List of counties in Mississippi

Counties of Mississippi
HK PR ST HA JK GG GR PY FO LM MR WL PI AM WK AD FR JE LN LR JD CV JO WN CK JA SM SI CP CB WR HI RK SC NT LD KE NS LK MA YZ SH IQ WA HU HO AT WI NX LW OK CH WE MN CA GN LF SF BO CO TL YA CN CS CL MO IT LE PO UN LY PA QU TU TA DS MH BE TP PS AL TI
Location	State of Mississippi
Number	82
Populations	Greatest: 214,870 (Hinds) Least: 1,256 (Issaquena) Average: 35,850 (2023)
Areas	Largest: 933.9 square miles (2,419 km2) (Yazoo, by land) Smallest: 401.3 square miles (1,039 km2) (Alcorn) Average: 591 square miles (1,530 km2)
Government	County government
Subdivisions	cities, towns, unincorporated communities, census designated place

The U.S. state of Mississippi has 82 counties. The first two counties, Adams County and Pickering County (renamed Jefferson County later), were established in 1799 in the Mississippi Territory. 14 counties, all in the southwest, were created before the Mississippi Territory became a state in 1817. The last county created was Humphreys County in 1918. The Mississippi Constitution governs the creation of new counties, which requires an election of qualified electors to approve of the creation of a new county. Elections are limited to once every four years. Any new county must be at least 400 square miles (1,000 km²), with no existing county reduced below that size.

The county governing body, known as the Board of Supervisors, is located under the judicial branch of state government as established in the 1817 Mississippi Constitution. The 1868 Constitution mandated five-member Board of Supervisors, an evolution of the five-member board of police created in the 1832 Constitution. Supervisors are elected without term limits. County government includes other elected and appointed officials who serve concurrent four-year terms. Major elected officials include the chancery clerk, who manages records and administrative tasks for the supervisors and chancery court; the circuit clerk, who handles election administration duties; and the sheriff, who functions as the chief of county law enforcement. Other elected officials include the constables, justice court judges, and the tax assessor or collector (23 counties have separate officials). Major appointed county officials include the board attorney, the county administrator, the county engineer, and the road manager. Counties have either one of two county seats, depending on the number of court districts.

Through evolving constitutions, counties are granted police powers, administrative duties for transportation infrastructure, and election scheduling for vacacines in county offices. The Board of Supervisors are mandated to additional duties as defined by the legislature. While placed under the judicial branch, the Mississippi Supreme Court recognize counties perform mixed duties that are executive, legislative, and judicial in nature. Prior to 1988, each supervisor independently managed roads and bridges in their assigned area, and would allocate money at their discretion, subject to restrictions in state law. County revenues were divided equally among all five supervisors. However, this came under scrutiny after Operation Pretense (1984–1987), an FBI sting operation targeting corruption that led to the indictment of fifty-five county supervisors. The Mississippi Legislature passed the County Government Reorganization Act of 1988 in response, which transferred responsibilities to a system of centralized road administration.

According to 2023 U.S. Census Data, the average population of Mississippi's 82 counties is 35,850, with Hinds County as the most populous (214,870) and Issaquena County the least (1,256). Six counties have populations over 100,000 while 16 have populations under 10,000. Yazoo County is the largest by total area at 933.9 square miles (2,419 km²), and Alcorn County is the smallest at 401.3 square miles (1,039 km²). The average land area is 591 square miles (1,530 km²). 19 counties have names with Native American etymologies.

The Federal Information Processing Standard (FIPS) code is used by the United States Federal government to uniquely identify counties. In the table below, each code links to the U.S. Census "quick facts" page for that county. Mississippi's FIPS state code is 28.

