Smith County, Mississippi facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Smith County
U.S. county
Smith County courthouse in Raleigh
Location within the U.S. state of Mississippi
Mississippi's location within the U.S.
Country	United States
State	Mississippi
Founded	1833
Seat	Raleigh
Largest town	Raleigh
Area
• Total	637 sq mi (1,650 km2)
• Land	636 sq mi (1,650 km2)
• Water	1.0 sq mi (3 km2)  0.2%%
Population  (2010)
• Total	16,491
• Density	26/sq mi (10/km2)
Time zone	UTC−6 (Central)
• Summer (DST)	UTC−5 (CDT)
Congressional district	3rd

Smith County is a county located in the U.S. state of Mississippi. As of the 2010 census, the population was 16,491. Its county seat is Raleigh. Smith County is a prohibition or dry county.

History

Smith County is named for Major David Smith. The county is well known among Mississippians for its Smith County Watermelons.

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 637 square miles (1,650 km²), of which 636 square miles (1,650 km²) is land and 1.0 square mile (2.6 km²) (0.2%) is water.

Major highways

• Mississippi Highway 13
• Mississippi Highway 18
• Mississippi Highway 28
• Mississippi Highway 35
• Mississippi Highway 37
• Mississippi Highway 540
• Mississippi Highway 481
• Mississippi Highway 501
• Mississippi Highway 902

Adjacent counties

• Scott County (north)
• Jasper County (east)
• Jones County (southeast)
• Covington County (south)
• Simpson County (west)
• Rankin County (northwest)

National protected area

• Bienville National Forest (part)

Demographics

Historical population
Census	Pop.		%±
1840	1,961		—
1850	4,071		107.6%
1860	7,638		87.6%
1870	7,126		−6.7%
1880	8,088		13.5%
1890	10,635		31.5%
1900	13,055		22.8%
1910	16,603		27.2%
1920	16,178		−2.6%
1930	18,405		13.8%
1940	19,403		5.4%
1950	16,740		−13.7%
1960	14,303		−14.6%
1970	13,561		−5.2%
1980	15,077		11.2%
1990	14,798		−1.9%
2000	16,182		9.4%
2010	16,491		1.9%
Est. 2015	16,059		−2.6%
U.S. Decennial Census 1790-1960 1900-1990 1990-2000 2010-2013

As of the census of 2000, there were 16,182 people, 6,046 households, and 4,558 families residing in the county. The population density was 25 people per square mile (10/km²). There were 7,005 housing units at an average density of 11 per square mile (4/km²). The racial makeup of the county was 76.11% White, 23.11% Black or African American, 0.11% Native American, 0.10% Asian, 0.04% Pacific Islander, 0.19% from other races, and 0.35% from two or more races. 0.59% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.

There were 6,046 households out of which 35.90% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 59.60% were married couples living together, 11.90% had a female householder with no husband present, and 24.60% were non-families. 23.00% of all households were made up of individuals and 11.60% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.65 and the average family size was 3.13.

In the county, the population was spread out with 27.50% under the age of 18, 8.70% from 18 to 24, 27.30% from 25 to 44, 22.60% from 45 to 64, and 13.90% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 36 years. For every 100 females there were 95.50 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 91.60 males.

The median income for a household in the county was $30,840, and the median income for a family was $36,780. Males had a median income of $28,698 versus $20,154 for females. The per capita income for the county was $14,752. About 12.90% of families and 16.90% of the population were below the poverty line, including 22.50% of those under age 18 and 23.70% of those age 65 or over.

Communities

Towns

• Mize
• Raleigh (county seat)
• Taylorsville
• Polkville

Village

• Sylvarena

Unincorporated communities

• Burns
• Pineville
• Shady Grove
• Summerland