Since the late 20th century, archeologists have dated eleven sites in northern Louisiana where thousands of years ago, indigenous cultures built complexes with multiple, monumental earthwork mounds during the Middle Archaic period, long before the development of sedentary, agricultural societies. At sites such as Watson Brake, Frenchman's Bend, and Caney, generations of hunter-gatherers worked for hundreds of years to build and add to mound complexes. Hedgepeth Site, located in Lincoln Parish, is dated about 5200–4500 BP, from the latter part of this period. Such finds are changing the understanding of early human cultures. The parish was one of several new ones established by the state legislature during Reconstruction; in 1873 it was formed from land that had belonged to Bienville, Claiborne, Jackson and Union parishes to create one in which newly elected representatives might have more ties to the Republican Party. It was an attempt to break up the old order of political power, and to capitalize on the arrival of the railroad line. The parish is named for the late U.S. president Abraham Lincoln. In 1934, the historian Robert W. Mondy of Louisiana Tech University in Ruston completed a thesis entitled "A History of Lincoln Parish, Louisiana" as part of the requirements for his master of arts degree from the University of Texas at Austin. Another Louisiana Tech faculty member, Robert C. Snyder, was instrumental in the establishment in 1962 of the Lincoln Parish Library. He served as the library board president for many years. Lincoln Parish is usually Republican in contested elections. In 2012, Republican presidential nominee Mitt Romney won the parish with 10,739 votes to U.S. President Barack H. Obama, the Democrat who polled 7,956 ballots.
Geography
According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the parish has a total area of, of which is land and is water.
As of the 2010 United States Census, there were 46,735 people living in the parish. 55.2% were White, 40.5% Black or African American, 1.7% Asian, 0.3% Native American, 0.1% Pacific Islander, 1.3% of some other race and 1.1% of two or more races. 2.5% were Hispanic or Latino. As of the census of 2000, there were 42,509 people, 15,235 households, and 9,689 families living in the parish. The population density was 90 people per square mile. There were 17,000 housing units at an average density of 36 per square mile. The racial makeup of the parish was 57.42% White, 39.84% Black or African American, 0.18% Native American, 1.28% Asian, 0.01% Pacific Islander, 0.52% from other races, and 0.75% from two or more races. 1.16% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race. There were 15,235 households out of which 30.00% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 44.50% were married couples living together, 15.30% had a female householder with no husband present, and 36.40% were non-families. 27.00% of all households were made up of individuals and 9.40% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.44 and the average family size was 3.01. In the parish the population was spread out with 22.10% under the age of 18, 25.70% from 18 to 24, 23.20% from 25 to 44, 17.60% from 45 to 64, and 11.30% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 26 years. For every 100 females, there were 94.20 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 90.90 males. The median income for a household in the parish was $26,977, and the median income for a family was $38,972. Males had a median income of $32,376 versus $20,877 for females. The per capita income for the parish was $14,313. About 18.20% of families and 26.50% of the population were below the poverty line, including 30.10% of those under age 18 and 18.10% of those age 65 or over.
