Editing Jefferson Davis County, Mississippi

{{short description|County in Mississippi, United States}}
{{About||the parish in Louisiana|Jefferson Davis Parish, Louisiana|other counties named after Jefferson Davis|Jeff Davis County (disambiguation)}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=April 2024}}
{{Infobox U.S. county
 | county               = Jefferson Davis County 
 | state                = Mississippi 
 | type                 = County 
 | seal                 = 
 | founded              = 1906 
 | seat wl              = Prentiss 
 | largest city wl      = Prentiss 
 | city type            = town 
 | area_total_sq_mi     = 409 
 | area_land_sq_mi      = 408 
 | area_water_sq_mi     = 0.7 
 | area percentage      = 0.2 
 | population_as_of     = 2020 
 | population_total     = 11321 
 | pop_est_as_of        = 
 | population_est       = 
 | population_density_sq_mi = auto 
 | web                  = 
 | ex image             = Jefferson Davis County Mississippi Courthouse.jpg
 | ex image cap         = [[Jefferson Davis County Courthouse]] in Prentiss
 | district             = 3rd
 | time zone            = Central
 | named for            = [[Jefferson Davis]]
 | website              = [http://www.jeffersondaviscountyms.com www.jeffersondaviscountyms.com]
}}

'''Jefferson Davis County''' is a [[County (United States)|county]] located in the [[U.S. state]] of [[Mississippi]]. As of the [[2020 United States census|2020 census]], the population was 11,321.<ref>{{cite web|title=Census - Geography Profile: Jefferson Davis County, Mississippi|url=https://data.census.gov/profile/Jefferson_Davis_County,_Mississippi?g=0500000US28065|publisher=[[United States Census Bureau]]|access-date=January 9, 2023}}</ref> Its [[county seat]] is [[Prentiss, Mississippi|Prentiss]].<ref name="GR6">{{cite web|url=http://www.naco.org/Counties/Pages/FindACounty.aspx |access-date=June 7, 2011 |title=Find a County |publisher=National Association of Counties |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110531210815/http://www.naco.org/Counties/Pages/FindACounty.aspx |archive-date=May 31, 2011 }}</ref> The county is named after Mississippi [[United States Senate|Senator]] and [[Confederate States of America|Confederate]] President [[Jefferson Davis]]. The county was carved out of [[Covington County, Mississippi|Covington]] and [[Lawrence County, Mississippi|Lawrence]] counties in March 1906. Governor [[James Kimble Vardaman|James K. Vardaman]] signed the bill creating the county on May 9, 1906.

==History==
The genesis of the county occurred on March 31, 1906, when a Mississippi state legislative act authorized the new country's boundaries. The residents of western [[Covington County, Mississippi|Covington County]] and eastern [[Lawrence County, Mississippi|Lawrence County]] had frequently complained of the rivers and streams impeding the route to their respective county seats. Jefferson Davis County was the state's 77th county.

A 1906 special referendum determined that the county seat would be Prentiss, named for either famed Mississippi lawmaker and orator [[Seargent Smith Prentiss]], or wealthy landowner [[Prentiss Webb Berry]]. The settlement was originally named Blountville after early settler William Blount.

In 1933, the county was the first in Mississippi to issue a prohibition on alcohol after the repeal of the [[Eighteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution]]. [[Round dancing]] in the community hall was banned in 1938.

In 1935, notorious bank robber [[Raymond Hamilton]], known to hide out in the county's wilderness, was involved in a hostage situation after robbing Prentiss' Bank of Blountville, but escaped in [[Memphis, Tennessee|Memphis]].<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://jeffdavis.msghn.org/|title=Jefferson Davis County Mississippi Genealogy & History Network|website=jeffdavis.msghn.org|access-date=March 3, 2018}}</ref>

==Geography==
According to the [[U.S. Census Bureau]], the county has a total area of {{convert|409|sqmi}}, of which {{convert|408|sqmi}} is land and {{convert|0.7|sqmi}} (0.2%) is water.<ref name="GR1">{{cite web|url=https://www.census.gov/geo/maps-data/data/docs/gazetteer/counties_list_28.txt |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130928074019/http://www.census.gov/geo/maps-data/data/docs/gazetteer/counties_list_28.txt |url-status=dead |archive-date=September 28, 2013 |publisher=United States Census Bureau |access-date=November 4, 2014 |date=August 22, 2012 |title=2010 Census Gazetteer Files }}</ref>

===Major highways===
* [[Image:US 84.svg|20px]] [[U.S. Route 84]]
* [[Image:Circle sign 13.svg|20px]] [[Mississippi Highway 13]]
* [[Image:Circle sign 35.svg|20px]] [[Mississippi Highway 35]]
* [[Image:Circle sign 42.svg|20px]] [[Mississippi Highway 42]]
* [[Image:Circle sign 43.svg|20px]] [[Mississippi Highway 43]]

