| County: | Jackson County |
| State: | Mississippi |
| Seal: | Jackson County ms seal.png |
| Founded: | 1812 |
| Seat Wl: | Pascagoula |
| Largest City Wl: | Pascagoula |
| Area Total Sq Mi: | 1043 |
| Area Land Sq Mi: | 723 |
| Area Water Sq Mi: | 321 |
| Area Percentage: | 31 |
| Population As Of: | 2020 |
| Population Total: | 143252 |
| Population Density Sq Mi: | auto |
| Web: | www.co.jackson.ms.us |
| Ex Image: | Jackson County MS Courthouse Sept 2012 02.jpg |
| Ex Image Cap: | The Jackson County Courthouse in Pascagoula |
| District: | 4th |
| Time Zone: | Central |
| Named For: | Andrew Jackson |
Jackson County is a county located in the U.S. state of Mississippi. As of the 2020 census, the population was 143,252,[1] making it the fifth-most populous county in Mississippi. Its county seat is Pascagoula.[2] The county was named for Andrew Jackson, general in the United States Army and afterward President of the United States.[3]
Jackson County is included in the Pascagoula, MS Metropolitan Statistical Area. It is located at the southeastern tip of the state. The county has sandy soil and is in the Piney Woods area. It borders the state of Alabama on its east side.
The county was severely damaged by both Hurricane Camille in August 1969 and Hurricane Katrina on August 29, 2005, which caused catastrophic effects.
According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of, of which is land and (31%) is water.[4] It is the largest county in Mississippi by total area.
Despite the county's name, Jackson County does not contain the City of Jackson, the latter is located in Hinds County.
| White (non-Hispanic) | 92,881 | 64.84% | |
| Black or African American (non-Hispanic) | 29,713 | 20.74% | |
| Native American | 572 | 0.4% | |
| Asian | 3,173 | 2.21% | |
| Pacific Islander | 91 | 0.06% | |
| Other/Mixed | 6,772 | 4.73% | |
| Hispanic or Latino | 10,050 | 7.02% |
The Jackson County Sheriff's Office provides law enforcement services for communities in the county that do not have their own local law enforcement. These communities are known as Census-Designated Places, or CDPs.
School districts in the county include:[6]
The Jackson County School District serves the Hurley, Wade, Big Point, Three Rivers, Harleston, Vestry, Latimer, and Vancleave communities, along with St. Martin and a small portion of Escatawpa. The Pascagoula-Gautier School District serves Pascagoula and most of the City of Gautier. The Moss Point School District serves Moss Point and most of Escatawpa. The Ocean Springs School District serves Ocean Springs.
Like most of the Solid South, Jackson County consistently voted for the Democratic presidential candidate through 1960, except for 1948, when it was carried by Dixiecrat Strom Thurmond. For much of this time, Republicans were lucky to get even 1,000 votes. It voted overwhelmingly for Republican Barry Goldwater in 1964, voted for George Wallace in 1968 over Republican Richard Nixon, and has stuck with Republicans ever since. Jimmy Carter is the last Democrat to manage 40 percent of the vote.