Newton County, Mississippi

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Newton County, Mississippi
Alabama and Vicksburg Railroad Depot
Location in the state of Mississippi
Mississippi's location in the U.S.
Founded	1836
Seat	Decatur
Largest city	Newton
Area  - Total  - Land  - Water	580 sq mi (1,502 km²) 578 sq mi (1,497 km²) 1.5 sq mi (4 km²), 0.3
Population  - (2020)  - Density	21,291
Congressional district	3rd
Time zone	Central: UTC-6/-5
Website	http://www.newtoncountyms.net/

Newton County is a county located in the U.S. state of Mississippi. As of the 2020 census, the population was 21,291. Its county seat is Decatur.

History

Newton County was formed in 1836 and named after scientist Isaac Newton.

The Battle of Newton's Station was fought in the county on April 24, 1863, during Grierson's Raid of the American Civil War.

In February 1864, General William Tecumseh Sherman crossed the county, burning the county seat at Decatur and was nearly captured during the Meridian Campaign. Sherman stopped during the return trip from Meridian and slept in the town of Union.

On October 10, 1908, a mob of white people brutally shot, tortured, and lynched Frank Johnson, Dee Dawkins, and William Fielder near Hickory, Mississippi.

On October 8, a Black sharecropper named Shep Jones had a disagreement about his work schedule with his white employer. The white planter assaulted Mr. Jones, leading to an altercation that ended with the white man's death. Mr. Jones fled Newton County, aware that Black people were not believed to have a right to defend themselves against white people and that he was at risk of being lynched.

For the next two days, an angry white mob terrorized the entire Black community in a manhunt for Mr. Jones. The mob destroyed property owned by Black people, burned a Black church and meeting lodge near Gardlandville, and threatened Black families.

On October 9, the mob hanged Mr. Jones's father-in-law, William Fielder, from a tree near his home. The next morning, unable to locate Mr. Jones but refusing to be denied a lynching, the mob lynched Dee Dawkins and Frank Johnson, two Black men who were targeted merely for being associated with Mr. Jones.

Many Black people were so traumatized by the violence that they fled Newton County. White elected officials and law enforcement failed to hold anyone accountable for the destruction of Black property or the lynchings.

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 580 square miles (1,500 km²), of which 578 square miles (1,500 km²) is land and 1.5 square miles (3.9 km²) (0.3%) is water.

Major highways

• Interstate 20
• U.S. Highway 80
• Mississippi Highway 15

Adjacent counties

• Neshoba County (north)
• Lauderdale County (east)
• Jasper County (south)
• Scott County (west)

National protected area

• Bienville National Forest (part)

Demographics

Historical populations
Census	Pop.		%±
1840	2,527		—
1850	4,465		76.7%
1860	9,661		116.4%
1870	10,067		4.2%
1880	13,436		33.5%
1890	16,625		23.7%
1900	19,708		18.5%
1910	23,085		17.1%
1920	20,727		−10.2%
1930	22,910		10.5%
1940	24,249		5.8%
1950	22,681		−6.5%
1960	19,517		−14.0%
1970	18,983		−2.7%
1980	19,944		5.1%
1990	20,291		1.7%
2000	21,838		7.6%
2010	21,720		−0.5%
U.S. Decennial Census 1790-1960 1900-1990 1990-2000 2010-2020

2020 census

Newton County Racial Composition

Race	Num.	Perc.
White	12,796	60.1%
Black or African American	6,447	30.28%
Native American	1,169	5.49%
Asian	77	0.36%
Other/Mixed	473	2.22%
Hispanic or Latino	329	1.55%

As of the 2020 United States Census, there were 21,291 people, 8,037 households, and 5,697 families residing in the county.

2000 census

As of the census of 2000, there were 21,838 people, 8,221 households, and 6,001 families residing in the county. The population density was 38 people per square mile (15/km²). There were 9,259 housing units at an average density of 16 per square mile (6/km²). The racial makeup of the county was 65.01% white, 30.37% black or African American, 3.68% Native American, 0.18% Asian, 0.33% from other races, and 0.44% from two or more races. 0.91% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.

