Lafayette

Lafayette
City
Clockwise from top: Lafayette skyline; Old Lafayette; National History Museum; Palais National; National Assembly Building
Capital Act	1817
Government
• Mayor	Marie-Louise Mercier
Population  (2020)
• City	2,124,932
• Metro	6,038,292
Demonym	Lafayettois
Time zone	UTC +6
Area code	(+64)

Lafayette, formerly Bourgmont from 1817-1835, is the capital and largest city in the Federal Republic of Louisiana with 2.1 million people within the city limits and 6 million in the Greater Lafayette metropolitan area. The city is part of the Central Louisiana Megalopolis, which is home to around 17 million people.

As of 2020, the city itself has 2.1 million people, and is the most densely populated city in Louisiana, as well as one of the most densely populated in North America. The Greater Lafayette region had just over 6 million people, making it the largest in Louisiana. The majority language of the city is French, spoken by 85% of the population, making Lafayette the second largest city in the world where French is spoken as the majority language, just behind Paris (Lafayette is expected to overtake Paris by 2025). The city is home to a number of immigrant communities, who make up a substantial part of the population.

Founded at the confluence of the Missouri and Cansez Rivers, Lafayette has served as the national capital since the National Assembly held its first session in the Old Parliament Building in 1827. Upon the death of Marquis de Lafayette in 1834, the city was renamed in his honor. The city has since grown from the small capital in the 1820s and 30s to becoming the largest city in Louisiana by 2005. The site chosen was on the south bank of the Missouri on the river bluffs near what Louis and Clark had termed "Kaw Point". A plan for the city was drawn up in 1815, known as the "Le Favreau Plan". Construction began a year later in 1816.

Lafayette is known as the center of government in Louisiana, and is also known for its culture, local cuisine, and history. The city is home to a large number of international companies in addition to most of the branches and ministries of the Federal Government, who remains the largest employer in the city. The city serves as a major inland port and transportation hub, being near the center of the country. Many major Autoroutes pass through the city, and the city is the major hub for the LGV as well as Saribal, the flag carrier of Louisiana.

The city contains several well known neighborhoods, such as the Government Ward, Old Lafayette District, Red Hill Neighborhood, and River Market District. In addition, the city is home to the University of Lafayette, one of the highest ranked universities in Louisiana. The city is also home to a number of sports teams including FC Lafayette (soccer), Lafayette Frontier (Basketball), and the Lafayette Capitals (Hockey). Lafayette has also hosted the World's Fair twice- once in 1898 and again in 2008, and hosted the 2016 Summer Olympics.

History

Early History

The site had long been inhabited by Native Louisianans for thousands of years. The area was first mapped by Étienne de Veniard, Sieur de Bourgmont, who was fleeing French authorities. To clear his name he wrote Exact Description of Louisiana, of Its Harbors, Lands and Rivers, and Names of the Indian Tribes That Occupy It and then the Commerce and Advantages to Be Derived Therefrom for the Establishment of a Colony followed by The Route to Be Taken to Ascend the Missouri River in 1714.

The Spanish took over in 1763 when France ceded it in the Treaty of Paris, but they did not play much of a role in the region besides taxing and giving out licenses. The French continued to operate under the Spanish trapping licenses, and in 1803 the site was used as a camp for the Lewis and Clark expedition who described it as a "good place for a fort". And in that fashion, Fort-Bourgmont was established on the river bluffs in 1809. For the next few years the fort remained on the fringes of settled land in Louisiana.

The site gained importance upon independence, when the government decided to move the center of government away from the vulnerable New Orleans to a more defensible position inland and near the center of the country to spur development and population growth there. A team of surveyors was sent in 1816, construction began on the Le Favreau Plan the following year. The government held its first session inside the Old Parliament Building 10 years later in 1827. The city was still considered a backwater with a small population (around 3,000 at this time).

Growth

The advent of the railroad proved to be a huge boon to the city due to its placement at the center of the country. By 1860, the city had become the largest rail hub in the country, followed by Saint Louis. The population continued to swell during this time, as the government increased in size and railroads brought in more business. By 1880, the city reached 100,000 people, making it the third largest city in Louisiana after New Orleans and Saint Louis. The city became home to large numbers of German, Irish, and Italian immigrants who transformed it from an almost exclusively Francophone city into a city with a large immigrant population.

By 1900, the city had grown to 225,000 people, and still remained the third largest city, but by this time its growth had outpaced that of New Orleans, which was still the largest city. A number of projects in the late 19th and early 20th centuries increased the public transport access with the expanded streetcar network, adding many new government buildings, and creating the National Museum Institution to create and run the already existing museums in the city. Today, museums such as the Rousseau Air and Space Museum, National History Museum, and Lafayette Natural Museum are some of the most visited in the world.

