Most of French Settlement was built recently: 5% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 2001. Below: 2 old photos and papers, maps from 1934 on, and the census since 1970.
Founding year: Wikipedia. First post office: 1856.The full story ↓
History grade
What drives French Settlement’s History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, French Settlement is more historic than 55% of U.S. towns. Its National Register listings hold the grade up; its share of homes from before 1940 pulls it down.
B
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of French Settlement’s overall grade.
Louisiana towns list more on the Register than most of the country (a typical Louisiana town has 3.8 per 10,000 residents, the U.S. 2.4), so French Settlement’s 30.9 sits above most of its state (79% of Louisiana towns have fewer) while its 4 listings outnumber those of 68% of U.S. towns.
NoteThe founding year comes from Wikipedia alone; no second source gives 1800.
How sure. Graded on two of the three inputs, so a change in either one moves the letter more than it would with three. The pre-1940 share is a Census survey estimate (±4.3 points).
Founding year: Wikipedia (other dates in Quick answers). Homes: Census ACS 2020–24. National Register: National Park Service, May 2026 list; each listing counted once (boundary changes and added documentation belong to their listing), and a historic district counts its contributing buildings. How TownRatings grades history →
What stands out about French Settlement’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
French Settlement was settled in 1800 via the Amite River by French, German, and Italian immigrants. The area was a thriving center of commerce, including cypress sawmills, animal trappers, shingle-making, farms, and a steamboat port.
French Settlement has four houses on the National Register of Historic Places listings in Livingston Parish, Louisiana: Decareaux House, Deslattes House, Guitreau House, and Lobell House.
Nothing in the archives for these yearsWeddings on Main Street, storms, parades, school pictures, the old store. If it’s in your family album, it belongs here.
Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of French Settlement. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.
1934Denham Springs sheet · 1:62,500
U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (public domain), via Esri’s collection of the scans. The red ring marks the center of French Settlement.
Then & now
Stand where they stood
No then-and-now pairs yet. Take a photo from the same spot as an old one and they appear here side by side.
Retake this viewFrench Settlement La 1937 High School Gym, 1937
Find the spot, match the angle, and add your photo. It becomes the first then-and-now pair on French Settlement’s page.
In 1800, according to Wikipedia’s history of the town. French Settlement’s post office opened in 1856, and the census of 1970 counted 670 people here.
How does French Settlement rank for history?
French Settlement is more historic than 55% of U.S. towns. The History grade combines the town’s founding era, the share of homes built before 1940 and its National Register listings. It’s a character grade, so it isn’t part of the overall grade. How it works.
What is on the National Register in French Settlement?
4 listings: 4 buildings, among them the Adam Lobell House (listed 1992, the first).
How old are the homes in French Settlement?
5% of French Settlement’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±4.3 points), against a typical 3.4% for a Louisiana town; the median home was built in 2001.
Founding dates: Wikidata, Wikipedia, the U.S. post office records of Blevins & Helbock (CC0) and the Census. Homes by year built: Census ACS 2020–24. National Register of Historic Places: National Park Service (list of May 22, 2026). Old photos, postcards and papers: Wikimedia Commons, the Library of Congress and other public archives, credited on each item’s page. Maps: U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (via Esri) and Sanborn fire-insurance maps (Library of Congress). History text and census tables: Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0). Places that used to be: USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).
From Wikimedia Commons (7), Wikidata (3), the National Register of Historic Places (4), Wikipedia, U.S. Geological Survey historical maps, U.S. Census counts (via Wikipedia), the US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock) and the USGS Geographic Names Information System. Archive images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.
2016
2015
2015
2012
2004
