Tate County, Mississippi

Tate County
County
Tate County Courthouse in Senatobia
Location within the U.S. state of Mississippi
Mississippi's location within the U.S.
Coordinates: 34°39′N 89°56′W
Country	United States
State	Mississippi
Founded	1873
Seat	Senatobia
Largest city	Senatobia
Area
• Total	411 sq mi (1,060 km2)
• Land	405 sq mi (1,050 km2)
• Water	6.2 sq mi (16 km2)  1.5%
Population  (2020)
• Total	28,064
• Density	68/sq mi (26/km2)
Time zone	UTC−6 (Central)
• Summer (DST)	UTC−5 (CDT)
Congressional district	1st
Website	www.tatecountygov.com

Tate County is a county located in the northwestern portion of the U.S. state of Mississippi. As of the 2020 census, the population was 28,064. Its county seat is Senatobia. Organized in 1873 during the Reconstruction era, from portions of DeSoto, Marshall, and Tunica counties, the county is named for Thomas Simpson Tate, one of the first prominent American settlers of the area.

Tate County is part of the Memphis, TN-MS-AR Metropolitan Statistical Area. It is located about 40 miles (64 km) south of Memphis and one county east of the Mississippi River. This fertile river valley was developed for cotton cultivation in the 19th century.

History

As it was developed for cotton culture in the antebellum years, planters in the county depended on the labor of African American slaves. Blacks comprised a majority of the population for many decades. After Reconstruction, whites sometimes enforced their dominance through political intimidation or violence against blacks.

In 1932, a deputy sheriff and son of County Sheriff C.A. Williams, was allegedly shot by a black man, Jesse Williams. Sheriff Williams illegally organized a posse and murdered at least five and possibly as many as seven black people, family members of a man known as "Judge" Crawford. A month later Jesse Williams was caught, "tried" and lynched by hanging. No charges were ever considered against the sheriff or lynch mob.

Geography

Map of Tate County

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 411 square miles (1,060 km²), of which 405 square miles (1,050 km²) is land and 6.2 square miles (16 km²) (1.5%) is water. It is the third-smallest county in Mississippi by land area.

Major highways

• Interstate 55
• U.S. Route 51
• Mississippi Highway 3
• Mississippi Highway 4
• Mississippi Scenic Highway 304
• Mississippi Highway 305
• Mississippi Highway 306
• Mississippi Highway 740

Adjacent counties

• DeSoto County (north)
• Marshall County (east)
• Lafayette County (southeast)
• Panola County (south)
• Tunica County (west)

Demographics

Historical population

Census	Pop.	Note	%±
1880	18,721		—
1890	19,253		2.8%
1900	20,618		7.1%
1910	19,714		−4.4%
1920	19,636		−0.4%
1930	17,671		−10.0%
1940	19,309		9.3%
1950	18,011		−6.7%
1960	18,138		0.7%
1970	18,544		2.2%
1980	20,119		8.5%
1990	21,432		6.5%
2000	25,370		18.4%
2010	28,886		13.9%
2020	28,064		−2.8%
2023 (est.)	28,261		0.7%
U.S. Decennial Census 1790-1960 1900-1990 1990-2000 2010-2013

2020 census

Tate County Racial Composition

Race	Num.	Perc.
White	18,019	64.21%
Black or African American	8,231	29.33%
Native American	52	0.19%
Asian	63	0.22%
Pacific Islander	1	0.0%
Other/Mixed	893	3.18%
Hispanic or Latino	805	2.87%

As of the 2020 United States Census, there were 28,064 people, 10,324 households, and 7,580 families residing in the county.

2000 census

As of the census of 2000, there were 25,370 people, 8,850 households, and 6,717 families residing in the county. The population density was 63 inhabitants per square mile (24/km²). There were 9,354 housing units at an average density of 23 per square mile (8.9/km²). The racial makeup of the county was 67.84% White, 31.02% Black or African American, 0.20% Native American, 0.10% Asian, 0.04% Pacific Islander, 0.25% from other races, and 0.56% from two or more races. 0.88% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.

