Bay St. Louis is a city in and the county seat of Hancock County,

Mississippi Mississippi () is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States, bordered to the north by Tennessee; to the east by Alabama; to the south by the Gulf of Mexico; to the southwest by Louisiana; and to the northwest by Arkansas. Miss ...

, in the United States. Located on the Gulf Coast on the west side of the

Bay of St. Louis The Bay of St. Louis (St. Louis Bay; french: Baie Saint-Louis) is a shallow-water, partially enclosed estuary of the northeast Gulf of Mexico along the southwestern coast of Mississippi.Wang, X, Y. Cai, and L. Guo. 2010. Referential removal of dis ...

, it is part of the Gulfport– Biloxi

Metropolitan Statistical Area In the United States, a metropolitan statistical area (MSA) is a geographical region with a relatively high population density at its core and close economic ties throughout the area. Such regions are neither legally Incorporated town, incorporate ...

. As of 2010, Bay St. Louis’ population was 9,260.

History

The first European settlers in this area were French colonists, whose culture still influences the small city and who imported slaves from Africa. A Louisiana Creole population developed, featuring people of color as well as white colonists of largely French descent. The county was organized by European Americans, who named it after John Hancock, who was a Founding Father of the United States. While more Protestant Americans migrated into this area after

Indian Removal Indian removal was the United States government policy of forced displacement of self-governing tribes of Native Americans from their ancestral homelands in the eastern United States to lands west of the Mississippi Riverspecifically, to a de ...

in the 1830s, there are still many Catholic families, some dating to both African and French ancestors of the colonial era. Roman Catholic schools still draw area students. The 1966 movie '' This Property is Condemned'' starring Natalie Wood and

Robert Redford Charles Robert Redford Jr. (born August 18, 1936) is an American actor and filmmaker. He is the List of awards and nominations received by Robert Redford, recipient of various accolades, including an Academy Awards, Academy Award from four nomi ...

was filmed in Bay St. Louis, which was called "Dodson" in the movie, with some additional shooting in Biloxi, Mississippi, and New Orleans, Louisiana.

Geography

Bay St. Louis is located in southeastern Hancock County at 30°18'53" North, 89°20'39" West (30.314696, −89.344096). It is situated on the west side of the

which empties into the Mississippi Sound, adjacent to

Pass Christian Pass Christian (), nicknamed The Pass, is a city in Harrison County, Mississippi, United States. It is part of the Gulfport–Biloxi Biloxi ( ; ) is a city in and one of two county seats of Harrison County, Mississippi, United States (the ot ...

to the east. The city is bordered to the north by the Jourdan River, the primary inlet of the bay and Diamondhead. The eastern border of the city is the Harrison County line in the middle of the bay. According to the

United States Census Bureau The United States Census Bureau (USCB), officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the U.S. Federal Statistical System, responsible for producing data about the American people and economy. The Census Bureau is part of the ...

, the city has a total area of , of which are land and , or 44,82%, are water.

Major highways

Interstate 10 Interstate 10 (I-10) is the southernmost cross-country highway in the American Interstate Highway System. I-10 is the fourth-longest Interstate in the United States at , following I-90, I-80, and I-40. This freeway is part of the originally pl ...

passes through the northern extension of the city, northwest of downtown, with access from Exit 13 (Highway 603). I-10 leads east to Biloxi and southwest to

New Orleans New Orleans ( , ,New Orleans
Merriam-Webster. ; french: La Nouvelle-Orléans , es, Nuev ...

. *

U.S. Highway 90 U.S. Route 90 or U.S. Highway 90 (US 90) is an east–west major United States highway in the Southern United States. Despite the "0" in its route number, US 90 never was a full coast-to-coast route. With the exception of a short-lived ...

passes just north of downtown Bay St. Louis, leading east across the

St. Louis Bay Bridge The St. Louis Bay Bridge is a bridge in the U.S. state of Mississippi which carries U.S. Route 90 over Bay of Saint Louis between Bay St. Louis, Mississippi, Bay St. Louis and Pass Christian, Mississippi, Pass Christian. The original bridge was ...

to Pass Christian. Via US 90 it is east to Gulfport and southwest to New Orleans. *

Mississippi Highway 603 Mississippi Highway 603 (MS 603) is a state highway in Hancock County, Mississippi. The highway generally runs north–south from its southern terminus at U.S. Route 90 (US 90) in Waveland through Bay St. Louis and Kiln to its northern te ...

runs along the western edge of the Bay St. Louis city limits, connecting US 90 and Interstate 10.