===Adjacent counties===
* [[Simpson County, Mississippi|Simpson County]] (north)
* [[Covington County, Mississippi|Covington County]] (east)
* [[Lamar County, Mississippi|Lamar County]] (southeast)
* [[Marion County, Mississippi|Marion County]] (south)
* [[Lawrence County, Mississippi|Lawrence County]] (west)

==Demographics==
{{US Census population
|1910= 12860
|1920= 12755
|1930= 14281
|1940= 15869
|1950= 15500
|1960= 13540
|1970= 12936
|1980= 13846
|1990= 14051
|2000= 13962
|2010= 12487
|2020= 11321
|estyear=2023
|estimate=10969
|estref=<ref name="USCensusEst2023">{{cite web|url=https://www.census.gov/programs-surveys/popest/data/tables.html|title=Annual Estimates of the Resident Population for Counties: April 1, 2020 to July 1, 2023|publisher=United States Census Bureau|access-date=April 5, 2024}}</ref>
|align-fn=center
|footnote=U.S. Decennial Census<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.census.gov/programs-surveys/decennial-census.html|title=U.S. Decennial Census|publisher=United States Census Bureau|access-date=November 4, 2014}}</ref><br />1790-1960<ref>{{cite web|url=http://mapserver.lib.virginia.edu|title=Historical Census Browser|publisher=University of Virginia Library|access-date=November 4, 2014}}</ref> 1900-1990<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.census.gov/population/cencounts/ms190090.txt|title=Population of Counties by Decennial Census: 1900 to 1990|publisher=United States Census Bureau|access-date=November 4, 2014}}</ref><br />1990-2000<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.census.gov/population/www/cen2000/briefs/phc-t4/tables/tab02.pdf |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100327165705/http://www.census.gov/population/www/cen2000/briefs/phc-t4/tables/tab02.pdf |archive-date=March 27, 2010 |url-status=live|title=Census 2000 PHC-T-4. Ranking Tables for Counties: 1990 and 2000|publisher=United States Census Bureau|access-date=November 4, 2014}}</ref> 2010-2013<ref name="QF">{{cite web|title=State & County QuickFacts|url=http://quickfacts.census.gov/qfd/states/28/28065.html|publisher=United States Census Bureau|access-date=September 3, 2013|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110607051301/http://quickfacts.census.gov/qfd/states/28/28065.html|archive-date=June 7, 2011}}</ref>
}}

{| class="wikitable"
|+Jefferson Davis County racial composition as of 2020<ref>{{Cite web|title=Explore Census Data|url=https://data.census.gov/cedsci/table?g=0500000US28065&tid=DECENNIALPL2020.P2|access-date=December 16, 2021|website=data.census.gov}}</ref>
!Race
!Num.
!Perc.
|-
|[[White (U.S. Census)|White]] (non-Hispanic)
|4,330
|38.25%
|-
|[[African American (U.S. Census)|Black or African American]] (non-Hispanic)
|6,622
|58.49%
|-
|[[Native American (U.S. Census)|Native American]]
|8
|0.07%
|-
|[[Asian (U.S. Census)|Asian]]
|21
|0.19%
|-
|[[Race (United States Census)|Other/Mixed]]
|239
|2.11%
|-
|[[Hispanic (U.S. Census)|Hispanic]] or [[Latino (U.S. Census)|Latino]]
|101
|0.89%
|}
As of the [[2020 United States census]], there were 11,321 people, 4,713 households, and 3,003 families residing in the county.

==Communities==

===Towns===
* [[Bassfield, Mississippi|Bassfield]]
* [[Prentiss, Mississippi|Prentiss]] (county seat)

===Unincorporated communities===
* [[Carson, Mississippi|Carson]]
* [[Oak Vale, Mississippi|Oak Vale]] (partly in [[Lawrence County, Mississippi|Lawrence County]])

===Ghost town===
* [[Mount Carmel, Mississippi|Mount Carmel]]

