ZIP Code 39571

Pass Christian is a city in Harrison County, Mississippi, United States. It is part of the GulfportBiloxi Metropolitan Statistical Area. The exact date when Native Americans first arrived in the Gulf Coast area is not known, but artifacts have been found suggesting that humans have inhabited the area for many thousands of years. Indian mounds can be found throughout the Gulf coast region of southern Mississippi, but many have been destroyed by artifact hunters, farmers, developers, and flooding. The town was a famous resort prior to the American Civil War. It was a favorite location for the beach and summer homes of the wealthy of New Orleans, who built a row of historic mansions along the shoreline, where Scenic Drive was one of the country's notable historic districts. The Southern Yacht Club, established in 1849, was the first yacht club in the South and the second in the United States, and was originally located in Pass Christian before moving to New Orleans in 1857. Pass Christian was in the path of two of the most intense hurricanes ever to hit the U.S.--Hurricane Camille on August 17, 1969, and Hurricane Katrina on August 29, 2005. The fictional hurricane party depicted in Hurricane, a 74-minute TV movie featuring some notable stars, includes original footage of Camille. The city's police department retreated to the library after the Gulf of Mexico began to pour water from the fence in Mexico in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina. The public library was rebuilt after the storm.

History

Pass Christian is the primary city name, but also Pass Chris, Pass Christin are acceptable city names or spellings, Cuevas on the other hand no longer accepted or obsolete and are no longer used as a designation. The official name is City of Pass Christian. Indian mounds can be found throughout the Gulf coast region of southern Mississippi. The exact date when Native Americans first arrived in the Gulf Coast area is not known. Pass Christian was in the path of two of the most intense hurricanes ever to hit the United States--Hurricane Camille on August 17, 1969, and Hurricane Katrina on August 29, 2005. Each hurricane caused the near total destruction of the city. Of the approximately 8,000 homes in Pass Christian, all but 500 were damaged or destroyed. The Southern Yacht Club, established in 1849, was the first yacht club in the South and the second in the U.S. The town was a famous resort prior to the American Civil War. It was a favorite location for the beach and summer homes of the wealthy of New Orleans, who built a row of historic mansions along the shoreline, where Scenic Drive was one of the country's notable historic districts. A cast-iron fence fronted by the "Union Quarters" described in the National Register of Places in 1855 was dedicated in 1960. It read, "Union City Historical Marker" It was rebuilt after the police station became unsafe and water from the Gulf of Mexico began to pour in. The library was destroyed when the current elevation of the current parking lot began to crested and water began to float around the parking lot. When Hurricane Katrina totally destroyed the local public public library, the public library was moved to a different location. The public library has since been rebuilt.

Geography

The city is located on the Mississippi Sound, and is situated on a peninsula, with water on three sides: the Gulf of Mexico to the south, the Bay of St. Louis to the west and a long stretch of bayou to the north. The unincorporated area north of the bayou, known as DeLisle, shares a zip code with Pass Christian, but is not within the city limits. The Municipal Harbor was formalized in 1956 with the creation of a Harbor Commission. In 1958, an 11-foot high, 350-foot long, concrete, breakwater wall was constructed in the sound by the T.L. James Company. According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 15.3 square miles (40 km²) (44.97%) of which 8.4 square miles is land and 6.9 sq miles (18 km 2) is water. The city is home to one of the largest concentrations of African-American residents in the U.S., with more than 2,000 people per square mile (1,800 per km²), according to the 2010 Census. The population of Pass Christian was 1,816 in 2010, up from 1,715 in 2000. The town has a population of 1,907 (1.9 million in 2000). The city has an area of 15.3 sq miles, or 40 km², with 44.97% of that area being land.

Demographics

As of the 2020 U.S. census, there were 5,686 people, 2,163 households, and 1,574 families residing in the city. The racial makeup of the city was 65.91% White, 28.17% African American, 0.62% Native American, 3.48% Asian (almost all Vietnamese American), 0.03% Pacific Islander, 1.17%. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 1.75%. The city's population was spread out, with 23.4% under the age of 18, 6.9% from 18 to 24, 25.3% from 25 to 44,25.2% from 45 to 64, and 19.1% who were 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.38 and the average family size was2.88. The median income for a household in theCity was $40,743, and the median income. for a family was $46,232. The per capita income for the City was $26,008. About 8.2%. of families and 10.8% of the population were below the poverty line, including 18.0% of those under age 18 and 6.2. of those age 65 or over. The city has a population of 6,579 people, with 3,351 housing units, and a population density of 781.2 people per square mile (301.7/km²) The city is located on the Mississippi River.

