Holmes County is a county in Mississippi, United States, in the west-central part of the state where the Yazoo–Mississippi Delta meets the hill country along the Big Black River. It had a population of 17,000 at the 2020 census and covers 765 square miles (1,980 km2), of which 757 square miles (1,960 km2) is land, centred near 33°07′N 90°05′W.
Lexington is the county seat, and its postal code is 39095. The county has seven incorporated cities and towns and more than fifty unincorporated communities, sits in the Central time zone, and carries FIPS code 28051.
Towns & Villages in Holmes County
Holmes County has 61 named places on record: seven incorporated cities and towns and 54 unincorporated communities scattered across the Delta bottomland and the hill country to the east. “Unincorp.” below marks places with no municipal government of their own; population and ZIP are shown only where a figure could be verified.
| Place | Type | Pop. | ZIP |
|---|---|---|---|
| Lexington | City · seat | — | 39095 |
| Durant | City | — | 39063 |
| Goodman | Town | — | 39079 |
| Pickens | Town | — | 39146 |
| Tchula | Town | — | 39169 |
| West | Town | — | 39192 |
| Cruger | Town | — | 38924 |
| Aberdeen Junction | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Acona | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Bee Lake | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Blissdale | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Bowling Green | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Brozville | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Butler | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Castalian Springs | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Choctaw | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Coxburg | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Dulweber | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Ebenezer | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Edsville | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Egypt | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Emory | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Eulogy | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Franklin | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Good Hope | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Gum Grove | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Gwin | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Hoffman | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Horseshoe | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Howard | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Ituma | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Jones Crossing | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Keirn | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Lebanon | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Marcella | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Marksville | Unincorp. | — | — |
| McMillan | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Meeks | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Mileston | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Montgomery | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Oak Grove | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Omega | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Oregon | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Oswego | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Owens Wells | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Pinchback | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Pine Grove | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Pluto | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Poplar Springs | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Quofaloma | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Richland | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Roseneath | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Shackleford | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Stonewall | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Thornton | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Tolarville | Unincorp. | — | — |
| West Hill | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Westfield | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Wyatt | Unincorp. | — | — |
Mileston is notable as the site of a federal Depression-era resettlement community for Black farm families; the New Deal-era Mileston Cooperative later became a base for 1960s voter-registration organizing in the county.
ZIP Codes
- 39095 — Lexington
- 39063 — Durant
- 39079 — Goodman
- 39146 — Pickens
- 39169 — Tchula
- 39192 — West
- 38924 — Cruger
Holmes County is covered by seven ZIP codes, one centred on each incorporated city or town; unincorporated communities use the ZIP of their nearest post-office town and are not listed separately here.
Geography
Holmes County sits at the eastern edge of the Yazoo–Mississippi Delta, where flat, historically cotton-farmed bottomland gives way to rolling loess hills in the county’s east. The Yazoo River defines part of the western county line and the Big Black River runs along the east; Delta National Forest land lies partly within the county’s southwestern reaches. Of the county’s 765 square miles, 757 are land and about 8 are water.
Holmes County borders Carroll County to the north, Attala County to the east, Yazoo County to the south, Humphreys County to the west, and Leflore County to the northwest.
Demographics
Holmes County had 17,000 residents at the 2020 census, spread across a land area of 757 square miles for a density of roughly 22 people per square mile — well below Mississippi’s statewide average. Durant and Lexington are the county’s two largest communities. Holmes County is one of Mississippi’s most economically challenged counties; household income runs well under the Mississippi median of $54,203, and the county has consistently ranked among the poorest in the United States by per-capita income.
Economy & Local Life
Agriculture remains central to Holmes County’s economy: cotton, soybeans, corn, and catfish farming are worked across the Delta bottomland, alongside forestry in the eastern hill country. Holmes Community College, based in Goodman, is the county’s largest educational institution and a major local employer, along with the Holmes County School District and county and municipal government. The county’s small-town retail and service base is concentrated in Lexington and Durant.
History
Holmes County was organized in 1833 and named for David Holmes, the territorial governor of Mississippi and later its first state governor as well as a U.S. senator. Before the Civil War the county’s economy was built on cotton grown with enslaved labor, and it retained a large Black majority population after emancipation. Holmes County native Edmond Favor Noel served as governor of Mississippi from 1908 to 1912. In the early 1960s the county, and Mileston in particular, became a center of grassroots civil-rights organizing around Black voter registration in the Mississippi Delta.
Getting There
Interstate 55 crosses the county’s eastern edge, and U.S. Routes 49 and 51 along with Mississippi Highways 12, 14, 17, and 19 provide the main local connections.
- Durant — on I-55, the county’s main highway junction
- Goodman — a few miles south of Durant on US 51
- Yazoo City — south, in neighboring Yazoo County
- Greenwood — northwest, in the Delta beyond Leflore County
The nearest commercial airport is Jackson-Medgar Wiley Evers International Airport, south of the county via I-55.
Frequently Asked Questions
Where is Holmes County, Mississippi?
It is in the west-central part of the state, on the eastern edge of the Yazoo–Mississippi Delta, bordered by Carroll, Attala, Yazoo, Humphreys, and Leflore counties.
What is the population of Holmes County?
17,000 at the 2020 census.
How big is Holmes County?
765 square miles (1,980 km2) total, of which 757 square miles is land.
What is the county seat of Holmes County?
Lexington is the county seat.
How many towns are in Holmes County?
Seven incorporated cities and towns — Lexington, Durant, Goodman, Pickens, Tchula, West, and Cruger — plus more than fifty unincorporated communities.
What ZIP codes are in Holmes County?
39095 (Lexington), 39063 (Durant), 39079 (Goodman), 39146 (Pickens), 39169 (Tchula), 39192 (West), and 38924 (Cruger).
What is Holmes County known for?
Delta cotton and catfish farming, Holmes Community College in Goodman, and its role as an organizing center of the 1960s Mississippi voter-registration movement.
More counties in this state: Towns and villages in Mississippi.