There were 8,221 households, out of which 33.50% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 53.00% were married couples living together, 16.00% had a female householder with no husband present, and 27.00% were non-families. 24.60% of all households were made up of individuals, and 11.60% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.57 and the average family size was 3.04.

In the county, the population was spread out, with 26.20% under the age of 18, 11.20% from 18 to 24, 26.00% from 25 to 44, 21.70% from 45 to 64, and 14.90% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 35 years. For every 100 females there were 92.40 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 88.70 males.

The median income for a household in the county was $28,735, and the median income for a family was $34,606. Males had a median income of $27,820 versus $20,757 for females. The per capita income for the county was $14,008. About 16.40% of families and 19.90% of the population were below the poverty line, including 26.30% of those under age 18 and 21.70% of those age 65 or over.

Communities

City

• Newton

Towns

• Chunky
• Decatur (county seat)
• Hickory
• Lake (mostly in Scott County)
• Union (partly in Neshoba County)

Census-designated place

• Conehatta

Unincorporated communities

• Battlefield
• Cedar Grove
• Duffee
• Lawrence
• Little Rock
• Perdue
• Stratton

Ghost towns

• Volcan

Politics

United States presidential election results for Newton County, Mississippi

Year	Republican		Democratic		Third party
	No.	%	No.	%	No.	%
2020	6,997	68.71%	3,075	30.20%	111	1.09%
2016	6,548	69.38%	2,756	29.20%	134	1.42%
2012	6,394	65.40%	3,319	33.95%	64	0.65%
2008	6,579	66.76%	3,218	32.65%	58	0.59%
2004	6,165	72.63%	2,280	26.86%	43	0.51%
2000	5,540	71.59%	2,147	27.75%	51	0.66%
1996	4,223	61.30%	2,163	31.40%	503	7.30%
1992	5,128	65.69%	2,146	27.49%	532	6.82%
1988	5,658	70.70%	2,332	29.14%	13	0.16%
1984	5,911	73.23%	2,127	26.35%	34	0.42%
1980	4,317	54.36%	3,455	43.51%	169	2.13%
1976	3,813	57.00%	2,741	40.97%	136	2.03%
1972	5,585	88.05%	597	9.41%	161	2.54%
1968	542	7.85%	799	11.58%	5,561	80.57%
1964	4,735	95.21%	238	4.79%	0	0.00%
1960	508	15.05%	912	27.01%	1,956	57.94%
1956	360	11.52%	2,359	75.46%	407	13.02%
1952	851	25.70%	2,460	74.30%	0	0.00%
1948	39	1.47%	169	6.38%	2,442	92.15%
1944	56	2.18%	2,516	97.82%	0	0.00%
1940	41	1.61%	2,495	98.27%	3	0.12%
1936	39	1.46%	2,624	98.42%	3	0.11%
1932	56	2.41%	2,253	97.11%	11	0.47%
1928	368	15.07%	2,074	84.93%	0	0.00%
1924	72	3.95%	1,657	90.94%	93	5.10%
1920	108	7.73%	1,208	86.41%	82	5.87%
1916	19	1.34%	1,341	94.70%	56	3.95%
1912	6	0.47%	1,197	94.62%	62	4.90%

Education

School districts include:

• Newton County School District
• Newton Municipal School District
• Union Public School District

Conehatta Elementary School of the Choctaw Tribal School System is in the community.

See also

• Dry counties
• National Register of Historic Places listings in Newton County, Mississippi

References

Wikimedia Commons has media related to:

Newton County, Mississippi

Further reading

• A.J. Brown, History of Newton County, Mississippi from 1834 to 1894. Jackson, MS: Clarion-Ledger Co., 1894. • HTML version
• Nicholas Russell Murray, Newton County, Mississippi, 1872-1900. Hammond, LA: Hunting for Bears, 1981.
• Newton County Pictorial History Committee, Newton County, Mississippi: A Pictorial History. Humboldt, TN: Rose Publishing Co., 2000.