Ellisville, Mississippi

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Ellisville, Mississippi
—  City  —
Jones County courthouse in Ellisville
Location of Ellisville in the State of Mississippi
Coordinates: 31°36′4″N 89°12′8″W / 31.60111°N 89.20222°W / 31.60111; -89.20222Coordinates: 31°36′4″N 89°12′8″W / 31.60111°N 89.20222°W / 31.60111; -89.20222
[[List of countries |Country]] United States
[[Political divisions of the United States |State]] Mississippi
[[List of counties in Mississippi |County]] [[Jones County, Mississippi |Jones]]
Continent North America
Government
 - Type City
Area
 - Total 5.6 sq mi (14.5 km2)
 - Land 5.5 sq mi (14.3 km2)
 - Water 0.1 sq mi (0.2 km2)
Elevation 253 ft (77 m)
Population (2000)
 - Total 3,465
 - Density 628.9/sq mi (242.8/km2)
Time zone Central (CST) (UTC-6)
 - Summer (DST) CDT (UTC-5)
ZIP code 39437
Area code(s) 601
FIPS code 28-22020
GNIS feature ID 0669746

Ellisville is a city in Jones County, Mississippi, United States. The population was 3,465 at the 2000 census.

Contents

[edit] History

The city is named for Powhatan Ellis, a former U.S. Senator for Mississippi and descendant of Chief Powhatan, father of Pocahontas. Ellisville was the major commercial and population center of Jones County until being supplanted by nearby Laurel in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. During the American Civil War, Ellisville and Jones County was a center of pro-Union resistance. Though there were many anti-secession movements and actions throughout the Confederacy, the "Free and Sovereign State of Jones" (or sometimes "Kingdom of Jones") had from the very beginning posed the most serious and persistent threat, and even went as far as drafting its own constitution. Irregulars formed the Knight Company and were led by Captain Newton Knight, First Lieutenant Jasper Collins, and Second Lieutenant William Wesley Sumrall. Along with as many as 100 other southern men, they fought several skirmishes with Confederate units sent to crush the rebellion. Referenced in Ken Burns' monumental documentary The Civil War; Knight's rebellion was also dramatized in the 1948 motion picture Tap Roots (based on the book of the same name), where in a few exterior scenes there are prominent mountains in the background - which do not exist in Mississippi.

[edit] Geography

Ellisville is located at 31°36′4″N 89°12′8″W / 31.60111°N 89.20222°W / 31.60111; -89.20222 (31.601068, -89.202123)[1].According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 5.6 square miles (14.5 km²), of which, 5.5 square miles (14.3 km²) of it is land and 0.1 square miles (0.2 km²) of it (1.61%) is water.

[edit] Demographics

As of the census[2] of 2000, there were 3,465 people, 1,220 households, and 795 families residing in the city. The population density was 628.9 people per square mile (242.8/km²). There were 1,380 housing units at an average density of 250.5/sq mi (96.7/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 67.42% White, 30.91% African American, 0.20% Native American, 0.17% Asian, 0.61% from other races, and 0.69% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 1.47% of the population.There were 1,220 households out of which 27.0% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 42.0% were married couples living together, 19.0% had a female householder with no husband present, and 34.8% were non-families. 31.3% of all households were made up of individuals and 13.4% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.41 and the average family size was 3.02.In the city the population was spread out with 22.4% under the age of 18, 10.2% from 18 to 24, 27.6% from 25 to 44, 22.5% from 45 to 64, and 17.3% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 39 years. For every 100 females there were 92.3 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 85.3 males.The median income for a household in the city was $23,424, and the median income for a family was $27,955. Males had a median income of $26,477 versus $22,537 for females. The per capita income for the city was $12,822. About 21.1% of families and 35.0% of the population were below the poverty line, including 36.8% of those under age 18 and 28.5% of those age 65 or over.

[edit] Education

The City of Ellisville is served by the Jones County School District. South Jones High School is located in Ellisville. Their mascot is the Braves.Ellisville is also home to Jones County Junior College. Their mascot is the Bobcats.

Jones County Junior College as viewed from U.S. Route 11

[edit] Noteworthy natives

  • Lance Bass, pop singer and member of 'N Sync, raised in Ellisville
  • Chris McDaniel, State Senator, Attorney and host of the nationally syndicated "The Right Side Radio Show."
  • Leah Laviano, Miss Mississippi USA 2008 was 1st runner-up at the Miss USA 2008 pageant. It was Mississippi's highest placement at the pageant.
  • Buddy Myer, standout second baseman for the MLB Washington Senators in 1930s, one of the best Jewish middle infielders ever to play in the Majors
  • Harry Craft, Major League Baseball Player and Manager, First Manager of the Houston Colt .45's and Minor League manager of Micky Mantle (who credited Craft with making him into the great hitter that he was)

[edit] References

  1. ^ "US Gazetteer files: 2000 and 1990". United States Census Bureau. 2005-05-03. http://www.census.gov/geo/www/gazetteer/gazette.html. Retrieved 2008-01-31. 
  2. ^ "American FactFinder". United States Census Bureau. http://factfinder.census.gov. Retrieved 2008-01-31. 

[edit] External links

Retrieved from "http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ellisville,_Mississippi"