[3] Early European settlers of the area that was developed as Gonzales were, for the most part, of French and Spanish ancestry.

Among the projects and plans carried out by Luis de Unzaga ("Le Conciliateur") while he was governor of Louisiana between 1769 and 1777 was the promotion of new settlements by Europeans; among them were French Acadians and Málaga in the fertile Mississippi region, and more specifically in the Unzaga Post or "Puesto de Unzaga" that he created in 1771 in Pointe Coupee, the parish of Saint Gabriel in 1773 and Fort Manchac in 1776; the Gonzales people occupied land at the confluence of the aforementioned European settlements.

José's son, Joseph "Tee-Joe" (for Petit Joe) Gonzales, opened a general store and post office in May 1887.

When the Louisiana Railway and Navigation Company (LR&N) constructed its rail line through the area, the local post office was already named Gonzales.

The company also wanted to move the station north of the area to New River, Louisiana, then called Belle Hellene.

Governor John J. McKeithen marked the occasion by proclaiming Gonzales as the "Jambalaya Capital of the World".

Following the growth of industrial corporations in the area, the town was chartered by the state legislature as a city in 1977.

The National Guard, and HSUS and other animal rescue groups, established their bases at the fairground in Gonzales.

In 2024, the City of Gonzales saw the election its first African-American Mayor, Timothy “Tim” Riley along with its first female council members; Terri Lambert and Cynthia Gray James.

District 59 State Representative Tony Bacala of Ascension Parish is a retired law enforcement officer, State Senator Eddie Lambert a family law attorney who represents Ascension, Livingston, St. James, and St. John the Baptist.

Edward Joseph Price, an African-American Democrat and a Gonzales businessman, has held the District 58 House seat for Ascension, Iberville and St. James parishes since 2012.

[16] Another District 58 representative was Melvin Irvin, a black educator and businessman from Gonzales, who held the seat from 1984 to 1992.

922nd EVCC plays a pivotal role in providing humanitarian relief during natural disasters within the United States, along with remaining ready to deploy anywhere in the world as they are needed.