Ruston is a city in and the parish seat of Lincoln Parish, Louisiana, United States. The population was 20,546 at the 2000 census. Ruston rests on the eastern border of the Ark-La-Tex and is the home of Louisiana Tech University. Its economy is built to cater to its college population. Ruston in known throughout the northern portions of the state as the home for the annual Squire Creek Peach Festival. Ruston is the principal city of the Ruston Micropolitan Statistical Area, which includes all of Lincoln and Jackson parishes.