Adjacent cities and towns

* Diamondhead (north) *

(east) * Waveland (west)

Demographics

2020 census

As of the

2020 United States census The United States census of 2020 was the twenty-fourth decennial United States census. Census Day, the reference day used for the census, was April 1, 2020. Other than a pilot study during the 2000 census, this was the first U.S. census to of ...

, there were 9,284 people, 5,995 households, and 3,562 families residing in the city.

2000 census

As of the

census A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording and calculating information about the members of a given population. This term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common censuses incl ...

of 2000, there were 8,209 people, 3,271 households, and 2,064 families residing in the city. The

population density Population density (in agriculture: standing stock or plant density) is a measurement of population per unit land area. It is mostly applied to humans, but sometimes to other living organisms too. It is a key geographical term.Matt RosenberPopul ...

was 1,342.1 people per square mile (517.9/km). There were 3,817 housing units at an average density of 624.1 per square mile (240.8/km). The racial makeup of the city was 80.23%

White White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no hue). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully reflect and scatter all the visible wavelengths of light. White on ...

, 16.59%

African American African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American" generally denotes descendants of ens ...

, 0.40% Native American, 1.11%

Asian Asian may refer to: * Items from or related to the continent of Asia: ** Asian people, people in or descending from Asia ** Asian culture, the culture of the people from Asia ** Asian cuisine, food based on the style of food of the people from Asi ...

, 0.05%

Pacific Islander Pacific Islanders, Pasifika, Pasefika, or rarely Pacificers are the peoples of the list of islands in the Pacific Ocean, Pacific Islands. As an ethnic group, ethnic/race (human categorization), racial term, it is used to describe the original p ...

, 0.19% from other races, and 1.43% from two or more races. 1.68% of the population was

Hispanic The term ''Hispanic'' ( es, hispano) refers to people, Spanish culture, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or Hispanidad. The term commonly applies to countries with a cultural and historical link to Spain and to Vic ...

Latino Latino or Latinos most often refers to: * Latino (demonym), a term used in the United States for people with cultural ties to Latin America * Hispanic and Latino Americans in the United States * The people or cultures of Latin America; ** Latin A ...

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 Marriage, also called matrimony or wedlock, is a culturally and often legally recognized union between people called spouses. It establishes rights and obligations between them, as well as between them and their children, and between t ...

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% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.41 and the average family size was 3.05. In the city, the population was 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 were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 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 Per capita income (PCI) or total income measures the average income earned per person in a given area (city, region, country, etc.) in a specified year. It is calculated by dividing the area's total income by its total population. Per capita i ...

for the city was $18,483. 13.2% of the population and 10.0% of families 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 t ...

. 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.

Education

Almost all of the city of Bay St. Louis is served by the Bay St. Louis-Waveland School District. Small portions of land are within the

Hancock County School District The Hancock County School District is a public school district based in the community of Kiln, Mississippi (USA). In addition to Kiln, the district also serves the communities of Diamondhead, Pearlington, sections of Waveland and Bay St. Louis ...

. It is the home of Bay High School. In addition to Bay High, there are private Catholic schools:

Saint Stanislaus College St. Stanislaus College (SSC) is a Catholic day and boarding school for boys in grades 7–12. It has been owned and operated by the Brothers of the Sacred Heart order since 1854. It is located about an hour's drive outside New Orleans in Bay Sain ...

, a residency and day school for boys grades 7–12; and Our Lady Academy, a day school for girls grades 7–12. The latter two share some classrooms as well as a Roman Catholic curriculum. All of Hancock County is in the service area of Pearl River Community College.

