Weir is a town in Choctaw County,

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 ...

, United States. The population was 459 at the 2010 census, down from 553 at the 2000 census.

History

The town of Weir was settled by former

Confederate A confederation (also known as a confederacy or league) is a political union of sovereign states united for purposes of common action. Usually created by a treaty, confederations of states tend to be established for dealing with critical issu ...

Colonel John Weir and his brother James in 1868. Weir experienced a tornado on April 24, 2010.

Geography

Weir is located in southwestern Choctaw County at (33.263423, -89.289439), bordered on the north by the Yockanookany River.

Mississippi Highway 12 Mississippi Highway 12 (MS 12) is a state highway in northern Mississippi that runs west–east from MS 1 west of Hollandale at the Mississippi River to State Route 18 (SR 18) at the Alabama state line northeast of Columbus. MS 12 trav ...

passes north of the town, leading northeast to

Ackerman Ackerman may refer to: Surname *Ackerman (surname), people with the surname Ackerman Places *Ackerman, Mississippi, town in Choctaw County, Mississippi, US *Ackerman, West Virginia, former unincorporated community in Mineral County, West Virgini ...

, the county seat, and southwest to Kosciusko. 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 , or 1.43%, is water.

Demographics

2020 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 553 people, 208 households, and 149 families residing in the town. The population density was . There were 234 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the town was 45.21%

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 ...

, 53.71%

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 ...

, 0.90% Native American, 0.18% from other 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 0.18% of the population. There were 208 households, out of which 34.1% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 44.7% 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, 22.6% had a female householder with no husband present, and 27.9% were non-families. 25.5% of all households were made up of individuals, and 13.9% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.66 and the average family size was 3.19. In the town, the population was spread out, with 31.1% under the age of 18, 9.9% from 18 to 24, 25.5% from 25 to 44, 18.1% from 45 to 64, and 15.4% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 34 years. For every 100 females, there were 87.5 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 78.0 males. The median income for a household in the town was $23,125, and the median income for a family was $28,472. Males had a median income of $31,875 versus $16,250 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 $13,697. About 19.7% of families and 25.3% 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 33.1% of those under age 18 and 24.7% of those age 65 or over.

Education

Weir is home to Weir Elementary Center, a pre-kindergarten through 6th grade school. It is part of the Choctaw County School District. The school once was known statewide for its football program which competed in ten state championships between 1984 and 2004, winning six 1A state football titles. The school received a new building in 2005 that was dedicated to Mr. Marion Kelly who served as teacher, coach, and principal for approximately 40 years.

Notable people

Dennis Johnson Dennis Wayne Johnson (September 18, 1954 – February 22, 2007), nicknamed "DJ", was an American professional basketball player for the National Basketball Association's (NBA) Seattle SuperSonics, Phoenix Suns, and Boston Celtics. He was a c ...

, former fullback and

tight end The tight end (TE) is an offense (sports), offensive position in American football, arena football, and Canadian football. It is a hybrid that combines the characteristics and roles of both an offensive lineman and a receiver (football), receiv ...

in the

National Football League The National Football League (NFL) is a Professional gridiron football, professional American football league in the United States. Composed of 32 teams, it is divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National ...

for the

Buffalo Bills The Buffalo Bills are a professional American football team based in the Buffalo–Niagara Falls metropolitan area. The Bills compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC East, East div ...

and

New York Giants The New York Giants are a professional American football team based in the New York metropolitan area. The Giants compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC East, East division. The ...

* Kenneth Johnson, NFL defensive back for the

Green Bay Packers The Green Bay Packers are a professional American football team based in Green Bay, Wisconsin. The Packers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC North, North division. They ar ...

* Tony Kimbrough, former NFL

wide receiver A wide receiver (WR), also referred to as a wideout, and historically known as a split end (SE) or flanker (FL), is an eligible receiver in gridiron football. A key skill position of the offense (American football), offense, WR gets its name ...

Alvin McKinley Alvin Jerome McKinley (born June 9, 1978) is a former American football defensive tackle. He was selected by the Carolina Panthers in the fourth round of the 2000 NFL draft. He played college football at Mississippi State. McKinley has also pl ...

, former National Football League

defensive tackle A defensive tackle (DT) is a position in American football that typically lines up on the line of scrimmage, opposite one of the Guard (American football), offensive guards; however, he may also line up opposite one of the offensive Tackle (gridir ...

Roy Oswalt Roy Edward Oswalt (; born August 29, 1977) is an American former professional baseball pitcher. Oswalt played for the majority of his Major League Baseball (MLB) career with the Houston Astros. He also played for the Philadelphia Phillies, Texa ...

, former pitcher for the

Houston Astros The Houston Astros are an American professional baseball team based in Houston. The Astros compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League West, West Division. They are one of two major leag ...

Gallery

Image:JohnWeirGrave.jpg, Col. John Weir grave - Weir Presbyterian Church File:WeirTownhalllibrary.JPG, Town Hall and Library File:WeirMississippiPostoffice.JPG, Post Office

References

External links

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