Holmes County, Mississippi

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Holmes County, Mississippi
Map of Mississippi highlighting Holmes County
Location in the state of Mississippi
Map of the U.S. highlighting Mississippi
Mississippi's location in the U.S.
Founded 1833
Seat Lexington
Largest city Durant
Area
 - Total
 - Land
 - Water
764.18 sq mi (1,979 km²)
756.00 sq mi (1,958 km²)
8.18 sq mi (21 km²), 1.07%
Population
 - (2010)
 - Density
19,198
28/sq mi (11/km²)

Holmes County is a county located in the Mississippi Delta region of the U.S. state of Mississippi. As of 2010, the population was 19,198. It is named in honor of David Holmes, the first governor of the state of Mississippi. Its county seat is Lexington.[1] Holmes County has the lowest life expectancy of any county in the United States, either for men or women.[2]

Contents

[edit] Geography

According to the 2000 census, the county has a total area of 764.18 square miles (1,979.2 km2), of which 756.00 square miles (1,958.0 km2) (or 98.93%) is land and 8.18 square miles (21.2 km2) (or 1.07%) is water.[3]

[edit] Major highways

[edit] Adjacent counties

Leflore County Carroll County
Humphreys County Attala County
   Holmes County, Mississippi    
Yazoo County

[edit] National protected areas

[edit] Demographics

Historical populations
Census Pop. %±
1840 9,452
—
1850 13,928 47.4%
1860 17,791 27.7%
1870 19,370 8.9%
1880 27,164 40.2%
1890 30,970 14.0%
1900 36,828 18.9%
1910 39,088 6.1%
1920 34,513 −11.7%
1930 38,534 11.7%
1940 39,710 3.1%
1950 33,301 −16.1%
1960 27,096 −18.6%
1970 23,120 −14.7%
1980 22,970 −0.6%
1990 21,604 −5.9%
2000 21,609 0%
2010 19,198 −11.2%
MS Counties 1900-1990
GeoHive - 2000 & 2010 statistics

As of the census[4] of 2000, there were 21,609 people, 7,314 households, and 5,229 families residing in the county. The population density was 29 people per square mile (11/km²). There were 8,439 housing units at an average density of 11 per square mile (4/km²). The racial makeup of the county was 20.47% White, 78.66% Black or African American, 0.12% Native American, 0.15% Asian, 0.07% from other races, and 0.52% from two or more races. 0.90% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.

According to the census[4] of 2000, the largest ancestry groups in Holmes County were African 78.66%, English 11.4%, and Scots-Irish 5%

There were 2,314 households out of which 11.00% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 24.10% were married couples living together, 21.20% had a female householder with no husband present, and 18.50% were non-families. 16.30% of all households were made up of individuals and 12.10% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.86 and the average family size was 3.48.

In the county the population was spread out with 32.10% under the age of 18, 12.40% from 18 to 24, 24.80% from 25 to 44, 18.30% from 45 to 64, and 12.40% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 30 years. For every 100 females there were 87.30 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 79.30 males.

The median income for a household in the county was $17,235, and the median income for a family was $21,757. Males had a median income of $23,720 versus $17,883 for females. The per capita income for the county was $10,683. About 35.90% of families and 41.10% of the population were below the poverty line, including 52.30% of those under age 18 and 36.40% of those age 65 or over.

Holmes County has the third lowest per capita income in Mississippi and the 41st lowest in the United States.

[edit] Politics

Presidential election results
Year GOP DEM Others
2008 18.0% 1,714 81.4% 7,765 0.7% 64
2004 23.4% 1,961 75.9% 6,366 0.7% 56
2000 26.1% 1,937 73.4% 5,447 0.5% 38
1996 24.0% 1,536 73.6% 4,720 2.4% 155
1992 28.2% 1,694 68.0% 4,092 3.8% 228
1988 33.7% 2,737 65.8% 5,350 0.5% 39
1984 35.4% 3,102 64.4% 5,641 0.1% 10
1980 32.3% 2,693 65.5% 5,463 2.2% 180
1976 33.8% 2,438 64.1% 4,616 2.1% 149
1972 47.2% 3,158 51.7% 3,459 1.0% 69
1968 7.0% 520 52.4% 3,881 40.6% 3,008
1964 96.6% 3,115 3.4% 110 0.0% 0
1960 17.7% 455 24.5% 628 57.8% 1,484
Visiting in front of courthouse on Saturday afternoon, Lexington, Mississippi, 1939

Holmes is a heavily Democratic county in Presidential and Congressional elections. The last Republican to win a majority in the county was Barry Goldwater in 1964. In 2008, Democrat Barack Obama won 81% of the county's vote.

Holmes is part of Mississippi's 2nd congressional district, which is held by Democrat Bennie Thompson.

[edit] Communities

[edit] Education

  • Private Schools
    • Central Holmes Christian School (Lexington)
    • Old Dominion Christian School

[edit] Locations of interest

Holmes County State Park is located here. The Order of the Eastern Star considers the "Little Red Schoolhouse" located on Mississippi Highway 17 to be its birthplace.

[edit] Media

The county newspaper is the Holmes County Herald.

[edit] See also

[edit] References

  1. ^ "Find a County". National Association of Counties. http://www.naco.org/Counties/Pages/FindACounty.aspx. Retrieved 2011-06-07. 
  2. ^ http://www.cnn.com/2011/HEALTH/06/15/life.expectancy.united.states/index.html?hpt=hp_c2
  3. ^ "Census 2000 U.S. Gazetteer Files: Counties". United States Census. http://www.census.gov/tiger/tms/gazetteer/county2k.txt. Retrieved 2011-02-13. 
  4. ^ a b "American FactFinder". United States Census Bureau. http://factfinder.census.gov. Retrieved 2008-01-31. 

[edit] External links

Municipalities and communities of Holmes County, Mississippi, United States
Cities
Towns
Unincorporated
communities
Topics
Regions
Metros
Larger cities
Smaller cities
Counties

Coordinates: 33°07′N 90°05′W / 33.12°N 90.09°W / 33.12; -90.09

Retrieved from "http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Holmes_County,_Mississippi&oldid=479990593"
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