Scotlandville, Baton Rouge, Louisiana

Neighborhood in East Baton Rouge, Louisiana, United States

Scotlandville

Neighborhood

Scotlandville

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Scotlandville

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Coordinates: 30°31′14″N 91°10′43″W﻿ / ﻿30.5204668°N 91.1787186°W﻿ / 30.5204668; -91.1787186
Country| United States
State| Louisiana
Parish| East Baton Rouge
Elevation

| 59 ft (18 m)
GNIS feature ID| 555993[1]

Scotlandville is a community located in north Baton Rouge, Louisiana, United States. It was originally a small, independent rural community that developed along the Mississippi River in northern East Baton Rouge Parish.[2] In 1914, Southern University and A&M College relocated to this community.

Gradually Scotlandville became industrialized, beginning with a Standard Oil refinery in 1909, and was a destination of Black people to urban areas in the Great Migration beginning around World War I. Its growth was stimulated also by construction of railroads along the Mississippi River. While still independent, Scotlandville became the largest majority-black community in the state. In the 20th century, it was incorporated into Baton Rouge.

## History

[edit]

Aboriginal Native cultures existed during the Archaic period and built earthen mounds in the area now known as Scotlandville. The Monte Sano Mound site 16BTR17 was located just south of the Airport in Scotlandville area along the Monte Sano Bayou waterway, which cuts through Scotlandville and connects to the Mississippi River. When the site was demolished in 1967, three days of salvage excavations exposed platforms, charcoal, effigy beads, and projectiles determined to be dated prior to 5000 BC. The Monte Sano Mound may be the oldest indigenous mound in the United States.[3][4][5][6]

Scotlandville was gradually settled after the United States acquired this territory. It was a rural area farmed after the Civil War by an assortment of European Americans and freedmen. The only Black family living in the village before the establishment of Southern University in 1914 was that of William "Dreher" Kelly and his wife Priscilla. The area was mostly farmland into the early 20th century, with other black farmers and sharecroppers.[2]

In 1912 the state of Louisiana bought 531 acres in Scotlandville for the construction of the relocated Southern University and A&M College, a historically black college and land grant college. The state legislature wanted it moved from New Orleans to an area with more land. The state later acquired another 372 acres to support the agricultural portion of its curriculum. Southern University was built on Scott's Bluff overlooking the Mississippi River. It is no longer located within Scotlandville's boundaries.[citation needed]

When Standard Oil Company opened a processing plant here in 1909, it attracted many new workers, including rural black migrants from other areas of the state, and immigrants from Eastern and Southern Europe. It operated for decades, providing good jobs for graduates of Southern University.

After World War II, Black veterans such as Acie Belton of Scotlandville organized voter registration drives in order to overcome the disenfranchisement of most African Americans. In 1946 there were only 137 black voters registered in East Baton Rouge Parish. In the next few years, he and others increased the number of black registered voters in the parish to more than 2,000, mostly from Scotlandville. Knowing that engagement in politics was critical, they and other leaders continued with civil rights activities into the 1960s and later. They established the Second Ward Voters League during this early registration movement, and it still is active in evaluating and endorsing candidates.[7]

In 1978 and 1980, some parts of Scotlandville were annexed into Baton Rouge.[8]

## Arts and culture

[edit]

In 2020, the Louisiana Cultural Districts program identified Scotlandville as a cultural district. The program encourages "community revitalization based on cultural activity", and offers technical assistance, resources, and tax incentives to identified cultural districts.[9]

The Scotlandville Branch Library - part of the East Baton Rouge Parish Library - opened in 1974.[10]

## Government

[edit]

Today, Scotlandville is a community located in North Baton Rouge, overseen by the East Baton Rouge Parish government.

## Education

[edit]

* The East Baton Rouge Parish School System manages the public schools from K-12.
* Scotlandville Magnet High School is located in Scotlandville.[11]

## Infrastructure

[edit]

Baton Rouge Metropolitan Airport, the only airport serving the Baton Rouge area, is located in Scotlandville.

