Ackerman is a town and the county seat of

Choctaw County, Mississippi Choctaw County is a county located in the central part of the U.S. state of Mississippi. As of the 2020 census, the population was 8,246. Its northern border is the Big Black River, which flows southwest into the Mississippi River south of V ...

, United States. The population was 1,594 according to 2020 census, which shows an increase from 1,510 reported in the 2010 census. It is named for William K. Ackerman, President of the Illinois Central Railroad 1877-1883.

Geography

Ackerman is located in southeast of the present-day center of Choctaw County.

Mississippi Highway 15 Mississippi Highway 15 (MS 15) is a state highway in Mississippi. At almost , it is the longest highway in the Mississippi Highway System. MS 15 is divided into two sections due to a large gap between Stone County and Perry County. The south ...

passes through the town, leading north to Mathiston and south to Louisville, Mississippi (pronounced Lewis-ville). Mississippi Highway 12 passes through the northwest corner of the town, leading northeast to Starkville, where

Mississippi State University Mississippi State University for Agriculture and Applied Science, commonly known as Mississippi State University (MSU), is a Public university, public land-grant university, land-grant research university in Mississippi State, Mississippi, Un ...

is located and southwest to Kosciusko.

Mississippi Highway 9 Mississippi Highway 9 (MS 9) in the Appalachian Mountains, Appalachian Foothills (aka North Central Hills) region of northeastern Mississippi, running north–south from Mississippi Highway 30, MS 30 east of New Albany, Mississippi, New Alb ...

heads north from Highway 12 in the northwest corner of Ackerman, leading to Eupora. According to the

United States Census Bureau The United States Census Bureau, officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the Federal statistical system, U.S. federal statistical system, responsible for producing data about the American people and American economy, econ ...

, the town has a total area of , of which is land and , or 0.85%, is water. The town is located near the headwaters of the Yockanookany River, a tributary of the Pearl River.

Climate

Demographics

2020 census

As of the 2020 United States census, there were 1,594 people, 611 households, and 345 families residing in the town.

2000 census

As of the

census A census (from Latin ''censere'', 'to assess') is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording, and calculating population information about the members of a given Statistical population, population, usually displayed in the form of stati ...

of 2000, there were 1,696 people, 711 households, and 430 families residing in the town. The population density was . There were 781 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the town was 62.97%

White White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no chroma). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully (or almost fully) reflect and scatter all the visible wa ...

, 34.85%

African American African Americans, also known as Black Americans and formerly also called Afro-Americans, are an Race and ethnicity in the United States, American racial and ethnic group that consists of Americans who have total or partial ancestry from an ...

, 0.24% Native American, 0.59% Asian, 0.94% from other races, and 0.41% from two or more races.

Hispanic The term Hispanic () are people, Spanish culture, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or broadly. In some contexts, Hispanic and Latino Americans, especially within the United States, "Hispanic" is used as an Ethnici ...

or Latino of any race were 1.47% of the population. There were 711 households, out of which 29.4% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 38.8% were

married couples Marriage, also called matrimony or wedlock, is a culturally and often legally recognised union between people called spouses. It establishes rights and obligations between them, as well as between them and their children (if any), and b ...

living together, 17.4% had a female householder with no husband present, and 39.5% were non-families. 37.0% of all households were made up of individuals, and 16.7% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.27 and the average family size was 3.00. In the town, the population was spread out, with 24.6% under the age of 18, 7.8% from 18 to 24, 25.8% from 25 to 44, 21.6% from 45 to 64, and 20.2% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 39 years. For every 100 females, there were 81.8 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 76.0 males. The median income for a household in the town was $21,287, and the median income for a family was $30,511. Males had a median income of $30,588 versus $20,739 for females. The

per capita income Per capita income (PCI) or average income measures the average income earned per person in a given area (city, region, country, etc.) in a specified year. In many countries, per capita income is determined using regular population surveys, such ...

for the town was $13,486. About 17.8% of families and 24.7% of the population were below the

poverty line The poverty threshold, poverty limit, poverty line, or breadline is the minimum level of income deemed adequate in a particular country. The poverty line is usually calculated by estimating the total cost of one year's worth of necessities for ...

, including 33.2% of those under age 18 and 20.1% of those age 65 or over.

Education

Ackerman is served by the Choctaw County School District.

Notable people

* Ja'Marcus Bradley, professional football player *

The Blackwood Brothers The Blackwood Brothers are an American southern gospel quartet. Pioneers of the Christian music industry, they are 8-time Grammy Award winners in addition to winning 7 Gospel Music Association Dove Awards. They are also members of the Memp ...

, gospel quartet * Texas Johnny Brown, blues guitarist, songwriter, and singer * Turner Catledge (1901—1983), managing editor of the ''New York Times'' * James P. Coleman,

governor of Mississippi The governor of Mississippi is the head of government of Mississippi and the commander-in-chief of the U.S. state, state's Mississippi National Guard, military forces. The governor has a duty to enforce state laws, and the power to either appro ...

(1956–1960) * Josiah D. Coleman, Justice of the

Supreme Court of Mississippi The Supreme Court of Mississippi is the Supreme court, highest court in the state of Mississippi. It was established in 1818 per the terms of the first constitution of the state and was known as the High Court of Errors and Appeals from 1832 to 1 ...

and grandson of James P. Coleman * Joey Hood, member of the

Mississippi House of Representatives The Mississippi House of Representatives is the lower house of the Mississippi Legislature, the lawmaking body of the U.S. state of Mississippi. According to the state constitution of 1890, it is to comprise no more than 122 members elected for ...

Ray Mabus Raymond Edwin Mabus Jr. (; born October 11, 1948) is an American politician and lawyer. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party, he served as the 75th United States Secretary of the Navy from 2009 to 2017. Mabus previo ...

(1988–1992) * Coby Miller, Olympic sprinter * Cheryl Prewitt,

Miss America Miss America is an annual competition that is open to women from the United States between the ages of 18 and 28. Originating in 1921 as a "bathing beauty revue", the contest is judged on competition segments with scoring percentages: ''Priva ...

, 1980

References

{{authority control Towns in Choctaw County, Mississippi Towns in Mississippi County seats in Mississippi