Woodville, Mississippi  | |
|---|---|
![]() Wilkinson County Courthouse in Woodville  | |
![]() Location of Woodville, Mississippi  | |
![]() Woodville, Mississippi Location in the United States  | |
| Coordinates: 31°6′10″N 91°17′59″W / 31.10278°N 91.29972°W | |
| Country | United States | 
| State | Mississippi | 
| County | Wilkinson | 
| Government | |
| • Mayor | Keisha Stewart-Ford | 
| Area | |
| • Total | 1.04 sq mi (2.68 km2) | 
| • Land | 1.04 sq mi (2.68 km2) | 
| • Water | 0.00 sq mi (0.00 km2) | 
| Elevation | 404 ft (123 m) | 
| Population  (2020)  | |
| • Total | 928 | 
| • Density | 895.75/sq mi (345.83/km2) | 
| Time zone | UTC-6 (Central (CST)) | 
| • Summer (DST) | UTC-5 (CDT) | 
| ZIP code | 39669  | 
| Area code | 601 | 
| FIPS code | 28-81120 | 
| GNIS feature ID | 0679870 | 
| Website | www | 
Woodville is one of the oldest towns in Mississippi and is the county seat of Wilkinson County, Mississippi, United States.[2] Its population as of 2020 was 928.[3]
Geography
According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 1.1 square miles (2.8 km2), all land.
Demographics
| Census | Pop. | Note | %± | 
|---|---|---|---|
| 1880 | 965 | — | |
| 1890 | 950 | −1.6% | |
| 1900 | 1,043 | 9.8% | |
| 1910 | 1,233 | 18.2% | |
| 1920 | 1,012 | −17.9% | |
| 1930 | 1,113 | 10.0% | |
| 1940 | 1,433 | 28.8% | |
| 1950 | 1,609 | 12.3% | |
| 1960 | 1,856 | 15.4% | |
| 1970 | 1,734 | −6.6% | |
| 1980 | 1,512 | −12.8% | |
| 1990 | 1,393 | −7.9% | |
| 2000 | 1,192 | −14.4% | |
| 2010 | 1,096 | −8.1% | |
| 2020 | 928 | −15.3% | |
| U.S. Decennial Census[4] | |||
| Race | Num. | Perc. | 
|---|---|---|
| White | 217 | 23.38% | 
| Black or African American | 677 | 72.95% | 
| Native American | 2 | 0.22% | 
| Asian | 1 | 0.11% | 
| Other/Mixed | 26 | 2.8% | 
| Hispanic or Latino | 5 | 0.54% | 
Per the 2020 United States census, there were 928 people, 386 households, and 277 families residing in the town; its racial composition was 77.95% black, 22.38% non-Hispanic white, 0.22% Native American, 0.11% Asian, 2.8% other or mixed, and 0.54% Hispanic or Latino of any race.[3]
Education

Wilkinson County School District serves Woodville. There are three education facilities near Woodville: Wilkinson County Elementary School, Wilkinson County High School, and the private school Wilkinson County Christian Academy, which was established in 1969 as a segregation academy.[5]
Media
The Woodville Republican, a weekly newspaper founded in 1823, is the oldest surviving business (and thus the oldest newspaper) in Mississippi.[6]
Notable people
- Julia K. Wetherill Baker (1858–1931), writer and poet, was born in Woodville[7]
 - Betty Bentley Beaumont (1828-1892), author, merchant, cotton factor, hotel owner
 - Henry Cohen (rabbi), served here from 1885 to 1888 before going to Galveston, Texas, where he became a nationally known community leader
 - Jefferson Davis, President of the Confederate States of America; lived near here for a couple of years as a youth on his parents' plantation and attended Woodville Academy, before going to Kentucky to school.
 - Ronnie Edwards, Louisiana politician, born in Woodville[8]
 - Henry Herbert Ogden, aviator in 1924 US Army Air Services around the world flight,[9]
 - Will E. Keller, businessman
 - Rudolph Matthews, handball player
 - Edward Grady Partin (1924-1990), born in Woodville, he became a Teamsters Union business agent from Baton Rouge. His testimony sent Jimmy Hoffa to prison.
 - Carnot Posey, Civil War Confederate general
 - Peter Randolph, early 19th century Federal judge
 - Dan Reneau, President of Louisiana Tech University
 - William Grant Still, African-American classical composer and Mississippi Musicians Hall of Fame inductee was born in Woodville on May 11, 1895.
 - Matt Tolbert, professional baseball infielder
 - W. P. S. Ventress (1854-1911), Mississippi state legislator
 - George W. Wheeler, Chief Justice of the Connecticut Supreme Court (1920–30)
 - Lester Young, jazz musician and Mississippi Musicians Hall of Fame inductee was born in Woodville.[10]
 - William Henry Young, Wisconsin politician, born in Woodville
 
References
- ↑ "2020 U.S. Gazetteer Files". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved July 24, 2022.
 - ↑ "Find a County". National Association of Counties. Retrieved June 7, 2011.
 - 1 2 3 "Explore Census Data". data.census.gov. Retrieved December 9, 2021.
 - ↑ "Census of Population and Housing". Census.gov. Retrieved June 4, 2015.
 - ↑ Dangerfileld, Celnisha. "Mapping Race, School Segregation, and Black Identities in Woodville, Mississippi: A Case Study of a Rural Community". Journal of Rural Community Psychology - Mapping Race. Archived from the original on January 23, 2009.
 - ↑  r2WPadmin. "Woodville Republican". Mississippi Encyclopedia. Retrieved November 23, 2020.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link) - ↑ Willard, Frances, and Mary Livermore, eds. A Woman of the Century: Fourteen Hundred-Seventy Biographical Sketches Accompanied by Portraits of Leading American Women in All Walks Of Life. New York: Moulton, 1893, p. 48.
 - ↑ "Rep. Rodnette Bethley "Ronnie" Edwards". The Baton Rouge Advocate. Retrieved March 10, 2016.
 - ↑ This Day in Aviation, 6 Apr 1924
 - ↑ Gelly, Dave (2007). Being Prez: The Life and Music of Lester Young. Equinox. p. 1. ISBN 978-1-84553-058-7.
 
External links
- History of Woodville's Jewish community (from the Institute of Southern Jewish Life)
 



