Wilkinson County, Mississippi

Wilkinson County, Mississippi
Wikinson County courthouse in Woodville
Location in the U.S. state of Mississippi
Mississippi's location in the U.S.
Founded	1802
Named for	James Wilkinson
Seat	Woodville
Largest town	Centreville
Area
• Total	688 sq mi (1,782 km2)
• Land	678 sq mi (1,756 km2)
• Water	9.7 sq mi (25 km2), 1.4%
Population
• (2010)	9,878
• Density	15/sq mi (6/km²)
Congressional district	3rd
Time zone	Central: UTC-6/-5

Wilkinson County is a county located in the U.S. state of Mississippi. As of the 2010 census, the population was 9,878. Its county seat is Woodville. The county is named for James Wilkinson, a Revolutionary War military leader and first Governor of the Louisiana Territory.

History

Wilkinson County's Woodville Republican, begun in 1823, is (as of 2012) the oldest newspaper and the oldest business in continuous operation in Mississippi. The sign, facing Depot Street, is on the exterior west wall of the newspaper offices in Woodville.

In the nineteenth century, this county was developed by European-American settlers as cotton plantations along the Mississippi River, which forms the western border of the county. Much of the bottomlands and interior were undeveloped frontier until after the American Civil War. The intensive cultivation depended on the labor of enslaved African Americans; in the early nineteenth century, many were transported here from the Upper South in a major forced migration. The population quickly became majority black.

The West Feliciana Railroad was later built to help get the cotton commodity crop to market. Some planters got wealthy during the antebellum years and built fine mansions in the county seat of Woodville, Mississippi. After the Civil War, freedmen and planters negotiated new working arrangements, and sharecropping was widespread.

A long agricultural depression affected the economy. The peak of population in the county was reached in 1900, after which many blacks left in the Great Migration, to escape the racial segregation and disfranchisement suffered here since passage of Jim Crow laws and the state's new constitution in 1890.

In the early 20th century the boll weevil infestation destroyed much of the cotton crops, and mechanization caused a further loss of agricultural jobs. Timber has been harvested and processed as a new commodity crop. The population of the rural county has continued to decline. Towns have started to develop heritage tourism to attract more visitors.

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 688 square miles (1,780 km²), of which 678 square miles (1,760 km²) is land and 9.7 square miles (25 km²) (1.4%) is water.

Major highways

• U.S. Highway 61
• Mississippi Highway 24
• Mississippi Highway 33

Adjacent counties

• Adams County (north)
• Franklin County (northeast)
• Amite County (east)
• East Feliciana Parish, Louisiana (southeast)
• West Feliciana Parish, Louisiana (south)
• Concordia Parish, Louisiana (west)

National protected area

• Homochitto National Forest (part)

Demographics

Historical population
Census	Pop.		%±
1810	5,068		—
1820	9,718		91.8%
1830	11,686		20.3%
1840	14,193		21.5%
1850	16,914		19.2%
1860	15,933		−5.8%
1870	12,705		−20.3%
1880	17,815		40.2%
1890	17,592		−1.3%
1900	21,453		21.9%
1910	18,075		−15.7%
1920	15,319		−15.2%
1930	13,957		−8.9%
1940	15,955		14.3%
1950	14,116		−11.5%
1960	13,235		−6.2%
1970	11,099		−16.1%
1980	10,021		−9.7%
1990	9,678		−3.4%
2000	10,312		6.6%
2010	9,878		−4.2%
Est. 2014	9,191		−7.0%
U.S. Decennial Census 1790-1960 1900-1990 1990-2000 2010-2013

As of the 2010 United States Census, there were 9,878 people residing in the county. 70.8% were Black or African American, 28.7% White, 0.1% Native American, 0.1% of some other race and 0.3% of two or more races. 0.4% were Hispanic or Latino (of any race).

As of the census of 2000, there were 10,312 people, 3,578 households, and 2,511 families residing in the county. The population density was 15 people per square mile (6/km²). There were 5,106 housing units at an average density of 8 per square mile (3/km²). The racial makeup of the county was 68.21% Black or African American, 31.22% White, 0.10% Native American, 0.03% Asian, 0.07% from other races, and 0.38% from two or more races. 0.44% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.

There were 3,578 households out of which 32.90% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 40.40% were married couples living together, 24.50% had a female householder with no husband present, and 29.80% were non-families. 27.90% of all households were made up of individuals and 12.00% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.59 and the average family size was 3.16.

In the county the population was spread out with 25.80% under the age of 18, 10.70% from 18 to 24, 29.00% from 25 to 44, 20.60% from 45 to 64, and 13.90% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 35 years. For every 100 females there were 108.00 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 106.60 males.

The median income for a household in the county was $18,929, and the median income for a family was $23,447. Males had a median income of $24,509 versus $16,088 for females. The per capita income for the county was $10,868. About 33.10% of families and 37.70% of the population were below the poverty line, including 48.90% of those under age 18 and 33.40% of those age 65 or over.

Wilkinson County has the sixth lowest per capita income in Mississippi and the 52nd lowest in the United States.

Education

Wilkinson County High School

Wilkinson County School District serves the county.

Wilkinson County Christian Academy is located near Woodville.

Communities

Towns

• Centreville (partly in Amite County)
• Crosby (partly in Amite County)
• Woodville (county seat)

Unincorporated communities

• Doloroso
• Fort Adams
• Pinckneyville
• Possum Corner
• Rosetta
• Wilkinson

Ghost towns

• Artonish
• Clarksville

Notable people

• Regina Barrow (born 1966), Louisiana state representative from Baton Rouge, Louisiana, since 2005; native of Wilkinson County
• J. H. Netterville (1879-1943), plantation manager in Tensas Parish, Louisiana, native of Wilkinson County
• Edward Grady Partin (1924–1990), Teamsters Union business agent in Baton Rouge, native of Woodville
• Anne Moody (born 1940), civil rights activist and author

See also

• National Register of Historic Places listings in Wilkinson County, Mississippi