DeSoto County
County
DeSoto County Courthouse
Location within the U.S. state of Mississippi
Mississippi's location within the U.S.
Coordinates: 34°53′N 89°59′W / 34.88°N 89.99°W / 34.88; -89.99
Country	United States
State	Mississippi
Founded	February 9, 1836
Named for	Hernando de Soto
Seat	Hernando
Largest city	Southaven
Area
• Total	497 sq mi (1,290 km2)
• Land	476 sq mi (1,230 km2)
• Water	21 sq mi (50 km2)  4.2%
Population  (2020)
• Total	185,314
• Density	370/sq mi (140/km2)
Time zone	UTC−6 (Central)
• Summer (DST)	UTC−5 (CDT)
Congressional district	1st
Website	www.desotocountyms.gov

DeSoto County is a county located on the northwestern border of the U.S. state of Mississippi. As of the 2020 census, the population was 185,314,^[1] making it the third-most populous county in Mississippi. Its county seat is Hernando.^[2]

DeSoto County is part of the Memphis metropolitan area. It is the second-most populous county in that statistical area. The county has lowland areas that were developed in the 19th century for cotton plantations, and hill country in the eastern part of the county.^[3]

History

DeSoto County, Mississippi, was formally established February 9, 1836.^[4] The original county lines included territory now part of Tate County, which was carved out in 1873.^[4]

The county is named for Spanish explorer Hernando de Soto, the first European explorer known to reach the Mississippi River.^[5] The county seat, Hernando, is also named in his honor. De Soto reportedly died in that area in May 1542, although some accounts suggest that he died near Lake Village, Arkansas.

Early history

Indian artifacts collected in DeSoto County link it with prehistoric groups of Woodland and Mississippian culture peoples. ^{[citation needed]} Members of the Mississippian culture, who built complex settlements and earthwork monuments throughout the Mississippi River Valley and its major tributaries, met Hernando de Soto in the mid-16th century when he explored what is now North Mississippi. By tradition, he is believed to have traveled with his expedition through present-day DeSoto County. Some scholars speculate that de Soto discovered the Mississippi River west of present-day Lake Cormorant, built rafts there, and crossed to present-day Crowley's Ridge, Arkansas. Based on records of the expedition and archeology, the National Park Service has designated a "DeSoto Corridor" from Coahoma County, Mississippi to the Chickasaw Bluff in Memphis.

The Mississippian culture declined and disappeared, and in most areas this preceded European contact. Scholars speculate this may have followed changes in the environment. The town named Chicasa, which De Soto visited, was probably the ancestral home of the historical Chickasaw, who are descended from the Mississippian culture. They had lived in the area for centuries before white settlers began arriving. Present-day Pontotoc, Mississippi developed near the Chickasaw "Long Town", which was composed of several villages near each other. The Chickasaw Nation regarded much of western present-day Tennessee and northern Mississippi as their traditional hunting grounds.

The Chickasaw traded furs for French goods, and the French established several small settlements among them. However, France ceded its claim to territories east of the Mississippi River to Britain in 1763, after having been defeated in the Seven Years' War. The United States acquired the area from the British as part of the treaty that ended the American Revolution.

19th and 20th centuries

The Chickasaw finally ceded most of their land to the United States under pressure during Indian Removal, and a treaty in 1832. They were forced to remove to Indian Territory west of the Mississippi River.

Negotiations began in September 1816 between the United States government and the Chickasaw nation and concluded with the signing of the Treaty of Pontotoc in October 1832. During those 16 years, federal officials pressed the Chickasaw for cessions of land to extinguish their land claims to enable white settlement in their territory. Congress passed the Indian Removal Act in 1830, authorizing forcible removal if necessary to extinguish Native American claims in the Southeast. From 1832 to 1836, government surveyors mapped the 6,442,000 acres (26,070 km²) of the Chickasaw domain and divided it into townships, ranges and sections. The Mississippi Legislature formed 10 new counties, including DeSoto, Tunica, Marshall, and Tate, from the territory.

By treaty, the land was assigned by sections of 640 acres (2.6 km²) to individual Indian households. The Chickasaw, a numerically small tribe, were assigned 2,422,400 acres (9,803 km²) of land by using that formula. The government declared the remainder as surplus and disposed of the remaining 400,000 acres (1,600 km²) at public sale. The Indians received at least $1.25 per acre for their land. The government land sold for 75 cents per acre or less.

During and after the Civil War, the area was developed as large plantations by planters for cultivation of cotton, a leading commodity crop. Before the Civil War, they had depended on the labor of thousands of enslaved African Americans. After the war and emancipation, many freedmen stayed in the area, but shaped their own lives by working on small plots as sharecroppers or tenant farmers, rather than on large labor gangs on the plantations. Reliance on agriculture meant that the area did not develop much economically well into the 20th century, and both whites and blacks suffered economically.

