Wayne County is a county located in the U.S. state of Mississippi. As of the 2020 census, the population was 19,779. Its county seat is Waynesboro. The county is named for General Anthony Wayne.
Geography According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of , of which is land and (0.3%) is water. It is the fifth-largest county in Mississippi by land area.
Major highways U.S. Highway 45 U.S. Highway 84 Mississippi Highway 63
Adjacent counties Clarke County (north) Choctaw County, Alabama (northeast) Washington County, Alabama (southeast) Greene County (south) Perry County (southwest) Jones County (west) Jasper County (northwest)
National protected area De Soto National Forest (part)
Demographics
Racial and ethnic composition +Wayne County, Mississippi – Racial and ethnic compositionRace / Ethnicity (NH = Non-Hispanic)Pop 1980Pop 1990Pop 2000Pop 2010 Pop 2020% 1980% 1990% 2000% 2010% 2020White alone (NH)12,65112,46912,95512,24311,31366.11%63.89%61.06%59.01%57.20%Black or African American alone (NH)6,3136,9208,0178,0357,70832.99%35.46%37.79%38.73%38.97%Native American or Alaska Native alone (NH)9191438310.05%0.10%0.07%0.18%0.16%Asian alone (NH)12323134350.06%0.16%0.15%0.16%0.18%Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander alone (NH)x included in the Asian category in the 1980 Censusx included in the Asian category in the 1990 Census222xx0.01%0.01%0.01%Other race alone (NH)1203110.01%0.01%0.00%0.01%0.06%Mixed race or Multiracial (NH)x not an option in the 1980 Censusx not an option in the 1990 Census63146336xx0.30%0.70%1.70%Hispanic or Latino (any race)149751342463430.78%0.38%0.63%1.19%1.73%Total19,13519,51721,21620,74719,779 100.00%100.00%100.00%100.00%100.00%
2020 census As of the 2020 census, the county had a population of 19,779. The median age was 40.1 years. 24.0% of residents were under the age of 18 and 17.8% of residents were 65 years of age or older. For every 100 females there were 91.4 males, and for every 100 females age 18 and over there were 87.8 males age 18 and over.
The racial makeup of the county was 57.4% White, 39.1% Black or African American, 0.2% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.2% Asian, <0.1% Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander, 1.1% from some other race, and 2.1% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino residents of any race comprised 1.7% of the population.
<0.1% of residents lived in urban areas, while 100.0% lived in rural areas.
There were 7,977 households in the county, of which 31.8% had children under the age of 18 living in them. Of all households, 43.4% were married-couple households, 18.8% were households with a male householder and no spouse or partner present, and 33.2% were households with a female householder and no spouse or partner present. About 29.2% of all households were made up of individuals and 12.8% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older.
There were 9,031 housing units, of which 11.7% were vacant. Among occupied housing units, 78.5% were owner-occupied and 21.5% were renter-occupied. The homeowner vacancy rate was 1.2% and the rental vacancy rate was 9.8%.
Communities
Cities Waynesboro (county seat)
Towns State Line (mainly located in Greene County)
Census-designated places Buckatunna Clara
Unincorporated communities Chicora Eret Matherville Eucutta Robinsons Junction (or Robinson's Junction)
Ghost towns Winchester
Politics Wayne County was originally a Democratic stronghold, but like many parts of Mississippi it swung to the Republican Party beginning in the 1960s. The last Democrat to win the county was Jimmy Carter in 1976, and in 2024 Donald Trump earned the highest share of the votes in the county for a Republican since the lopsided 1972 election.
Education There are three school districts in the county, Wayne County School District, Wayne Central School District and Waynesboro Riverview School. - Text list
The county is in the zone for Jones College.
See also National Register of Historic Places listings in Wayne County, Mississippi
References
External links Wayne County Sheriff's Office Mississippi Courthouses – Wayne County