Alco was a sawmill town in Vernon Parish, Louisiana, United States.[1][2] It was located on the Red River and Gulf Railroad, 50 miles from Alexandria.[3]

History

Alco was named after the Alexandria Lumber Company, which built a sawmill there.[4] It was originally considered part of the same community as Kurthwood, which was three miles away, and was served by a post office called Grant and renamed Nona, until the sawmills were built.[4]

In 1922, the Alexandria Lumber Company announced that it was shutting down its sawmill in Pineville and moving some of its machinery to its new plant in Alco, Vernon Parish.[3]

In June 1923, The Shreveport Journal reported that the Ku Klux Klan would be holding a meeting and barbecue in Alco, Vernon Parish, with a special train running from Lecompte to Alco.[5] The event was to bring together seven Klans, specifically from Alexandria, DeRidder, Glenmora, Bunkie, Leesville, Oakdale, and Alco.[5]

The Alco community had both a Methodist church and a Baptist church.[6]

References

  1. ↑ "Springer Issues Statement In Ward 9 Jury Race". Pineville News. October 5, 1967. Retrieved November 25, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
  2. ↑ U.S. Geological Survey Geographic Names Information System: Alco, Louisiana
  3. 1 2 "Pineville Sawmill to be Moved to Alco". The Shreveport Times. November 30, 1922. Retrieved November 25, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
  4. 1 2 Leeper, Clare D'Artois (October 19, 2012). Louisiana Place Names: Popular, Unusual, and Forgotten Stories of Towns, Cities, Plantations, Bayous, and Even Some Cemeteries. Louisiana State University Press. p. 12. ISBN 978-0-8071-4740-5.
  5. 1 2 "Monster Ku Klux Demonstration Alexandria Plan". The Shreveport Journal. June 25, 1923. Retrieved November 25, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
  6. ↑ "Happenings At The Progressive Town, Alco, Vernon Parish". Alexandria Daily Town Talk. October 15, 1928. Retrieved November 25, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.

31°20′04″N 93°07′51″W / 31.33444°N 93.13083°W / 31.33444; -93.13083

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