Adams County is a county located in the U.S. state of Mississippi. As of the 2020 United States census, the population was 29,538. The county seat is Natchez. The county is the first to have been organized in the former Mississippi Territory. It is named for the second President of the United States, John Adams, who held that office when the county was organized in 1799. Adams County is part of the Natchez micropolitan area, which consists of Adams County, Mississippi, and Concordia Parish, Louisiana.

History Adams County was created on April 2, 1799, from part of Pickering Territorial County. The county was organized eighteen years before Mississippi became a state. Five Mississippi governors have come from Adams County: David Holmes, George Poindexter, John A. Quitman, Gerard Brandon, and William Allain.

In 1860, before the American Civil War, Adams County had one of the highest concentrations of wealth in the United States, much of it derived from the plantation economy and the labor of enslaved African Americans.

Geography According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of , of which is land and (5.2%) is water.

Major highways U.S. Highway 61 U.S. Highway 84 U.S. Highway 98 U.S. Highway 425 Natchez Trace Parkway

Adjacent counties and parishes Jefferson County (north) Franklin County (east) Wilkinson County (south) Concordia Parish, Louisiana (southwest) Tensas Parish, Louisiana (northwest)

National protected areas Homochitto National Forest (part) Natchez National Historical Park Natchez Trace Parkway (part) St. Catherine Creek National Wildlife Refuge

Demographics

2020 census

As of the 2020 census, the county had a population of 29,538. The median age was 43.7 years. 20.3% of residents were under the age of 18, and 21.6% of residents were 65 years of age or older. For every 100 females there were 90.8 males, and for every 100 females age 18 and over there were 89.0 males age 18 and over.

The racial makeup of the county was 37.2% White, 56.8% Black or African American, 0.2% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.6% Asian, <0.1% Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander, 2.6% from some other race, and 2.6% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino residents of any race comprised 3.4% of the population.

63.5% of residents lived in urban areas, while 36.5% lived in rural areas.

There were 12,686 households in the county, of which 26.0% had children under the age of 18 living in them. Of all households, 31.5% were married-couple households, 21.3% were households with a male householder and no spouse or partner present, and 42.0% were households with a female householder and no spouse or partner present. About 36.0% of all households were made up of individuals, and 16.5% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older.

There were 14,885 housing units, of which 14.8% were vacant. Among occupied housing units, 66.7% were owner-occupied, and 33.3% were renter-occupied. The homeowner vacancy rate was 2.7%, and the rental vacancy rate was 10.0%.

Racial and ethnic composition +Adams County, Mississippi – Racial and ethnic compositionRace / Ethnicity (NH = Non-Hispanic)Pop 1980Pop 1990Pop 2000Pop 2010 Pop 2020% 1980% 1990% 2000% 2010% 2020White alone (NH)19,45317,93815,70112,48510,92651.14%50.74%45.72%38.66%36.99%Black or African American alone (NH)18,24017,16218,02617,15016,70947.96%48.54%52.49%53.10%56.57%Native American or Alaska Native alone (NH)13384976560.03%0.11%0.14%0.24%0.19%Asian alone (NH)4462851261650.12%0.18%0.25%0.39%0.56%Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander alone (NH)x included in the Asian category in the 1980 Censusx included in the Asian category in the 1990 Census437xx0.01%0.01%0.02%Other race alone (NH)941223350.02%0.01%0.03%0.07%0.12%Mixed race or Multiracial (NH)x not an option in the 1980 Censusx not an option in the 1990 Census190284628xx0.55%0.88%2.13%Hispanic or Latino (any race)2761522732,1501,0120.73%0.43%0.79%6.66%3.43%Total38,03535,35634,34032,29729,538 100.00%100.00%100.00%100.00%100.00%

2010 census

As of the 2010 census, there were 32,297 people, 11,237 households, and 6,650 families residing in the county. In 2010, 53.5% were Black or African American, 42.7% White, 0.4% Asian, 0.3% Native American, 1.7% of some other race and 1.4% of two or more races. 6.7% were Hispanic or Latino (of any race). Education All residents of the county are in the Natchez-Adams School District. - Text list

Alcorn State University, a historically black college designated as a land-grant institution, has its School of Business and School of Nursing in Natchez. The School of Business offers a Master of Business Administration degree and some undergraduate classes at its Natchez campus.

It is in the district of Copiah–Lincoln Community College, and has been since 1971. There is a campus in Natchez. This is adjacent to the Natchez campus of Alcorn State University.

Economy Adams County Correctional Center, a private prison operated by the Corrections Corporation of America on behalf of the Federal Bureau of Prisons, is in an unincorporated area in the county."Adams County Correctional Center ." Corrections Corporation of America. Retrieved on June 28, 2016. "20 Hobo Fork Road, Natchez, MS 39120"

Top employers The top employers of Adams County are as follows: Natchez-Adams School District (620) Merit Health Natchez (425) Adams County Correctional Center (380) Walmart (365) City of Natchez (275) Magnolia Bluffs Casino (250) Jordan Carriers (250) Supermarket Operations (250) Adams County Government (220) Energy Drilling (220)

Communities

City

Natchez (county seat and only municipality)

Unincorporated areas

Census-designated places

Cloverdale Morgantown

Other communities

Cranfield Kingston Pine Ridge Sibley Stanton Washington

Ghost/extinct towns

Arnot Briers Ellis Cliffs Hutchins Landing Kienstra Selsertown

Politics

Like much of the former Solid South, Adams County voted overwhelmingly Democratic during the era of white Democratic dominance and black voter disenfranchisement that followed Reconstruction. After supporting segregationist Dixiecrat Strom Thurmond in the 1948 election, it began shifting toward the Republican Party during the broader political realignment of white Southern voters in the post–civil rights era. Since the 1992 election, Adams County has generally voted Democratic in presidential elections.

See also Jefferson College National Register of Historic Places listings in Adams County, Mississippi

References

Sources Brieger, James. Hometown, Mississippi.

External links

Mississippi Courthouses – Adams County Adams County Interactive Oil Well Map Mississippi Oil Journal Adams County Police and Miscellaneous County Records, Special Collections at The University of Southern Mississippi.