Moss Point, Mississippi

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Moss Point, Mississippi
Location of Moss Point in the State of Mississippi
Location of Moss Point in the State of Mississippi
Coordinates: 30°41′1″N 88°53′4″W / 30.68361, -88.88444
Country United States
State Mississippi
County Jackson
Government
 - Mayor Xavier Bishop
Area
 - Total 26.8 sq mi (69.3 km²)
 - Land 25.0 sq mi (64.8 km²)
 - Water 1.8 sq mi (4.6 km²)
Elevation 16 ft (5 m)
Population (2000)
 - Total 17,653
 - Density 634/sq mi (244.8/km²)
  15,327 (est.) (metro area)
Time zone CST (UTC-6)
 - Summer (DST) CDT (UTC-5)
ZIP codes 39562, 39563, 39581
Area code(s) 228
FIPS code 28-49240
GNIS feature ID 0673878
Founded 17**
Incorporated 17** (village) 18** (city)

Moss Point is a city, north of Pascagoula, in Jackson County, Mississippi, United States. It is part of the Pascagoula, Mississippi Metropolitan Statistical Area. The population was 17,653 at the 2000 census.

On August 29, 2005, Moss Point was hit by the strong east side of Hurricane Katrina, and much of Moss Point was flooded or destroyed (see details below).

Contents

[edit] Geography

Moss Point is located at 30°24′40″N, 88°31′31″W (30.410999, -88.525140)[1]. Though very small this city is populated by many people. According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 26.8 square miles (69.3 km²), of which, 25.0 square miles (64.7 km²) of it is land and 1.8 square miles (4.6 km²) of it (6.61%) is water.

Moss Point, Mississippi (right edge) is north of Pascagoula, on U.S. Route 63, north of the Gulf of Mexico.
Moss Point, Mississippi (right edge) is north of Pascagoula, on U.S. Route 63, north of the Gulf of Mexico.

[edit] Demographics

As of the census[2] of 2000, there were 17,653 people, 6,714 households, and 5,228 families residing in the city. The population density was 634.0 people per square mile (344.8/km²). There were 6,237 housing units at an average density of 249.4/sq mi (96.3/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 28.04% White, 70.56% African American, 0.15% Native American, 0.21% Asian, 0.03% Pacific Islander, 0.44% from other races, and 0.57% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 1.00% of the population.

There were 5,714 households out of which 31.6% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 44.7% were married couples living together, 23.7% had a female householder with no husband present, and 26.0% were non-families. 22.8% of all households were made up of individuals and 8.6% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.75 and the average family size was 3.21.

In the city the population was spread out with 26.8% under the age of 18, 9.5% from 18 to 24, 25.8% from 25 to 44, 25.3% from 45 to 64, and 12.6% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 37 years. For every 100 females there were 91.2 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 87.4 males.

The median income for a household in the city was $32,075, and the median income for a family was $37,712. Males had a median income of $31,126 versus $20,550 for females. The per capita income for the city was $15,537. About 15.8% of families and 17.8% of the population were below the poverty line, including 23.2% of those under age 18 and 17.3% of those age 65 or over.

[edit] Hurricane Katrina

On August 29, 2005, Moss Point was hit by the strong eastern side of Hurricane Katrina, when it passed 30 miles east of central New Orleans with minimal gale-force winds. However, on the strong side of Hurricane Katrina, much of Moss Point was flooded or destroyed in one day, by the strong hurricane-force winds which lasted several hours and a storm surge exceeding 20 feet (6 m) in some sections.[3]

[edit] Sister City

In the wake of Hurricane Katrina, Burlington, Vermont became the sister city of Moss Point and provided much-needed aid to the city. [1]

[edit] Notes

  1. ^ US Gazetteer files: 2000 and 1990. United States Census Bureau (2005-05-03). Retrieved on 2008-01-31.
  2. ^ American FactFinder. United States Census Bureau. Retrieved on 2008-01-31.
  3. ^ Gary Tuchman, Transcript of "Anderson Cooper 360 Degrees" (2006-08-29) 19:00 ET, CNN, CNN.com web: CNN-ACooper082906: GARY TUCHMAN, CNN Correspondent: Responds to Anderson Cooper that it felt like it would never end, saying winds were at least 100 miles per hour in Gulfport for seven hours, between about 7:00 a.m. and 2:00 p.m. For another five or six hours, on each side of that, they had hurricane-force winds over 75 miles per hour; much of the city of Gulfport, Mississippi, in Harrison County of 71,000 was then under water.

[edit] External links