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Franklin County, Mississippi

Coordinates: 31°29′N 90°54′W / 31.48°N 90.90°W / 31.48; -90.90
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Franklin County, Mississippi
County
Franklin County Courthouse, Meadville, Mississippi.
Franklin County Courthouse, Meadville, Mississippi.
Map of Mississippi highlighting Franklin County
Location within the U.S. state of Mississippi
Coordinates: 31°29′N 90°54′W / 31.48°N 90.9°W / 31.48; -90.9
Country United States
State Mississippi
Founded1809
Named afterBenjamin Franklin
SeatMeadville
Largest townBude
Area
 • Total
567 sq mi (1,470 km2)
 • Land564 sq mi (1,460 km2)
 • Water3.0 sq mi (7.8 km2)  0.5%
Population
 (2020)
 • Total
7,675
 • Estimate 
(2024)
7,516 Decrease
 • Density13.6/sq mi (5.25/km2)
Time zoneUTC−6 (Central)
 • Summer (DST)UTC−5 (CDT)
Congressional district3rd
Websitefranklincoms.weebly.com

Franklin County is a county located in the U.S. state of Mississippi. As of the 2020 census, the population was 7,675.[1] Its county seat is Meadville.[2] The county was formed on December 21, 1809, from portions of Adams County and named for Founding Father Benjamin Franklin.[3] It is bisected by the Homochitto River, which runs diagonally through the county from northeast to southwest.

History

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This was the fourth county organized in Mississippi. It was initially developed for agriculture, specifically cotton plantations based on enslaved labor of African Americans. Cotton continued to be important to the economy through the 19th century and into the early 20th century.

This still rural county has had a decline in population by about half since 1910. It is the fourth least populous county in the state. Mechanization of agriculture and the blight of the boll weevil both reduced the need for farm workers; they left the area and often the state. Many African Americans went north or west in the Great Migration before and after World War II. The county in the 21st century is majority white in population; in the 2000 census, African Americans composed more than 36% of the population. (See Demographics section below.)

As in the rest of the state, the county had racially segregated facilities under Jim Crow from the late 19th century. Many white residents opposed the civil rights movement of the mid-20th century. In May 1964, Ku Klux Klan members abducted and killed two young black men, Henry Hezekiah Dee and Charles Eddie Moore of Meadville, before Freedom Summer started. Their bodies were not discovered in the Mississippi River until July 1964, during the hunt for three disappeared civil rights workers.

No one was prosecuted at the time, but the case was reopened in 2007, after a documentary had been released on it by Canadian Broadcasting Company. Local man James Ford Seale was convicted of the kidnappings and deaths by an all-white jury in federal court.[4] In 2008 the families of Dee and Moore filed a civil suit against the Franklin County government, charging complicity by its law enforcement in the deaths. On June 21, 2010, Franklin County agreed to an undisclosed settlement in the civil suit with the families of Charles Moore and Henry Dee.[5][6][7][8]

Geography

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According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 567 square miles (1,470 km2), of which 564 square miles (1,460 km2) is land and 3.0 square miles (7.8 km2) (0.5%) is water.[9]

Major highways

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Adjacent counties

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National protected area

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Communities

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Towns

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Unincorporated communities

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Demographics

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Historical population
CensusPop.Note%±
18102,016—
18203,82189.5%
18304,62221.0%
18404,7753.3%
18505,90423.6%
18608,26540.0%
18707,498−9.3%
18809,72929.8%
189010,4247.1%
190013,67831.2%
191015,19311.1%
192014,156−6.8%
193012,268−13.3%
194012,5041.9%
195010,929−12.6%
19609,286−15.0%
19708,011−13.7%
19808,2082.5%
19908,3772.1%
20008,4480.8%
20108,118−3.9%
20207,675−5.5%
2024 (est.)7,516[10] Decrease−2.1%
U.S. Decennial Census[11]
1790-1960[12] 1900-1990[13]
1990-2000[14] 2010-2013[15]

Racial and ethnic composition

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Franklin County racial composition as of 2020[16]
Num. Perc.
White (non-Hispanic) 4,910 63.97%
Black or African American (non-Hispanic) 2,563 33.39%
Native American 2 0.03%
Asian 8 0.1%
Other/Mixed 132 1.72%
Hispanic or Latino 60 0.78%

2020 census

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As of the 2020 census, the county had a population of 7,675. The median age was 46.3 years. 20.9% of residents were under the age of 18 and 22.4% of residents were 65 years of age or older. For every 100 females there were 96.0 males, and for every 100 females age 18 and over there were 93.9 males age 18 and over.[17][18]

The racial makeup of the county was 64.1% White, 33.7% Black or African American, 0.1% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.1% Asian, <0.1% Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander, 0.2% from some other race, and 1.8% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino residents of any race comprised 0.8% of the population.[18]

<0.1% of residents lived in urban areas, while 100.0% lived in rural areas.[19]

There were 3,295 households in the county, of which 26.6% had children under the age of 18 living in them. Of all households, 44.8% were married-couple households, 21.7% were households with a male householder and no spouse or partner present, and 29.9% were households with a female householder and no spouse or partner present. About 32.8% of all households were made up of individuals and 16.0% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older.[17]

There were 4,284 housing units, of which 23.1% were vacant. Among occupied housing units, 83.3% were owner-occupied and 16.7% were renter-occupied. The homeowner vacancy rate was 1.5% and the rental vacancy rate was 9.3%.[17]