There were 8,850 households, out of which 36.10% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 56.00% were married couples living together, 15.50% had a female householder with no husband present, and 24.10% were non-families. 21.30% of all households were made up of individuals, and 9.10% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.74 and the average family size was 3.18.

As of 2000, the county's population was spread out, with 27.10% under the age of 18, 11.70% from 18 to 24, 27.50% from 25 to 44, 22.30% from 45 to 64, and 11.40% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 34 years. For every 100 females there were 93.70 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 90.50 males.

The median income for a household in the county was $35,836, and the median income for a family was $41,423. Males had a median income of $33,064 versus $21,154 for females. The per capita income for the county was $16,154. About 10.60% of families and 13.50% of the population were below the poverty line, including 14.20% of those under age 18 and 21.10% of those age 65 or over.

Communities

City

• Senatobia (county seat)

Town

• Coldwater

Census-designated places

• Arkabutla
• Independence
• Strayhorn

Unincorporated communities

• Cottonville
• Looxahoma
• Sarah
• Savage
• Thyatira
• Tyro

Education

The school districts are:

• Senatobia Municipal School District
• Tate County School District

Politics

United States presidential election results for Tate County, Mississippi

Year	Republican		Democratic		Third party(ies)
	No.	%	No.	%	No.	%
2024	9,185	71.42%	3,555	27.64%	121	0.94%
2020	8,707	66.50%	4,183	31.95%	203	1.55%
2016	7,495	64.46%	3,926	33.77%	206	1.77%
2012	7,332	59.10%	4,933	39.76%	141	1.14%
2008	7,678	60.09%	5,003	39.15%	97	0.76%
2004	6,760	60.54%	4,347	38.93%	60	0.54%
2000	5,148	59.22%	3,441	39.58%	104	1.20%
1996	3,694	50.40%	3,195	43.59%	441	6.02%
1992	4,196	50.13%	3,519	42.04%	656	7.84%
1988	4,553	61.12%	2,872	38.56%	24	0.32%
1984	4,677	61.89%	2,846	37.66%	34	0.45%
1980	3,343	45.38%	3,892	52.84%	131	1.78%
1976	2,497	38.80%	3,747	58.22%	192	2.98%
1972	3,966	75.74%	1,151	21.98%	119	2.27%
1968	605	13.22%	1,162	25.39%	2,810	61.39%
1964	2,390	89.41%	283	10.59%	0	0.00%
1960	241	13.60%	686	38.71%	845	47.69%
1956	171	9.78%	1,414	80.85%	164	9.38%
1952	387	19.72%	1,575	80.28%	0	0.00%
1948	16	1.13%	199	14.09%	1,197	84.77%
1944	29	1.95%	1,455	98.05%	0	0.00%
1940	3	0.19%	1,609	99.81%	0	0.00%
1936	7	0.64%	1,088	99.36%	0	0.00%
1932	9	0.90%	986	99.00%	1	0.10%
1928	42	3.19%	1,274	96.81%	0	0.00%
1924	6	0.59%	1,002	98.82%	6	0.59%
1920	117	11.65%	876	87.25%	11	1.10%
1916	18	1.64%	1,074	97.73%	7	0.64%
1912	23	3.26%	612	86.81%	70	9.93%

Notable people

• Actor James Earl Jones was born in Arkabutla, Mississippi, an unincorporated area of Tate County and lived here for five years. He was sent north to live with his maternal grandparents on their farm in Jackson, Michigan.

See also

• Dry counties
• National Register of Historic Places listings in Tate County, Mississippi
• Northwest Mississippi Community College
• U.S.S. Tate

External links

• Tate County Economic Development Foundation
• The Democrat - Weekly newspaper serving Tate County.
• Tate County Sheriff