Vinton

History

The Old Spanish Trail wandered north and south of what is now U.S. Highway 90, in large part because of the unstable roadbed. The chief means of outside travel in the parish relied on riverboats plying the Sabine and Calcasieu rivers. Much of the marsh and bayous remained impassable. River travel made Lake Charles possible, just as mining for sulfur led to the founding of Sulphur. Settlers had long been in the Vinton area. Jean Baptise Granger settled acreage between what is now Vinton and Big Woods about 1827, one of the first pioneers of the area. Even so, the area remained sparsely populated. The area had few settlers because France, New Spain, and Mexico disputed the western boundary of Louisiana for many years. When the United States made the Louisiana Purchase, the disputed area was inherited. Spanish Lt. Col. Simón de Herrera and U.S. General James Wilkinson signed an agreement designating the area as neutral ground, also known as the Neutral Strip. The agreement was not a treaty and not ratified by either government, but it was respected by both countries. The area, sometimes referred to as the Rio Hondo Territory, was off limits to the military of both countries, and settlers were not to be allowed, but that did not stop squatters from both countries. There had been numerous attempts to improve transportation throughout the 19th century. In the 1830s, on the nearby Sabine River, Dr. Robert Neblett developed a bluff into a thriving river port, which became known as Niblett's Bluff (sic) west of the present-day town. Confederate soldiers in 1863 cut a military road extending from Niblett's Bluff on the Sabine River to Alexandria. Although the road never developed into a major artery, during the American Civil War, Niblett's Bluff became Fort Niblett, which…

Geography

Vinton is located in western Calcasieu Parish. U.S. Route 90 passes through the center of town, and Interstate 10 runs along the southern edge, with access from exits 7 and 8. Sulphur, Louisiana, is to the east, and Orange, Texas, is the same distance to the west. According to the United States Census Bureau, Vinton has a total area of , of which is land and , or 1.01%, is water.

Race & ethnicity

Most-observed species

• Northern Mockingbird

  Mimus polyglottos (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  1,656
• Northern Cardinal

  Cardinalis cardinalis (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  1,648
• Great Egret

  Ardea alba Linnaeus, 1758 · Aves
  1,192
• Carolina Wren

  Thryothorus ludovicianus (Latham, 1790) · Aves
  1,142
• Mourning Dove

  Zenaida macroura (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  915
• Great-tailed Grackle

  Quiscalus mexicanus (Gmelin, 1788) · Aves
  866
• Common Grackle

  Quiscalus quiscula (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  864
• European Starling

  Sturnus vulgaris Linnaeus, 1758 · Aves
  827

Largest nearby schools

• Vinton Elementary School
  Elementary · Vinton · 458 students · 19.1:1 ratio
• Starks High School
  Other · Starks · 327 students · 9.3:1 ratio
• Vinton High School
  High · Vinton · 301 students · 13.7:1 ratio
• Vinton Middle School
  Middle · Vinton · 214 students · 13.4:1 ratio