World War II further spurred growth in the city, as many new government buildings were built during this period. A number of military contractors moved their headquarters in and around the city as well, and the city remains the prime area for military development in Louisiana. In 1935, The Lafayette Federal District became self-ruling under a District Premier. This system would last until 1968, when Lafayette became a full province, which was formalized with the election of its firs Premier in 1970.

The 1970s would see an increase in development of public transportation, most notably the Lafayette Metro, which opened in 1970 after 6 years of construction and planning. The city also saw the construction of several major autoroutes, and the formation of the Regional Rail Network under the Lafayette Regional Transportation Authority. In 1980, the city formally passed Saint Louis (who had been the largest city since 1920) as the largest city in Louisiana, and also became the first city to pass 1 million people that year as well.

Growth has continued into the 2000s, aided with the expansion of the Metro and Regional Rail. The suburban growth has grown significantly, climbing to 6 million in the 2020 census. The city has seen large scale immigration from South East Asia, particularly Vietnam, as well as India and West Africa. The city also boasts a large Chinese immigrant population, who date back to the late 19th century. The city has seen a large number of tech companies, particularly in the Moulins area.

Demographics

Historical population
Year	Pop.	±% p.a.
1830	3,500	—
1850	19,825	+9.06%
1860	40,981	+7.53%
1870	84,345	+7.48%
1880	103,434	+2.06%
1890	178,234	+5.59%
1900	225,540	+2.38%
1910	284,344	+2.34%
1920	319,459	+1.17%
1930	366,764	+1.39%
1940	481,127	+2.75%
1950	613,341	+2.46%
1960	799,230	+2.68%
1970	833,234	+0.42%
1980	1,034,439	+2.19%
1990	1,301,492	+2.32%
2000	1,533,024	+1.65%
2010	1,796,455	+1.60%
2020	2,124,932	+1.69%

Race

Lafayette is the largest city in Louisiana with 2.1 million people living within its borders. This makes Lafayette the second largest largest capital city in North America after Mexico City and the second largest French speaking city in the world. The city is home to large immigrant communities, namely Italian, Irish, German, Jewish, Russian, and Croatian communities. Many of these immigrant communities have created ethnic enclaves within the central city, and at one point languages such as Italian and German were once widely spoken within these respective enclaves and communities however the number of non-French speakers has declined due to language attrition and integration of second- and third-generation descendants of immigrants. However, approximately 3-5% of the population still speaks Italian at home while 3% still speak German. Croatian is still spoken by about 2% mainly in the Petite Croatie neighborhood. Chinese immigratns also make up a good portion of the population, with many still residing in the local Chinatown, which was first established by immigrants in the 1860s and 1870s. Modern immigration from Republic of China still remains a good source of modern immigration as well, and to a lessor degree People's Repuiblic of China. The Vietnamese and Korean communities also has a strong presence in the city, many immigrating between the 1960s and 1990s. In recent years, large numbers of immigrants from the Indian Subcontinent and West Africa have further diversified the city's ethnic profile, as immigrants from these regions by far constitute the largest number of new immigrants to the city. Around 15% of the city's population is Black, many of whom descend from former slaves who often escaped America via the underground railroad.

Religion

Like the rest of Louisiana, Roman Catholicism remains the predominant religion within the city. After the expulsion of the Canadien population from Canada in the late 18th and early 19th centuries, the center of Roman Catholicism in North America shifted from Mount Royal (Montréal until 1855) to Lafyatte and New Orleans, with Lafayette gaining greater importance as time went on and its population growth out paced the old capital. Around 54% of the city is Roman Catholic, while Christianity as a whole accounts for 62% of the total population. However, the city has a low record of religious attendance, with a high number of agonistics and atheists' who account for around 30% of the population, making it the one of the least religious city in Louisiana. Eastern Orthodoxy is the second largest Christian denomination, brought over primarily by Russian and Romanian immigrants and to a lesser degree Balkan (primarily Serbian) immigration in the late 19th and early 20th centuries and is followed by around 6% of the people in Lafayette. While Orthodoxy is not as prominent an Catholicism, it sees very high rates of religious attendance, followed by Protestantism, which accounts for just 2% of the population. Islam has seen a steady increase in followers within the last 30-40 years as immigration from predominantly Islamic countries has increased. The city is home to the largest Jewish community in Louisiana, as well as second largest North America.

Cityscape

Architecture

Mid-19th century style buildings in the Bourgmont neighborhood..

