Hancock County | |
---|---|
Coordinates: 30°23′N89°28′W / 30.39°N 89.47°W | |
Country | United States |
State | Mississippi |
Founded | 1812 |
Named for | John Hancock |
Seat | Bay St. Louis |
Largest city | Bay St. Louis |
Area | |
• Total | 553 sq mi (1,430 km2) |
• Land | 474 sq mi (1,230 km2) |
• Water | 79 sq mi (200 km2) 14% |
Population (2020) | |
• Total | 46,053 |
• Density | 83/sq mi (32/km2) |
Time zone | UTC−6 (Central) |
• Summer (DST) | UTC−5 (CDT) |
Congressional district | 4th |
Website | hancockcounty |
Hancock County is the southernmost county of the U.S. state of Mississippi and is named for Founding Father John Hancock. [1] As of the 2020 census, the population was 46,053. [2] Its county seat is Bay St. Louis. [3]
Hancock County is part of the Gulfport–Biloxi, MS Metropolitan Statistical Area. It is situated along the Gulf of Mexico and the state line with Louisiana. The area is home to the John C. Stennis Space Center, NASA's largest rocket engine test facility.
The county was severely damaged from Hurricane Katrina on August 29, 2005, which caused a huge storm surge and catastrophic damage.
This area of Mississippi was inhabited by indigenous peoples at the time of European colonization; the French were the first settlers and traders in the area. They imported African slaves as laborers, and in time a Creole class of free people of color developed.
After the United States conducted Indian Removal in the 1830s, more Protestant Americans migrated into this area, but it retained French and African Catholic influences. Located on the Gulf Coast, the county was regularly hit by hurricanes but its residents learned to handle these incidents.
In 2005, the county was the scene of the final landfall of the eye of Hurricane Katrina, and its communities and infrastructure suffered some of the most intense damage inflicted by that storm. Over the entire 7-mile (11 km) beach front, not one building or home was left intact. Nearly the entire first block off the beach was destroyed for the entire 7-mile (11 km) stretch.
Homes as far inland as 10 miles (16 km) were flooded by the historic storm surge, which occurred during a full moon high tide. All rivers and waterways were inundated by the surge. Highway 603 south from Interstate 10 was completely submerged, and the Highway 90 - Bay St. Louis Bridge was left looking like a stack of dominoes.
Houses were floated off their foundations. In Waveland and Bay St. Louis, some homes were stranded atop the railroad tracks and others in the middle of streets. Towns like Pearlington, Waveland, Bay St. Louis, Diamondhead, and Kiln suffered catastrophic damage.
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A loosely knit group of hippies called the "Rainbow Family" arrived in Hancock County soon after Hurricane Katrina. From early September 2005 to early December 2005, they ran the "New Waveland Cafe and Clinic" [4] [5] located in the parking lot of Fred's Dept Store on Highway 90.
The café provided free hot meals three times a day. The clinic was staffed by volunteer doctors and nurses from around the United States who saw more than 5000 patients during the duration. They provided treatment free of charge and dispensed free medications. Donations of medications and supplies came from a multitude of sources, with International Aid [6] arranging the most donations. This was the first experience of the Rainbow Family in running a disaster relief center. The Bastrop Christian Outreach Center also volunteered with the Rainbow Family.
Local churches were central points of recovery in Bay St. Louis, Waveland, and Diamondhead. Some churches provided shelter, meals, clothing, and various clean-up supplies. The churches also provided distribution points where supplies could be donated and easily passed on to those who needed help. Other disaster relief agencies that were active in Hancock County include Samaritan's Purse, Southern Baptist Convention Disaster Relief, Red Cross, Rotary International and Salvation Army.
Businesses became operational as quickly as possible. The Waveland Wal-Mart operated out of a tent for 3 months following the storm; Diamondhead Discount Drug was opened within 2 days following Katrina, although the owner's store and home were both severely damaged. Other business such as Dairy Queen and Subway donated their foodstuffs, before it could spoil, in order to feed survivors.
