Morrisonville was a small town in Iberville parish, Louisiana that was settled by African Americans. This small town was contaminated with industrial pollution leading to it being deserted. a company by the name Dow chemical was responsible for this pollution from their large-scale production of Vinyl Chloride.

Rise and fall of Morrisonville

In the 1870s, slaves were freed from the plantations near Plaquemine and this led them to the nearest town, Morrisonville giving rise to the community. A chemical company producing Vinyl Chloride bought an extensive piece of land near the town and established a production factory. Between the town and the chemical company was a green belt that separated the town and the company. The company realized after years of operation that their existence in the region had polluted the area to unsalvageable conditions. The company in a bid to save themselves came up with a solution of buying the whole town and relocating the residents. 

The Dow chemical company never wanted to face the full wrath of the law so they cheated the residents telling them how worthless the land would be if they failed to sell it to them. On the other hand, he told the government the reason for the relocation was to expand his production plant. This thought-out explanation to cover up the damage done by the Dow Chemical Company worked out great for they were able to relocate all the willing residents to a new place. The rest of the town residents who loved their land too much to leave were left in the inhabitable town. Much is not known about them whether they left when the pollution got worse or they died due to their ignorance. The townsite plus the sawmill were left disowned for nature to reclaim.

What is the current state of the townsite?

The town is currently abandoned and completely disowned. Most of the old structures have collapsed leaving visible fragments of concrete and piles of logs. The graveyard that is said to be holding more than seventy percent of the residents who died from poisoning can still be seen. The cross and tablets holding the names of those whose lives were cut short by ignorance and creed of Dow Chemical Company. Nazarene Baptist church and the vast production plant still stand in despair. The townsite is out of bounds to the general public as it was deemed an environmental hazard region. The state government who is currently the owner of the extensive un-usable land declared the land uninhabitable. Morrisonville is the best example of how modernization can quickly wipe out people from the surface of the earth if we fail to be cautious.