Politics

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United States presidential election results for Franklin County, Mississippi[20]
Year Republican Democratic Third party(ies)
No.  % No.  % No.  %
1912 4 1.10% 301 82.69% 59 16.21%
1916 22 2.76% 769 96.49% 6 0.75%
1920 203 23.97% 641 75.68% 3 0.35%
1924 36 5.74% 591 94.26% 0 0.00%
1928 181 16.67% 905 83.33% 0 0.00%
1932 25 2.53% 965 97.47% 0 0.00%
1936 33 2.91% 1,098 96.83% 3 0.26%
1940 29 2.06% 1,376 97.94% 0 0.00%
1944 49 3.89% 1,211 96.11% 0 0.00%
1948 12 0.98% 55 4.48% 1,160 94.54%
1952 514 30.60% 1,166 69.40% 0 0.00%
1956 177 11.46% 862 55.83% 505 32.71%
1960 124 7.38% 441 26.25% 1,115 66.37%
1964 2,211 96.05% 91 3.95% 0 0.00%
1968 231 6.71% 782 22.72% 2,429 70.57%
1972 2,361 78.73% 561 18.71% 77 2.57%
1976 1,719 50.63% 1,578 46.48% 98 2.89%
1980 2,026 49.31% 2,040 49.65% 43 1.05%
1984 2,564 62.86% 1,494 36.63% 21 0.51%
1988 2,376 59.97% 1,563 39.45% 23 0.58%
1992 1,942 49.31% 1,587 40.30% 409 10.39%
1996 1,586 47.50% 1,381 41.36% 372 11.14%
2000 2,427 61.40% 1,486 37.59% 40 1.01%
2004 2,893 64.42% 1,574 35.05% 24 0.53%
2008 2,909 62.09% 1,733 36.99% 43 0.92%
2012 2,735 60.87% 1,726 38.42% 32 0.71%
2016 2,721 63.43% 1,502 35.01% 67 1.56%
2020 2,923 65.52% 1,480 33.18% 58 1.30%
2024 2,831 69.63% 1,213 29.83% 22 0.54%

In the 1964 Presidential election Barry Goldwater reportedly received 96.05% of the county's vote.[21] Although the white-majority county has supported Southern Democrats such as Jimmy Carter for the presidency, since 2000 the Republican candidate has consistently received over 60% of the vote.[22]

Education

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There is one school district, the Franklin County School District.[23]

It is in the district of Copiah–Lincoln Community College, and has been since 1948.[24]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ "Census - Geography Profile: Franklin County, Mississippi". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved January 8, 2023.
  2. ^ "Find a County". National Association of Counties. Archived from the original on May 31, 2011. Retrieved June 7, 2011.
  3. ^ Gannett, Henry (1905). The Origin of Certain Place Names in the United States. Govt. Print. Off. pp. 131.
  4. ^ "Ex-KKK man guilty in 1964 killing". BBC.com. June 15, 2007. Retrieved August 26, 2008.
  5. ^ Mitchell, Jerry (August 7, 2008). "Families sue Franklin over Klan slayings / Sue: County can't claim immunity, lawyer says". The Clarion-Ledger. Vol. 171, no. 189 (Metro or Mississippi ed.). Jackson, Miss. p. 1A, 4A. Newspapers.com 185525674, 185525685; 185525935, 185525949. ProQuest 277577320.
  6. ^ "Dee, Moore families files suit against Franklin County, Miss., in 1964 murders". Concordia Sentinel. August 11, 2008. Archived from the original on August 16, 2008. Retrieved August 26, 2008.
  7. ^ Walker, Adrian (August 8, 2008). "A righteous quest". The Boston Globe.com. Retrieved August 26, 2008.
  8. ^ "Miss. Officials Agree To Settlement In '64 Slayings". NPR. June 21, 2010.
  9. ^ "2010 Census Gazetteer Files". United States Census Bureau. August 22, 2012. Archived from the original on September 28, 2013. Retrieved November 3, 2014.
  10. ^ "County Population Totals and Components of Change: 2020-2024". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved September 3, 2025.
  11. ^ "U.S. Decennial Census". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved November 3, 2014.
  12. ^ "Historical Census Browser". University of Virginia Library. Retrieved November 3, 2014.
  13. ^ "Population of Counties by Decennial Census: 1900 to 1990". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved November 3, 2014.
  14. ^ "Census 2000 PHC-T-4. Ranking Tables for Counties: 1990 and 2000" (PDF). United States Census Bureau. Archived (PDF) from the original on March 27, 2010. Retrieved November 3, 2014.
  15. ^ "State & County QuickFacts". United States Census Bureau. Archived from the original on June 7, 2011. Retrieved September 3, 2013.
  16. ^ "Explore Census Data". data.census.gov. Retrieved December 17, 2021.
  17. ^ a b c "2020 Decennial Census Demographic Profile (DP1)". United States Census Bureau. 2021. Retrieved December 24, 2025.
  18. ^ a b "2020 Decennial Census Redistricting Data (Public Law 94-171)". United States Census Bureau. 2021. Retrieved December 24, 2025.
  19. ^ "2020 Decennial Census Demographic and Housing Characteristics (DHC)". United States Census Bureau. 2023. Retrieved December 24, 2025.
  20. ^ Leip, David. "Dave Leip's Atlas of U.S. Presidential Elections". uselectionatlas.org. Retrieved March 3, 2018.
  21. ^ David Leip's Presidential Election Atlas - 1964 statistics
  22. ^ The New York Times Electoral Map (Zoom in on Mississippi)
  23. ^ "2020 CENSUS - SCHOOL DISTRICT REFERENCE MAP: Franklin County, MS" (PDF). U.S. Census Bureau. Retrieved September 27, 2024. - Text list
  24. ^ "History". Copiah–Lincoln Community College. Retrieved September 27, 2024.
[edit]
  • Media related to Franklin County, Mississippi at Wikimedia Commons
  • Mississippi Courthouses – Franklin County

31°29′N 90°54′W / 31.48°N 90.90°W / 31.48; -90.90

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