Tunica County is a county located in the U.S. state of Mississippi. As of the 2020 census, the population was 9,782. Its county seat is Tunica. The county is named for the Tunica Native Americans. Most migrated to central Louisiana during the colonial period.

Tunica County is part of the Memphis, TN-MS-AR Metropolitan Statistical Area. It is located in the Mississippi Delta region.

Since the late 20th century, it is known for Tunica Resorts (formerly Robinsonville), an unincorporated community that is the site of six casino resorts. It is one of the top six destinations in the country in terms of gambling revenues.

History

After the Mississippi River flood of 1844, the state legislature gave the county taxation authority in 1848 to fund levee construction.

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of , of which is land and (5.4%) is water.

Major highways

  • 20px Interstate 69
  • 20px U.S. Route 61
  • 20px Mississippi Highway 3
  • 20px Mississippi Highway 4

Adjacent counties

  • Crittenden County, Arkansas (north)
  • DeSoto County (northeast)
  • Tate County (east)
  • Panola County (southeast)
  • Quitman County (south)
  • Coahoma County (southwest)
  • Phillips County, Arkansas (southwest)
  • Lee County, Arkansas (west)

Demographics

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2020 census

{| class="wikitable sortable" style="text-align:center;"

|+Tunica County, Mississippi – Racial and ethnic composition<br><small></small>

!Race / Ethnicity <small>(NH = Non-Hispanic)</small>

!Pop 1980

!Pop 1990

!Pop 2000

!Pop 2010

!style="background-color: #ffffb3;" | Pop 2020

!% 1980

!% 1990

!% 2000

!% 2010

!style="background-color: #ffffb3;" |% 2020

|-

|White alone (NH)

|2,564

|1,986

|2,482

|2,486

|style='background: #ffffe6; |1,853

|26.56%

|24.33%

|26.90%

|23.07%

|style='background: #ffffe6; |18.94%

|-

|Black or African American alone (NH)

|6,967

|6,089

|6,414

|7,894

|style='background: #ffffe6; |7,516

|72.18%

|74.58%

|69.51%

|73.24%

|style='background: #ffffe6; |76.84%

|-

|Native American or Alaska Native alone (NH)

|5

|2

|9

|14

|style='background: #ffffe6; |13

|0.05%

|0.02%

|0.10%

|0.13%

|style='background: #ffffe6; |0.13%

|-

|Asian alone (NH)

|5

|4

|38

|60

|style='background: #ffffe6; |27

|0.05%

|0.05%

|0.41%

|0.56%

|style='background: #ffffe6; |0.28%

|-

|Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander alone (NH)

|x

|x

|3

|5

|style='background: #ffffe6; |0

|x

|x

|0.03%

|0.05%

|style='background: #ffffe6; |0.00%

|-

|Other race alone (NH)

|4

|2

|3

|2

|style='background: #ffffe6; |56

|0.04%

|0.02%

|0.03%

|0.02%

|style='background: #ffffe6; |0.57%

|-

|Mixed race or Multiracial (NH)

|x

|x

|45

|72

|style='background: #ffffe6; |126

|x

|x

|0.49%

|0.67%

|style='background: #ffffe6; |1.29%

|-

|Hispanic or Latino (any race)

|107

|81

|233

|245

|style='background: #ffffe6; |191

|1.11%

|0.99%

|2.53%

|2.27%

|style='background: #ffffe6; |1.95%

|-

|Total

|9,652

|8,164

|9,227

|10,778

|style='background: #ffffe6; |9,782

|100.00%

|100.00%

|100.00%

|100.00%

|style='background: #ffffe6; |100.00%

|}

2020 census

As of the 2020 census, the county had a population of 9,782. The median age was 35.3 years. 27.5% of residents were under the age of 18 and 13.4% of residents were 65 years of age or older. For every 100 females there were 89.8 males, and for every 100 females age 18 and over there were 84.6 males age 18 and over.

The racial makeup of the county was 19.1% White, 77.3% Black or African American, 0.1% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.3% Asian, &lt;0.1% Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander, 1.5% from some other race, and 1.7% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino residents of any race comprised 2.0% of the population.

There were 3,817 households in the county, of which 35.1% had children under the age of 18 living in them. Of all households, 25.3% were married-couple households, 23.1% were households with a male householder and no spouse or partner present, and 41.9% were households with a female householder and no spouse or partner present. About 33.9% of all households were made up of individuals and 10.8% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. of 2000, there were 9,227 people, 3,258 households, and 2,192 families living in the county. The population density was . There were 3,705 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the county was 70.15% Black or African American, 27.54% White, 0.11% Native American, 0.42% Asian, 0.07% Pacific Islander, 0.96% from other races, and 0.75% from two or more races. 2.53% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.

There were 3,258 households, out of which 33.30% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 33.90% were married couples living together, 26.90% had a female householder with no husband present, and 32.70% were non-families. 26.90% of all households were made up of individuals, and 9.90% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.80 and the average family size was 3.44.

In the county, the population was spread out, with 31.50% under the age of 18, 10.90% from 18 to 24, 27.40% from 25 to 44, 20.20% from 45 to 64, and 10.10% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 31 years. For every 100 females there were 91.10 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 85.90 males.

The median income for a household in the county was $23,270, and the median income for a family was $25,443. Males had a median income of $25,244 versus $18,104 for females. The per capita income for the county was $11,978. About 28.10% of families and 33.10% of the population were below the poverty line, including 43.40% of those under age 18 and 32.50% of those age 65 or over.

Economy

GreenTech Automotive received $6 million of incentive financing from the state of Mississippi and Tunica County to build an automotive plant in the county. The facility was shut down in January 2017. GreenTech had promised to invest $60 million in the manufacturing plant, but it produced few cars if any.

In July 2017, the Mississippi state auditor demanded that GreenTech and its CEO Charlie Wang pay Mississippi $6 million because Greentech had not lived up to its promises to invest $60 million and create 350 jobs in Tunica County. The auditor said: "I would venture that there isn’t really much of an operation in Tunica at all. This appears to have been a game of smoke and mirrors, and a corporate entity that never had any intention to deliver on the promises it made." In a 2020 final settlement, it paid Mississippi and Tunica County only $575,000.)

  • Private Schools
  • Tunica Academy is located in an unincorporated area, near Tunica

Notable people

  • Brandon Bryant, National Football League (NFL) safety
  • James Cotton, blues harmonica player
  • Parker Hall, 1939 Most Valuable Player of the NFL
  • Charlaine Harris, New York Times bestselling author
  • Donald Hawkins, NFL tackle
  • Benardrick McKinney, NFL linebacker for the New York Giants
  • Tyree R. Rivers, US Army brigadier general, born in Tunica County

Communities

Town

  • Tunica (county seat)

Census-designated places

  • Austin
  • Dundee
  • North Tunica
  • Tunica Resorts (formerly known as Robinsonville)
  • White Oak

Unincorporated communities

  • Banks
  • Bowdre
  • Clack
  • Clayton
  • Dubbs
  • Evansville
  • Hollywood
  • Lost Lake
  • Maud
  • Mhoon Landing
  • Prichard

Ghost towns

  • Commerce
  • Harbert Landing
  • Penton
  • Pink
  • Trotter Landing

Politics

Tunica County is a Democratic stronghold, like other Mississippi Delta counties. The last Republican to carry the county was Richard Nixon in 1972.

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See also

National Register of Historic Places listings in Tunica County, Mississippi

References

  • Tunica County Sheriff