Jackson County is a

county A county () is a geographic region of a country used for administrative or other purposesL. Brookes (ed.) '' Chambers Dictionary''. Edinburgh: Chambers Harrap Publishers Ltd, 2005. in some nations. The term is derived from the Old French denoti ...

located in the U.S. state of

Mississippi Mississippi ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern and Deep South regions of the United States. It borders Tennessee to the north, Alabama to the east, the Gulf of Mexico to the south, Louisiana to the s ...

. As of the 2020 census, the population was 143,252, making it the fifth-most populous county in Mississippi. Its

county seat A county seat is an administrative center, seat of government, or capital city of a county or parish (administrative division), civil parish. The term is in use in five countries: Canada, China, Hungary, Romania, and the United States. An equiva ...

is Pascagoula. The county was named for

Andrew Jackson Andrew Jackson (March 15, 1767 – June 8, 1845) was the seventh president of the United States from 1829 to 1837. Before Presidency of Andrew Jackson, his presidency, he rose to fame as a general in the U.S. Army and served in both houses ...

, general in the

United States Army The United States Army (USA) is the primary Land warfare, land service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is designated as the Army of the United States in the United States Constitution.Article II, section 2, clause 1 of th ...

and afterward

President of the United States The president of the United States (POTUS) is the head of state and head of government of the United States. The president directs the Federal government of the United States#Executive branch, executive branch of the Federal government of t ...

. Jackson County is included in the Pascagoula, MS Metropolitan Statistical Area. It is located at the southeastern tip of the state. The county has sandy soil and is in the Piney Woods area. It borders the state of

Alabama Alabama ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern and Deep South, Deep Southern regions of the United States. It borders Tennessee to the north, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia to the east, Florida and the Gu ...

on its east side. The county was severely damaged by both

Hurricane Camille Hurricane Camille was a powerful, deadly and destructive tropical cyclone which became the second most intense on record to strike the United States (behind the 1935 Labor Day hurricane) and is one of the four Category 5 hurricanes to make ...

in August 1969 and

Hurricane Katrina Hurricane Katrina was a powerful, devastating and historic tropical cyclone that caused 1,392 fatalities and damages estimated at $125 billion in late August 2005, particularly in the city of New Orleans and its surrounding area. ...

on August 29, 2005, which caused catastrophic effects. The county bears no relation with the state capital of Jackson, which is one of the two county seats of Hinds County, along with the city of

Raymond Raymond is a male given name of Germanic origin. It was borrowed into English from French (older French spellings were Reimund and Raimund, whereas the modern English and French spellings are identical). It originated as the Germanic ᚱᚨᚷ� ...

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of , of which is land and (31%) is water. It is the largest county in Mississippi by total area.

Major highways

* * * * * * * *

Adjacent counties

* George County - north * Mobile County, Alabama - east * Harrison County - west * Stone County - northwest

National protected areas

* De Soto National Forest (part) * Grand Bay National Wildlife Refuge (part) *

Gulf Islands National Seashore Gulf Islands National Seashore is an American National seashore that offers recreation opportunities and preserves natural and historic resources along the Gulf of Mexico barrier islands of Florida and Mississippi. In 2023, it was the fifth-mos ...

(part) * Mississippi Sandhill Crane National Wildlife Refuge

Demographics

As of the 2020 United States census, there were 143,252 people, 56,323 households, and 38,007 families residing in the county.

Choctaw people

Jackson County is home to the Vancleave Live Oak Choctaw, which the State of Mississippi, through House Resolution 50 (HR50), ceremonially recognized as "The Official Native American Tribe of the Choctaw People of Jackson County, Mississippi" in 2016. This legislative action acknowledges the tribe's historical and cultural significance in the state. While locally acknowledged, the tribe is not federally recognized as a Native American tribe.

Public safety

The Jackson County Sheriff's Office provides

law enforcement Law enforcement is the activity of some members of the government or other social institutions who act in an organized manner to enforce the law by investigating, deterring, rehabilitating, or punishing people who violate the rules and norms gove ...

services for communities in the county that do not have their own local law enforcement. These communities are known as Census-Designated Places, or CDPs.

Education

School districts in the county include:
Text list
/ref> The Jackson County School District serves the Hurley, Wade, Big Point, Three Rivers, Harleston, Vestry, Latimer, and Vancleave communities, along with St. Martin and a small portion of Escatawpa. The Pascagoula-Gautier School District serves Pascagoula and most of the City of Gautier. The Moss Point School District serves Moss Point and most of Escatawpa. The Ocean Springs School District serves Ocean Springs.

Communities

Cities

* Gautier * Moss Point * Ocean Springs * Pascagoula (county seat)

Census-designated places

* Big Point * Escatawpa * Gulf Hills * Gulf Park Estates * Helena * Hurley * Latimer * St. Martin * Vancleave * Wade

Unincorporated places

* East Moss Point * Poticaw Landing

Ghost towns

* Brewton

Former census-designated places

* Hickory Hills, merged into city of Gautier

Politics

Like most of the Solid South, Jackson County consistently voted for the Democratic presidential candidate through 1960, except for 1948, when it was carried by Dixiecrat Strom Thurmond. For much of this time, Republicans were lucky to get even 1,000 votes. It voted overwhelmingly for Republican

Barry Goldwater Barry Morris Goldwater (January 2, 1909 – May 29, 1998) was an American politician and major general in the United States Air Force, Air Force Reserve who served as a United States senator from 1953 to 1965 and 1969 to 1987, and was the Re ...

in 1964, voted for

George Wallace George Corley Wallace Jr. (August 25, 1919 – September 13, 1998) was an American politician who was the 45th and longest-serving governor of Alabama (1963–1967; 1971–1979; 1983–1987), and the List of longest-serving governors of U.S. s ...

in 1968 over Republican

Richard Nixon Richard Milhous Nixon (January 9, 1913April 22, 1994) was the 37th president of the United States, serving from 1969 until Resignation of Richard Nixon, his resignation in 1974. A member of the Republican Party (United States), Republican ...

, and has stuck with Republicans ever since.

Jimmy Carter James Earl Carter Jr. (October 1, 1924December 29, 2024) was an American politician and humanitarian who served as the 39th president of the United States from 1977 to 1981. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party ...

is the last Democrat to manage 40 percent of the vote.

References

External links

Official Web Site of Jackson County, Mississippi
* {{coord, 30.46, -88.62, display=title, type:adm2nd_region:US-MS_source:UScensus1990 Mississippi counties Pascagoula metropolitan area 1812 establishments in Mississippi Territory Populated places established in 1812