Atlanta, Georgia
November 26, 2024
More times than I care to count, when I have told people I am going to Paris, they have thought I said “parish” and given me an inquisitive look. “No, Paris as in France,” I have clarified.
Now I have been to several parishes in Louisiana, but there is no town in the US named “Parish.” However, as I learned yesterday there are several towns named “Parrish” and yesterday I visited the one in Alabama. For the record, here are the other Parrish’s:
Parrish, Florida: An unincorporated community in Manatee County, Florida, named after Crawford Parrish, a rancher and orange farmer who settled in the area in 1867. Parrish is a rural community with open spaces and green areas, but also has a thriving corridor with restaurants, shopping, and sports complexes. It was a major shipping center for citrus fruits and vegetables, and the Florida Gulf Coast Railroad Museum is a main attraction in the area.
Parrish, Illinois: A town that was destroyed by the Tri-State Tornado in 1925.
Parrish, Wisconsin: A town and an unincorporated community.
Parrish, Oregon: A place named Parrish.
Parrish, Alabama is not a thriving community. Closed businesses along Main Street tell the story of a town in decline. There’s a health clinic which was busy and a new post office building that stood out in comparison to the infrastructure in the rest of the town. By my count there were five churches in this community of less than 1,000. Would t it be better if there were just one church??
I’ve seen so many towns like Parrish. I know good people live there but the condition of the community made me sad.
Parrish is a town in Walker County, Alabama, United States. It was incorporated in October 1922. At the 2010 census the population was 982, down from 1,268 in 2000.
The town was originally known as Hewitt when the first post office was established in 1878. The community was also called Jonesboro after the first postmaster. In 1891, the community adopted the name of the first telegraph operator, Parrish.
As of the census of 2000, there were 1,268 people, 506 households, and 358 families residing in the town. The population density was 605.2 inhabitants per square mile (233.7/km2). There were 587 housing units at an average density of 280.2 per square mile (108.2/km2). The racial makeup of Parrish is 72.63% White, 25.32% Black or African American, 0.16% Native American, 0.16% Asian, 0.63% from other races, and 1.10% from two or more races. 0.95% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.
There were 506 households, out of which 28.3% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 48.6% were married couples living together, 16.8% had a female householder with no husband present, and 29.1% were non-families. 25.1% of all households were made up of individuals, and 10.9% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.51 and the average family size was 3.01.
In the town, the population was spread out, with 23.7% under the age of 18, 8.5% from 18 to 24, 28.5% from 25 to 44, 24.1% from 45 to 64, and 15.1% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 39 years. For every 100 females, there were 91.8 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 86.2 males.
The median income for a household in the town was $21,711, and the median income for a family was $26,193. Males had a median income of $25,341 versus $16,900 for females. The per capita income for the town was $11,270. About 21.3% of families and 24.2% of the population were below the poverty line, including 28.0% of those under age 18 and 26.8% of those age 65 or over.
Parrish Elementary and Parrish High School, members of the Walker County Board of Education, are located in Parrish. The school mascot is the Tornadoes. In 2014, the Walker County Board of Education voted to close the high school after the 2013–2014 school year due to budget constraints. Parris High School students not graduating that year were transferred to two nearby schools; they chose between either Oakman High School in Oakman or Cordova High School in Cordova.
Athletics
In 2003, the Parrish High School football team won the Alabama High School Athletics AssociationClass 1A State Championship.
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