Sharkey County is a county in Mississippi, United States, in the Mississippi Delta on the west side of the state. It had a population of 3,800 at the 2020 census and covers 435 square miles (1,130 km2), of which 432 square miles is land and 3.4 square miles is water, centred near 32°53′N 90°49′W.
Rolling Fork is the county seat, and its postal code is 39159. The county has two incorporated towns, three census-designated places, and five unincorporated communities. Sharkey County observes Central time.
Towns & Villages in Sharkey County
Sharkey County has ten named places on record: two incorporated towns, three census-designated places (CDPs), and five unincorporated communities. Anguilla and Cary are the only two with their own town governments; the rest have no municipal boundary of their own. A handful of the old list’s entries — landings and rail sidings such as Big Eddy Landing, Chapel Landing, and Ratliff Landing — were river or railroad points rather than settlements with populations of their own; they are kept below as historical landmarks, not town listings.
| Place | Type | Pop. | ZIP |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rolling Fork | Town · seat | 1,883 | 39159 |
| Anguilla | Town | 496 | 38721 |
| Cary | Town | 241 | 39054 |
| Delta City | CDP | — | 39159 |
| Nitta Yuma | CDP | — | 39159 |
| Panther Burn | CDP | — | 38753 |
| Egremont | Unincorp. | — | 39159 |
| Issaquena | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Lorenzen | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Onward | Unincorp. | — | 39159 |
| Patmos | Unincorp. | — | — |
The community called Issaquena, inside Sharkey County, is not the same place as neighboring Issaquena County — a source of frequent confusion since the two share a name and a border.
ZIP Codes
- 39159 — Rolling Fork (also serves Delta City, Nitta Yuma, Egremont, Onward)
- 38721 — Anguilla
- 39054 — Cary
- 38753 — Panther Burn
Issaquena, Lorenzen, and Patmos have no dedicated ZIP code of their own and are served by one of the codes above.
Geography
Sharkey County sits in the alluvial Mississippi Delta, flat farmland cut by bayous and oxbow lakes left behind by the Mississippi and Yazoo rivers. The Yazoo River forms part of the county’s eastern border, and the Little Sunflower and Steele Bayou drain much of the interior. U.S. Route 61 crosses the county north–south, with Mississippi Highway 14 and Mississippi Highway 16 as secondary routes.
Sharkey County borders Washington County to the north, Humphreys County to the northeast, Yazoo County to the east, and Issaquena County to the southwest.
Demographics
Sharkey County had 3,800 residents at the 2020 census, the second-smallest population of any Mississippi county after neighboring Issaquena. Rolling Fork and Anguilla are the two largest communities. The county’s median household income runs well below the Mississippi median of $54,203, reflecting the Delta region’s persistent rural poverty. Population density is about 8.8 people per square mile.
Economy & Local Life
Row-crop farming drives the county economy — cotton, soybeans, corn, and catfish aquaculture ponds fill the flat Delta bottomland around Rolling Fork and Anguilla. Sharkey County School District serves the county’s students, and the county courthouse and government offices are based in Rolling Fork, the seat since the county’s founding. Local life still runs on the farming calendar: planting in spring, harvest through the fall, with hunting season on the surrounding Delta National Forest land drawing visitors each winter. The 2023 tornado destroyed a large share of Rolling Fork’s small-business district, and rebuilding has been the town’s central economic story since.
History
Sharkey County was organized in 1876, carved from parts of neighboring counties, and named for William L. Sharkey, who served as Mississippi’s provisional governor in 1865 during Reconstruction. The county has weathered two of the region’s most destructive tornadoes: an F5 storm on February 21, 1971, and an EF4 tornado on March 24, 2023, that tore through Rolling Fork with winds estimated at 195 mph, killing 17 people and destroying much of the town’s core.
Getting There
U.S. Route 61 is the county’s main highway, running north to Greenville and south toward Vicksburg. Local anchors:
- Greenville — 25 miles north
- Vicksburg — 40 miles south
- Yazoo City — 35 miles east
- Greenwood — 45 miles northeast
The nearest commercial airport is Greenville Mid-Delta Airport, roughly 25 miles to the north.
Frequently Asked Questions
Where is Sharkey County, Mississippi?
It is in the Mississippi Delta in the west-central part of the state, bordered by Washington, Humphreys, Yazoo, and Issaquena counties.
What is the population of Sharkey County?
Sharkey County had 3,800 residents at the 2020 census, the second-least populous county in Mississippi.
How big is Sharkey County?
The county covers 435 square miles (1,130 km2), of which 432 square miles is land.
What is the county seat of Sharkey County?
Rolling Fork is the county seat.
How many towns are in Sharkey County?
The county has two incorporated towns (Rolling Fork and Anguilla, plus Cary), three census-designated places, and five unincorporated communities.
What ZIP codes are in Sharkey County?
The main codes are 39159 (Rolling Fork), 38721 (Anguilla), 39054 (Cary), and 38753 (Panther Burn).
Why is Sharkey County named that?
It is named for William L. Sharkey, Mississippi’s provisional governor in 1865.
More counties in this state: Towns and villages in Mississippi.