- Moss Point, Mississippi
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Moss Point, Mississippi — City — Location of Moss Point in the State of Mississippi
Country United States State Mississippi County Jackson Government - Mayor Area - Total 26.8 sq mi (69.3 km2) - Land 25.0 sq mi (64.8 km2) - Water 1.8 sq mi (4.6 km2) Elevation 16 Coordinates: 30°24′42″N 88°32′04″W / 30.411744°N 88.534355°W ft (5 m) Population (2000) - Total 17,653 - Density 634/sq mi (244.8/km2) 15,327 (est.) (metro area) Time zone CST (UTC-6) - Summer (DST) CDT (UTC-5) ZIP codes 39562, 39563, 39581 Area code(s) 228 FIPS code 28-49240 GNIS feature ID 0673878 Founded 17** Incorporated 17** (village) 18** (city) Moss Point is a city, north of Pascagoula, in Jackson County, Mississippi, United States. The population was 17,653 at the 2000 census.
On August 29, 2005, Moss Point was hit by the strong east side of Hurricane Katrina, and much of Moss Point was flooded or destroyed (see details below).
Contents
Geography
Moss Point is located at 30°24′40″N 88°31′31″W / 30.410999°N 88.525140°W.[1] According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 26.8 square miles (69 km2), of which, 25.0 square miles (65 km2) of it is land and 1.8 square miles (4.7 km2) of it (6.61%) is water.
Moss Point, Mississippi (right edge) is north of Pascagoula, on U.S. Route 63, north of the Gulf of Mexico.
Demographics
As of the census[2] of 2000, there were 17,653 people, 6,714 households, and 5,228 families residing in the city. The population density was 634.0 people per square mile (344.8/km²). There were 6,237 housing units at an average density of 249.4 per square mile (96.3/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 28.04% White, 70.56% African American, 0.15% Native American, 0.21% Asian, 0.03% Pacific Islander, 0.44% from other races, and 0.57% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 1.00% of the population.
There were 5,714 households out of which 31.6% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 44.7% were married couples living together, 23.7% had a female householder with no husband present, and 26.0% were non-families. 22.8% of all households were made up of individuals and 8.6% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.75 and the average family size was 3.21.
In the city the population was spread out with 26.8% under the age of 18, 9.5% from 18 to 24, 25.8% from 25 to 44, 25.3% from 45 to 64, and 12.6% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 37 years. For every 100 females there were 91.2 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 87.4 males.
The median income for a household in the city was $32,075, and the median income for a family was $37,712. Males had a median income of $31,126 versus $20,550 for females. The per capita income for the city was $15,537. About 15.8% of families and 17.8% of the population were below the poverty line, including 23.2% of those under age 18 and 17.3% of those age 65 or over.
Hurricane Katrina
On August 29, 2005, Moss Point was hit by the strong eastern side of Hurricane Katrina, when it passed 30 miles (48 km) east of central New Orleans with minimal gale-force winds. However, on the strong side of Hurricane Katrina, much of Moss Point was flooded or destroyed in one day, by the strong hurricane-force winds which lasted several hours and a storm surge exceeding 20 feet (6 m) in some sections.[3] Even though the City of Moss Point was almost completely destroyed by Hurricane Katrina, the city has been able to make a recovery without all the national attention as New Orleans did. Many residents feel as if other parts of the coast were pretty much ignored in the wake of New Orleans, a much larger city.
Sister city
In the wake of Hurricane Katrina, Burlington, Vermont became the sister city of Moss Point and provided much-needed aid to the city.[4]
People
- John Brock, CEO of Coca-Cola Enterprises, born in Moss Point, and graduated from Moss Point High School in 1967.[5]
- Robert C. Khayat, chancellor of the University of Mississippi
- Don Hultz, NFL football player (birthplace)
- George Wonsley, NFL football player (birthplace)
- Damarius Bilbo, NFL football player and sports agent graduated from Moss Point High School in 2001
Notes
- ^ "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.
- ^ "American FactFinder". United States Census Bureau. http://factfinder.census.gov. Retrieved 2008-01-31.
- ^ Gary Tuchman, Transcript of "Anderson Cooper 360 Degrees" (2006-08-29) 19:00 ET, CNN, CNN.com web: CNN-ACooper082906: GARY TUCHMAN, CNN Correspondent: Responds to Anderson Cooper that it felt like it would never end, saying winds were at least 100 miles per hour in Gulfport for seven hours, between about 7:00 a.m. and 2:00 p.m. For another five or six hours, on each side of that, they had hurricane-force winds over 75 miles per hour; much of the city of Gulfport, Mississippi, in Harrison County of 71,000 was then under water.
- ^ http://www.ci.burlington.vt.us/sistercities/moss_point_relief_timeline.php
- ^ http://blog.gulflive.com/mississippi-press-news/2010/08/moss_point_boy_makes_big_time.html
Toni Seawright:Former runner-up Ms. America
External links
Municipalities and communities of Jackson County, Mississippi County seat: Pascagoula Cities Gautier | Moss Point | Ocean Springs | Pascagoula
CDPs Big Point | Escatawpa | Gulf Hills | Gulf Park Estates | Helena | Hickory Hills | Hurley | Latimer | St. Martin | Vancleave | Wade
Unincorporated
communitiesKreole | Orange Grove
Categories:- Cities in Mississippi
- Populated places in Jackson County, Mississippi
- Populated places in Mississippi with African American majority populations
- Pascagoula metropolitan area
- Places affected by Hurricane Katrina
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