In 1890, the state legislature disenfranchised most blacks under the new constitution, which used poll taxes and literacy tests to raise barriers to voter registration. In the early 20th century, many people left the rural county for cities to gain other opportunities. Most blacks could not vote in Mississippi until the late 1960s, after the passage of federal legislation.

During the Great Depression, the Southern Tenant Farmers Union was organized in 1934. It was open to both black and white sharecroppers and worked to gain better deals and fair accounting from local white landowners. Whites in DeSoto County resisted the effort. In 1935, a white lynch mob attacked early union organizer and minister Reverend T. A. Allen, shot him, and threw him into the Coldwater River.^[6] One account said that his body was weighted by chains and that authorities claimed it to be a suicide.^[7]

In its 2015 report on Lynching in America (2015), the Equal Justice Institute documented 12 lynchings in the county from 1877 to 1950.^[8] Most lynchings in the South took place around the turn of the 20th century.^[8]

Since the late 20th century, DeSoto County has experienced considerable suburban development related to the growth of Memphis.

21st century

As part of the Memphis, Tennessee metropolitan area, the early-21st-century DeSoto County has become one of the 40 fastest-growing counties in the United States. That is attributed to suburban development as middle-class and wealthier blacks leave Memphis to acquire newer housing and commute to Memphis for work. Some observers have characterized the shift as black flight, but it is also typical of the pattern of postwar suburban growth in which people who could afford it moved to newer housing in suburbs.^[9]

Such suburban residential development in the county has been most noticeable in the Mississippi cities of Southaven, Olive Branch, and Horn Lake. Also stimulating development in the formerly rural area is the massive casino/resort complex, in the neighboring Tunica County, which is the sixth-largest gambling district in the United States.^{[citation needed]}

Politics

DeSoto County, as did most Southern counties, voted predominantly for the Democratic candidate through 1956. A shift in this pattern took place beginning in 1964, as with the rest of the Solid South. The only Democrat to take DeSoto County since then has been Jimmy Carter, in his successful 1976 bid.

United States presidential election results for DeSoto County, Mississippi^[10]

Year	Republican		Democratic		Third party
	No.	%	No.	%	No.	%
2020	46,462	61.03%	28,265	37.13%	1,397	1.84%
2016	43,089	65.13%	20,591	31.13%	2,475	3.74%
2012	43,559	66.21%	21,575	32.79%	660	1.00%
2008	44,222	68.75%	19,627	30.51%	474	0.74%
2004	36,306	72.30%	13,583	27.05%	326	0.65%
2000	24,879	71.21%	9,586	27.44%	471	1.35%
1996	18,135	53.53%	10,282	30.35%	5,464	16.13%
1992	16,104	58.40%	8,833	32.03%	2,638	9.57%
1988	14,681	72.50%	5,449	26.91%	120	0.59%
1984	12,576	73.88%	4,369	25.67%	77	0.45%
1980	9,655	58.80%	6,344	38.64%	420	2.56%
1976	6,240	43.60%	7,756	54.19%	316	2.21%
1972	7,917	80.88%	1,557	15.91%	315	3.22%
1968	1,092	13.10%	1,898	22.77%	5,346	64.13%
1964	2,928	86.40%	461	13.60%	0	0.00%
1960	553	26.56%	795	38.18%	734	35.25%
1956	398	21.56%	1,236	66.96%	212	11.48%
1952	754	36.92%	1,288	63.08%	0	0.00%
1948	14	0.97%	137	9.45%	1,299	89.59%
1944	123	7.30%	1,561	92.70%	0	0.00%
1940	40	2.61%	1,491	97.13%	4	0.26%
1936	13	0.96%	1,343	99.04%	0	0.00%
1932	13	0.92%	1,396	98.80%	4	0.28%
1928	64	4.50%	1,357	95.50%	0	0.00%
1924	17	1.57%	1,065	98.43%	0	0.00%
1920	27	3.20%	816	96.57%	2	0.24%
1916	12	1.37%	861	98.51%	1	0.11%
1912	10	1.73%	546	94.63%	21	3.64%

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 497 square miles (1,290 km²), of which 476 square miles (1,230 km²) is land and 21 square miles (54 km²) (4.2%) is water.^[11]

Geographic features

• Mississippi River
• Coldwater River
• Arkabutla Lake
• Chickasaw Bluffs

Transit

While there is no fixed-route transit within the county, Memphis Area Transit Authority, Amtrak, Greyhound Lines, Megabus and Delta Bus Lines serve nearby Memphis.

