Harrisonburg, Louisiana

Harrisonburg, Louisiana
Village
Country	United States
State	Louisiana
Parish	Catahoula
Elevation	79 ft (24.1 m)
Coordinates	31°46′20″N 91°49′39″W / 31.77222°N 91.82750°W / 31.77222; -91.82750Coordinates: 31°46′20″N 91°49′39″W / 31.77222°N 91.82750°W / 31.77222; -91.82750
Area	1.05 sq mi (2.72 km2)
- land	0.97 sq mi (2.51 km2)
- water	0.09 sq mi (0.23 km2)
Population	348 (2010)
Density	359.3/sq mi (138.7/km2)
Timezone	CST (UTC-6)
- summer (DST)	CDT (UTC-5)
Area code	318
Location of Harrisonburg in Louisiana
Location of Louisiana in the United States

Harrisonburg is a village in and the parish seat of Catahoula Parish, Louisiana, United States. The population was 348 as of the 2010 census, down from 746 at the 2000 census.

Riley J. Wilson, who held Louisiana's 5th congressional district seat from 1915 to 1937, resided in Harrisonburg, where he was principal of Harrisonburg High School and then an attorney, district attorney, and state district court judge prior to his election to Congress.

Harrisonburg was named for the Harrison family of Virginia.

Fort Beauregard, located on a bluff in the northern corner of the village, was a Confederate stronghold during the American Civil War. In 1863, the fort successfully defended Harrisonburg from the attack of four Union gunboats coming from the Black River to the Ouachita River. After four days of bombardment, little damage was done, and the gunboats retired down river.

The village of Harrisonburg formerly staged reenactments at Fort Beauregard, also known as Fort Hill, but those ceremonies ended in the late 20th century. These reenactments were brought back to life for 2015, but halted in 2016, still planned for future years to come.

Harrisonburg was once a trade capital because of its location on the Ouachita River, with easy access to the Mississippi River and New Orleans. The Harrisonburg Road ran through the area as it crossed Louisiana between Mississippi's Natchez Trace and Texas' El Camino Real.