Big Country Land Management

About forestry service, 75977, Wiergate, TX, US, Louisiana

Lake Charles (French: Lac-Charles) is the fifth-most populous city in the U.S. state of Louisiana, and the parish seat of Calcasieu Parish, located on Lake Charles, Prien Lake, and the Calcasieu River. Founded in 1861 in Calcasieu Parish, it is a major industrial, cultural, and educational center in the southwest region of the state. As of the 2020 U.S. census, Lake Charles's population was 84,872. The city and metropolitan area of Lake Charles is considered a regionally significant center of petrochemical refining, gambling, tourism, and education, being home to McNeese State University and Sowela Technical Community College. Because of the lakes and waterways throughout the city, metropolitan Lake Charles is often called the "Lake Area". == History == On March 7, 1861, Lake Charles was incorporated as the town of Charleston, named after an early settler, Charles Sallier. On March 16, 1867, Charleston was reincorporated as the City of Lake Charles. The Great Fire of April 1910 devastated much of the city. Lake Charles soon rebuilt, grew and expanded in the 20th century. The Charleston Hotel was completed in 1929, during the administration of Mayor Henry J. Geary.