Moss Point is a city in Jackson County, Mississippi, United States. The population was 13,704 at the 2010 census, down from 17,653 at the 2000 census. On August 29, 2005, Moss Point was hit by the strong east side of Hurricane Katrina, and much of the city was flooded or destroyed. Moss Point is home to Trent Lott International Airport and the Mississippi Export Railroad.
Moss Point is in southeastern Jackson County, on the east side of the Pascagoula River. It is bordered to the south by the city of Pascagoula, the county seat, and to the north by unincorporated Escatawpa. The Escatawpa River flows east-west through the city into the Pascagoula River.
U.S Route 90 forms the southeast boundary of Moss Point, leading southwest into Pascagoula and northeast to Interstate 10, which runs through the northern part of the Moss Point city limits.
SIGHTS AND ACTIVITIES
Pascagoula River Audubon Center
Adventure awaits at the Pascagoula River Audubon Center in Moss Point. The Center is the educational gateway to exploring nature and bayou habitats by offering educational programming for school groups while featuring local nature themes, a step back in time with the historic trolley ticket booth and Scout Hut, and hands-on learning opportunities to fit your needs. Daytime visitors can discover the outdoors on the nature trails, bayou pier, bird feeders, critter tanks, art gallery, kayak rentals, gift shop and more! Visit PRAC to plan your next school or private adventure.
Grand Bay National Refuge
Scenic and beautiful, the Grand Bay National Refuge offers trails that cut through the swath of grass that covers the Gulf Coastal Plain. Hundreds of species of different animals live among the borders of the refuge, and you may catch a glimpse of some of them if you walk the trails. Restaurants are also in the area, so you can replenish your energy after a day spent on the wooden pathways.
Gulf Coast Gator Ranch & Airboat Swamp Tours
Have a thirst for danger? Well, this is probably what you’re looking for. Gulf Coast Gator Ranch & Airboat Swamp Tours offers you up-close experience with the infamous American alligator. Offering tours on airboats through the bayou and walks through the gator farm, you can get close enough to lay your hands on them. It’s a fun and exciting experience for everyone!
EDUCATION
SCHOOLS:
- Kreole Elementary School
- Escatawpa Upper Elementary School
- Magnolia Middle School
- Moss Point High School
NEIGHBORHOOD
Moss Point is a city of service providers, professionals, and sales and office workers. The majority of people living in Moss Point work in office and administrative support (10.21%), sales jobs (8.23%), and maintenance occupations (8.15%).
It is a fairly quiet city because there are relatively few of those groups of people who have a tendency to be noisy. Moss Point has relatively few families with children living at home, and is quieter because of it. Renters and college students, for their own reasons, can also be noisy. Moss Point has few renters and college students. But the biggest reason it is quieter in Moss Point than in most places in America, is that there are just simply fewer people living there.
If you think trees make good neighbors, Moss Point may be for you.
One of the nice things about Moss Point is that it is nautical, which means that parts of it are somewhat historic and touch the ocean or tidal bodies of water, such as inlets and bays. Because of this, visitors and locals will often go to these areas to take in the scenery or to enjoy waterfront activities.
POPULAR REAL ESTATE
- City Center
- Big Point / Hurley
- Frederick St / Macphelah Rd
- Shortcut Rd / Temple St
- Tanner Williams Rd / Ramie Farm Rd
- Orange Grove / Missala
- Griffin St / Dantzler St
- Kreole / East Moss Point
- Escatawpa / Helena
Average real estate costs are in the 59,000 to 280,000 dollar range, with some homes extending into the million-dollar range. The median home cost is 98,000 dollars.
Moss Point’s per capita income is $24,517, with 21.57% of the population having obtained a college degree. Moss Point’s poverty rate is 23.14%, with the impoverished population living in neighborhoods established in different areas of the city.
HISTORY
D’Iberville, the French explorer, founded his colony in nearby Biloxi in 1699, but it wasn’t until a century later before there was any activity around Moss Point. Forests near Moss Point supplied the French, Spanish, and British navies with spars for their warships and armadas.
Following the Battle of New Orleans, some of its men settled at Moss Point. Other early settlers from North Carolina, Virginia, and Georgia came by way of Greene County to establish thriving sawmill businesses. Shallow-draft schooners loaded lumber for foreign ports in Europe, Mexico, South America, and Cuba.
At one time, Moss Point’s post office was designated as Elder’s Ferry, but it was “Mossey Point” to logging men and raft riders.
During the Civil War, the sawmills came to a halt, when a column of Union troops marched down the river road and took over the town and the mills.
After the Civil War, the lumber and sawmill business revived, and by the close of the century, Moss Point was a lumber empire. In the late 1890’s and early 1900’s there were twelve sawmills on the river, and all but three were in Moss Point.
Moss Point was recognized as the largest pine lumber export center until 1910.