Lafourche Parish

The largest of Louisiana’s nearly three hundred bayous, Bayou Lafourche travels the entire length of the parish before terminating at the Gulf of Mexico at Port Fourchon, one of the U.S.’s busiest ports. Lafourche is served by direct access to U.S. Interstate 49, and is crossed at several locations by the Intracoastal Waterway. The bayou is navigable by commercial vessels beginning at its mid-point at Matthews southward and provides a home to significant fabrication and maritime operations.

At its southernmost region, Lafourche is home to Port Fourchon, a vast complex providing support to as much as 60 percent of the oil and gas activity in the Gulf of Mexico. The Louisiana Offshore Oil Port also has its home in Lafourche and supplies as much as 15 percent of all crude oil imports for the nation. Rail connects the parish at its center with airfields at Thibodaux and Galliano.

Lafourche is home to the area’s regional university, Nicholls State University. Nicholls offers associate, bachelor and graduate degree programs and is central to the ongoing economic development of the region. Lafourche also is home to vocational college campuses in Thibodaux and Galliano.