Rienzi, Mississippi

Rienzi, Mississippi
Town
Location of Rienzi, Mississippi Location of Rienzi, Mississippi
Rienzi, Mississippi Location in the United States
Coordinates:
Country	United States
State	Mississippi
County	Alcorn
Area
• Total	1.0 sq mi (2.6 km2)
• Land	1.0 sq mi (2.6 km2)
• Water	0.0 sq mi (0.0 km2)
Elevation	433 ft (132 m)
Population (2010)
• Total	317
• Density	320/sq mi (123.6/km2)
Time zone	Central (CST) (UTC-6)
• Summer (DST)	CDT (UTC-5)
ZIP code	38865
Area code(s)	662
FIPS code	28-62560
GNIS feature ID	0676659

Rienzi is a town in Alcorn County, Mississippi. The population was 317 at the 2010 census.

History

Rienzi was named for Cola di Rienzo, a medieval Italian politician. The original town was settled in 1830 and was located one mile west of its current location, near the Nesly Williams Plantation.

On April 27, 2011, a tornado hit Rienzi as part of the April 25–28, 2011 tornado outbreak, causing minor home damages and downing trees. The tornado was classified as an EF-0, with estimated wind speeds of 65 miles per hour (105 km/h; 56 kn). The tornado's path of destruction was 50 yards (46 m) wide, and the tornado traveled a path of 2.32 miles (3.73 km).

Geography

Rienzi is located at (34.764718, -88.529208).

According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 1.0 square mile (2.6 km²), all land.

Demographics

Historical population
Census	Pop.		%±
1900	230		—
1910	434		88.7%
1920	493		13.6%
1930	500		1.4%
1940	458		−8.4%
1950	468		2.2%
1960	375		−19.9%
1970	363		−3.2%
1980	423		16.5%
1990	339		−19.9%
2000	330		−2.7%
2010	317		−3.9%
Est. 2014	316		−0.3%
U.S. Decennial Census

As of the census of 2000, there were 330 people, 127 households, and 99 families residing in the town. The population density was 332.9 people per square mile (128.7/km²). There were 147 housing units at an average density of 148.3 per square mile (57.3/km²). The racial makeup of the town was 69.39% White, 28.48% African American, 2.12% from other races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 3.64% of the population.

There were 127 households out of which 26.0% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 56.7% were married couples living together, 16.5% had a female householder with no husband present, and 22.0% were non-families. 21.3% of all households were made up of individuals and 14.2% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.60 and the average family size was 3.04.

In the town the population was spread out with 25.2% under the age of 18, 10.3% from 18 to 24, 24.8% from 25 to 44, 26.7% from 45 to 64, and 13.0% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 39 years. For every 100 females there were 94.1 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 77.7 males.

The median income for a household in the town was $26,563, and the median income for a family was $31,375. Males had a median income of $31,125 versus $20,625 for females. The per capita income for the town was $10,604. About 22.6% of families and 28.4% of the population were below the poverty line, including 36.7% of those under age 18 and 34.8% of those age 65 or over.

Education

The town of Rienzi is served by the Alcorn School District.

Notable natives

• Billy McCoy, politician
• Jamie Davis, Southern rock singer