Hurricanes

On August 17, 1969, Hurricane Camille made landfall at the tip of

Louisiana Louisiana , group=pronunciation (French: ''La Louisiane'') is a state in the Deep South and South Central regions of the United States. It is the 20th-smallest by area and the 25th most populous of the 50 U.S. states. Louisiana is borde ...

before continuing to Bay St. Louis. On August 29, 2005, at 10:00 a.m. CDT,

Hurricane Katrina Hurricane Katrina was a destructive Category 5 Atlantic hurricane that caused over 1,800 fatalities and $125 billion in damage in late August 2005, especially in the city of New Orleans and the surrounding areas. It was at the time the cost ...

made its final landfall just west of Bay St. Louis, at the mouth of the Pearl River, causing a

storm surge A storm surge, storm flood, tidal surge, or storm tide is a coastal flood or tsunami-like phenomenon of rising water commonly associated with low-pressure weather systems, such as cyclones. It is measured as the rise in water level above the n ...

. Hurricane Katrina came ashore during the high tide of 9:15AM, +2.3 feet more, causing a storm tide more than high. USGS topographic maps show a common elevation contour line running throughout a ridge along the former routing of Highway 90 ( Old Spanish Trail) on the western edge of the city. As higher ground, this area was spared inundation from the storm surge of Hurricane Katrina. Katrina damaged more than 40

libraries, including severe roof and water damage to the Bay St. Louis Public Library. The library reopened to the public on October 12, 2005. The Bay St. Louis Bridge on

US Highway 90 U.S. Route 90 or U.S. Highway 90 (US 90) is an east–west major United States highway in the Southern United States. Despite the "0" in its route number, US 90 never was a full coast-to-coast route. With the exception of a short-lived ...

was severely damaged, with many bridge sections down-dropped at the west edges. The destroyed bridge was replaced by a new Bay St. Louis Bridge, which received America's Transportation Award. It includes a pedestrian bridge with an art walk featuring the works of local artists. The underground utility infrastructure in Bay St. Louis received a federally funded total overhaul and replacement.

Climate

The climate in this area is characterized by hot, humid summers and generally mild to cool winters. According to the

Köppen Climate Classification The Köppen climate classification is one of the most widely used climate classification systems. It was first published by German-Russian climatologist Wladimir Köppen (1846–1940) in 1884, with several later modifications by Köppen, notabl ...

system, Bay St. Louis has a

humid subtropical climate A humid subtropical climate is a zone of climate characterized by hot and humid summers, and cool to mild winters. These climates normally lie on the southeast side of all continents (except Antarctica), generally between latitudes 25° and 40° ...

, abbreviated "Cfa" on climate maps.

Notable people

Stephen E. Ambrose Stephen Edward Ambrose (January 10, 1936 – October 13, 2002) was an American historian, most noted for his biographies of U.S. Presidents Dwight D. Eisenhower and Richard Nixon. He was a longtime professor of history at the University of New Or ...

, historian and author * Richmond Barthé, sculptor associated with the

Harlem Renaissance The Harlem Renaissance was an intellectual and cultural revival of African American music, dance, art, fashion, literature, theater, politics and scholarship centered in Harlem, Manhattan, New York City, spanning the 1920s and 1930s. At the t ...

* J. P. Compretta, former 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 fo ...

* Leo Fabian Fahey,

coadjutor bishop A coadjutor bishop (or bishop coadjutor) is a bishop in the Catholic, Anglican, and (historically) Eastern Orthodox churches whose main role is to assist the diocesan bishop in the administration of the diocese. The coadjutor (literally, "co ...

of the

Diocese of Baker City The Diocese of Baker (Latin: ''Dioecesis Bakeriensis'') is a Latin Church ecclesiastical territory or diocese of the Catholic Church in Eastern Oregon, United States. It is a suffragan diocese in the ecclesiastical province of the metropolitan Arc ...

