Fayette is a city in Jefferson County, Mississippi, United States. The population was 1,614 at the 2010 census. It is the county seat of Jefferson County.[2]

Fayette, Mississippi
Location of Fayette, Mississippi
Location of Fayette, Mississippi
Fayette, Mississippi is located in the United States
Fayette, Mississippi
Fayette, Mississippi
Location in the United States
Coordinates: 31°42′40″N 91°3′44″W / 31.71111°N 91.06222°W / 31.71111; -91.06222
CountryUnited States
StateMississippi
CountyJefferson
Government
 • TypeMayor-Alderman
 • MayorLondell Eanochs
Area
 • Total1.18 sq mi (3.04 km2)
 • Land1.18 sq mi (3.04 km2)
 • Water0.00 sq mi (0.00 km2)
Elevation
282 ft (86 m)
Population
 (2020)
 • Total1,445
 • Density1,228.74/sq mi (474.56/km2)
Time zoneUTC-6 (Central (CST))
 • Summer (DST)UTC-5 (CDT)
ZIP codes
39069, 39081
Area code601
FIPS code28-24500
GNIS feature ID0669927
WebsiteTown of Fayette

History

edit

In 1879, the Jesse James gang, based in Missouri, raided southwest Mississippi, robbing a store each in Washington and Fayette. The outlaws absconded with $2,000 cash in the second robbery and took shelter in abandoned cabins on the Kemp Plantation south of St. Joseph, Louisiana. A posse attacked and killed two of the outlaws but failed to capture the entire gang.[3] Jesse James and most of his gang succeeded in returning to Missouri. He was killed three years later in 1882 at his home in St. Joseph, Missouri.

In 1890, the white Democrat-controlled Mississippi legislature passed a new constitution, which effectively disenfranchised most black people in the state,[4] crippling their integration into society and the Republican Party of the time.

After Congressional passage of the Voting Rights Act of 1965, black people began to register and vote again. Charles Evers was elected as mayor in 1969 by the people of Fayette; he was the first African-American mayor elected in post-Reconstruction Mississippi.[5] He beat the white incumbent R.G. Allen, 386 votes –225 votes. Evers was an activist and the brother of slain civil rights leader Medgar Evers, head of the Mississippi chapter of the NAACP when he was assassinated in 1963.[6]

Geography

edit

Fayette is located at 31°42′40″N 91°3′44″W / 31.71111°N 91.06222°W / 31.71111; -91.06222 (31.711144, -91.062246).[7]

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 1.2 square miles (3.1 km2), all land.

Demographics

edit
Historical population
CensusPop.Note
1850210
186033961.4%
1870120−64.6%
1880369207.5%
1900604
191077528.3%
19208408.4%
19308481.0%
19409077.0%
19501,49865.2%
19601,6268.5%
19701,7256.1%
19802,03317.9%
19901,853−8.9%
20002,24221.0%
20101,614−28.0%
20201,445−10.5%
U.S. Decennial Census[8]

2020 census

edit
Fayette, Mississippi – Racial and ethnic composition
Note: the US Census treats Hispanic/Latino as an ethnic category. This table excludes Latinos from the racial categories and assigns them to a separate category. Hispanics/Latinos may be of any race.
Race / Ethnicity (NH = Non-Hispanic) Pop 2000[9] Pop 2010[10] Pop 2020[11] % 2000 % 2010 % 2020
White alone (NH) 43 26 15 1.92% 1.61% 1.04%
Black or African American alone (NH) 2,170 1,577 1,379 96.79% 97.71% 95.43%
Native American or Alaska Native alone (NH) 2 3 1 0.09% 0.19% 0.07%
Asian alone (NH) 5 0 5 0.22% 0.00% 0.35%
Pacific Islander alone (NH) 0 0 2 0.00% 0.00% 0.14%
Some Other Race alone (NH) 0 0 0 0.00% 0.00% 0.00%
Mixed Race or Multi-Racial (NH) 8 5 16 0.36% 0.31% 1.11%
Hispanic or Latino (any race) 14 3 27 0.62% 0.19% 1.87%
Total 2,242 1,614 1,445 100.00% 100.00% 100.00%

As of the 2020 United States census, there were 1,445 people, 510 households, and 291 families residing in the city.

Education

edit

The city of Fayette is served by the Jefferson County School District.

Notable people

edit

References

edit
  1. ^ "2020 U.S. Gazetteer Files". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved July 24, 2022.
  2. ^ "Find a County". National Association of Counties. Archived from the original on May 3, 2015. Retrieved June 7, 2011.
  3. ^ "Jefferson B. Snyder". New Orleans Times-Picayune, April 15, 1938. Retrieved July 22, 2013.
  4. ^ "November 1, 1890: Mississippi Constitution". Zinn Education Project. Retrieved July 23, 2020.
  5. ^ "Evers, Charles – MS Civil Rights Project". Retrieved July 23, 2020.
  6. ^ Associated Press (May 14, 1969). "Race Won By Evers". Waycross Journal-Herald. Retrieved November 25, 2012.
  7. ^ "US Gazetteer files: 2010, 2000, and 1990". United States Census Bureau. February 12, 2011. Retrieved April 23, 2011.
  8. ^ "Census of Population and Housing". Census.gov. Retrieved June 4, 2015.
  9. ^ "P004 Hispanic or Latino, and Not Hispanic or Latino by Race – 2000: DEC Summary File 1 – Fayette city, Mississippi". United States Census Bureau.
  10. ^ "P2 Hispanic or Latino, and Not Hispanic or Latino by Race – 2010: DEC Redistricting Data (PL 94-171) – Fayette city, Mississippi". United States Census Bureau.
  11. ^ "P2 Hispanic or Latino, and Not Hispanic or Latino by Race - 2020: DEC Redistricting Data (PL 94-171) – Fayette city, Mississippi". United States Census Bureau.
  12. ^ "Albert Clark Stats". Baseball Reference. Retrieved October 8, 2021.
  13. ^ "Springfield Plantation, Fayette, Mississippi". Historic Structures. Retrieved October 8, 2021.
  14. ^ "Dudley Guice Jr". ESPN. Retrieved October 8, 2021.
  15. ^ "Alvin Hall Stats". Pro Football Reference. Retrieved October 8, 2021.
  16. ^ "Thomas M. Wade". records.ancestry.com. Retrieved July 17, 2013.
edit