List of counties

County	FIPS code	County seat	Smithsonian Trinomial	Est.	Origin	Etymology	Population (2023)	Total Area	Map
Adams County	001	Natchez	AD	1799	One of two original counties in the Mississippi Territory formed by Governor Winthrop Sargent	John Adams (1735–1826), Founding Father and 2nd U.S. President	28,746	487.9 sq mi (1,264 km2)
Alcorn County	003	Corinth	AL	1870	Formed from Tippiah and Tishomingo Counties	James L. Alcorn (1816–1894), 28th Governor of Mississippi and U.S. Senator	34,135	401.3 sq mi (1,039 km2)
Amite County	005	Liberty	AM	1809	Formed from Wilkinson County	Amite River, from potential corruption of Choctaw word for "young"	12,442	731.7 sq mi (1,895 km2)
Attala County	007	Kosciusko	AT	1833	Formed from Madison County	Fictional Native American heroine from the early 19th-century novel Atala by François-René de Chateaubriand	17,359	736.7 sq mi (1,908 km2)
Benton County	009	Ashland	BE	1870	Formed from Marshall and Tippah Counties	Thought to be named for U.S. Senator Thomas Hart Benton, the true namesake is Samuel Benton (1820–1864), Confederate brigadier general	7,438	408.6 sq mi (1,058 km2)
Bolivar County	011	Cleveland, Rosedale	BO	1836	Formed from Tallahatchie and Washington Counties and Unorganized	Simon Bolivar (1783–1830), South American democratic revolutionary	28,968	905.7 sq mi (2,346 km2)
Calhoun County	013	Pittsboro	CN	1852	Formed from Chickasaw, Lafayette and Yalobusha Counties	John C. Calhoun (1782–1850), 7th U.S. Vice President	12,685	588 sq mi (1,523 km2)
Carroll County	015	Carrollton, Vaiden	CA	1833	Formed from Unorganized and Lowndes, Monroe, and Washington Counties	Charles Carroll (1737–1832), last surviving signer of the Declaration of Independence	9,535	634.5 sq mi (1,643 km2)
Chickasaw County	017	Houston, Okolona	CS	1836	Formed from Monroe County and Unorganized	Chickasaw Native Americans	16,866	504.3 sq mi (1,306 km2)
Choctaw County	019	Ackerman	CH	1833	Formed from Unorganized and Lowndes, Madison, and Monroe Counties	Choctaw Native Americans	8,088	420.3 sq mi (1,089 km2)
Claiborne County	021	Port Gibson	CB	1802	Formed from Jefferson (Pickering) County	William C. C. Claiborne (c. 1773–1775–1817), 2nd Governor of Mississippi Territory	8,617	500.9 sq mi (1,297 km2)
Clarke County	023	Quitman	CK	1833	Formed from Wayne County	Joshua G. Clarke (1780–1828), Mississippi Supreme Court Justice and 1st Chancellor of the Mississippi Chancery Courts	15,228	693.4 sq mi (1,796 km2)
Clay County	025	West Point	CL	1871	Formed from Chickasaw, Lowndes, Monroe and Oktibbeha Counties as Colfax County	Henry Clay (1777–1852), 9th U.S. Secretary of State and U.S. Senator	18,206	415.9 sq mi (1,077 km2)
Coahoma County	027	Clarksdale	CO	1836	Formed from Unorganized	Choctaw for "red panther"	20,077	583.1 sq mi (1,510 km2)
Copiah County	029	Hazlehurst	CP	1823	Formed from Franklin, Hinds, and Lawrence Counties	Copiah Creek, from Choctaw for "calling panther"	27,664	779.4 sq mi (2,019 km2)
Covington County	031	Collins	CV	1819	Formed from Lawrence and Wayne Counties	Leonard Covington (1768–1813), U.S. House Representative and War of 1812 brigadier general	18,059	414.9 sq mi (1,075 km2)
DeSoto County	033	Hernando	DS	1836	Formed from Monroe and Washington Counties	Hernando de Soto (c. 1497–1542), Spanish explorer of the Americas	193,247	497.2 sq mi (1,288 km2)
Forrest County	035	Hattiesburg	FO	1908	Formed from Perry County	Nathan B. Forrest (1821–1877), Confederate general and 1st Grand Wizard of the First Ku Klux Klan	78,208	470.2 sq mi (1,218 km2)
Franklin County	037	Meadville	FR	1809	Formed from Adams, Amite, and Wilkinson Counties	Benjamin Franklin (1706–1790), Founding Father, drafter and signer of the Declaration of Independence, and influential polymath	7,610	566.5 sq mi (1,467 km2)
George County	039	Lucedale	GE	1910	Formed from Greene and Jackson Counties	James Z. George (1826–1897), U.S. Senator and Confederate colonel	25,619	483.6 sq mi (1,253 km2)
