Moss Point, Mississippi

Moss Point is a city in Jackson County, Mississippi, United States. 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).

Geography
Moss Point is located at 30.411°N, -88.52514°W. According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 26.8 sqmi, of which, 25.0 sqmi of it is land and 1.8 sqmi of it (6.61%) is water.



Demographics
As of the census 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 per square mile (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.

Hurricane Katrina
On August 29, 2005, Moss Point was hit by the strong eastern side of Hurricane Katrina, when it passed 30 mi 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. Even though the City of Moss Point was almost completely destroyed by Hurricane Katrina, the city has been able to make a recovery without all the national attention as New Orleans did. Many residents feel as if other parts of the coast were pretty much ignored in the wake of New Orleans, a much larger city.

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.

Natives and residents

 * John Brock, CEO of Coca-Cola Enterprises (graduated from Moss Point High School in 1967)
 * Ray Costict, former linebacker for the New England Patriots from 1977-79
 * Don Hultz, NFL football player
 * Robert C. Khayat, Chancellor of the University of Mississippi
 * George Wonsley, NFL football player
 * Damarius Bilbo, NFL football player and sports agent graduated from Moss Point High School in 2001
 * David Thomas, singer and founder of rock band Pere Ubu