Port Gibson is a city in
Claiborne County,
Mississippi,
United States. The population was 1,840 at the 2000 census. It is the
county seat of
Claiborne County.
History
Chartered as a town on
March 12,
1803, Port Gibson is Mississippi's third oldest settlement, being occupied in 1729. Port Gibson was the site of several clashes during the
American Civil War and was important during
Ulysses S. Grant's
Vicksburg Campaign. The
Battle of Port Gibson occurred on
May 1,
1863, and resulted in the deaths of over 200
Union and
Confederate soldiers. The battle was an important turning point in the Confederate's ability to hold Mississippi and defend against an amphibious attack.
Port Gibson has many historic buildings including the
Windsor Ruins which have appeared in several motion pictures. Many of Port Gibson's historic buildings survived the Civil War because Grant believed the city too beautiful to be burned.
Although Port Gibson no longer has a Jewish community, it does boast the only
Moorish Revival building in Mississippi, the old
Gemiluth Chessed synagogue.
Mississippi Blues Trail
A historic marker has been place by the Mississippi Blues Commission in Port Gibson commemorating the enormous contribution the
The Rabbit's Foot Company has made to the development of the
blues in Mississippi. This places the site on the
Mississippi Blues Trail.
Geography
Port Gibson is located at (31.956243, -90.983124).
According to the
United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 1.8 square miles (4.6 km²), all of it land.
Demographics
As of the
census of 2000, there were 1,840 people, 692 households, and 447 families residing in the city. The
population density was 1,048.0 people per square mile (403.7/km²). There were 787 housing units at an average density of 448.2/sq mi (172.6/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 19.40%
White, 80.00%
African American, 0.05%
Native American, 0.22%
Asian, 0.05% from
other races, and 0.27% from two or more races.
Hispanic or
Latino of any race were 0.71% of the population.
There were 692 households out of which 30.6% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 31.9% were
married couples living together, 27.2% had a female householder with no husband present, and 35.3% were non-families. 30.8% of all households were made up of individuals and 13.9% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.64 and the average family size was 3.33.
In the city the population was spread out with 29.3% under the age of 18, 10.5% from 18 to 24, 24.7% from 25 to 44, 20.9% from 45 to 64, and 14.5% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 34 years. For every 100 females there were 80.2 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 76.2 males.
The median income for a household in the city was $24,848, and the median income for a family was $28,958. Males had a median income of $28,036 versus $21,115 for females. The
per capita income for the city was $12,928. About 26.0% of families and 31.3% of the population were below the
poverty line, including 41.9% of those under age 18 and 26.3% of those age 65 or over.
Education
The City of Port Gibson is served by the
Claiborne County School District. It is also home to the
Chamberlain-Hunt Academy, a Christian military boarding school.
Notable residents
