Winston County, Mississippi

Winston County is a county located in the U.S. state of Mississippi. In the 2020 census, the population was 17,714. Its county seat is Louisville. The county is named for Louis Winston (1784–1824), a colonel in the militia, a prominent lawyer, and a judge of the Mississippi Supreme Court.

The county is the site of Nanih Waiya, an ancient mound built in the Woodland period, about 1 CE-300 CE. Since the 17th century, it has been venerated by the Choctaw people who later occupied the area. As of 2008, the mound is owned by the Mississippi Band of Choctaw Indians, a federally-recognized tribe.

History

The county is one of sixteen formed when chief Greenwood LeFlore ceded the lands in the Treaty of Dancing Rabbit Creek, which resulted in the removal of the Choctaw Nation from their ancestral lands to Oklahoma.

In 1863, during the American Civil War, the Union Army under Colonel Benjamin H. Grierson, marched through Louisville with 900 troops on a raid through Mississippi. There was no fighting in Winston County and no significant destruction of property.

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of , of which is land and (0.5%) is water.

Major highways

20px Mississippi Highway 14
20px Mississippi Highway 15
20px Mississippi Highway 19
20px Mississippi Highway 25
20px Mississippi Highway 397
20px Mississippi Highway 490

Adjacent counties

Oktibbeha County (north)
Noxubee County (east)
Kemper County (southeast)
Neshoba County (south)
Attala County (west)
Choctaw County (northwest)

National protected area

Tombigbee National Forest (part)

Demographics

thumb|left|150px|Age pyramid Winston County

Racial and ethnic composition

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

|+Winston County, Mississippi – Racial and ethnic composition

!Race / Ethnicity (NH = Non-Hispanic)

!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)

|11,623

|11,121

|11,024

|9,891

|style='background: #ffffe6; |8,856

|59.68%

|57.23%

|54.68%

|51.52%

|style='background: #ffffe6; |49.99%

|Black or African American alone (NH)

|7,560

|8,064

|8,687

|8,729

|style='background: #ffffe6; |8,078

|38.82%

|41.50%

|43.09%

|45.47%

|style='background: #ffffe6; |45.60%

|Native American or Alaska Native alone (NH)

|155

|162

|128

|215

|style='background: #ffffe6; |162

|0.80%

|0.83%

|0.63%

|1.12%

|style='background: #ffffe6; |0.91%

|Asian alone (NH)

|18

|16

|37

|style='background: #ffffe6; |39

|0.09%

|0.08%

|0.19%

|style='background: #ffffe6; |0.22%

|Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander alone (NH)

|style='background: #ffffe6; |1

|0.00%

|0.02%

|style='background: #ffffe6; |0.01%

|Other race alone (NH)

|style='background: #ffffe6; |19

|0.01%

|0.00%

|0.01%

|0.02%

|style='background: #ffffe6; |0.11%

|Mixed race or Multiracial (NH)

|60

|135

|style='background: #ffffe6; |333

|0.30%

|0.70%

|style='background: #ffffe6; |1.88%

|Hispanic or Latino (any race)

|117

|70

|243

|184

|style='background: #ffffe6; |226

|0.60%

|0.36%

|1.21%

|0.96%

|style='background: #ffffe6; |1.28%

|Total

|19,474

|19,433

|20,160

|19,198

|style='background: #ffffe6; |17,714

|100.00%

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

2020 census

As of the 2020 census, the county had a population of 17,714. The median age was 42.3 years. 22.9% of residents were under the age of 18 and 21.3% of residents were 65 years of age or older. For every 100 females there were 94.0 males, and for every 100 females age 18 and over there were 90.7 males age 18 and over.

The racial makeup of the county was 50.2% White, 45.8% Black or African American, 1.0% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.2% Asian, <0.1% Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander, 0.6% from some other race, and 2.1% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino residents of any race comprised 1.3% of the population.

There were 7,207 households in the county, of which 30.4% had children under the age of 18 living in them. Of all households, 40.6% were married-couple households, 19.2% were households with a male householder and no spouse or partner present, and 35.3% were households with a female householder and no spouse or partner present. About 31.0% of all households were made up of individuals and 15.6% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. there were 20,160 people, 7,578 households and 5,471 families living in the county. The population density was . There were 8,472 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the county was 55.26% White, 43.25% Black or African American, 0.66% Native American, 0.08% Asian, 0.28% from other races, and 0.46% from two or more races. 1.21% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.

There were 7,578 households, of which 33.50% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 49.90% were married couples living together, 18.10% had a female householder with no husband present, and 27.80% were non-families. 25.20% of all households were made up of individuals, and 12.50% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.59 and the average family size was 3.09.

26.80% of the population were under the age of 18, 9.20% from 18 to 24, 26.10% from 25 to 44, 22.50% from 45 to 64, and 15.50% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 36 years. For every 100 females there were 93.70 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 88.30 males.

The median household income was $28,256, and the median family income was $33,602. Males had a median income of $28,665 versus $18,210 for females. The per capita income for the county was $14,548. About 19.40% of families and 23.70% of the population were below the poverty line, including 32.90% of those under age 18 and 18.90% of those age 65 or over.

Communities

City

Louisville (county seat)

Towns

Noxapater

Unincorporated communities

Highpoint
Nanih Waiya
Vernon
Rocky Hill

Ghost towns

Perkinsville
Randalls Bluff
Singleton

Education

There is one school district in the entire county, the Louisville Municipal School District. There are three public high schools in Winston County: Louisville High School (Louisville Wildcats), Nanih Waiya Attendance Center (Nanih Waiya Warriors) and Noxapater Attendance Center (Noxapater Tigers).

In addition, there are two private schools, Winston Academy also known as (W.A.) or (Winston Patriots), established in 1969 as a segregation academy, and Grace Christian School (Eagles) in Louisville, which was founded in 1970.

East Central Community College (formerly East Central Junior College) is the community college of Winston County. The county joined the college's service area in 1935.

Politics

Winston County has voted majority Republican since 1980, often by double digits, despite nearly half of the population being African American, a demographic which tends to lean Democratic.

Notable person

Andy Kennedy - basketball player and coach