Oregon Oregon () is a U.S. state, state in the Pacific Northwest region of the Western United States. The Columbia River delineates much of Oregon's northern boundary with Washington (state), Washington, while the Snake River delineates much of it ...

from 1948 until 1950 * Shannon Garrett, former professional

Canadian football Canadian football () is a team sport, sport played in Canada in which two teams of 12 players each compete for territorial control of a field of play long and wide attempting to advance a pointed oval-shaped ball into the opposing team's sco ...

player * Walter J. Gex III,

United States district judge The United States district courts are the trial courts of the United States federal judiciary, U.S. federal judiciary. There is one district court for each United States federal judicial district, federal judicial district, which each cover o ...

of the United States District Court for the Southern District of Mississippi *

Jacob Lindgren Jacob Stephen Lindgren (born March 12, 1993) is an American former professional baseball pitcher. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the New York Yankees in 2015. He played college baseball for Mississippi State University. Amateur car ...

, MLB player *

Philip Moran Philip Edward Moran (born March 6, 1961) is an American politician. A member of the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party, he was elected to the Mississippi State Senate in 2011. He lives in Kiln, Mississippi with his wife, Sheila. ...

, member of the

Mississippi State Senate The Mississippi Senate is the upper house of the Mississippi Legislature, the state legislature of the U.S. state of Mississippi. The Senate, along with the lower Mississippi House of Representatives, convenes at the Mississippi State Capitol ...

* Alice Moseley, folk artist *

Leo Norris Leo John Norris (May 17, 1908 - May 13, 1987) was a Major League Baseball player for the Philadelphia Phillies The Philadelphia Phillies are an American professional baseball team based in Philadelphia. They compete in Major League Baseball ...

, former

infielder An infielder is a baseball player stationed at one of four defensive "infield" positions on the baseball field. Standard arrangement of positions In a game of baseball, two teams of nine players take turns playing offensive and defensive roles. ...

for the

Philadelphia Phillies The Philadelphia Phillies are an American professional baseball team based in Philadelphia. They compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member of the National League (NL) National League East, East division. Since 2004, the team's home sta ...

Carlile Pollock Patterson Carlile Pollock Patterson (August 24, 1816 – August 15, 1881) was the fourth superintendent of the United States Coast and Geodetic Survey. He was born in Bay St. Louis, Mississippi, the son of Commodore Daniel Todd Patterson. He was appointed ...

, fourth superintendent of the United States Coast Survey *

Albert J. Raboteau Albert Jordy "Al" Raboteau II (September 4, 1943 – September 18, 2021) was an American scholar of African and African-American religions. Since 1982, he had been affiliated with Princeton University, where he was Henry W. Putnam Professor of R ...

, is an African-American scholar of African and African-American religions * Lawrence E. Roberts, pilot with the

Tuskegee Airmen The Tuskegee Airmen were a group of primarily African American military pilots (fighter and bomber) and airmen who fought in World War II. They formed the 332d Fighter Group and the 477th Fighter Group, 477th Bombardment Group (Medium) of the ...

and colonel in the

United States Air Force The United States Air Force (USAF) is the air service branch of the United States Armed Forces, and is one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. Originally created on 1 August 1907, as a part of the United States Army Signal ...

* John Scafide, former

offensive lineman In gridiron football, a lineman is a player who specializes in play at the line of scrimmage. The linemen of the team currently in possession of the ball are the offensive line, while linemen on the opposing team are the defensive line. A numbe ...

for the Boston Redskins and mayor of Bay St. Louis from 1953 to 1969 * Caroline Snedeker, children's author * Gene Taylor, member of the

United States House of Representatives The United States House of Representatives, often referred to as the House of Representatives, the U.S. House, or simply the House, is the Lower house, lower chamber of the United States Congress, with the United States Senate, Senate being ...

from 1989 to 2011 *

Tank Williams Clevan "Tank" Williams (born June 30, 1980) is a former American football safety. He played college football at Stanford and was drafted by the Tennessee Titans in the second round of the 2002 NFL Draft. He also played for the Minnesota Vikings ...

, former NFL player

References

External links

* {{authority control Cities in Mississippi Cities in Hancock County, Mississippi County seats in Mississippi Gulfport–Biloxi metropolitan area Populated coastal places in Mississippi French-American culture in Mississippi