Delhi, Louisiana

City in Louisiana, United States

Delhi, Louisiana

City

Town of Delhi

Delhi City Hall

Location of Delhi in Richland Parish, Louisiana.

Location of Louisiana in the United States

Coordinates: 32°27′13″N 91°29′46″W﻿ / ﻿32.45361°N 91.49611°W﻿ / 32.45361; -91.49611
Country| United States
State| Louisiana
Parish| Richland
Government

• Type| Mayor-council
• Mayor| Jesse Washington(D)[citation needed] (D)
Area

[1]

• Total

| 2.94 sq mi (7.62 km2)
• Land| 2.87 sq mi (7.44 km2)
• Water| 0.07 sq mi (0.19 km2)
Elevation

[2]

| 92 ft (28 m)
Population

(2020)

• Total

| 2,622
• Density| 912.95/sq mi (352.55/km2)
Time zone| UTC-6 (CST)
• Summer (DST)| UTC-5 (CDT)
ZIP code|

71232[3]

Area code| 318
FIPS code| 22-20190
GNIS feature ID| 2406371[2]
Website| townofdelhi.municipalimpact.com
Downtown Delhi looking south along La 17

Delhi (/ˈdɛl.haɪ/), originally called Deerfield, is a town in Richland Parish, Louisiana, United States. As of the 2020 census, the town population was 2,622.

## History

[edit]

In 1890, the Delhi Institute was founded in Delhi, Louisiana; a Black private school affiliated with the A.M.E. church.[4] Delhi Institute was renamed to Lampton College; after a 1907 fire, the campus was moved to Alexandria, Louisiana, before being absorbed sometime after 1945 by Campbell College in Jackson, Mississippi.[4][5][6]

In the 1940s, Delhi was the center of a large natural gas boom. Numerous workers came to work in the industry. Several functioning gas fields still surround the town.

From 1968 until 1969, Delhi Fire Department was home to the now-defunct Louisiana State Police – Troop O. The site was abandoned in 1969 after thirteen months' operation, with state services reverting to Troop F in Monroe.[7]

On February 21, 1971, as part of the February 1971 Mississippi Delta tornado outbreak, Louisiana's only recorded F5 tornado struck outside of Delhi. It resulted in forty-seven deaths and was the deadliest F5 tornado to hit the United States since the Jackson, Mississippi, Candlestick Park tornado in 1966. It was the earliest confirmed F5 tornado during a year.

## Geography

[edit]

Delhi is located at 32°27′21″N 91°29′36″W﻿ / ﻿32.45583°N 91.49333°W﻿ / 32.45583; -91.49333 (32.455948, -91.493345).[8] The town lies at the confluence of U.S. Route 80 and Louisiana Highway 17, and near to Interstate 20.

According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 2.6 square miles (6.7 km2), of which 2.5 square miles (6.5 km2) is land and 0.1 square mile (2.33%) is water.

The town's elevation of 89 ft (27 m) spared Delhi from the brunt of the Great Mississippi Flood of 1927 that destroyed most of the surrounding Mississippi River Delta area.

The Poverty Point Reservoir, which hosts the acclaimed Black Bear Golf Club and the Poverty Point Reservoir State Park, is located just north of Delhi on Louisiana Highway 17 near Warden. The reservoir project was pushed to fruition by State Senator Francis C. Thompson of Delhi.

## Demographics

[edit]

Historical population Census| Pop.| Note| %±

|
|
|

1870| 186| | —
1880| 315| | 69.4%
1890| 620| | 96.8%
1900| 507| | −18.2%
1910| 685| | 35.1%
1920| 980| | 43.1%
1930| 1,043| | 6.4%
1940| 1,192| | 14.3%
1950| 1,861| | 56.1%
1960| 2,514| | 35.1%
1970| 2,887| | 14.8%
1980| 3,290| | 14.0%
1990| 3,169| | −3.7%
2000| 3,066| | −3.3%
2010| 2,919| | −4.8%
2020| 2,622| | −10.2%
U.S. Decennial Census[9]
Delhi racial composition as of 2020[10] Race  | Num.  | Perc.

|
|

White (non-Hispanic)  | 789  | 30.09%
Black or African American (non-Hispanic)  | 1,727  | 65.87%
Native American | 8  | 0.31%
Asian | 8  | 0.31%
Other/Mixed | 44  | 1.68%
Hispanic or Latino | 46  | 1.75%

As of the 2020 United States census, there were 2,622 people, 1,082 households, and 641 families residing in the town.

