Carroll Parish was named in honor of Charles Carroll in 1832, a philanthropist, statesman and signer of the Declaration of Independence. Carroll Parish was divided into two parishes in 1877. The division solved a feud over the site of the seat of government. Bayou Macon formed the boundary between the two parishes. Lake Providence became the parish seat of East Carroll Parish.  Floyd, located on the Bayou Macon was the parish seat of West Carroll Parish. It was named after Moses Floyd who settled on the west bank of the Bayou Macon in 1807. Floyd became a busy trading post with a great deal of steamboat traffic. The settlement was located less than a mile from the Poverty Point site. After the arrival of the locomotive, Oak Grove became the parish seat of West Carroll Parish.  Construction began on the new courthouse in 1856 and was completed in 1857.

For the early settlers timber was the main occupation. As the cotton and timber industries grew, West Carroll Pariah was home to 10 cotton gins. Pioneer became a town due to the Pioneer Sawmill located there. Three sawmills were located in the parish. As the businesses followed the timber industry and as it declined farming took over. Today West Carroll produces a variety of crops but the king crop is sweet potatoes- the best you will find anywhere.

West Carroll Parish is located at latitude 32.79 degrees North and Longitude 91.45 degrees West. The land area is 359.4 square miles (230099 acres). The water area is 0.9 square miles (590 acres). The population of West Carroll Parish is approximately 11,604.  The towns of West Carroll Parish are Epps, Forest, Floyd, Goodwill, Kilbourne, Oak Grove, and Pioneer.

The village of Epps was incorporated on October 18, 1929.  Edmond Richardson, a lawyer, In 1881, Dr. J. T. Motley donated an acre of land so that a school building could be built. The school was called Eureka.  Epps High School was built on the present school ground in 1925.  The first high school principal was Mr. R. H. Mount. The mascot is the panther. The Poverty Point National Monument is located near Epps. The earthworks were here over 1000 years before the birth of Christ.

Pioneer is a village that developed around the Pioneer Cooperage Company Sawmill. It is now a farming community. Pioneer had an elementary and high school for many years. There mascot was the Indian. The school was closed as part of a parish-wide school consolidation plan that also closed Fiske Union Elementary School. The Fiske Union Elementary and the Pioneer School are now being used as tutoring facilities.

Goodwill has an Elementary School in West Carroll Parish. The mascot is the Bronco. Goodwill is a small farming community.

Forest was named after the post office located in the home of Taylor Jackson whose plantation was called Forest Home. Forest is a farming area. The village of Forest is zoned to Forest High School (Grades PK-12). The mascot is the bulldog. Forest is a farming community.

Oak Grove is the largest town in West Carroll Parish. It is the parish. The town of Oak Grove is served by Oak Grove Elementary (PK-6) and Oak Grove High School (7-12). Their mascot is the tiger.  The North Louisiana Gospel Weekend is held in Oak Grove in March. A Bluegrass festival is held each April and October. The Jesse James Trade Days takes place each September.  In April, the West Carroll Chamber of Commerce holds the North Louisiana Sweet Potato Festival to celebrate the parish’s most popular crop. Oak Grove is the home of the oldest operating movie theatre, The Fiske Theatre, in Northeast Louisiana.

William J. Kilbourne owned a plantation with a store and a cotton gin. A post office was opened in his home and was called Kilbourne because of its location. The village of Kilbourne is zoned to Kilbourne High School (Grades PK-12). The mascot is the Hawk. Kilbourne is a farming community on the Louisiana/Arkansas line.

Other communities in West Carroll Parish include Bear Skin, Chickasaw, Concord, Darnell, Floyd, Gowen, New Hope, and Terry. Other populated places in the parish are Floyd Landing, Green, Redwing, and Twin Bridges.

West Carroll grows many crops including cotton, corn, soybeans, wheat, sweet potatoes, tomatoes, and sunflowers. Farmers and 4-Hers raise cattle, horses, donkeys, poultry, pigs, and goats. Oil and natural gas are part of the economy of West Carroll Parish. It is a sportsman’s playground. Good fishing and bird hunting are enjoyed by many of the residents and visitors to our parish.   Deer, turkey, wild hogs, black bear, fox, and other wildlife abound.