East Feliciana County

Note: In Louisiana, “counties” are called parishes. Figures below refer to East Feliciana Parish.

• Population

  • 19,531 (2020 Census)
  • ~19.2k (ACS 2019–2023 5-year estimate)

• Age

  • Median age: ~41 years
  • Under 18: ~19%
  • 65 and over: ~17%

• Gender

  • Male: ~53%
  • Female: ~47%
  • Note: Shares are influenced by local correctional/health institutions.

• Race/ethnicity (Hispanic can be any race)

  • Black or African American: ~50%
  • White: ~46%
  • Hispanic/Latino: ~2–3%
  • Two or more races: ~1–2%
  • Asian, American Indian/Alaska Native, other: each <1%

• Households

  • Total households: ~6,900–7,100
  • Average household size: ~2.5–2.6
  • Family households: ~65–70% of households
  • Owner-occupied: ~75–80%
  • Households with children under 18: ~25–30%

Source: U.S. Census Bureau (2020 Decennial Census; 2019–2023 American Community Survey 5-year). If you need exact ACS estimates with margins of error for a specific year, I can provide them.

Note: East Feliciana is a rural parish (not “county”).

Population and density

• Pop: ~19–20k; low density ~40–45 residents per sq. mile.

Estimated email users

• 13–15k residents use email (about 70–80% of all residents; roughly 85–90% of those age 13+).

Age pattern (share using email, among each group)

• 13–29: ~95%
• 30–49: ~92–95%
• 50–64: ~85–90%
• 65+: ~70–80%

Gender split

• Roughly even; about 51% female, 49% male among users (mirrors local population).

Digital access and trends

• Household broadband subscription is likely in the mid‑60s to low‑70s percent range, below urban Louisiana averages.
• Access is strongest in and near towns and highway corridors; more gaps in sparsely populated areas.
• Mobile coverage is generally reliable along major routes; a notable minority of “smartphone‑only” internet households.
• Connectivity is improving due to Louisiana’s recent GUMBO/BEAD investments (2022–2026), with incremental fiber/cable build‑outs. Affordability and device access remain barriers for some seniors and low‑income households.

Sources/assumptions: Parish population and density from Census norms; broadband and email adoption inferred from ACS/Pew rural benchmarks and Louisiana broadband initiatives. Estimates, not official counts.

Below is a county-equivalent snapshot for East Feliciana Parish, LA (often called a “county” in non-Louisiana contexts), centered on how local mobile usage and infrastructure differ from statewide patterns.

What’s different from Louisiana overall

• Higher reliance on mobile as the primary way to get online: smartphone-only households are a larger share than the state average.
• Slightly lower 5G mid-band coverage and slower typical mobile speeds than Louisiana’s urbanized corridors.
• Older age structure and lower median income than the state, contributing to more prepaid plans and a larger share of basic/older devices among seniors.
• Coverage is comparatively strong along Baton Rouge commuter corridors (LA-19, LA-67) but falls off faster than the state average in low-density tracts.

User estimates

• Population base: ~19–20k residents; adults ~15k (East Feliciana skews older than Louisiana overall).
• Adult smartphone users: roughly 12.3k–13.0k (assumes 82–86% adult smartphone adoption, below Louisiana’s metro-heavy average).
• Households with a cellular data plan: about 5.1k–5.9k (roughly 75–82% of an estimated 6.8k–7.2k households), a bit below the state average.
• Smartphone-only internet households: estimated 1.5k–2.0k (about 22–28% of households), notably higher than Louisiana’s statewide share. This reflects limited wired broadband options and budget constraints.

Demographic usage patterns

• Age: Seniors make up a larger slice than statewide. Smartphone adoption among 65+ lags the parish average by 10–15 points, and basic/older Android devices are more common. Younger commuters to the Baton Rouge area show near-urban adoption and app usage patterns.
• Income and plan type: Lower incomes and credit constraints drive a higher prepaid mix than the state average; hotspot use for home connectivity is common where fixed broadband is absent or costly.
• Race/ethnicity: The parish has a sizable Black population. Mirroring national trends, mobile-only internet reliance is higher among Black and lower-income households, amplifying the parish’s overall smartphone-only rate relative to the state.
• Housing: Renters show higher smartphone-only and prepaid usage than owner-occupiers, reflecting affordability and move-in/move-out dynamics in smaller towns.

