Editing New Roads, Louisiana (section)

=== Louisiana Purchase ===
In 1803 the United States made the [[Louisiana Purchase]], and the territory became part of the United States. In-migration of American settlers increased, changing Louisiana culture.

In 1822, Catherine Dispau (a [[free people of color|free woman of color]] called ''"La Fille Gougis"'') made a four or six block subdivision out of her False River plantation. This was located at the terminus of a "new road" linking False River with the older Mississippi River settlement to the north.  This is the area now bounded by West Main, New Roads, West Second and St. Mary Streets. The latter was named for St. Mary's Catholic Church, founded in 1823. The community was referred to variously as the "village of St. Mary" or Chemin Neuf.<ref name=Costello2010 />

The founding of the church helped the community develop. In 1847, New Roads was named as the seat of Pointe Coupée Parish, and a courthouse was built. Between these "strong celestial poles," the Main Street business district developed. After the abandonment of the competing parish port of [[Waterloo, Louisiana|Waterloo]] during 1882–84 due to flooding, New Roads became the major commercial port and city of Pointe Coupée Parish. The railroad reached the city in 1898–99, bringing much industrial development.<ref name=Costello2010 />

The official name of the community changed frequently during the years after Louisiana became part of the United States. The first post office was established in 1858 as "False River," but it was discontinued in 1861. When the town was incorporated by the state legislature in 1875, it was named "New Roads." But, in 1878, when the post office reopened, it was named "St. Mary's." In 1879, the city and post office name was changed to New Roads. The old incorporation fell into disuse. The city was reincorporated in 1892, and received its charter two years later. Several names were proposed, among them "St. Mary" and "Rose Lake."  But "New Roads" was finally chosen, although it was often misspelled "New Rhodes."<ref name=Costello2010 />

Since its founding, New Roads has been the hub of an agricultural community that cultivated [[commodity crop]]s of sugar cane, cotton, and pecans, among others. Today, the economy has grown to support large industries such as healthcare and social assistance, construction, and retail facilities.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://datausa.io/profile/geo/new-roads-la/#economy|title=New Roads, LA|work=Data USA|access-date=2018-01-31}}</ref>