Bay St. Louis, Mississippi
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Bay Saint Louis is a city located in Hancock County, Mississippi. It is part of the Gulfport-Biloxi, Mississippi Metropolitan Statistical Area. As of the 2000 census, the city had a total population of 8,209. It is the county seat of Hancock CountyGR6. Like other upper Gulf Coast cities, Bay Saint Louis was devastated by Hurricane Katrina in August 2005 (see details below).
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[edit] Geography
Bay St. Louis is located at 30°18'53" North, 89°20'39" West (30.314696, -89.344096)GR1. It is situated on the Bay of Saint Louis, which empties into the Mississippi Sound.
According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 43.7 km² (16.9 mi²). 15.9 km² (6.1 mi²) of it is land and 27.8 km² (10.7 mi²) of it is water. The total area is 63.70% water.
[edit] Demographics
As of the censusGR2 of 2000, there were 8,209 people, 3,271 households, and 2,064 families residing in the city. The population density was 517.9/km² (1,342.1/mi²). There were 3,817 housing units at an average density of 240.8/km² (624.1/mi²). The racial makeup of the city was 80.23% White, 16.59% African American, 0.40% Native American, 1.11% Asian, 0.05% Pacific Islander, 0.19% from other races, and 1.43% from two or more races. 1.68% of the population wasHispanic or Latino of any race.
There were 3,271 households out of which 29.6% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 44.0% were married couples living together, 14.7% had a female householder with no husband present, and 36.9% were non-families. 31.5% of all households were made up of individuals and 12.6% have someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.41 and the average family size is 3.05.
In the city the population was spread out with 24.5% under the age of 18, 7.6% from 18 to 24, 26.8% from 25 to 44, 24.5% from 45 to 64, and 16.6% who are 65 years of age or older. The median age is 39 years. For every 100 females there were 92.0 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 88.0 males.
The median income for a household in the city was $34,106, and the median income for a family was $41,957. Males had a median income of $32,261 versus $21,308 for females. The per capita income for the city was $18,483. 13.2% of the population and 10.0% of families were below the poverty line. Out of the total population, 17.2% of those under the age of 18 and 11.5% of those 65 and older were living below the poverty line.
[edit] Education
The City of Bay St. Louis is served by the Bay St. Louis-Waveland School District.
[edit] Hurricane Camille
On August 17th, 1969, Hurricane Camille made landfall at the tip of Louisiana before continuing to Bay St. Louis.
[edit] Hurricane Katrina
On August 29, 2005 at 10:00 a.m. CDT, Hurricane Katrina made its final landfall near Bay St. Louis, at the mouth of the Pearl River, with a 28-foot storm surge. Hurricane Katrina came ashore during the high tide of 9:15AM, +2.3 feet more,[1] causing a storm tide over 30-feet deep. The final death toll from Hurricane Katrina is not yet known.
Before Hurricane Katrina on August 29, 2005 people of Bay St. Louis, or 'the Bay' as it is commonly referred to, were almost all educated and middle-class. The town is notable for being the highest point on the entire Gulf of Mexico coastline (approx. 12 feet), its pristine beaches, esteemed restaurants such as Da Beach House and Dock of the Bay, and being the home of Saint Stanislaus College, one of the premier Catholic high schools in the Southeastern United States. Hurricane Katrina destroyed the first floor and dormitories of Saint Stanislaus College. Stanislaus re-opened to day students on November 1, 2005. It combined with Our Lady Academy, its sister school. Resident students returned after Christmas holidays at the beginning of January. None of the brothers or boarders were harmed, and most of the students have been accounted for.
Hurricane Katrina damaged over 40 Mississippi libraries, with severe roof and water damage to the Bay St. Louis Public Library. The library reopened to the public on October 12, 2005, and is awaiting repairs.[2] The Bay St. Louis bridge, on US Highway 90, was also damaged, with many bridge sections downdropped at the west edges.
USGS Topographical maps show a common 25 feet elevation contour line running throughout a ridge along old HWY 90 (Old Spanish Trail) in the western edge of the city. It was primarily this area which did not see the surge inundation of Hurricane Katrina.
[edit] Notable Residents
Pete Fountain the famous Clarinet player, lived in Bay Saint Louis, Mississippi, just before Hurricane Katrina.
Stephen Ambrose lived in Bay St. Louis before his death in 2002.
[edit] Notes
- ^ "2005 NOAA Tide Predictions: St. Louis Bay entrance" (2005), tide on 29-Aug-2005, NOAA, web: NOAA-tide-tables.
- ^ "Hurricane Katrina Related Damages to Public Libraries in Mississippi" (September 2005), Mississippi Library Commission, (ALA-Katrina).
[edit] External links
- Sea Coast Echo, the local newspaper
- Maps and aerial photos
- Street map from Google Maps, or Yahoo! Maps, or Windows Live Local
- Satellite image from Google Maps, Windows Live Local, WikiMapia
- Topographic map from TopoZone
- Aerial image or topographic map from TerraServer-USA
The image of the Bay St. Louis bridge above is incorrect. It is actually one of the Ocean Springs Bridge (some 20 plus miles east of Bay St. Louis) in Jackson County, MS after Katrina. The Bay St. Louis Bridge was damaged far worse as this is where the eyewall made landfall. All of the heavy, 200 ton blacktop sections (weight reference: post Camille literature) of the Bay St. Louis Bridge were ripped cleanly off their mounts by 40 plus foot tidal waves. The mammoth cement/blacktop slabs eventually came to rest somewhere on the Bay's sandy bottom. Only the concrete pilings remain after the storm's wrath. A correct picture of the damage on the Bay St. Louis bridge can be found at the following address: http://www.katrina.noaa.gov/helicopter/images/katrina-bay-st-louis-miss-bridge-2005b.jpg
Post Note: A correction to my own correction. The original photo is indeed that of the Bay St. Louis Bridge. It is if the east (Pass Christian) side. The photo I linked to however is more indicitave of the overall destruction effecting the structure. The remants of this damaged bridged have since been removed and the first lane of the new bridge should be complete by June of 2007.
The Ocean Springs Bridge was also completely destroyed and can be glimpsed at the following link: http://www.bfrl.nist.gov/investigations/images/US90image.jpg
