Weir, Mississippi

Weir, Mississippi
—  Town  —
Sign of the entrance to Weir
Location of Weir, Mississippi
Coordinates:
Country United States
State Mississippi
County Choctaw
Area
 • Total 1.1 sq mi (2.8 km2)
 • Land 1.1 sq mi (2.7 km2)
 • Water 0.0 sq mi (0.0 km2)
Elevation 472 ft (144 m)
Population (2000)
 • Total 553
 • Density 526.5/sq mi (203.3/km2)
Time zone Central (CST) (UTC-6)
 • Summer (DST) CDT (UTC-5)
ZIP code 39772
Area code(s) 662
FIPS code 28-78520
GNIS feature ID 0679425

Weir is a town in Choctaw County, Mississippi, United States. The population was 553 at the 2000 census.

Contents

Geography

Weir is located at (33.263423, -89.289439)[1], along the Yockanookany River.

According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 1.1 square miles (2.8 km2), of which, 1.0 square mile (2.6 km2) of it is land and 0.94% is water.

Demographics

As of the census[2] of 2000, there were 553 people, 208 households, and 149 families residing in the town. The population density was 526.5 people per square mile (203.3/km²). There were 234 housing units at an average density of 222.8 per square mile (86.0/km²). The racial makeup of the town was 45.21% White, 53.71% African American, 0.90% Native American, 0.18% from other races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 0.18% of the population.

There were 208 households out of which 34.1% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 44.7% were married couples living together, 22.6% had a female householder with no husband present, and 27.9% were non-families. 25.5% of all households were made up of individuals and 13.9% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.66 and the average family size was 3.19.

In the town the population was spread out with 31.1% under the age of 18, 9.9% from 18 to 24, 25.5% from 25 to 44, 18.1% from 45 to 64, and 15.4% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 34 years. For every 100 females there were 87.5 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 78.0 males.

The median income for a household in the town was $23,125, and the median income for a family was $28,472. Males had a median income of $31,875 versus $16,250 for females. The per capita income for the town was $13,697. About 19.7% of families and 25.3% of the population were below the poverty line, including 33.1% of those under age 18 and 24.7% of those age 65 or over.

Education

Weir is home to Weir Attendance Center, a pre-Kindergarten through 12th grade school with over 400 students. It is part of the Choctaw County School District. The school is known statewide for its football program which competed in ten state championships between 1984–2004, winning six 1A State Football Titles.

The school received a new building in 2005 that was dedicated to Mr. Marion Kelly who served as teacher, coach and Principal for approximately 40 years.

History

The town of Weir was settled by a former Confederate Colonel John Weir and his brother, James in 1868.

Notable Weirians

Kenneth Johnson, NFL defensive back for the Green Bay Packers.

Roy Oswalt, a major league pitcher for the Philadelphia Phillies and his wife Nicole live in Weir.

Cheryl Prewitt, Miss America 1980, lived in nearby Chester, Mississippi and went to school in Weir.

Gallery

References

  1. ^ "US Gazetteer files: 2010, 2000, and 1990". United States Census Bureau. 2011-02-12. http://www.census.gov/geo/www/gazetteer/gazette.html. Retrieved 2011-04-23. 
  2. ^ "American FactFinder". United States Census Bureau. http://factfinder.census.gov. Retrieved 2008-01-31.