According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 553 square miles (1,430 km2), of which 474 square miles (1,230 km2) is land and 79 square miles (200 km2) (14%) is water. [7]
Census | Pop. | Note | %± |
---|---|---|---|
1820 | 1,594 | — | |
1830 | 1,962 | 23.1% | |
1840 | 3,367 | 71.6% | |
1850 | 3,672 | 9.1% | |
1860 | 3,139 | −14.5% | |
1870 | 4,239 | 35.0% | |
1880 | 6,439 | 51.9% | |
1890 | 8,318 | 29.2% | |
1900 | 11,886 | 42.9% | |
1910 | 11,207 | −5.7% | |
1920 | 10,380 | −7.4% | |
1930 | 11,415 | 10.0% | |
1940 | 11,328 | −0.8% | |
1950 | 11,891 | 5.0% | |
1960 | 14,039 | 18.1% | |
1970 | 17,387 | 23.8% | |
1980 | 24,537 | 41.1% | |
1990 | 31,760 | 29.4% | |
2000 | 42,967 | 35.3% | |
2010 | 43,929 | 2.2% | |
2020 | 46,053 | 4.8% | |
U.S. Decennial Census [8] 1790-1960 [9] 1900-1990 [10] 1990-2000 [11] 2010-2013 [12] 2019 [13] |
Race | Num. | Perc. |
---|---|---|
White (non-Hispanic) | 37,341 | 81.08% |
Black or African American (non-Hispanic) | 3,911 | 8.49% |
Native American | 244 | 0.53% |
Asian | 424 | 0.92% |
Pacific Islander | 9 | 0.02% |
Other/Mixed | 2,206 | 4.79% |
Hispanic or Latino | 1,918 | 4.16% |
As of the 2020 United States census, there were 46,053 people, 20,036 households, and 13,081 families residing in the county.
Hancock is the only county in Mississippi where Roman Catholics outnumber Baptists. Catholics comprise a plurality of residents of Hancock County, owing to the county's French colonial heritage and proximity to deeply Catholic Southern Louisiana. [15]
Year | Republican | Democratic | Third party | |||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
No. | % | No. | % | No. | % | |
2020 | 16,132 | 76.98% | 4,504 | 21.49% | 321 | 1.53% |
2016 | 13,811 | 78.31% | 3,344 | 18.96% | 482 | 2.73% |
2012 | 12,964 | 75.52% | 3,917 | 22.82% | 286 | 1.67% |
2008 | 13,020 | 76.34% | 3,768 | 22.09% | 268 | 1.57% |
2004 | 12,581 | 70.41% | 5,107 | 28.58% | 181 | 1.01% |
2000 | 9,326 | 64.11% | 4,801 | 33.00% | 421 | 2.89% |
1996 | 5,820 | 51.16% | 4,303 | 37.82% | 1,254 | 11.02% |
1992 | 6,422 | 47.78% | 4,651 | 34.61% | 2,367 | 17.61% |
1988 | 7,763 | 66.42% | 3,760 | 32.17% | 164 | 1.40% |
1984 | 7,662 | 74.07% | 2,630 | 25.43% | 52 | 0.50% |
1980 | 5,088 | 57.07% | 3,544 | 39.75% | 283 | 3.17% |
1976 | 3,765 | 48.01% | 3,855 | 49.16% | 222 | 2.83% |
1972 | 5,133 | 86.28% | 745 | 12.52% | 71 | 1.19% |
1968 | 1,065 | 17.63% | 904 | 14.96% | 4,072 | 67.41% |
1964 | 2,550 | 62.95% | 1,501 | 37.05% | 0 | 0.00% |
1960 | 719 | 21.44% | 2,132 | 63.58% | 502 | 14.97% |
1956 | 1,421 | 53.14% | 1,179 | 44.09% | 74 | 2.77% |
1952 | 1,347 | 46.05% | 1,578 | 53.95% | 0 | 0.00% |
1948 | 151 | 8.51% | 222 | 12.51% | 1,402 | 78.99% |
1944 | 137 | 7.70% | 1,642 | 92.30% | 0 | 0.00% |
1940 | 197 | 11.27% | 1,550 | 88.67% | 1 | 0.06% |
1936 | 164 | 11.20% | 1,284 | 87.70% | 16 | 1.09% |
1932 | 109 | 7.40% | 1,349 | 91.64% | 14 | 0.95% |
1928 | 456 | 26.21% | 1,284 | 73.79% | 0 | 0.00% |
1924 | 192 | 27.08% | 467 | 65.87% | 50 | 7.05% |
1920 | 130 | 29.68% | 305 | 69.63% | 3 | 0.68% |
1916 | 68 | 11.68% | 512 | 87.97% | 2 | 0.34% |
1912 | 28 | 6.19% | 365 | 80.75% | 59 | 13.05% |
School districts include: [17]
St. Tammany Parish is a parish located in the U.S. state of Louisiana named after Tamanend, the legendary Lenape Chief of Chiefs and the "Patron Saint of America." At the 2020 census, the population was 264,570, making it the fourth-most populous parish in Louisiana. The parish seat is Covington. The parish was founded in 1810.
