Population and Change. Over the period from 2000 to 2006, Pemiscot County's population decreased by 884, going from 20,047 in 2000 to 19,163 in 2006. This was a change of -4.4 percent, as compared with Missouri (4.4%).
Components of Change. Natural Increase is defined as births minus deaths. Pemiscot County had 635 more births than deaths between 2000 and 2006. Net migration is the difference between the number of people who moved into an area and the number of people who moved out. So a negative net migration means a net loss of persons due to migration, while a positive value represents a net gain. Between 2000 and 2006, Pemiscot County had a net migration of -1,519.
Age. In 2006, Pemiscot County reported 14.3 percent of its residents were 65 and older compared to 13.3 percent statewide. At the same time, the proportion of young people under 18 in the county was 29.0 percent. Missouri reported 24.1 percent during the same period.
Racial Diversity. The 2006 vintage estimates from the Census Bureau indicate that 73.4 percent of the population in the county was White (14,074 persons), while the estimated black population was 4,814 (25.1%). The same set of estimates indicated there were 81 Asians (0.4%) and 54 American Indians (0.3%). Hispanic is not considered to be a race by the Census Bureau, but rather a separate category. In 2006 there were an estimated 359 hispanic persons (1.9%) living in the county.
Place of Residence. Estimates for 2006 also show 49.0 percent of the population lived in places of 2,500 or more in Pemiscot County. Those living in smaller places account for 23.6 percent of the county's population and 27.4 percent lived in unincorporated areas.
Housing. According to the Census Bureau's estimates, there were 8,972 housing units in Pemiscot County in 2006. The homeownership rate in 2000 was 58.4 percent compared to 70.3 percent statewide. The median value of owner-occupied housing units in 2000 was $44,200 compared with a statewide median value of $89,900.
Households and Families. There were about 7,906 households in the county according to the 2000 decennial census. Families comprised 67.9 percent of households (5,365). About 18.6 percent of households were married couples with children under 18, which was less than for the state overall (23.3 percent). Single parent families in Pemiscot County (15.5%) were more than Missouri (9.1%).
Families and Children. Median family income for Pemiscot County was $27,553 in 2005 compared to $46,044 for Missouri.
The 2005 poverty rate in Pemiscot County was 33.0 percent which was higher than that of the state (13.6%). The poverty rate among children (45.2%) was higher than that of the state (19.5%).
The annual Kids Count reports Pemiscot County indicators on children were ranked 114 out of 114 counties and St. Louis City in the state in 2006. Kids Count indicators show that low birth weight infants decreased to 12.2 percent and births to teenage mothers were 114 per 1,000 girls. The area also reported child abuse cases at a rate of 50.2 per 1,000 for 2006 compared to 32.7 per 1,000 statewide.
Jobs by Sector. The October 2007 unemployment rate was 7.0 percent compared with 5.2 percent statewide. There were 8,413 jobs in Pemiscot County in 2006. Local government accounts for more than 19.8 percent of the total jobs (1,667). Retail Trade (993), Manufacturing (771) and Farm employment (600) are the next highest categories.
Agriculture. The 2002 Census of Agriculture reported 258 farms in the county with total sales of about $69.612 million and production expenses of $54.674 million. There was $14.938 million in net farm income reported in the county with 52.3 percent of all farms having sales of $100,000 or more and 18.6 percent of farms with less than $10,000 in sales.
County Income Patterns. Pemiscot County generated over $446.147 million of total personal income in 2005. Per capita income was $23,102 compared with $31,231 for Missouri. Significant sources of income were:
Commuting. In Pemiscot County, 31.2 percent of workers commute outside their home county to work in 2000. Statewide, 33.4 percent of workers traveled between 30 and 60 minutes to work, while in Pemiscot County 16.1 percent traveled as long. At the same time, 2.8 percent of workers traveled more than 60 minutes to work compared with 5.4 percent statewide.
Educational Attainment. In Pemiscot County, about 8.4 percent of residents aged 25 years and over (1,022) were college graduates in 2000 compared with 21.6 percent statewide. An additional 1,967 residents 25 and over in Pemiscot County had some college education (16.1%) compared with 27.0 percent of all Missourians of that age.
The high school graduation rate in Pemiscot County (77.3%) in 2006 as reported by the Missouri Dept. of Education and Secondary Education was less than the state (85.8%).
Disabilities. There were 1,856 persons age 65 and older in the county who reported having a disability in 2000 (65.5%). The corresponding Missouri rate is 55.3 percent. Among the working age population (aged 16 to 64) in Pemiscot County 1,790 reported some work disability, a rate of 15.4 percent compared to a state rate of 10.8 percent.
Health Status Indicators. In 2003, over 27.3 percent of Pemiscot County residents report their health was “fair or poor” compared with 16.9 percent statewide. While . percent of Missourians reported having no health coverage, the percent without coverage in Pemiscot County was estimated to be 23.8 percent. State health data report the top two prevalence indicators for the county were Physical Inactivity(39%) and Current Smoker(38.5%). Missouri reported 23 percent and 26.5 percent in those same categories.
Age-adjusted Mortality. The top age-adjusted mortality rates (per 100,000) for Pemiscot County are Heart Disease (491) and Lung Cancer (91.5). Missouri's rates were 298 and at 64.3 respectively.
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