Pontotoc 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 In the United States, a state is a constituent political entity, of which there are 50. Bound together in a political union, each state holds governmental jurisdiction over a separate and defined geographic territory where it shares its so ...

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 31,184. 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 Pontotoc. It was created on February 9, 1836, from lands ceded to the United States under the Chickasaw Cession. Pontotoc is a

Chickasaw The Chickasaw ( ) are an Indigenous people of the Southeastern Woodlands, United States. Their traditional territory was in northern Mississippi, northwestern and northern Alabama, western Tennessee and southwestern Kentucky. Their language is ...

word meaning "land of hanging grapes". The original

Natchez Trace The Natchez Trace, also known as the Old Natchez Trace, is a historic forest trail within the United States which extends roughly from Nashville, Tennessee, to Natchez, Mississippi, linking the Cumberland River, Cumberland, Tennessee River, ...

and the current-day Natchez Trace Parkway both pass through the southeast corner of Pontotoc County. Pontotoc County is part of the Tupelo, MS Micropolitan Statistical Area.

Geography

According to the

U.S. Census Bureau The United States Census Bureau, 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 U.S. Census Bureau is part of the U ...

, the county has a total area of , of which is land and (0.7%) is water.

Major highways

* Interstate 22 * U.S. Route 78 * U.S. Route 278 * Mississippi Highway 6 *

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 ...

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 ...

* Mississippi Highway 41 * Natchez Trace Parkway

Adjacent counties

* Union County (north) * Lee County (east) * Chickasaw County (south) * Calhoun County (southwest) * Lafayette County (west)

National protected area

* Natchez Trace Parkway (part) * Tombigbee National Forest (part)

Demographics

2020 census

As of the 2020 United States census, there were 31,184 people, 10,783 households, and 7,943 families residing in the county.

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 26,726 people, 10,097 households, and 7,562 families residing in the county. The population density was . There were 10,816 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the county was 84.40%

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 ...

, 13.98%

Black Black is a color that results from the absence or complete absorption of visible light. It is an achromatic color, without chroma, like white and grey. It is often used symbolically or figuratively to represent darkness.Eva Heller, ''P ...

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 ...

, 0.27% Native American, 0.10% Asian, 0.01%

Pacific Islander Pacific Islanders, Pasifika, Pasefika, Pacificans, 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 th ...

, 0.71% from other races, and 0.54% from two or more races. 1.80% of the population were

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. According to the

of 2000, the largest ancestry groups in Pontotoc County were English 61.92%, Scots-Irish 15.1%, African 13.98% and

Scottish Scottish usually refers to something of, from, or related to Scotland, including: *Scottish Gaelic, a Celtic Goidelic language of the Indo-European language family native to Scotland *Scottish English *Scottish national identity, the Scottish ide ...

3% There were 10,097 households, out of which 37.10% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 59.20% 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, 11.90% had a female householder with no husband present, and 25.10% were non-families. 22.70% of all households were made up of individuals, and 10.40% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.62 and the average family size was 3.08. In the county, the population was spread out, with 27.60% under the age of 18, 8.70% from 18 to 24, 29.50% from 25 to 44, 21.40% from 45 to 64, and 12.80% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 35 years. For every 100 females, there were 94.50 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 90.80 males. The median income for a household in the county was $32,055, and the median income for a family was $39,845. Males had a median income of $29,074 versus $21,350 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 county was $15,658. About 10.20% of families and 13.80% 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 15.00% of those under age 18 and 23.30% of those age 65 or over.

Communities

City

* Pontotoc (county seat)

Towns

* Algoma * Ecru * Sherman (partly in Union County and Lee County) * Thaxton * Toccopola

Census-designated place

* Randolph

Unincorporated communities

* Endville * Esperanza * Furrs *

Hurricane A tropical cyclone is a rapidly rotating storm system with a low-pressure area, a closed low-level atmospheric circulation, strong winds, and a spiral arrangement of thunderstorms that produce heavy rain and squalls. Depending on its ...

* Rough Edge * Springville *

Troy Troy (/; ; ) or Ilion (; ) was an ancient city located in present-day Hisarlik, Turkey. It is best known as the setting for the Greek mythology, Greek myth of the Trojan War. The archaeological site is open to the public as a tourist destina ...

Politics

Pontotoc County is a heavily Republican stronghold, having not voted for a Democratic presidential candidate since 1980.

Education

There are two school districts: Pontotoc County Schools and Pontotoc City Schools.
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References

* {{authority control Mississippi counties Mississippi placenames of Native American origin Tupelo micropolitan area 1836 establishments in Mississippi Populated places established in 1836