Moorhead is a city in

Sunflower County, Mississippi Sunflower County is a County (United States), county located in the U.S. state of Mississippi. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the population was 25,971. Its largest city and county seat is Indianola, Mississippi, Indianola. ...

, United States. As of the 2010 census, the city population was 2,405. This dropped in 2022 and the population recorded was 1,512.

Geography

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 city has a total area of , of which is land and 0.77% is water. Moorhead is along

U.S. Route 82 U.S. Route 82 (US 82) is an east–west United States highway in the Southern United States. Created on July 1, 1931 across central Mississippi and southern Arkansas, US 82 eventually became a route extending from the White Sands of New ...

, east of Indianola, at its intersection with

Mississippi Highway 3 Mississippi Highway 3 (MS 3) is a north–south Mississippi state highway, located entirely within the Mississippi Delta region, running from Redwood, Mississippi, Redwood to Lake Cormorant, Mississippi, Lake Cormorant, both at an intersec ...

. Moorhead is located at the intersection of the Southern and Yazoo Delta railroads. This is the origin of the legendary

blues Blues is a music genre and musical form that originated among African Americans in the Deep South of the United States around the 1860s. Blues has incorporated spiritual (music), spirituals, work songs, field hollers, Ring shout, shouts, cha ...

crossroads Crossroads is a junction where four roads meet. Crossroads, crossroad, cross road(s) or similar may also refer to: Film and television Films * ''Crossroads'' (1928 film), a 1928 Japanese film by Teinosuke Kinugasa * ''Cross Roads'' (film), a ...

phrase "where the Southern cross the Dog".Moye, J. Todd. ''Let the People Decide: Black Freedom and White Resistance Movements in Sunflower County, Mississippi, 1945-1986''.

University of North Carolina Press The University of North Carolina Press (or UNC Press), founded in 1922, is a not-for-profit university press associated with the University of North Carolina. It was the first university press founded in the southern United States. It is a mem ...

, November 29, 2004
28
Retrieved from

Google Books Google Books (previously known as Google Book Search, Google Print, and by its code-name Project Ocean) is a service from Google that searches the full text of books and magazines that Google has scanned, converted to text using optical charac ...

on February 26, 2012. , .

Climate

Demographics

2020 census

As of the 2020 United States census, there were 1,937 people, 522 households, and 313 families residing in the city.

2010 census

As of the 2010 United States Census, there were 2,405 people living in the city. The racial makeup of the city was 82.2% Black, 16.3% White, 0.3% Native American, 0.2% Asian and 0.2% from two or more races. 0.7% were Hispanic or Latino of any race.

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 2,573 people, 688 households, and 520 families living in the city. The population density was . There were 720 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the city was 20.44%

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 ...

, 78.97%

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 ...

, 0.19% Asian, 0.27% from other races, and 0.12% 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 1.24% of the population. There were 8,391 households, out of which 37.6% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 34.7% 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, 34.7% had a female householder with no husband present, and 24.3% were non-families. 20.3% of all households were made up of individuals, and 9.0% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 3.14 and the average family size was 3.67. In the city, the population was spread out, with 28.1% under the age of 18, 26.7% from 18 to 24, 21.3% from 25 to 44, 16.3% from 45 to 64, and 7.7% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 22 years. For every 100 females, there were 88.8 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 82.8 males. The median income for a household in the city was $20,401, and the median income for a family was $23,000. Males had a median income of $26,538 versus $17,697 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 city was $8,631. About 32.4% of families and 38.0% 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 46.3% of those under age 18 and 33.5% of those age 65 or over.

Arts and culture

A historic plaque in Moorhead is located where the Southern Railroad once crossed the

Yazoo Delta Railroad The Yazoo-Delta Railroad (sometimes known as the ''Yellow Dog'') was a branch line that opened in August 1897 between Moorhead, Mississippi, Moorhead and Ruleville, Mississippi. It was extended to Tutwiler, Mississippi, and Lake Dawson and was acqu ...

(known as the "Yellow Dog"). The Southern travelled east-west, and later became the

Columbus and Greenville Railway There have been two uses of Columbus and Greenville Railway, both for the same rail line. Original Columbus and Greenville The first Columbus and Greenville Railway was formed by the sale of the Southern Railway operated Southern Railway in M ...

, while the Yellow Dog travelled north-south, and later became the

Yazoo and Mississippi Valley Railroad The Yazoo and Mississippi Valley Railroad (Y&MV) was incorporated in 1882 and was part of the Illinois Central Railroad system (IC). Construction began in Jackson, Mississippi, and continued to Yazoo City, Mississippi. The line was later expand ...

. The level junction (diamond) is still preserved as an historic site, though the north-south line has since been abandoned through Moorhead. This railroad crossing is very significant in the history of blues music. It is widely believed that

W. C. Handy William Christopher Handy (November 16, 1873 – March 28, 1958) was an American composer and musician who referred to himself as the Father of the Blues. He was one of the most influential songwriters in the United States. One of many musician ...

, after hearing an old man singing about "where the Southern cross the Yellow Dog", was moved by the sound and began what came to be known as the "blues".

Education

The City of Moorhead is served by the Sunflower County Consolidated School District (formerly Sunflower County School District). Schools serving Moorhead and in Moorhead include the

K-8 school K8 or K-8 may refer to: * K-8 (Kansas highway), two highways in Kansas, one in northern Kansas, one in southern Kansas * K-8 school, a type of school that includes kindergarten and grades one through eight * K8 telephone box, designed by Bruce M ...

Moorhead Central School, which was formerly Moorhead Middle School until 2018. It also has James C. Rosser Early Learning Center, which was formerly James Rosser Elementary School. it was zoned to Ruleville Central High School (now Thomas E. Edwards, Sr. High School), at the time the sole school of the district. Moorhead is home to

Mississippi Delta Community College Mississippi Delta Community College is a public community college serving the Mississippi Delta region with its main campus in Moorhead, Mississippi. It also offers courses at locations in Greenville, Greenwood, and Indianola. Its mascot is th ...

's main campus. The Sunflower County Library operates the Kathy June Sheriff Public Library in Moorhead.Sunflower County Library Directory
" Sunflower County Library. Retrieved on July 21, 2010.

References

External links

*
Moorhead Middle School

James C. Rosser Elementary School
{{authority control Cities in Mississippi Cities in Sunflower County, Mississippi