Major highways

• Interstate 55
• Interstate 69
• Interstate 269
• U.S. Route 51
• U.S. Route 61

Adjacent counties

• Shelby County, Tennessee - north
• Crittenden County, Arkansas - west
• Tunica County - southwest
• Tate County - south
• Marshall County - east

Demographics

Historical population

Census	Pop.	Note	%±
1840	7,002		—
1850	19,042		172.0%
1860	23,336		22.6%
1870	32,021		37.2%
1880	22,924		−28.4%
1890	24,183		5.5%
1900	24,751		2.3%
1910	23,130		−6.5%
1920	24,359		5.3%
1930	25,438		4.4%
1940	26,663		4.8%
1950	24,599		−7.7%
1960	23,891		−2.9%
1970	35,885		50.2%
1980	53,930		50.3%
1990	67,910		25.9%
2000	107,199		57.9%
2010	161,252		50.4%
2020	185,314		14.9%
2023 (est.)	193,247	[12]	4.3%
U.S. Decennial Census[13] 1790-1960[14] 1900-1990[15] 1990-2000[16] 2010-2013[17]

2020 census

DeSoto County Racial Composition^[18]

Race	Num.	Perc.
White	108,466	58.53%
Black or African American	55,972	30.2%
Native American	298	0.16%
Asian	3,023	1.63%
Pacific Islander	137	0.07%
Other/Mixed	7,257	3.92%
Hispanic or Latino	10,161	5.48%

As of the 2020 United States Census, there were 185,314 people, 65,220 households, and 47,230 families residing in the county.

2013

As of the 2013 U.S.census estimates, there were 168,240 people living in the county. 70.3% were non-Hispanic White, 21.5% Black or African American, 1.6% Asian, 2.6% Native American, 0.1% Pacific Islander, 5.0% were Hispanic or Latino (of any race).^[19] The median income for a family was $66,377 and the mean income was $75,875.^[20] DeSoto County has the highest median income in Mississippi and the second highest mean income after Madison County.

2000 census

According to the 2000 census,^[21] the largest self-identified ancestry groups in DeSoto County were English 53.1%, Scots-Irish 15.1%, African 11.4%, and Irish 4.5%. Since then the percentage of African-American population in the county has nearly doubled, as the total county population has also grown.

Attractions

DeSoto County is known for its golf courses. Velvet Cream, known as 'The Dip' by locals, is a landmark restaurant in the county. Operating since 1947, it is the oldest continually running restaurant in the county. In 2010, it was awarded 'Best Ice Cream in Mississippi' by USA Today.^[22] DeSoto County was also previously known as the home of Maywood Beach, a water park that closed in 2003 after more than 70 years of operation.

DeSoto County Museum

A popular attraction is the DeSoto County Museum located in the county seat of Hernando. The museum is open Tuesday through Saturday from 10–5. Admission is free but donations are encouraged. Exhibits include displays on Hernando DeSoto, Civil War history, French colonial and American antebellum homes of the county, civil rights, and the history of each of the county's municipalities.^[23]

An eighteenth-century French colonial log house (see photo to the right) has been preserved from the time of French trading and settlement along the Mississippi. This house is similar in style to several French colonial houses preserved in Ste. Genevieve, Missouri, where many French settled after France ceded its territory east of the Mississippi to Great Britain following its defeat in the Seven Years' War.

Hernando DeSoto Park

Hernando DeSoto Park, located on Bass Road 6 mi (9.7 km) west of Walls, is a 41 acres (17 ha) park that features a hiking/walking trail, river overlook, picnic area, and boat launch. It is the only location in DeSoto County with public access to the Mississippi River.^[24]

Communities

Cities

• Hernando (county seat)
• Horn Lake
• Olive Branch
• Southaven

Town

• Walls

Census-designated places

• Bridgetown
• Eudora
• Lake View
• Lynchburg
• Pleasant Hill

Unincorporated communities

Former village

• Memphis

Education

Public education in DeSoto County is provided by the DeSoto County School District, the school district for the entire county.^[25] It is the state's largest school district.^{[citation needed]} The district is responsible for the operation of eight high schools, eight middle schools, three intermediate (Grades 3–5) and numerous primary schools.

Notable people

• John Grisham, lawyer, writer.
• Olivia Holt, actor, singer.
• Jerry Lee Lewis (1935-2022), singer, songwriter, pianist.
• Austin Riley, MLB Third Baseman, Atlanta Braves.
• Ricky Stenhouse Jr., NASCAR.
• Nakobe Dean, NFL, Philadelphia Eagles.
• Cody Reed, MLB pitcher, Tampa Bay Rays.

Media

• DeSoto Times-Tribune
• DeSotoCountyNews.com

See also

• National Register of Historic Places listings in DeSoto County, Mississippi
• Bill Hawks, agribusinessman and former state senator from DeSoto County
• List of sites and peoples visited by the Hernando de Soto Expedition

References

Suggested reading

• Map Guide to the U.S. Federal Censuses, 1790–1920, Thorndale, William, and Dollarhide, William; Copyright 1987. (Historic state maps including evolution of DeSoto County)

External links

• DesotoCountyMS.gov - Official County Government Website
• DeSoto County Economic Development Council - Official site.

34°53′N 89°59′W / 34.88°N 89.99°W / 34.88; -89.99