Greene County	041	Leakesville	GN	1811	Formed from Wayne County	Nathanael Greene (1742–1786), Revolutionary War general	13,601	718.7 sq mi (1,861 km2)
Grenada County	043	Grenada	GR	1870	Formed from Carroll, Choctaw, Tallahatchie and Yalobusha Counties	Spanish province of Granada	21,065	449.4 sq mi (1,164 km2)
Hancock County	045	Bay St. Louis	HA	1812	Formed from Mobile County (AL)	John Hancock (1737–1793), Founding Father, first signer of the Declaration of Independence, and 4th and 13th President of the Continental Congress	46,159	484 sq mi (1,254 km2)
Harrison County	047	Gulfport, Biloxi	HR	1841	Formed from Hancock and Jackson Counties	William Henry Harrison (1773–1841), 9th U.S. President	210,612	584.5 sq mi (1,514 km2)
Hinds County	049	Jackson, Raymond	HI	1821	Formed from Unorganized land	Thomas Hinds (1780–1840), U.S. House Representative and War of 1812 major general	214,870	877.3 sq mi (2,272 km2)
Holmes County	051	Lexington	HO	1833	Formed from Yazoo County	David Holmes (1769–1832), 1st and 5th Governor of Mississippi and U.S. Senator	15,777	764.5 sq mi (1,980 km2)
Humphreys County	053	Belzoni	HU	1918	Formed from Holmes, Sharkey, Sunflower, Washington and Yazoo Counties	Benjamin G. Humphreys (1808–1882), 26th Governor of Mississippi and Confederate brigadier general	7,216	431.3 sq mi (1,117 km2)
Issaquena County	055	Mayersville	IS	1844	Formed from Washington County	Issaquena Creek, from Choctaw for "deer river"	1,256	436.7 sq mi (1,131 km2)
Itawamba County	057	Fulton	IT	1836	Formed from Monroe County	Itawamba (c. 1759–1834), Chickasaw chief	24,093	540.4 sq mi (1,400 km2)
Jackson County	059	Pascagoula	JA	1812	Formed from Mobile County (AL)	Andrew Jackson (1767–1845), 7th U.S. President and War of 1812 hero	146,389	740.8 sq mi (1,919 km2)
Jasper County	061	Bay Springs, Paulding	JS	1833	Formed from Jones and Wayne Counties	William Jasper (c. 1750–1779), Revolutionary War sergeant	16,013	677.4 sq mi (1,754 km2)
Jefferson County	063	Fayette	JE	1799	Origianlly known as Pickering, one of two original counties in the Mississippi Territory formed by Governor Winthrop Sargent	Thomas Jefferson (1743–1826), Founding Father, 3rd U.S. President, and primary author of the Declaration of Independence	6,941	527.1 sq mi (1,365 km2)
Jefferson Davis County	065	Prentiss	JD	1906	Formed from Covington and Lawrence Counties	Jefferson Davis (1808–1889), 1st Confederate States President and U.S. Senator	10,969	409.2 sq mi (1,060 km2)
Jones County	067	Laurel, Ellisville	JO	1826	Formed from Covington and Wayne Counties	John Paul Jones (1747–1792), Revolutionary War naval captain who is known as the "Father of the American Navy"	66,250	699.7 sq mi (1,812 km2)
Kemper County	069	De Kalb	KE	1833	Formed from Lowndes, Rankin and Wayne Counties	Reuben Kemper (1771–1827), American pioneer and revolutionary in Spanish Florida	8,584	767 sq mi (1,987 km2)
Lafayette County	071	Oxford	LA	1836	Formed from Monroe County	Marquis de la Fayette (1757–1834), French-born Revolutionary War general	58,467	679.3 sq mi (1,759 km2)
Lamar County	073	Purvis	LM	1904	Formed from Marion and Pearl River Counties	Lucius Q. C. Lamar (1825–1893), Confederate colonel, U.S. Senator, United States Secretary of the Interior, and Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States	66,217	500.4 sq mi (1,296 km2)
Lauderdale County	075	Meridian	LD	1833	Formed from Rankin and Wayne Counties	James Lauderdale (1768–1814), War of 1812 colonel	70,527	715.3 sq mi (1,853 km2)
Lawrence County	077	Monticello	LW	1814	Formed from Marion County	James Lawrence (1781–1813), War of 1812 naval captain of the USS Chesapeake	11,741	435.8 sq mi (1,129 km2)
Leake County	079	Carthage	LK	1833	Formed from Madison and Rankin Counties	Walter Leake (1762–1825), 3rd Governor of Mississippi and U.S. Senator	21,258	585.4 sq mi (1,516 km2)
Lee County	081	Tupelo	LE	1866	Formed from Itawamba and Pontotoc Counties	Robert E. Lee (1807–1870), General in Chief of the Armies of the Confederate States	82,799	453.1 sq mi (1,174 km2)
