Beauregard Parish, Louisiana

Beauregard Parish, Louisiana
Beauregard Parish Courthouse in DeRidder
Location in the U.S. state of Louisiana
Louisiana's location in the U.S.
Founded	January 1, 1913
Named for	P.G.T. Beauregard
Seat	DeRidder
Largest city	DeRidder
Area
• Total	1,166 sq mi (3,020 km2)
• Land	1,157 sq mi (2,997 km2)
• Water	8.5 sq mi (22 km2), 0.7%
Population (est.)
• (2015)	36,462
• Density	31/sq mi (12/km²)
Congressional district	4th
Time zone	Central: UTC-6/-5
Website	www.beauparish.org

Beauregard Parish ^[p] (French: Paroisse de Beauregard) is a parish located in the U.S. state of Louisiana. As of the 2010 census, the population was 35,654. The parish seat is DeRidder. The parish was formed on January 1, 1913.

Beauregard Parish comprises the DeRidder, LA Micropolitan Statistical Area. The governing body is by the police jury system.

Until 1762, the land that would eventually become Beauregard Parish was a part of the Spanish holdings in Louisiana, as, at that time, the border between Spain and France was acknowledged as the Rio Hondo (now known as the Calcasieu river); however the land between the Rio Hondo and the Sabine river was in some dispute as the French were beginning to occupy land on the west side of the Rio Hondo. In 1762, the king of France secretly gave Louisiana to Spain in the Treaty of Fontainebleau. From 1762 to until 1800, the region was a part of New Spain. In 1800, the secret Third Treaty of San Ildefonso transferred possession of Louisiana back to the French, although Spain continued to administer the land. In this period, the only European settlers to the land that would become Beauregard Parish were a few individuals with Spanish land grants.

After the Louisiana Purchase by the United States in 1803, the region stretching from the Sabine River in the west to the Arroyo Hondo in the east was claimed by both Spain and the United States, leading to little law enforcement by either country. In order to avoid a war over the border, the two countries agreed that the land in contention would remain neutral and free of armed forces from either side. The area became known as the Neutral Ground or Sabine Free State. During this period, the armies in the area—those of the United States and Spain—allowed the running of a ferry, enabling places such as Burr's Ferry in Vernon Parish, to prosper. The rest of the area was lawless, except for the occasional joint military venture to rid the area of "undesirables". However, even with the border dispute, several pioneers did settle the land during this period and were eventually given 2nd class homestead claims. The Adams-Onís Treaty, signed in 1819 and ratified in 1821, recognized the U.S. claim, setting the final Louisiana western border at the Sabine River.