Clay County, Mississippi

Clay County, Mississippi

Location in the state of Mississippi

Mississippi's location in the U.S.
Founded 1871
Seat West Point
Largest city West Point
Area
 - Total
 - Land
 - Water

416.02 sq mi (1,077 km²)
408.56 sq mi (1,058 km²)
7.46 sq mi (19 km²), 1.79%
Population
 - (2010)
 - Density

20,634
54/sq mi (21/km²)

Clay County is a county located in the U.S. state of Mississippi. As of 2010, the population was 20,634. Its name is in honor of American statesman Henry Clay, member of the United States Senate from Kentucky and United States Secretary of State in the 19th century. Its county seat is West Point[1].

The West Point Micropolitan Statistical Area includes all of Clay County.

Contents

Geography

According to the 2000 census, the county has a total area of 416.02 square miles (1,077.5 km2), of which 408.56 square miles (1,058.2 km2) (or 98.21%) is land and 7.46 square miles (19.3 km2) (or 1.79%) is water.[2]

Major highways

Adjacent counties

National protected area

Demographics

Historical populations
Census Pop.
1880 17,367
1890 18,607 7.1%
1900 19,563 5.1%
1910 20,203 3.3%
1920 17,490 −13.4%
1930 17,931 2.5%
1940 19,030 6.1%
1950 17,757 −6.7%
1960 18,933 6.6%
1970 18,840 −0.5%
1980 21,082 11.9%
1990 21,120 0.2%
2000 21,979 4.1%
2010 20,634 −6.1%
MS Counties 1900-1990
GeoHive - 2000 & 2010 statistics

As of the census[3] of 2000, there were 21,979 people, 8,152 households, and 5,885 families residing in the county. The population density was 54 people per square mile (21/km²). There were 8,810 housing units at an average density of 22 per square mile (8/km²). The racial makeup of the county was 42.82% White, 56.33% Black or African American, 0.05% Native American, 0.16% Asian, 0.01% Pacific Islander, 0.21% from other races, and 0.42% from two or more races. 0.86% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.

There were 8,152 households out of which 35.70% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 45.80% were married couples living together, 22.40% had a female householder with no husband present, and 27.80% were non-families. 25.50% of all households were made up of individuals and 11.00% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.64 and the average family size was 3.19.

In the county the population was spread out with 28.80% under the age of 18, 10.40% from 18 to 24, 26.50% from 25 to 44, 21.10% from 45 to 64, and 13.10% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 34 years. For every 100 females there were 89.10 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 83.60 males.

The median income for a household in the county was $27,372, and the median income for a family was $35,461. Males had a median income of $30,038 versus $19,473 for females. The per capita income for the county was $14,512. About 19.20% of families and 23.50% of the population were below the poverty line, including 34.20% of those under age 18 and 21.90% of those age 65 or over.

Communities

Education

Clay County is within the service area of the East Mississippi Community College system.[4]

See also

References

  1. ^ "Find a County". National Association of Counties. http://www.naco.org/Counties/Pages/FindACounty.aspx. Retrieved 2011-06-07. 
  2. ^ "Census 2000 U.S. Gazetteer Files: Counties". United States Census. http://www.census.gov/tiger/tms/gazetteer/county2k.txt. Retrieved 2011-02-13. 
  3. ^ "American FactFinder". United States Census Bureau. http://factfinder.census.gov. Retrieved 2008-01-31. 
  4. ^ "CATALOG 2007-2009." East Mississippi Community College. 3 (3/147). Retrieved on March 1, 2011.