| County: | Jefferson Davis County |
| State: | Mississippi |
| Type: | County |
| Founded: | 1906 |
| Seat Wl: | Prentiss |
| Largest City Wl: | Prentiss |
| City Type: | town |
| Area Total Sq Mi: | 409 |
| Area Land Sq Mi: | 408 |
| Area Water Sq Mi: | 0.7 |
| Area Percentage: | 0.2 |
| Population As Of: | 2020 |
| Population Total: | 11321 |
| Population Density Sq Mi: | auto |
| Ex Image: | Jefferson Davis County Mississippi Courthouse.jpg |
| Ex Image Cap: | Jefferson Davis County Courthouse in Prentiss |
| District: | 3rd |
| Time Zone: | Central |
| Website: | www.jeffersondaviscountyms.com |
Jefferson Davis County is a county located in the U.S. state of Mississippi. As of the 2020 census, the population was 11,321.[1] Its county seat is Prentiss.[2] The county is named after Mississippi Senator and Confederate President Jefferson Davis. The county was carved out of Covington and Lawrence counties in March 1906. Governor James K. Vardaman signed the bill creating the county on May 9, 1906.
The genesis of the county occurred on March 31, 1906, when a Mississippi state legislative act authorized the new country's boundaries. The residents of western Covington County and eastern Lawrence County had frequently complained of the rivers and streams impeding the route to their respective county seats. Jefferson Davis County was the state's 77th county.
A 1906 special referendum determined that the county seat would be Prentiss, named for either famed Mississippi lawmaker and orator Seargent Smith Prentiss, or wealthy landowner Prentiss Webb Berry. The settlement was originally named Blountville after early settler William Blount.
In 1933, the county was the first in Mississippi to issue a prohibition on alcohol after the repeal of the Eighteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution. Round dancing in the community hall was banned in 1938.
In 1935, notorious bank robber Raymond Hamilton, known to hide out in the county's wilderness, was involved in a hostage situation after robbing Prentiss' Bank of Blountville, but escaped in Memphis.[3]
According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of, of which is land and (0.2%) is water.[4]
| White (non-Hispanic) | 4,330 | 38.25% | |
| Black or African American (non-Hispanic) | 6,622 | 58.49% | |
| Native American | 8 | 0.07% | |
| Asian | 21 | 0.19% | |
| Other/Mixed | 239 | 2.11% | |
| Hispanic or Latino | 101 | 0.89% |
Jefferson Davis County Courthouse in Prentiss is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.