Clarke County is a county in Mississippi, United States, part of the Meridian micropolitan area. It had a population of 15,615 at the 2020 census and covers 694 square miles (1,800 km2) centred near 32°02′N 88°41′W.
Quitman is the county seat, and its postal code is 39355. The county has five incorporated towns — Quitman, Enterprise, Pachuta, Shubuta and Stonewall — alongside dozens of small unincorporated communities. Clarke County has no civil townships. It observes Central time.
Towns & Villages in Clarke County
Clarke County has five incorporated towns and roughly three dozen unincorporated communities, hamlets and crossroads settlements. Places marked “Unincorp.” have no municipal government of their own.
| Place | Type | Pop. | ZIP |
|---|---|---|---|
| Quitman | Town · seat | 2,061 | 39355 |
| Enterprise | Town | — | 39330 |
| Pachuta | Town | — | 39347 |
| Shubuta | Town | — | 39360 |
| Stonewall | Town | — | 39363 |
| Barnett | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Basic | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Beatrice | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Brewer | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Carmichael | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Chancellor | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Crandall | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Davis | Unincorp. | — | — |
| De Soto | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Dedwylder | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Devoe | Unincorp. | — | — |
| East Enterprise | Unincorp. | — | 39330 (also serves Enterprise) |
| Elwood | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Energy | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Goodwater | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Hale | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Harmony | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Horn | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Hurricane Creek | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Junction City | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Langsdale | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Linton | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Mannassa | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Matherville | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Middleton | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Nancy | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Pine Ridge | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Roy | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Sable | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Sels Prairie | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Shiloh | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Snell | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Sykes | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Threadville | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Wautubbee | Unincorp. | — | — |
| West Enterprise | Unincorp. | — | 39330 (also serves Enterprise) |
East Enterprise and West Enterprise are unincorporated crossroads communities near the town of Enterprise, not part of the town itself, and both use Enterprise’s ZIP code.
ZIP Codes
- 39355 — Quitman post office town (also serves most of central and northern Clarke County)
- 39330 — Enterprise post office town (also serves East Enterprise and West Enterprise)
- 39347 — Pachuta post office town
- 39360 — Shubuta post office town (also serves the county’s southeastern corner)
- 39363 — Stonewall post office town
Unincorporated communities without their own post office use the ZIP of the nearest town listed above.
Geography
Clarke County sits in Mississippi’s Pine Belt, within the Meridian micropolitan area and in the southeastern part of the state, on gently rolling terrain. Of its 694 square miles, 692 square miles are land and 2.0 square miles are water. The Chickasawhay River flows north to south through the county’s eastern portion, eventually joining the Pascagoula River, and the county is heavily forested with commercial pine and hardwood timberland.
Clarke County borders Lauderdale County to the north, Choctaw County, Alabama to the east, Wayne County to the south, and Jasper County to the west.
Demographics
Clarke County had a population of 15,615 at the 2020 census. Quitman, the county seat, is the largest community, followed by Shubuta and Enterprise among the incorporated towns. Median household income in the county runs below the Mississippi median of $54,203, consistent with the rural Pine Belt counties around it. Population density is about 22.6 people per square mile.
Economy & Local Life
Clarke County’s economy centers on forestry and forest-products manufacturing, agriculture, and public-sector and healthcare employment based in Quitman. Weyerhaeuser and other timber operators are major landholders in the county, and pulpwood and sawtimber harvesting support local logging contractors. Quitman serves as the county’s retail and government hub, with Clarke County School District and Anderson Regional Health System – Quitman among the larger employers.
History
Clarke County was organized on December 23, 1833, from part of the Choctaw cession lands ceded under the 1830 Treaty of Dancing Rabbit Creek, and is named for Joshua G. Clarke, Mississippi’s first state chancellor. Choctaw communities occupied the area before European-American settlement began around 1832. The county’s history includes a dark chapter documented in the book “The Hanging Bridge,” which records the lynching of Black residents in the county in the early twentieth century.
Getting There
U.S. Route 45 and Mississippi Highway 145 are the county’s main north-south routes, with Mississippi Highway 511 and other state routes providing east-west access.
- Meridian — about 20 miles north
- Laurel — about 30 miles southwest
- Hattiesburg — about 55 miles south
The nearest commercial airport is Meridian Regional Airport (MEI), about 20 miles north of Quitman.
Frequently Asked Questions
Where is Clarke County, Mississippi?
Clarke County is in southeastern Mississippi, part of the Meridian micropolitan area, bordering Alabama to the east.
What is the population of Clarke County?
Clarke County had a population of 15,615 at the 2020 census.
How big is Clarke County?
Clarke County covers 694 square miles (1,800 km2), of which 692 square miles is land.
What is the county seat of Clarke County?
Quitman is the county seat.
How many towns are in Clarke County?
Clarke County has five incorporated towns — Quitman, Enterprise, Pachuta, Shubuta and Stonewall — plus roughly three dozen unincorporated communities.
What ZIP codes are in Clarke County?
Clarke County’s ZIP codes are 39355 (Quitman), 39330 (Enterprise), 39347 (Pachuta), 39360 (Shubuta) and 39363 (Stonewall).
What river runs through Clarke County?
The Chickasawhay River flows north to south through the county’s eastern portion.
More counties in this state: Towns and villages in Mississippi.