Jefferson Davis County, MS

Jefferson Davis County, Mississippi
County
County of Jefferson Davis
Jefferson Davis County courthouse in Prentiss
Location in the U.S. state of Mississippi
Mississippi's location in the U.S.
Founded	1906
Named for	Jefferson Davis
Seat	Prentiss
Largest town	Prentiss
Area
• Total	409 sq mi (1,059 km2)
• Land	408 sq mi (1,057 km2)
• Water	0.7 sq mi (2 km2), 0.2%
Population
• (2010)	12,487
• Density	31/sq mi (12/km2)
Congressional district	3rd
Time zone	Central: UTC−6/−5
Website	www.jeffersondaviscountyms.com

Jefferson Davis County is a county located in the U.S. state of Mississippi. As of the 2010 census, the population was 12,487. Its county seat is Prentiss. The county is named in honor of Mississippi Senator and Confederate President Jefferson Davis. The county was carved out of Covington and Lawrence counties in March 1906. Governor James K. Vardaman signed the bill creating the county on May 9, 1906.

The genesis of the county occurred on March 31, 1906, when a Mississippi state legislative act authorized the new country's boundaries. The residents of western Covington County and eastern Lawrence County had frequently complained of the rivers and streams impeding the route to their respective county seats. Jefferson Davis County was the state's 77th county.

A 1906 special referendum determined that the county seat would be Prentiss, named for either famed Mississippi lawmaker and orator Seargent Smith Prentiss, or wealthy landowner Prentiss Webb Berry. The settlement was originally named Blountville after early settler William Blount.

In 1933, the county was the first in Mississippi to issue a prohibition on alcohol after the repeal of the Eighteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution. Round dancing in the community hall was banned in 1938.

In 1935, notorious bank robber Raymond Hamilton, known to hide out in the county's wilderness, was involved in a hostage situation after robbing Prentiss' Bank of Blountville, but escaped in Memphis.