St. Bernard Parish is a parish in the U.S. state of Louisiana. The parish seat and largest community is Chalmette. The parish was formed in 1807. St. Bernard Parish is part of the New Orleans–Metairie metropolitan statistical area; the parish is located southeast of the city of New Orleans and comprises the Chandeleur Islands and Chandeleur Sound in the east.
Plaquemines Parish is a parish located in the U.S. state of Louisiana. With a population of 23,515 at the 2020 census, the parish seat is Pointe à la Hache and the largest community is Belle Chasse. The parish was formed in 1807.
Chalmette is a census-designated place (CDP) in, and the parish seat of, St. Bernard Parish in southeastern Louisiana, United States. The 2010 census reported that Chalmette had 16,751 people; 2011 population was listed as 17,119; however, the pre-Katrina population was 32,069 at the 2000 census. At the 2020 U.S. census, its population rebounded to 21,562. Chalmette is part of the New Orleans–Metairie–Kenner metropolitan statistical area. Chalmette is located east of downtown New Orleans and south of Arabi, towards Lake Borgne.
Bay St. Louis is a city in and the county seat of Hancock County, Mississippi, in the United States. Located on the Gulf Coast on the west side of the Bay of St. Louis, it is part of the Gulfport–Biloxi Metropolitan Statistical Area. The population was 9,284 at the 2020 census, up from 9,260 at the 2010 census.
Diamondhead is a city in southeastern Hancock County, Mississippi, United States. The city is located just over 50 miles (80 km) northeast of New Orleans, Louisiana. It is part of the Gulfport−Biloxi Metropolitan Statistical Area. In February 2012, Diamondhead was officially incorporated as a city. In the 2020 USA decennial census, the city population was 9,529.
Kiln is an unincorporated community and census-designated place (CDP) in Hancock County, Mississippi, United States. The town is located about 50 miles (80 km) northeast of New Orleans, Louisiana. It is part of the Gulfport-Biloxi Metropolitan Statistical Area. The population was 2,238 at the 2010 census.
Pearlington is a census-designated place (CDP) in Hancock County, Mississippi, United States, on U.S. Route 90, along the Pearl River, at the Louisiana state line. It is part of the Gulfport–Biloxi, Mississippi Metropolitan Statistical Area. The population was 1,684 at the 2000 census. On August 29, 2005, Hurricane Katrina made landfall just south of Pearlington.
Waveland is a city located in Hancock County, Mississippi, United States, on the Gulf of Mexico. It is part of the Gulfport–Biloxi, Mississippi Metropolitan Statistical Area. The city of Waveland was incorporated in 1972. As of the 2010 census, the city had a population of 6,435. Waveland was nearly destroyed by Hurricane Camille on August 17, 1969, and by Hurricane Katrina on August 29, 2005.
Biloxi is a city in Harrison County, Mississippi, United States. It lies on the Gulf Coast in southern Mississippi thirteen miles east of Gulfport along US-90. The adjacent cities are both designated as seats of Harrison County. The population of Biloxi was 49,449 at the 2020 census, making it the state's fourth-largest city. It is a principal city of the Gulfport–Biloxi metropolitan area, home to 416,259 residents in 2020. The area's first European settlers were French colonists.
Hurricane Camille was the second most intense tropical cyclone on record to strike the United States and is one of just four Category 5 hurricanes to make landfall in the U.S.