The city is home to number of architectural styles, with the oldest building dating back to the late 18th century. The styles vary by neighborhood and density, with a majority of the older buildings dating back to the 19th century located in the Government District and Bourgmont neighborhoods, while the Financial District and many outer suburbs home to late 20th and early 21st century buildings and skyscrapers. Parisian-style buildings constructed in the 19th century are found in the Government District, Bourgmont area, and Old Quarter neighborhoods, and define the old architecture of the city giving it the name "Little Paris". North of the Missouri River, the dense financial district is home to a number of skyscrapers, including the some of the tallest skyscrapers in Louisiana and North America.

Following the Second World War, a number of suburbs began to expand and grow. By the 1990s, city and provincial ordinances began to encourage high-rise buildings to curb urban sprawl. Condo construction has accelerated since the 2000s, especially in the northern suburbs. A number of redevelopment projects have been completed in the 2000s and 2010s as well, and gentrification has taken hold of many older, more central districts of Lafayette as well.

Suburbs

Since the 1990s, high rise apartments and mixed-use developments have been built in numerous suburbs.

Infrastructure

An Alstom Z-TER, which have been used as the primary rolling stock of the RFR since 2005.

See Also: Lafayette Regional Transportation Authority
The city has a number of modes of transportation outside of personal vehicles. The Lafayette Metro opened its first line in 1970, and has since expanded to cover much of the core urban area. The city also boasts a robust commuter rail network that even reaches as far as Fort-Cartier, Cansez. The Autoroute network in the city is also extensive, but the city, like many major cities, suffers from congestion. Roads in and around the Financial Quarter and Government Quarter can become especially crowded. However, since the construction of the metro and expansion of the Regional Rail Network.

Lafayette Regional Transportation Authority

An M5 at the Ruisseau station.

Regional rail in Lafayette up until the 1970s was small. But when the ARTL was formed in 1973, it was expanded. The first major expansion took place from 1974-1978 when the line was expanded north to Ville-de-Cansez 20km north of the city center and south to Bonhomme-de-Osage. It has since been expanded exponentially, with the last major expansion occurring when the Napoleon Line opened in 2019. Approximately 34 million people used the Regional Rail Netowrk in 2013. The bus network in the city is also extensive, with buses having been run since the 1950s.

The Lafayette Metro is the most used aspect of the public transit network in Lafayette. The first line was constructed from 1964-1970. Since then 7 more lines have opened, with the Orange Line being completed in 2009. Plans for a metro in the city had been proposed since the 1920s, however none had come to fruition as the city was not large enough to support such as system, despite its strong population growth. With the population ever increasing, and urban sprawl and traffic congestion becoming a growing concern by the early 1960s with the construction of the Federal Autoroute System, the government allocated the necessary funds for the construction of the Metro. Today, it serves and average of 1.9 million people per year and had an annual ridership of around 500 million in 2018.

Air

Marquis de Lafayette International Airport (KLLX, LLX) is the main airport serving the city, located in the Acadie suburb. The airport is the busiest in Louisiana as a whole, and one of the busiest in the world. In 2018, 55 million people passed through the airport, and increase from 2017. The city is the main hub for Louisiana's flag carrier, Saribal, as well as Air Louisiane. To the southeast, Lafayette-Noulins Airport (KLNN, LNN), used to serve many budget carriers until they were eventually moved into the expanded Marquis de Lafayette International. Lafayette-Noulins today serves charter operations, general aviation, and MEDIVAC.

Rail

Lafayette has long been the primary rail hub in Louisiana, due to its central position. It not only serves as a hub for regional and inter-Louisianan rail, but also rail traversing from coast to coast and from Mexico to Canada. Federal Railways is based in Lafayette, and is the publicly owned passenger railway corporation that also operates the nation's highspeed rail, the LGV, which is also based out of Lafayette. The primary station, and also the biggest, is Central Louisiana Station (Gare Centrale de Louisiane).

Road

The city has a very extensive Autoroute network, and is placed at the intersection of 3 major Autoroutes (A4, A22, A77). Several auxiliary Autoroutes have also been constructed, such as the Marne Memorial Autoroute which goes around the city. Many of these Autoroutes become very congested during rush hour. However, the government has actively been trying to combat this, mainly by expanding the public transport network, as well as building the A29 Expressway in 2011.

Twin Towns and Sister Cities

• Ottawa-1970
• Washington, D.C.-1973
• Moscow-1977
• Monterry, California-1979
• Paris-1985
• London-1994
• Nanjing-2003
• Berlin- 2003
• Frankfurt-2010