Economy

DuPont DeLisle's titanium dioxide plant reported the third highest amount of dioxin-like compounds in EPA's Toxic Release Inventory (TRI) In 2005, the Hurricane Katrina storm surge flooded significant portions of the plant. The Deepwater Horizon oil spill, which occurred in the spring and summer of 2010along with the presence of toxic sediments stirred up by Hurricane Katrina and record amounts of fresh water diverted into the Bonnet Carre Spillway in Louisianahave brought seafood production to a standstill. Offshore oyster beds were hit especially hard. Field crews have reported a 50 percent to 65 percent mortality rate in some areas. An even greater mortality rate of 90 percent to 95 percent has been seen in other Oyster beds. Today, roughly 13 years ago, Mississippi was harvesting nearly 500,000 sacks of oysters annually.... Today, those numbers have fallen as low as 3,500 sacks annually. The plant is the 2nd largest producer of titanium dioxide in the world and has been in operation since 1979. The town of Pass Christian is near the plant, directly across the Bay of St. Louis. Some community members also expressed concerns that chemical releases, as reported on EPA's toxic Release Inventory, from the DuPont plant could have contaminated the community's water and air. The DuPont White Pigment and Mineral Products Plant, now known as the Chemours DeLisle Plant, is located just south of I-10 in DeLisle. It is the second largest titanium dioxide producer of the world.

Tourism

Rudolf Hecht and Lynne Watkins Hecht developed Middlegate Japanese Gardens at their summer home in Pass Christian, Mississippi. The gardens are listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Since 1923 when the Hechts established them, they have been private, residential gardens. The Smithsonian Institution has included the gardens on their Collection Search Center website. Woodrow Wilson stayed a winter at Beaulieu when it was owned by John M. Ayer of New Jersey and leased by Herndons family. Built 1854 for John Bachelor and demolished after suffering from heavy damage from Hurricane Camille in 1969. James M. Sherman began construction of Sherman Castle in 1921. The building is constructed of concrete blocks and steel and contained a plaque which read "God is my Sculptor". The gardens were extensively damaged by Hurricane Katrina in 2005. They are on the Smithsonian Institution's Collection Search Centre website and are listed as a part of the National Park Service's National Museum of American History and Culture. They have been listed as private residential gardens since 1923 and were listed as such in 2005 after they were damaged in Hurricane Katrina. They were also listed as public residential gardens until the end of the 20th century when they were turned into a private, private garden. The garden is located on the grounds of the Dixie White House, which was once owned by the Herndon family. The White House was built in 1854 and was later leased by John Ayer and John Bachelor of New York. It was demolished in 1969 and replaced with a modern mansion.

Government and Infrastructure

Naval Construction Battalion Center Gulfport, Mississippi, launched Seabees on Sept. 9 to assist its citizens with disaster recovery in the wake of Hurricane Katrina. In a measure to improve health, sanitation and morale, they set up a laundry unit and installed a nine-head shower unit for the firefighters and volunteers. They also built temporary housing to house 1,000 people rendered homeless by the impact of Katrina. The naval construction teams performed a similar feat after Hurricane Camille struck the town hard in 1969. They constructed a temporary police department headquarters and other municipal offices. They cleared approximately three miles of railroad track for a temporary sewer line. The current mayor of Pass Christian is Jimmy Rafferty. The city has a mayorcouncil government system. It has a board of aldermen that is made up of four members, with one at-large member and three at the mayor's office. It is located in Harrison and Stone counties, including Pass Christian. The town has a population of 2,000. The mayor is Buddy Clark, and the current board of trustees is Regina Charlot, Victor Pickich, Anthony Hall, Kenny Torgeson, and Buddy Clark. It also has a police department that was formed in the aftermath of the 1969 Camille disaster. The police department was formed after the town was hit hard by the storm. The chief of police, a former police officer, was also a member of the Seabee team that helped Pass Christian recover from Camille.