==Politics==
Typical of a majority-black county in Mississippi, Jefferson Davis leans Democratic and last voted Republican in 1984.{{PresHead|place=Jefferson Davis County, Mississippi|whig=no|source1=<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://uselectionatlas.org/RESULTS|title=Dave Leip's Atlas of U.S. Presidential Elections|last=Leip|first=David|website=uselectionatlas.org|access-date=March 3, 2018}}</ref>}}
<!-- PresRow should be {{PresRow|Year|Winning party|GOP/Whig vote #|Dem vote #|3rd party vote #|State}} -->
{{PresRow|2024|Democratic|2,302|3,041|35|Mississippi}}
{{PresRow|2020|Democratic|2,534|3,599|80|Mississippi}}
{{PresRow|2016|Democratic|2,466|3,720|51|Mississippi}}
{{PresRow|2012|Democratic|2,507|4,267|90|Mississippi}}
{{PresRow|2008|Democratic|2,871|4,454|45|Mississippi}}
{{PresRow|2004|Democratic|2,668|2,959|138|Mississippi}}
{{PresRow|2000|Democratic|2,437|2,835|45|Mississippi}}
{{PresRow|1996|Democratic|1,890|2,663|313|Mississippi}}
{{PresRow|1992|Democratic|2,228|2,991|414|Mississippi}}
{{PresRow|1988|Democratic|2,745|2,948|35|Mississippi}}
{{PresRow|1984|Republican|2,884|2,644|38|Mississippi}}
{{PresRow|1980|Democratic|2,280|3,831|76|Mississippi}}
{{PresRow|1976|Democratic|1,868|2,747|83|Mississippi}}
{{PresRow|1972|Republican|2,830|1,005|51|Mississippi}}
{{PresRow|1968|American Independent|297|1,465|2,614|Mississippi}}
{{PresRow|1964|Republican|2,351|235|0|Mississippi}}
{{PresRow|1960|Dixiecrat|225|510|988|Mississippi}}
{{PresRow|1956|Democratic|156|1,049|224|Mississippi}}
{{PresRow|1952|Democratic|473|1,626|0|Mississippi}}
{{PresRow|1948|Dixiecrat|51|41|1,452|Mississippi}}
{{PresRow|1944|Democratic|88|1,372|0|Mississippi}}
{{PresRow|1940|Democratic|38|1,289|3|Mississippi}}
{{PresRow|1936|Democratic|67|1,325|2|Mississippi}}
{{PresRow|1932|Democratic|30|940|2|Mississippi}}
{{PresRow|1928|Democratic|163|856|0|Mississippi}}
{{PresRow|1924|Democratic|88|732|0|Mississippi}}
{{PresRow|1920|Democratic|179|485|5|Mississippi}}
{{PresRow|1916|Democratic|45|634|4|Mississippi}}
{{PresFoot|1912|Democratic|43|542|64|Mississippi}}

==Historic sites==
[[Jefferson Davis County Courthouse]] in Prentiss is listed on the [[National Register of Historic Places]].

==Education==
All residents are zoned to the [[Jefferson Davis County School District]].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www2.census.gov/geo/maps/DC2020/PL20/st28_ms/schooldistrict_maps/c28065_jefferson_davis/DC20SD_C28065.pdf|title=2020 CENSUS - SCHOOL DISTRICT REFERENCE MAP: Jefferson Davis County, MS|publisher=[[U.S. Census Bureau]]|access-date=2024-09-27}} - [https://www2.census.gov/geo/maps/DC2020/PL20/st28_ms/schooldistrict_maps/c28065_jefferson_davis/DC20SD_C28065_SD2MS.txt Text list]</ref>

The county is in the zone of [[Pearl River Community College]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.prcc.edu/files/catalogs/Catalog%202014-2016%20-%20Spring.pdf|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150807053926/https://prcc.edu/files/catalogs/Catalog%202014-2016%20-%20Spring.pdf|archive-date=2015-08-07|title=2014-2016 Catalog|publisher=Pearl River Community College|accessdate=2022-04-13}}</ref>

==See also==
* [[National Register of Historic Places listings in Jefferson Davis County, Mississippi]]

==References==
{{reflist|30em}}

==External links==
* [http://www.jeffersondaviscountyms.com Jefferson Davis County Website]
* {{Commons category-inline|Jefferson Davis County, Mississippi}}
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20070313140345/http://www.mississippicourthouses.com/JeffersonDavis Mississippi Courthouses – Jefferson Davis County]
* {{usurped|1=[https://web.archive.org/web/20060710160602/http://www.jeffdavisms.com/ Jefferson Davis County Economic Development District Website]}}

{{Geographic Location
|Centre    = Jefferson Davis County, Mississippi
|North     = [[Simpson County, Mississippi|Simpson County]]
|Northeast =
|East      = [[Covington County, Mississippi|Covington County]]
|Southeast = [[Lamar County, Mississippi|Lamar County]]
|South     = [[Marion County, Mississippi|Marion County]]
|Southwest =
|West      = [[Lawrence County, Mississippi|Lawrence County]]
|Northwest =
}}

{{Jefferson Davis County, Mississippi}}
{{Mississippi}}
{{Authority control}}
{{coord|31.56|-89.82|display=title|type:adm2nd_region:US-MS_source:UScensus1990}}

[[Category:Jefferson Davis County, Mississippi| ]]
[[Category:Mississippi counties]]
[[Category:1906 establishments in Mississippi]]
[[Category:Populated places established in 1906]]
[[Category:Black Belt (U.S. region)]]
[[Category:Majority-minority counties in Mississippi]]