## Education

[edit]

Public schools in Richland Parish are operated by the Richland Parish School Board. Three campuses serve the town of Delhi – Delhi Elementary School (Grades PK–4), Delhi Middle School (Grades 5–8), and Delhi High School (Grades 9–12).

Delhi Charter School (DCS) (K–12) is an area charter school.

## Name

[edit]

The origin of the name Delhi is uncertain. According to The Delhi Dispatch, one story says that a Professor Allen chose the name after reading the poem "Lalla Rookh" by Thomas Moore. The other story says that the name stuck when a tree with "Delhi" carved into it was used by travelers for navigation.[11]

## Notable people

[edit]

* Earl Holliman, Golden Globe award-winning film and television actor
* Arlene Howell, Miss Louisiana USA 1958, Miss USA 1958
* Bnois King, jazz and blues musician, was born in Delhi
* Bob Love, basketball player, went to high school in Delhi
* Tim McGraw, country singer[12]
* Andrew "Blueblood" McMahon, Chicago blues bass guitarist[13]
* Pat "Gravy" Patterson, baseball coach at Louisiana Tech University
* Steven Pylant, Republican member of the Louisiana House of Representatives
* Johnny Robinson, NFL player with the Kansas City Chiefs
* Charles Wyly and Sam Wyly, businessmen who endowed Wyly Tower of Learning at Louisiana Tech University

## Gallery

[edit]

* Abandoned theater in downtown Delhi

* Commercial Capital Bank is located in downtown Delhi across the street from the First Baptist Church.

* First Baptist Church at 306 Broadway Street in downtown Delhi

* Delhi United Methodist Church is located across the street from Delhi High School.

* Delhi High School, with mascot "The Bears", is operated by the Richland Parish School Board.

* Trees in the reservoir north of Poverty Point Reservoir State Park near Delhi

## See also

[edit]

* KGGM: oldies radio station in Delhi
* Miles-Hanna House: listed on the National Register of Historic Places

## References

[edit]

1. ^ "2020 U.S. Gazetteer Files". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved March 20, 2022.
2. ^ a b U.S. Geological Survey Geographic Names Information System: Delhi, Louisiana
3. ^ "Delhi LA ZIP Code". zipdatamaps.com. 2023. Retrieved June 16, 2023.
4. ^ a b Mitchell, Henry H. (October 4, 2004). Black Church Beginnings: The Long-Hidden Realities of the First Years. Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing. p. 158\. ISBN 978-0-8028-2785-2.
5. ^ Hartshorn, W. N.; Penniman, George W., eds. (1910). An Era of Progress and Promise: 1863–1910. Boston, MA: Priscilla Pub. Co. p. 289\. OCLC 5343815.
6. ^ Wright, Richard Robert (1916). Centennial Encyclopaedia of the African Methodist Episcopal Church. Book Concern of the A.M.E. Church. p. 316.
7. ^ "Troop History", Louisiana State Police
8. ^ "US Gazetteer files: 2010, 2000, and 1990". United States Census Bureau. February 12, 2011. Retrieved April 23, 2011.
9. ^ "Census of Population and Housing". Census.gov. Retrieved June 4, 2015.
10. ^ "Explore Census Data". data.census.gov. Retrieved December 19, 2021.
11. ^ "History of Delhi, Louisiana". May 20, 1999. p. 9. Retrieved June 22, 2025 – via newspapers.com.
12. ^ Stambler, Irwin; Landon, Grelun (July 14, 2000). Country Music: The Encyclopedia. St. Martin's Press. p. 307\. ISBN 978-0-312-26487-1.
13. ^ Komara, Edward M. (December 9, 2006). Encyclopedia of the Blues. Psychology Press. p. 672\. ISBN 9780415926997 – via Google Books.

## External links

[edit]

* Delhi Progress, Community Progress Site for Delhi, LA

* v
* t
* e

Municipalities and communities of Richland Parish, Louisiana, United States

Parish seat: Rayville

Towns|

* Delhi
* Rayville

Village|

* Mangham

CDP|

* Start

Other
unincorporated
communities|

* Alto
* Archibald
* Bardel
* Bee Bayou
* Buckner
* Charlieville
* Crew Lake
* Dehlco
* Dunn
* Four Forks
* Gilleyville
* Girard
* Holly Ridge
* Jonesburg
* Mitchiner
* New Light
* Rhymes
* Sacksonia
* Warden

Footnotes|

‡This populated place also has portions in an adjacent parish or parishes

* Louisiana portal
* United States portal

Authority control databases

International|

* VIAF

National|

* United States
* Israel

Geographic|

* MusicBrainz area

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