Mound Bayou, Mississippi

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Mound Bayou is a city in Bolivar County, Mississippi, United States. The population was 2,102 at the 2000 census. It is notable for being founded by former slaves led by Isaiah Montgomery, and by percentage it has one of the largest African-American majorities in the United States.

1 Geography
2 Demographics
3 History
4 references
5 External links

[edit] Geography

Mound Bayou is located at 33°52′50″N, 90°43′41″W (33.880632, -90.727966)^GR1.

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 2.3 km² (0.9 mi²), all land.

[edit] Demographics

As of the census^GR2 of 2000, there were 2,102 people, 687 households, and 504 families residing in the city. The population density was 922.3/km² (2,395.1/mi²). There were 723 housing units at an average density of 317.2/km² (823.8/mi²). The racial makeup of the city was 98.43% African American, 0.81% White, 0.05% Native American, 0.24% Asian, 0.05% from other races, and 0.43% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 0.38% of the population.

There were 687 households out of which 38.4% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 24.7% were married couples living together, 43.7% had a female householder with no husband present, and 26.5% were non-families. 24.7% of all households were made up of individuals and 9.8% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 3.06 and the average family size was 3.66.

In the city the population was spread out with 34.7% under the age of 18, 12.9% from 18 to 24, 23.5% from 25 to 44, 19.1% from 45 to 64, and 9.8% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 27 years. For every 100 females there were 78.3 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 67.6 males.

The median income for a household in the city was $17,972, and the median income for a family was $19,770. Males had a median income of $21,700 versus $18,988 for females. The per capita income for the city was $8,227. About 41.9% of families and 45.6% of the population were below the poverty line, including 58.5% of those under age 18 and 34.5% of those age 65 or over.

[edit] History

Mount Bayou traces its origin to the community of Davis Bend, Mississippi, which had been originally started in the 1820s as a model slave community by Joseph E. Davis, influenced by the utopian ideas of Robert Owen. It developed into an autonomous free community in the aftermath of the American Civil War. Upon its economic failure, Mount Bayou was founded in 1887 under the leadership of Isaiah Montgomery, and continued through the 1920s.