Digital infrastructure and performance

• Coverage pattern:
  • Strongest near town centers and along commuter corridors to East Baton Rouge Parish (Clinton, Jackson, Slaughter; LA-19/LA-67).
  • Coverage and capacity drop in sparsely populated northern/eastern tracts near the Mississippi line, with more low-band 4G and fewer sectors.
• 5G availability:
  • Low-band 5G is fairly ubiquitous along main roads, but mid-band 5G (e.g., 2.5 GHz or C-band) is spottier than the state average and largely tied to the southern border and highway-adjacent sites. This limits typical 5G speeds away from corridors.
• Typical speeds and reliability:
  • Median download speeds are generally lower than statewide medians; think “tens of Mbps” in many rural blocks versus “dozens to 100+ Mbps” in Louisiana metros. Upload speeds likewise lag (often ~5–10 Mbps).
  • Signal quality and speeds degrade more quickly with distance from towers than in denser parishes because site spacing is wider and bands skew low.
• Carriers:
  • AT&T and Verizon tend to provide the most consistent rural coverage footprint; T‑Mobile’s mid-band can be strong near corridors but falls off in outer tracts.
• Backhaul and resiliency:
  • Corridor sites typically have stronger backhaul and better resiliency; remote sites may be more susceptible to congestion and post-storm power issues. Residents report service recoveries that trail metro Baton Rouge after severe weather.

Implications

• Program design: Mobile-first service delivery (text-based outreach, low-bandwidth apps) will reach more residents than desktop-heavy approaches.
• Public safety and health: Ensure critical alerts are SMS-friendly and consider signal boosters or public Wi‑Fi in dead spots around community centers.
• Infrastructure priorities: Additional mid-band 5G sectors and fiber-fed backhaul on secondary roads would close the largest gaps; small-cell investments make sense only near higher-density nodes (schools, clinics, downtown Clinton/Jackson).

Notes on sources and method

• Figures are synthesized from recent ACS “Computer and Internet Use” patterns, Pew-style smartphone adoption benchmarks, and 2023–2024 FCC/carrier coverage trends for rural Louisiana. Exact counts can vary by year; ranges above are provided to avoid false precision and highlight differences versus Louisiana statewide.

Quick note: East Feliciana is a parish (not a county) in Louisiana.

Snapshot (modeled, parish-level)

• Most-used platforms among local adults (share who say they use each; modeled from Pew Research Center 2024 U.S. rates, adjusted for rural/South patterns):
  • YouTube: 78–84%
  • Facebook: 70–76%
  • Instagram: 35–42%
  • TikTok: 25–32%
  • Snapchat: 24–30%
  • Pinterest: 30–38% (skews female)
  • X (Twitter): 16–22%
  • LinkedIn: 18–24% (lower in rural areas)
  • WhatsApp: 12–18% (niche)
  • Reddit: 15–20%
  • Nextdoor: 10–15%

Age patterns (adults)

• 18–29: YouTube 90%+, Instagram 70–80%, TikTok 60–70%, Snapchat 60–70%, Facebook 50–60%.
• 30–49: YouTube 85–90%, Facebook 70–80%, Instagram 45–55%, TikTok 35–45%, Snapchat 25–35%.
• 50–64: Facebook 75–85%, YouTube 70–80%, Instagram 25–35%, TikTok 15–25%.
• 65+: Facebook 65–75%, YouTube 55–65%, Instagram 15–20%, TikTok 10–15%.

Gender notes

• Women: More likely to use Facebook and Pinterest (Pinterest ≈40–50% of women; Facebook ≈72–78%).
• Men: Slightly higher on YouTube, Reddit, and X (Reddit ≈18–25% of men; X ≈18–25%).
• Instagram/TikTok are relatively balanced by gender in younger adults.

Behavioral trends (local)

• Facebook is the hub: parish news, school and sports updates, church events, buy/sell/trade and Marketplace drive daily use.
• Video dominates: short vertical video (Reels/TikTok) performs best for businesses, events, and local personalities.
• Peak times: evenings (6–10 pm) and weekend mid‑mornings; weather or school-related posts spike anytime news breaks.
• Community groups: high engagement with hyperlocal groups; recommendations for services (contractors, auto, healthcare) often sourced here.
• Messaging: Facebook Messenger is primary; WhatsApp is limited outside specific friend/family networks.
• Commerce: Local retail, food, and service promos convert best with “what/where/when” details, offers, and clear CTAs; Marketplace remains key for secondhand goods.
• Civic/Emergency: Rapid sharing around storms, outages, road closures; official pages that post consistently build trust quickly.
• Youth behavior: Teens gravitate to Instagram/Snapchat/TikTok; they often see Facebook as “for parents” but still maintain accounts for school/community info.

Method and sources

• Parish-specific social media surveys are rarely published. Figures above are modeled from Pew Research Center’s 2024 U.S. platform adoption, with rural/Southern adjustments, plus local age structure from U.S. Census Bureau ACS 2019–2023. Treat percentages as indicative ranges, not exact counts.