## Notable People

[edit]

* Eugene "Eda" Wade (1939-2021), muralist and educator

## References

[edit]

1. ^ U.S. Geological Survey Geographic Names Information System: Scotlandville
2. ^ a b Rachel L. Emanuel, Ruby Jean Simms, Charles Vincent, Scotlandville, Arcadia Publishing, 2015, pp.12-13
3. ^ "The History Of Indigenous Mounds In America". Ranker. Retrieved 2023-03-21.
4. ^ Rees, Mark A. (2010-11-30). Archaeology of Louisiana. LSU Press. ISBN 978-0-8071-3705-5.
5. ^ "Number 44, 2017 (published 2019)". Louisiana Archaeological Society. Retrieved 2023-03-21.
6. ^ We are the Washitaw : the indigenous black inhabitants of North America : the suppressed story of the ancient ones, the original, black mound-building inhabitants of North America. R. A. Umar Shabazz Bey, Washitaw International Human Rights Network (9th ed.). Baton Rouge: Washitaw International Human Rights Network. 2006. ISBN 0-9723696-0-0. OCLC 76818268.`{{cite book}}`: CS1 maint: others (link)
7. ^ Emanuel et al., Scotlandville 2015, p. 115
8. ^ "Baton Rouge Annexation History | Open Data BR". data.brla.gov. Retrieved 2023-08-03.
9. ^ McCrary, Kelsea (December 1, 2020). "Louisiana Cultural Districts Program welcomes nine new districts". Preservation Resource Center of New Orleans.
10. ^ "Scotlandville Branch Library." East Baton Rouge Parish Library. Retrieved on May 14, 2017.
11. ^ Emanuel et al., Scotlandville 2015, p. 119

* v
* t
* e

City of Baton Rouge

History|

* Baton Rouge bus boycott
* 2016 shooting of police officers

Areas|

* Scotlandville

Education|

| Secondary(*)|

* East Baton Rouge PSS
* Baton Rouge Magnet HS
* Belaire HS
* Broadmoor HS
* Capitol HS
* EBR Lab Academy
* Glen Oaks HS
* Istrouma HS
* Liberty Magnet HS
* McKinley HS
* Scotlandville HS
* Tara HS

* School for the Deaf
* School for the Visually Impaired
* LSU Lab
* Mentorship Academy of Digital Arts
* Southern U. Lab
* Catholic HS
* Episcopal HS
* Parkview Baptist HS
* St. Joseph's Academy

Closed

* Cristo Rey Baton Rouge Franciscan High School
* Redemptorist HS

|

Colleges/universities|

* Louisiana State University (See template)
* Southern University (See template)
* Our Lady of the Lake College
* Louisiana Culinary Institute
* Baton Rouge Community College

Libraries|

* State Library of Louisiana
* Louisiana State Archive and Research Library
* East Baton Rouge Parish Library

Points of interest(**)|

* Baton Rouge Zoo
* Belle of Baton Rouge
* BREC Memorial Stadium
* Capitol Park Museum
* City Park Golf Course
* Cortana Mall
* Highland Road Park
* Independence Park Botanic Gardens
* LA Art and Science Museum (Yazoo&MS. Valley Rail Depot)
* Louisiana Museum of Natural History
* Louisiana State Capitol
* Mall of Louisiana
* Magnolia Mound Plantation House
* Odell S. Williams Now And Then African-American Museum
* Old Louisiana State Capitol
* Pentagon Barracks
* Pete Goldsby Field
* Raising Cane's River Center
* Arena
* Shaw Center for the Arts
* USS Kidd

Media|

| Television|

* KBTR-CD
* KPBN-LD
* KZUP-CD
* W31EL-D
* WAFB
* WBRL-CD
* WBRZ-TV
* WGMB-TV
* WLFT-CD
* WLPB-TV
* WVLA-TV

|

Newspapers|

* The Advocate
* The Daily Reveille

Transportation|

* Baton Rouge Metropolitan Airport
* Capital Area Transit System

(*) Some schools are in unincorporated areas outside of the city limits, including Woodlawn HS and St. Michael HS
(**) Includes landmarks not owned by/a part of Louisiana State University nor Southern University, nor those elsewhere categorized
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*[t]: Discuss this template
*[e]: Edit this template