Leflore County	083	Greenwood	LF	1871	Formed from Carroll and Sunflower Counties	Greenwood LeFlore (1800–1865), Chief of the Choctaw Nation and state senator and representative	26,378	606.3 sq mi (1,570 km2)
Lincoln County	085	Brookhaven	LI	1870	Formed from Amite, Copiah, Franklin, Lawrence and Pike Counties	Abraham Lincoln (1809–1865), 16th U.S. President	34,702	588.2 sq mi (1,523 km2)
Lowndes County	087	Columbus	LO	1830	Formed from Monroe County and Unorganized	William Jones Lowndes (1782–1822), U.S. House Representative	57,283	516.3 sq mi (1,337 km2)
Madison County	089	Canton	MD	1828	Formed from Yazoo County	James Madison (1751–1836), Founding Father, 4th U.S. President, and "Father of the Constitution"	112,511	742.2 sq mi (1,922 km2)
Marion County	091	Columbia	MA	1811	Formed from Unorganized and Amite, Franklin and Wayne Counties	Francis Marion (c. 1732–1795), Revolutionary War lieutenant colonel	24,224	548.7 sq mi (1,421 km2)
Marshall County	093	Holly Springs	MR	1836	Formed from Monroe County	John Marshall (1755–1835), Chief Justice of the United States who shaped the Supreme Court's power	34,123	709.7 sq mi (1,838 km2)
Monroe County	095	Aberdeen	MO	1821	Formed from Unorganized land	James Monroe (1758–1831), Founding Father and 5th U.S. President	33,609	772.1 sq mi (2,000 km2)
Montgomery County	097	Winona	MT	1871	Formed from Carroll and Choctaw Counties	Richard Montgomery (1738–1775), Revolutionary War major general	9,600	407.8 sq mi (1,056 km2)
Neshoba County	099	Philadelphia	NE	1833	Formed from Jones, Madison, Rankin and Wayne Counties	Choctaw for "wolf"	28,789	571.7 sq mi (1,481 km2)
Newton County	101	Decatur	NW	1836	Formed from Neshoba County	Isaac Newton (1642–1726/27), English polymath who was a key figure in the Scientific Revolution and the Enlightenment	21,019	579.6 sq mi (1,501 km2)
Noxubee County	103	Macon	NO	1833	Formed from Lowndes and Rankin Counties	Noxubee River, from Choctaw for “to smell as newly caught fish; to stink, as fish", "strong smelling", or "offensive odor"	9,914	700.1 sq mi (1,813 km2)
Oktibbeha County	105	Starkville	OK	1833	Formed from Lowndes County	Tibbee Creek, from Choctaw for "fighting water" or "blocks of ice therein"	51,203	462 sq mi (1,197 km2)
Panola County	107	Batesville, Sardis	PA	1836	Formed from Monroe and Washington Counties and Unorganized	Choctaw for "cotton"	32,669	705.2 sq mi (1,826 km2)
Pearl River County	109	Poplarville	PR	1890	Formed from Hancock and Marion Counties	Pearl River	57,978	819.1 sq mi (2,121 km2)
Perry County	111	New Augusta	PE	1820	Formed from Greene County	Oliver Hazard Perry (1785–1819), War of 1812 naval captain	11,315	650.2 sq mi (1,684 km2)
Pike County	113	Magnolia	PI	1815	Formed from Marion County	Zebulon Pike (1779–1813), western explorer and War of 1812 brigadier general	39,394	410.6 sq mi (1,063 km2)
Pontotoc County	115	Pontotoc	PO	1836	Formed from Monroe County	Chickasaw name for a nearby creek, meaning "hanging grapes" or "cattail prairie"	31,535	501 sq mi (1,298 km2)
Prentiss County	117	Booneville	PS	1870	Formed from Itawamba and Tishomingo Counties	Seargent Smith Prentiss (1808–1850), U.S. House Representative	25,135	418.2 sq mi (1,083 km2)
Quitman County	119	Marks	QU	1877	Formed from Coahoma, Panola, Tallahatchie and Tunica Counties	John A. Quitman (1798–1858), 10th and 16th Governor of Mississippi and U.S. House Representative	5,546	406.4 sq mi (1,053 km2)
Rankin County	121	Brandon	RA	1828	Formed from Hinds County	Christopher Rankin (1788–1826), U.S. House Representative	160,417	805.9 sq mi (2,087 km2)
Scott County	123	Forest	SC	1833	Formed from Covington, Jones and Rankin Counties	Abram M. Scott (1785–1833), 7th Governor of Mississippi	27,507	610.4 sq mi (1,581 km2)
Sharkey County	125	Rolling Fork	SH	1876	Formed from Issaquena and Washington Counties	William L. Sharkey (1798–1873), 25th Governor of Mississippi and Mississippi Supreme Court justice	3,336	435.3 sq mi (1,127 km2)