Education

The Pass Christian School District operates the schools in the city, and in the inland, unincorporated areas around and to the north of DeLisle. The district operates one early childhood/pre-K facility (University of Southern Mississippi Child Development Center), two elementary schools (DeLisle Elementary & Pass Christian Elementary), one middle school (Pass Christian Middle School) and one high school. Pass Christian High School was recognized as a National Blue Ribbon School in 2005, and DeLisle Elementary in 2013. The parochial elementary and middle school of St. Paul's Roman Catholic church was destroyed by Katrina, and the school was merged with the neighboring Long Beachparochial school to form St. Vincent de Paul School. Coast Episcopal High School is a parochials high school in Pass Christian. The school district also operates one elementary school in the unincorporated areas of Pass Christian, and one middle and high school outside of the city. It is the only school district in the state that does not operate an early childhood center or a pre-K center. It also operates a middle school and a high school, both of which were recognized as Blue Ribbon Schools in 2005 and 2012. It was the first district in Mississippi to do so; it was also the first in the South to achieve this status. The high school was the only one in Mississippi that was not a Blue Ribbon school. It has been recognized as such three times in the last five years; the other two were in 2012 and 2013.

Air Quality, Water Quality, Superfund Sites & UV Index

The Air Quality index is in Pass Christian, Harrison County, Mississippi = 20.8. These Air Quality index is based on annual reports from the EPA. Higher values are better (100=best). The number of ozone alert days is used as an indicator of air quality, as are the amounts of seven pollutants including particulates, carbon monoxide, sulfur dioxide, lead, and volatile organic chemicals. The Water Quality Index is 60. A measure of the quality of an area’s water supply as rated by the EPA. Higher values are better (100=best). The EPA has a complex method of measuring the watershed quality, using 15 indicators such as pollutants, turbidity, sediments, and toxic discharges. The Superfund Sites Index is 40. Higher is better (100=best). Based upon the number and impact of EPA Superfund pollution sites in the county, including spending on the cleanup efforts. The UV Index in Pass Christian = 6 and is a measure of an area's exposure to the sun's ultraviolet rays. This is most often a combination of sunny weather, altitude, and latitude. The UV Index has been defined by the WHO (www.who.int/news-room/questions-and-answers/item/radiation-the-ultraviolet-(uv)-index) and is uniform worldwide.

Employed

The most recent city population of 5,686 individuals with a median age of 44.5 age the population dropped by -44.11% in Pass Christian, Harrison County, Mississippi population since 2000 and are distributed over a density of 690.38 residents per square mile of area (266.57/km²). There are average 2.3 people per household in the 1,529 households with an average household income of $48,192 a year. The unemployment rate in Alabama is 8.00% of the available work force and has dropped -6.31% over the most recent 12-month period and the projected change in job supply over the next decade based on migration patterns, economic growth, and other factors will increase by 19.38%. The number of physicians in Pass Christian per 100,000 population = 233.7.

Weather

The annual rainfall in Pass Christian = 57.6 inches and the annual snowfall = 0.4 inches. The annual number of days with measurable precipitation (over .01 inch) = 94. The average number of days per year that are predominantly sunny = 222. 90 degrees Fahrenheit is the average daily high temperature for the month of July and 41.6 degrees Fahrenheit is the average daily low temperature for the month of January. The Comfort Index (higher=better) is 28, where higher values mean a more pleasant climate. The Comfort Index measure recognizes that humidity by itself isn't the problem. (Have you noticed nobody ever complains about the weather being 'cold and humid?) It's in the summertime that we notice the humidity the most, when it's hot and muggy. Our Comfort Index uses a combination of afternoon summer temperature and humidity to closely predict the effect that the humidity will have on people.

Median Home Cost

The percentage of housing units in Pass Christian, Harrison County, Mississippi which are owned by the occupant = 50.30%. A housing unit is a house, apartment, mobile home, or room occupied as separate living quarters. The average age of homes = 36 years with median home cost = $137,020 and home appreciation of -1.54%. This is the value of the years most recent home sales data. Its important to note that this is not the average (or arithmetic mean). The median home price is the middle value when you arrange all the sales prices of homes from lowest to highest. This is a better indicator than the average, because the median is not changed as much by a few unusually high or low values. The property tax rate of $6.74 shown here is the rate per $1,000 of home value. If for simplification for example the tax rate is $14.00 and the home value is $250,000, the property tax would be $14.00 x ($250,000/1000), or $3500. This is the 'effective' tax rate.

Study

The local school district spends $6,424 per student. There are 13.9 students for each teacher in the school, 677 students for each Librarian and 532 students for each Counselor. 6.24% of the area’s population over the age of 25 with an Associate Degree or other 2-year college degree, 17.97% with a master’s degree, Ph.D. or other advanced college degree and 9.49% with high school diplomas or high school equivalency degrees (GEDs).