Neshoba County, Mississippi
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Neshoba County, Mississippi | |
| Map | |
 Location in the state of Mississippi |
|
 Mississippi's location in the U.S. |
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| Statistics | |
| Founded | 1833 |
|---|---|
| Seat | Philadelphia |
| Largest city | Philadelphia |
| Area - Total - Land - Water |
572 sq mi (1,481 km²) 570 sq mi (1,476 km²) 2 sq mi (5 km²), 0.29% |
| Population - (2000) - Density |
28,684 49/sq mi (19/km²) |
Neshoba County is a county located in the U.S. state of Mississippi. As of the 2000 census, the population is 28,684. Its county seat is Philadelphia[1].
Neshoba, derived from the Choctaw word nashoba, means Wolf. [2]
Neshoba County is known as the site of one of the most famous race-related crimes in American history. In 1964, three civil rights workers were murdered by white supremacists in Philadelphia, Mississippi (the county seat). The crime and decades-long legal aftermath inspired the 1988 movie Mississippi Burning. President Ronald Reagan launched his 1980 presidential campaign from the Neshoba County Fair, delivering a speech some called States Rights-themed which they allege to be a carefully calibrated application of Nixon's "Southern Strategy", an appeal to racist white voters. However a recently discovered recording of the speech reveals Reagan only in passing mentions "states rights" and that it was not a theme of the mild speech.[3] [4]
The county is known for its county fair The Neshoba County Fair and harness horse races. It is also home of the Williams Brothers Store, which has been in operation since the early 1900s.
The Mississippi Band of Choctaw Indians (MBCI) own one of the largest casino complexes in the state. The Silver Star and Golden Moon casinos are the first land based casinos in Mississippi. These casinos are part of the MBCI's Pearl River Resort.
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[edit] Geography
According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 572 square miles (1,481 km²), of which, 570 square miles (1,476 km²) of it is land and 2 square miles (4 km²) of it (0.29%) is water.
[edit] Major highways
[edit] Adjacent counties
- Winston County (north)
- Kemper County (east)
- Newton County (south)
- Leake County (west)
[edit] Demographics
| Historical populations | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Census | Pop. | %± | |
| 1840 | 2,437 |
|
|
| 1850 | 4,728 | 94.0% | |
| 1860 | 8,343 | 76.5% | |
| 1870 | 7,439 | -10.8% | |
| 1880 | 8,741 | 17.5% | |
| 1890 | 11,146 | 27.5% | |
| 1900 | 12,726 | 14.2% | |
| 1910 | 17,980 | 41.3% | |
| 1920 | 19,303 | 7.4% | |
| 1930 | 26,691 | 38.3% | |
| 1940 | 27,882 | 4.5% | |
| 1950 | 25,730 | -7.7% | |
| 1960 | 20,927 | -18.7% | |
| 1970 | 20,802 | -0.6% | |
| 1980 | 23,789 | 14.4% | |
| 1990 | 24,800 | 4.2% | |
| 2000 | 28,684 | 15.7% | |
| Est. 2007 | 30,236 | 5.4% | |
As of the census[5] of 2000, there were 28,684 people, 10,694 households, and 7,742 families residing in the county. The population density was 50 people per square mile (19/km²). There were 11,980 housing units at an average density of 21 per square mile (8/km²). The racial makeup of the county was 65.50% White, 19.33% Black or African American, 13.80% Native American, 0.19% Asian, 0.02% Pacific Islander, 0.34% from other races, and 0.81% from two or more races. 1.16% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race. 28.6% were of American, 8.8% Irish and 6.1% English ancestry according to Census 2000. 88.7% spoke English and 10.2% Choctaw as their first language.
There were 10,694 households out of which 34.90% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 52.50% were married couples living together, 15.60% had a female householder with no husband present, and 27.60% were non-families. 24.70% of all households were made up of individuals and 11.50% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.63 and the average family size was 3.11.
In the county the population was spread out with 28.20% under the age of 18, 9.00% from 18 to 24, 27.00% from 25 to 44, 21.60% from 45 to 64, and 14.20% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 35 years. For every 100 females there were 91.10 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 88.30 males.
The median income for a household in the county was $28,300, and the median income for a family was $33,439. Males had a median income of $28,112 versus $19,882 for females. The per capita income for the county was $14,964. About 17.90% of families and 21.00% of the population were below the poverty line, including 27.20% of those under age 18 and 22.00% of those age 65 or over.
[edit] Communities
- Cities
- Towns
- Union (mostly in Newton County)
- Census-designated places
- Bogue Chitto (partly in Kemper County)
- Pearl River
- Tucker
[edit] External links
- Choctaw Indian Fair
- County fair website
- Neshoba County Public Library
- Neshoba Democrat newspaper
- Mississippi Band of Choctaw Indians' Website
- Mississippi Region Grapples with Legacy of Civil Rights Murders, a 40th anniversary story from All Things Considered
- Neshoba Democrat's 40th anniversary stories
- USS Neshoba APA 216
[edit] Citations
- ^ Find a County. National Association of Counties. Retrieved on 2008-01-31.
- ^ Byington, Cyrus [1909]. Choctaw Language Dictionary. Global Bible Society.
- ^ Jim Prince: "War over Reagan's Words." Madison County Journal (11/22/2007)
- ^ Montaldo, Charles. The Mississippi Burning Case (HTML).
- ^ American FactFinder. United States Census Bureau. Retrieved on 2008-01-31.
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