Simpson County	127	Mendenhall	SI	1824	Formed from Copiah County	Josiah Simpson, Mississippi Territory judge and delegate to the 1817 Mississippi Constitutional Convention	25,715	590.5 sq mi (1,529 km2)
Smith County	129	Raleigh	SM	1833	Formed from Covington, Jones and Rankin Counties	David Smith, Revolutionary War major	14,099	637.3 sq mi (1,651 km2)
Stone County	131	Wiggins	ST	1916	Formed from Harrison County	John M. Stone (1830–1900), 31st and 33rd Governor of Mississippi	18,756	448.1 sq mi (1,161 km2)
Sunflower County	133	Indianola	SU	1844	Formed from Bolivar County	Sunflower River	24,468	706.9 sq mi (1,831 km2)
Tallahatchie County	135	Charleston, Sumner	TL	1833	Formed from Washington and Monroe Counties and Unorganized	Tallahatchie River, from Choctaw for "river of the rock"	11,837	652.2 sq mi (1,689 km2)
Tate County	137	Senatobia	TA	1873	Formed from DeSoto and Marshall Counties	Thomas Simpson Tate, one of the county's original settlers	28,261	411 sq mi (1,064 km2)
Tippah County	139	Ripley	TI	1836	Formed from Monroe County	Chickasaw for "to eat one another"	21,287	459.9 sq mi (1,191 km2)
Tishomingo County	141	Iuka	TS	1836	Formed from Monroe County	Chief Tishomingo (c.1735–c.1837), Chickasaw chief	18,507	444.6 sq mi (1,152 km2)
Tunica County	143	Tunica	TU	1836	Formed from Washington County and Unorganized	Tunica Native Americans	9,234	480.8 sq mi (1,245 km2)
Union County	145	New Albany	UN	1870	Formed from Lee, Pontotoc and Tippah Counties	Reunion of Confederacy with the United States	28,284	416.9 sq mi (1,080 km2)
Walthall County	147	Tylertown	WL	1910	Formed from Marion and Pike Counties	Edward Walthall (1831–1898), Confederate general and U.S. Senator	13,863	404.3 sq mi (1,047 km2)
Warren County	149	Vicksburg	WR	1809	Formed from Claiborne County and Unorganized	Joseph Warren (1741–1775), Founding Father and Revolutionary War general	42,298	620.1 sq mi (1,606 km2)
Washington County	151	Greenville	WS	1827	Formed from Warren and Yazoo Counties	George Washington (1732–1799), Founding Father and 1st U.S. President	41,946	760.9 sq mi (1,971 km2)
Wayne County	153	Waynesboro	WA	1809	Formed from Washington County (AL)	Anthony Wayne (1745–1796), Revolutionary War major general and Senior Officer of the United States Army	19,703	813.5 sq mi (2,107 km2)
Webster County	155	Walthall	WE	1874	Formed from Chickasaw, Choctaw and Montgomery Counties as Sumner County	Daniel Webster (1782–1852), 14th and 19th U.S. Secretary of State and U.S. Senator	9,988	422.8 sq mi (1,095 km2)
Wilkinson County	157	Woodville	WK	1802	Formed from Adams County	James Wilkinson (1757–1825), Revolutionary War general, Senior Officer of the United States Army, and double agent for the Kingdom of Spain	8,058	687.2 sq mi (1,780 km2)
Winston County	159	Louisville	WI	1833	Formed from Lowndes, Madison, and Rankin Counties	Louis L. Winston (1784–1824), Mississippi Supreme Court justice	17,416	610.1 sq mi (1,580 km2)
Yalobusha County	161	Water Valley, Coffeeville	YA	1833	Formed from Monroe and Washington Counties and Unorganized	Yalobusha River, from Choctaw meaning "tadpole place"	12,386	495 sq mi (1,282 km2)
Yazoo County	163	Yazoo City	YZ	1823	Formed from Hinds County	Yazoo River, named for the Yazoo people	25,796	933.9 sq mi (2,419 km2)

Former counties

List of former counties

County	Established	Abolished	Notes	Ref.
Bainbridge County	January 17, 1823	January 21, 1824	Created from Covington County, it was eventually subsumed back into it a year later.
Pearl County	February 21, 1872	February 28, 1878	Created from Hancock County, it gained territory from Marion County before being subsumed back into Hancock and Marion. Because of financial problems and a sparse population, Pearl County was abolished.

See also

• List of municipalities in Mississippi
• List of census-designated places in Mississippi

References

Works cited

• Center for Government and Community Development (2023). Davis, Sumner; Camp, Jason (eds.). County Government in Mississippi (PDF) (7th ed.). Mississippi State University.