Hurricane Katrina was a devastating Category 5 Atlantic hurricane that resulted in 1,392 fatalities and caused damage estimated between $97.4 billion to $145.5 billion in late August 2005, particularly in the city of New Orleans and its surrounding areas. At the time, it was the costliest tropical cyclone on record, tied now with Hurricane Harvey of 2017. Katrina was the twelfth tropical cyclone, the fifth hurricane, and the third major hurricane of the 2005 Atlantic hurricane season. It was also the fourth-most intense Atlantic hurricane on record that made landfall in the contiguous United States by barometric pressure.
The article covers the Hurricane Katrina effects by region, within the United States and Canada. The effects of Hurricane Katrina, in late August 2005, were catastrophic and widespread. It was one of the deadliest natural disasters in U.S. history, leaving at least 1,836 people dead, and a further 135 missing. The storm was large and had an effect on several different areas of North America.
Hurricane Katrina's winds and storm surge reached the Mississippi coastline on the morning of August 29, 2005. beginning a two-day path of destruction through central Mississippi; by 10 a.m. CDT on August 29, 2005, the eye of Katrina began traveling up the entire state, only slowing from hurricane-force winds at Meridian near 7 p.m. and entering Tennessee as a tropical storm. Many coastal towns of Mississippi had already been obliterated, in a single night. Hurricane-force winds reached coastal Mississippi by 2 a.m. and lasted over 17 hours, spawning 11 tornadoes and a 28-foot (8.5 m) storm surge flooding 6–12 miles (9.7–19.3 km) inland. Many, unable to evacuate, survived by climbing to attics or rooftops, or swimming to higher buildings and trees. The worst property damage from Katrina occurred in coastal Mississippi, where all towns flooded over 90% in hours, and waves destroyed many historic buildings, with others gutted to the 3rd story. Afterward, 238 people died in Mississippi, and all counties in Mississippi were declared disaster areas, 49 for full federal assistance. Regulations were changed later for emergency centers and casinos. The emergency command centers were moved higher because all 3 coastal centers flooded at 30 ft (9.1 m) above sea level. Casinos were allowed on land rather than limited to floating casino barges as in 2005.
The Mississippi Gulf Coast, also known as Mississippi Coast, Mississippi Gulf Coast region, Coastal Mississippi, and The Coast, is the area of Mississippi along the Mississippi Sound at the northern extreme of the Gulf of Mexico.
The Gulfport-Biloxi Metropolitan Statistical Area is a metropolitan statistical area (MSA) in the Mississippi Gulf Coast region that includes four counties – Hancock, Harrison, Jackson and Stone. The principal cities are Gulfport and Biloxi. The 2010 census placed the Gulfport-Biloxi MSA population at 388,488, though as of 2019, it was estimated to have increased to 417,665. The area was significantly impacted by Hurricane Katrina on August 29, 2005, and prior to the hurricane, had experienced steady to moderate population growth. However, growth has since rebounded, with the population steadily increasing every year throughout the 2010s.
The Gulfport–Biloxi–Pascagoula Combined Statistical Area is made up of five counties in the Mississippi Gulf Coast region. The statistical area consists of the Gulfport–Biloxi Metropolitan Statistical Area and the Pascagoula Metropolitan Statistical Area. The 2010 census placed the CSA population at 411,066, and as of 2019, is estimated to be 442,165. The area was significantly impacted by Hurricane Katrina on August 29, 2005, although population growth has steadily rebounded in recent years.
The Hancock County School District is a public school district based in the community of Kiln, Mississippi (USA).
The New Waveland Café and New Waveland Clinic together formed a disaster response center consisting of a combination café, soup kitchen, medical clinic, donation center, and market, that operated free of charge from September 5 to December 1, 2005 in immediate Post-Katrina Mississippi Gulf Coast in Waveland, Hancock County, Mississippi. The cafe and clinic were founded in response to Hurricane Katrina and provided free food and free medical care to hurricane victims for three months. They were located in tents in the parking lot of Fred's Department Store at 790 Hwy 90 in Waveland, across the street from the destroyed and gutted Waveland Police Department. The New Waveland Cafe served three free meals every day to thousands of residents and volunteers. The New Waveland Clinic provided free health care to over 5,500 patient contacts. As well, a group of hippies and Christians came together to form a unique group which worked together to provide emergency relief.
Ansley is an unincorporated community in Hancock County, Mississippi, United States. It is located approximately 11 mi (18 km) west of Bay St. Louis.
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