Jackson the fastest shrinking city in America. See how far it has fallen

In the 2021 census, Jackson's population dropped below 150,000 for the first time since before 1970. That shrinking continued with the release of the data from the 2022 census estimates, which revealed a 2.5 % drop for the state's capital city.

Jackson's population now stands at 145,995. The drop of 3,766 from 2021 to 2022 make it the fastest-shrinking city with at least 50,000 residents in the United States.

Jackson took the title from San Francisco, according to population estimates released last week by the U.S. Census Bureau.

The new data provides the first nationwide look at how populations changed in nearly 20,000 cities, towns, villages and boroughs throughout the nation from July 2021 to July 2022. It’s a far more detailed snapshot than the county-level data released earlier this spring.

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Jackson, however, continues to see challenge after challenge in recent years that include it having one of the highest murder rates per capita in the nation.

Just last year the city experienced a water crisis that gained national attention as Jackson residents were without drinking water and water pressure for more than a month.

More recently, Jackson saw a battle between the mayor and city council over the city's garbage collection contract that dragged on until the contract expired. Residents went without trash pickup for more than a month before a new temporary contract was put into place.

Jackson Mayor Chokwe Antar Lumumba was not available for a comment for this story.

Based on the latest 2022 data from the U.S. census, Jackson's current population of 145,995, makes it the 177th largest city in the U.S.

Jackson's population peaked in 1980 at 202,895. In 1980, Jackson was the 71st largest city in the U.S. Jackson is now 26.2% smaller than it was in 1980.

Despite the numbers, Jeff Rent, president and CEO of the Greater Jackson Chamber Partnership believes there are better days ahead for Jackson.

"From my perspective at the chamber, it is always disappointing to see those numbers," Rent said. "One of the things that helps a city is population growth through increased collection of taxes and increased businesses in the area. I think as a region, we have seen some of that population growth. But the heart of the region is still the capital city, and we definitely work every day to try to promote that there are advantages to be found within the city and that people can and do succeed here. But as we do our jobs here, we start with the city of Jackson."

Rent said he believes things are looking up for Jackson because of a plan in place to fix the water issues.

"Fixing the water will help heal some of the frustrations," he said. "We continue to pave roads through the 1% sales tax, and we are recruiting new and exciting companies to the area."

One of those, he said, would be Amazon, which slated to open a distribution facility along I-55 in Jackson.

"So, there are some things going on that can help make this trend turn around," Rent said. "We see exciting growth for the future."

However, one business leader had a different take on the situation.

"This is fascinating," said Jeff Good, who is a Jackson restaurant owner and businessman. "We all know the reason why Jackson has declined. We all know the real issues of institutional racism, disinterest, disinvestment, etc. These are the battles we have today about how we got here. The question for us is where are we going to go from here?

"When we opened BRAVO! in 1994, Jackson’s population stood at about 190,000, off a zenith of 202,000 in 1980.  Our business plan discussed the status of Highland Village, and the opportunity to revitalize an empty restaurant space that had been fallow for some time, in an area of Jackson that was beginning to show signs of aging and disinterest," Good said. "In 1998, when we opened Broad Street Baking Company, our business plan talked about the west Interstate 55 frontage road and the suffering Banner Hall shopping center. We were to take over a space that had previously house three failed restaurants, and we were raising money on the hope our investment would turn the tide. At that time the Jackson population was 184,000."

In 2007 when Good and company opened Sal & Mookie’s in an area of town called Woodland Hills Business district, which was being rebranded as “Fondren,” they once again took a defunct property, a building that had actually caught fire, and brought his concept to life.  At that time, Jackson’s population was 178,000.

"In 2020, we moved Sal & Mookie’s to another closed restaurant location in the upscale District @ Eastover," Good said. "Having been a national chain and a local concept all within a 4-year period, the landlords were looking for a steady operator, and we were looking for a new and larger home. At that time, Jackson’s population for the 2020 census had just been announced, and it was 153,701. Today, we have learned that the April 2022 estimates show Jackson’s population at a stunning low of 145,995. To be in my business — the restaurant business — requires a critical mass of population, not only to serve as our customers, but to staff our ranks as employees and managers.

"Each day, our community leaders duke it out in the press and television, arguing the reasons why we got where we are. Make no mistake about it, institutional racism, collective disengagement of capital, waning interest in public schools, inability to prevent crime and ineffectiveness in adjudication of crime when crime happens, and a headcount of nine different mayors sitting in the seat over the past 30 years, with all the associated changes in staffing, leadership, priorities, projects and abilities, have all led to our current condition," Good said.

Jackson has shrunk 19.1% since the year 2000 as 100% of similarly sized cities across the nation are growing faster since 2000.

As for the state of Mississippi, population numbers continue to decrease as well.

The 2022 estimates for the entire state are 2,940,057, down nearly 21,000 from 2020. Louisiana is down further than Mississippi, having lost some 80,000 residents the last two years. Meanwhile other states in the South are seeing population increases. Alabama is up 50,000. Arkansas is up some 24,000, Tennessee is up more than 60,000 and Georgia is up more than 200,000.

U.S. Cities With the Largest Rate of Population Decline, 2021 to 2022

The population of Jackson shrank by 2.5% between July 2021 and July 2022, giving it the largest decline of any U.S. city with at least 50,000 residents. The rest of the fastest shrinking cities are below:

St. Louis, Missouri − 286,578, down 2.4%

Taylorsville, Utah − 57,879, down 2.3%

Orem, Utah − 95,910, down 2.3%

Sandy, Utah − 93,022, down 2.2%

Kenner, Louisiana - 64,007, down 2.1%

Livermore, California - 84,701, down 2.0%

New Orleans, Louisiana - 369,749, down 1.9%

Union City, California - 67,039, down 1.9%

San Leandro, California - 86,762, down 1.9%

Millcreek, Utah - 63,034, down 1.9%

Bloomington, Minnesota - 87,797, down 1.8%

Huntington Park, California - 52,633, down 1.8%

Norwalk, California - 98,537, down 1.8%

Lakewood, California - 79,063, down 1.8%

This article originally appeared on Mississippi Clarion Ledger: Jackson MS population shrinking at alarming rate