Jasper County, Mississippi

Jasper County
Jasper County
County
	Historic Montrose Presbyterian Church.
	Location within the U.S. state of Mississippi
	Mississippi's location within the U.S.
	Coordinates: 32°01′N 89°07′W / 32.02°N 89.12°W
Country	United States
State	Mississippi
Founded	1833
Named for	William Jasper
Seat	Bay Springs and Paulding
Largest city	Bay Springs
Area
• Total	677 sq mi (1,750 km2)
• Land	676 sq mi (1,750 km2)
• Water	1.2 sq mi (3 km2) 0.2%
Population (2020)
• Total	16,367
• Density	24/sq mi (9.3/km2)
Time zone	UTC−6 (Central)
• Summer (DST)	UTC−5 (CDT)
Congressional district	3rd
Website	www.co.jasper.ms.us

Jasper County is located in the U.S. state of Mississippi. At the 2020 census, the population was 16,367.^[1] In 1906, the state legislature established two county courts, one at the first county seat of Paulding in the eastern part of the county and also one at Bay Springs in the west, where the railroad had been constructed.^[2] Jasper County is part of the Laurel, MS Micropolitan Statistical Area.

Bay Springs' growth soon surpassed that of Paulding. No roadway connected the two parts of the county until one was built in 1935–1936. The still largely rural county is the major producer in the state of gas and oil, located in the southeast, and of timber, cattle, and poultry.

History

Developed during the period of Indian Removal from the Southeast and increasing settlement by European Americans in the region, Jasper County was formed in 1833 from the middle section of what was previously a much larger Jones County. It was named for Sgt. William Jasper^[3] who distinguished himself in the defense of Fort Moultrie in 1776 during the American Revolutionary War. When a shell from a British warship shot away the flagstaff, he recovered the flag, raised it on a temporary staff, and held it under fire until a new staff was installed. Sgt. Jasper was killed in the Siege of Savannah in 1779.

During the antebellum years, cotton was cultivated with slave labor on large plantations in the county. This was the heyday of the county seat of Paulding, Mississippi, called the "Queen City of the East." It was a trading center for the plantations, as well as for yeomen farmers in the area. While some African Americans left the county in the early 20th century during the Great Migration out of the rural South to northern cities, in 2010 Jasper County had a population that was 52.6 percent African American, reflecting its history of cotton development and of people's ties to generations in this land.

In the late nineteenth century, when local people declined to invest in railroad construction at Paulding, developers shifted the route to the west, stimulating growth at Bay Springs, where a sawmill had been built in 1880. About 1900 that community was incorporated as a city. In 1906 the state legislature designated Bay Springs as the second county seat. It attracted major timber companies, such as Georgia Pacific, and other industries.

It was not until 1935–1936, during the Great Depression under a WPA project, that the first east–west road was built across the county, connecting the city of Bay Springs in the west with Rose Hill, north of the community of Paulding, in the east.

Medical facilities have been built at Bay Springs, with the Jasper General Hospital operating since 1962. Jasper General Patient Rehab was constructed on the hospital grounds in 2012 to supplement the offerings.

Recreation in the county includes a 9-hole golf course at the Bay Springs Country Club. Fishing and hunting are available, including around Lake Claude Bennett near Rose Hill.

In the 21st century, the county is still largely rural, leading the state in timber, cattle, and poultry production. It is the state's major producer of gas and oil, with resources concentrated near the community of Heidelberg.

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 677 square miles (1,750 km²), of which 676 square miles (1,750 km²) is land and 1.2 square miles (3.1 km²) (0.2%) is water.^[4]

Major highways

Adjacent counties

Newton County (north)
Clarke County (east)
Wayne County (southeast)
Jones County (south)
Smith County (west)

National protected area

Bienville National Forest (part)

Demographics

Historical population
Census	Pop.	Note	%±
1840	3,958		—
1850	6,184		56.2%
1860	11,007		78.0%
1870	10,884		−1.1%
1880	12,126		11.4%
1890	14,785		21.9%
1900	15,394		4.1%
1910	18,498		20.2%
1920	18,508		0.1%
1930	18,634		0.7%
1940	19,484		4.6%
1950	18,912		−2.9%
1960	16,909		−10.6%
1970	15,994		−5.4%
1980	17,265		7.9%
1990	17,114		−0.9%
2000	18,149		6.0%
2010	17,062		−6.0%
2020	16,367		−4.1%
2023 (est.)	16,013	^[5]	−2.2%
U.S. Decennial Census^[6] 1790-1960^[7] 1900-1990^[8] 1990-2000^[9] 2010-2013^[10]

Jasper County racial composition as of 2020^[11]
Race	Num.	Perc.
White (non-Hispanic)	7,541	46.07%
Black or African American (non-Hispanic)	8,324	50.86%
Native American	28	0.17%
Asian	8	0.05%
Other/Mixed	297	1.81%
Hispanic or Latino	169	1.03%

As of the 2020 United States census, there were 16,367 people, 6,629 households, and 4,746 families residing in the county.

Public education

There are two school districts:^[12]

Communities

City

Bay Springs (county seat)

Towns

Unincorporated communities

Ghost town

Success

In popular culture

The Veteran's Story is a book written by Ada Christine Lightsey. The subject of the book is American Civil War veteran Ransom Lightsey and Company F ("Jasper Grays"), 16th Mississippi Infantry Regiment.^[13]

Politics

United States presidential election results for Jasper County, Mississippi^[14]
Year	Republican		Democratic		Third party
Year	No.	%	No.	%	No.	%
2020	4,302	49.24%	4,341	49.69%	93	1.06%
2016	4,038	47.65%	4,368	51.54%	69	0.81%
2012	4,193	44.89%	5,097	54.57%	50	0.54%
2008	4,135	44.90%	5,025	54.56%	50	0.54%
2004	3,855	48.13%	4,117	51.40%	37	0.46%
2000	3,294	51.09%	3,104	48.15%	49	0.76%
1996	2,615	42.50%	3,170	51.52%	368	5.98%
1992	2,789	43.39%	3,059	47.59%	580	9.02%
1988	3,368	51.25%	3,184	48.45%	20	0.30%
1984	3,727	54.00%	3,104	44.97%	71	1.03%
1980	2,781	41.68%	3,813	57.14%	79	1.18%
1976	2,356	42.74%	3,109	56.39%	48	0.87%
1972	3,597	78.47%	935	20.40%	52	1.13%
1968	373	8.36%	987	22.13%	3,100	69.51%
1964	2,994	92.69%	236	7.31%	0	0.00%
1960	362	14.87%	1,147	47.10%	926	38.03%
1956	287	11.74%	1,958	80.08%	200	8.18%
1952	668	26.30%	1,872	73.70%	0	0.00%
1948	26	1.34%	121	6.23%	1,795	92.43%
1944	47	2.74%	1,667	97.26%	0	0.00%
1940	35	2.00%	1,713	98.00%	0	0.00%
1936	21	1.04%	2,004	98.87%	2	0.10%
1932	38	2.41%	1,526	96.64%	15	0.95%
1928	625	38.97%	979	61.03%	0	0.00%
1924	61	4.62%	1,257	95.30%	1	0.08%
1920	98	9.68%	899	88.83%	15	1.48%
1916	38	3.41%	1,040	93.27%	37	3.32%
1912	12	1.27%	860	91.30%	70	7.43%