Visionary Arthur Stilwell built the Kansas City Southern Railroad from Kansas city to Port Arthur, Texas. He had reached Van Buren, Arkansas in 1893 when he ran out of funds. This was during the Panic of 1893 when investment capital was simply not available. Stilwell went to Zwolle, Holland and met with a rich coffee merchant whom he had met earlier on a European vacation - Jan De Goeijen (anglicized to John De Queen). De Queen sold a $3,000,000 stock issue for Stilwell's railroad. While visiting the settlement which was to become Zwolle, Louisiana, De Queen and his wife were impressed with St. Joseph Catholic church, a product of the early Spanish missionaries which stood silhouetted against the pines on a hill overlooking the town. De Queen was permitted to name it after his hometown and birthplace of Zwolle, a seaport of over 40,000 population in the Netherlands. Mr. De Queen became a real friend to some of the Zwolle people and corresponded with them regularly. He paid several visits to the town in Louisiana during the remainder of his life by way of a special train from Kansas City.

Many years earlier the Native Americans had settled in the area because they believed that they would be protected from the storms due to the location in the fork of two creeks. The influx of Spanish military personnel and the early Spanish missionaries contributed to the heavy Spanish culture. Considering its Dutch name, the influence of Native Americans and Spaniards, with just a smattering of French influence, the town is a true mosaic of culture, nationality, and race.