]] Shreveport is served by a variety of print publications. The major daily newspaper serving the Shreveport-Bossier and Ark-La-Tex area is The Shreveport Times. Its headquarters are located in downtown Shreveport. Other smaller non-daily newspapers in the area include The Shreveport Sun, the Caddo Citizen. Bossier City is served by the bi-weekly Bossier Press-Tribune. The Bombardier is the weekly newspaper of record for the Barksdale Air Force Base. In addition alternative publications include, The Forum Newsweekly, City Lights, and SB Magazine.

Shreveport and Bossier City are served by two major cable television systems: Shreveport is served by Comcast and Bossier City is served by Suddenlink.

Shreveport also is home to several radio and television stations that serve the metropolitan area.

Further information: Media of Shreveport

[edit] Military installations

Barksdale Air Force Base is located in Bossier Parish across the river from Shreveport, which donated the land for its construction in the 1920s. Named for pioneer army aviator Lt. Eugene Hoy Barksdale and originally called Barksdale Army Air Field, it opened in 1933 and became Barksdale Air Force Base in 1947. Headquartered here are the 8th Air Force, 2d Bomb Wing, and 917th Wing. The primary plane housed here is the Boeing B52 Stratofortress. In earlier years, the base was the home to other famous planes, including the B-47.

Shreveport is home to the 2-108th Cavalry Squadron, the reconnaissances element of the 256th Infantry Brigade. Three of the squadron's four Cavalry Troops are located at 400 East Stoner Ave. in a historic armory known as "Fort Humbug".

[edit] Transportation

Main article: Transportation in Shreveport

[edit] Highways and roads

Shreveport interstate intersections

Shreveport's past reflects the need for mass transit and public roads. As far back as the 1870s, residents used mule drawn street cars that were later converted to electric-motorized cars by 1890. Commuter rail systems in Shreveport flourished for many decades, and rail car lines extended out to rural areas. In 1930, trolleys and rail cars began to be replaced by buses, although motor buses did not finally replace all trolley service until the 1960s. In the 1960s the Federal Interstate system came to the area with construction of Interstate 20.

The local public transportation provider, Sportran, provides moderately extensive bus service throughout Shreveport and Bossier City. Sportran operates 7 days a week on 17 bus routes (5 night routes) from 6:00 a.m. to 1:00 a.m., with no night service on Sunday.

The highway system has a cross-hair and loop freeway structure similar to that of Texas cities like Houston and Dallas. The loop consists of The Outer Loop Freeway Interstate 220 on the north and The Inner Loop Freeway, Louisiana Highway 3132 on the south, forming approximately an 8-mile diameter semi-loop around downtown. Another loop is formed by the Bert Kouns Industrial Loop, (Louisiana Highway 526) and circles further south bisecting Interstate 49.

Shreveport Regional Airport in western Shreveport.

Shreveport lies along the route of the proposed Interstate 69 NAFTA superhighway that will link Canada, the U.S. industrial Midwest, Texas, and Mexico.

[edit] Airports

Shreveport is served by two airports—the larger of which is the Shreveport Regional Airport (SHV). The second airport is Shreveport Downtown Airport (DTN). The Downtown Municipal Airport is a general aviation/reliever airport located north of the Downtown Business District. The airport is located along the Red River and is the original Shreveport commercial airport, dating back to 1931.

[edit] References

^ "Shreveport, Louisiana (LA) Detailed Profile" (notes), City Data, 2007, webpage: C-Shrv.
^ ^a ^b "Census 2000 Data for the State of Louisiana" (town list), US Census Bureau, May 2003, webpage: C2000-LA.
^ "2005 Census of Governments;" U.S. Census Bureau, webpage: CB-2005, p. 9
^ United States Census
^ You must specify title = and url = when using {{cite web}}.. Retrieved on 2008-06-10.
^ City of Shreveport's City History
^ "Negro Band Leader Held in Shreveport", The New York Times, October 9, 1963. News reports also appeared on October 12 in The Shreveport Sun. Sources cited in the book Dream Boogie: The Triumph of Sam Cooke by Peter Guralnick.
^ Notice from City of Shreveport regarding bridge repairs
^ US Gazetteer files: 2000 and 1990. United States Census Bureau (2005-05-03). Retrieved on 2008-01-31.
^ US Board on Geographic Names. United States Geological Survey (2007-10-25). Retrieved on 2008-01-31.
^ Historical Weather for Shreveport
^ American FactFinder. United States Census Bureau. Retrieved on 2008-01-31.
^ You must specify title = and url = when using {{cite web}}.. Retrieved on 2008-06-10.
^ Shreveport Aftershock - Schedule. Shreveport Aftershock. Retrieved on 2008-01-05.

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v • d • e City of Shreveport & Shreveport/Bossier City Metro

Topics	History \| Geography \| Politics \| Economy \| Education \| Culture \| Media \| Transportation \| Shreveporters

Shreveport Neighborhoods	Downtown \| Riverfront District \| Highlands \| Shreve City \| Anderson Island \| Broadmoor \| Riverfront District \| Shreve Island \| Southern Hills \| Jewella-South Park \| Cross Lake \| LSUS-University Area \| Greenwood \| Blanchard \| Texas Border

The Ark-La-Tex	Shreveport \| Bossier City \| Texarkana \| Atlanta \| Stonewall \| Mansfield \| Minden \| Homer \| Haynesville \| Magnolia \| Hope \| Waskom \| Marshall \| Longview \| Jefferson \| Carthage

v • d • e Municipalities and communities of Caddo Parish, Louisiana

Parish seat: Shreveport

City	Shreveport

Towns	Blanchard \| Greenwood \| Oil City \| Vivian

Villages	Belcher \| Gilliam \| Hosston \| Ida \| Mooringsport \| Rodessa

Unincorporated community	Keithville