Southaven, Mississippi

Southaven, a city in DeSoto County, Mississippi, is a suburb of Memphis, Tennessee. As of the 2000 census, the city population was 28,977. The 2010 census reflected a population of 48,982, making Southaven the fourth largest city in Mississippi. Southaven is traversed from north to south by the I-55 freeway. While its name would indicate otherwise, the city of Southaven is actually in the northernmost corner of Mississippi. The name derives from the fact that Southaven is located south of Whitehaven, Memphis.

Sports
Southaven hosts the Central Hockey League team, the Mississippi RiverKings, who play at the Lander's Center.

History
Southaven began as Memphis homebuilder Kemmons Wilson (founder of Holiday Inn) developed a few residential subdivisions featuring small starter homes just inside the Mississippi border with Whitehaven, Tennessee, an unincorporated suburb of Memphis. Whitehaven was eventually annexed by the central city, becoming part of Memphis-proper. Southaven is one of the fastest growing cities in the southeast United States. In just 20 years, Southaven doubled its land area while its population tripled. Like the rest of Desoto County, Southaven's growth has been attributed mostly to the white flight from Memphis, though the percentage of blacks has risen sharply since the 2000 census resulting from a recent trend called Black flight.

Southaven was the boyhood home of noted novelist John Grisham, who also practiced law there for almost a decade, and of singer and songwriter Cory Branan.

Southaven is the home of Disney Channel star Olivia Holt.

Weather
Southaven experiences a humid subtropical climate, with average annual precipitation of nearly 55 inches, which is well distributed throughout the year. April is the wettest month of the year, and August the driest. The average daily temperature is 40°F in January and 82°F in July.

Neighboring cities

 * Olive Branch, Mississippi
 * Horn Lake, Mississippi
 * Hernando, Mississippi
 * Memphis, Tennessee

Households And Families
As of the census of 2000, there were 28,977 people, 11,007 households, and 8,134 families residing in the city. The population density was 857.9 people per square mile (331.2/km²). There were 11,462 housing units at an average density of 339.3 per square mile (131.0/km²).

There were 11,007 households out of which 36.8% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 57.1% were married couples living together, 12.4% had a female householder with no husband present, and 26.1% were non-families. 21.3% of all households were made up of individuals and 5.7% 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 3.04.

Racial Makeup
The racial makeup of the city was 65.08% White, 25.02% African American, 0.15% Native American, 0.74% Asian, 0.03% Pacific Islander, 1.13% from other races, 0.80% from two or more races, and Hispanic or Latino, 2.26% of the population.

Age
In the city the population was spread out with 27.2% under the age of 18, 9.0% from 18 to 24, 32.5% from 25 to 44, 22.6% from 45 to 64, and 8.8% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 33 years. For every 100 females there were 95.3 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 91.7 males.

Income
The median income for a household in the city was $46,691, and the median income for a family was $52,333. Males had a median income of $36,671 versus $26,557 for females. The per capita income for the city was $20,759. About 5.3% of families and 6.7% of the population were below the poverty line, including 8.2% of those under age 18 and 6.8% of those age 65 or over.

Hospital
In 1988, Baptist Hospital-DeSoto opened in Southaven, MS as a 2 story hospital. In 2001, Baptist DeSoto started an expansion project, nearly doubling the size of the hospital. In 2002, Baptist Hospital-DeSoto added an Outpatient Diagnostic Center and a Women's Center. In November 2006, Baptist DeSoto opened an 11-story hospital tower that added 140 beds to the facility, allowing it to offer all private rooms. In addition, the new hospital tower added a new and expanded Emergency Department, more operating suites and space for future additions.

Education
Colleges and universities:
 * University of Mississippi - Desoto
 * Northwest Mississippi Community College

Public secondary schools: The City of Southaven is served by the DeSoto County School District.
 * Southaven High School
 * DeSoto County Career and Technology Center
 * Southaven Intermediate School
 * Southaven Middle School
 * DeSoto Central High School
 * DeSoto Central Middle School

Public elementary schools:
 * Greenbrook Elementary School
 * Southaven Elementary School
 * Hope Sullivan Elementary School
 * DeSoto Central Elementary School

Private schools:
 * Southern Baptist Educational Center
 * Church of God at Southaven Christian Academy
 * Sacred Heart School

Media

 * Desoto Times Today

Local area attractions

 * Kudzu Playhouse
 * Lander's Center
 * Tunica Casino Resort
 * Graceland
 * FedExForum
 * Beale Street
 * Autozone Park
 * Arkabutla Lake
 * Memphis Motorsports Park
 * Southaven Towne Center
 * Snowden Grove Baseball Park
 * Southaven Arena/Southaven Agricenter