Homestown, Missouri

Homestown is a city in northern Pemiscot County, Missouri. It had a population of 151 at the 2010 census.

History

Homestown was one of the last communities to develop in Pemiscot County. In the winter of 1938-39, many sharecroppers and tenant farmers (a large portion of them African-Americans) went on strike in southeast Missouri, blocking roads and briefly paralyzing local business, as a protest against the unemployment and evictions that had come about as a result of President Roosevelt's AAA, one of his signature New Deal programs. In the wake of this strike, the Farm Security Administration built new communities for black sharecroppers to relocate to, one of which was Homestown. Built in 1940, it was laid out in a baseball-diamond shape with eighty household lots and an open space in the center for community events (a building plan typical of the social engineering that characterized some aspects of the New Deal). The new town was originally known as South Wardell, before being changed to Homestown (when and why is unclear).

In 1945, the FSA program was shut down, at which point Homestown and several other communities were purchased by the Delmo Housing Corporation. The properties were mortgaged and gradually paid off by the residents, allowing these towns to remain in existence. The Delmo Community Center, which at times also functioned as a thrift store, library, and medical center, was nominated for the National Register of Historic Places in 2008.

Geography

Homestown is located on State Route B in northern Pemiscot County, about one mile southwest of Wardell and eight miles northwest of Hayti. Its exact coordinates are 36°19’54”N 89°49’29”W.

The city lies a few miles east of the Little River, which drains much of the "Bootheel" region. It has a total land area of 0.12 square miles, and an average elevation of 269 feet. Its baseball-diamond street plan is rather unique among surviving Southeast Missouri towns.

Demographics

At the 2010 census, Homestown had a total of 151 inhabitants, grouped into 53 households, with a population density of 1,258.3 people per square mile. This figure represented a significant decrease from the 2000 census, when Homestown had a population of 181. 2.65% of the inhabitants were White, 95.36% were African-American, 0.66% were Native American, and 1.32% were from two or more races.

The median age in Homestown was 32.6 years, with 29.8% of inhabitants under the age of 18, 10.6% between 18 and 24 years old, 24.5% between 25 and 44, 27.1% between 45 and 64, and 7.9% 65 years old or older. The sex ratio was 53.0% male, 47.0% female.

According to the 2010 American Community Survey, Homestown had a median household income of $20,625, and a median family income of $21,563. The unemployment rate was 18.2%. The per capita income was $10,402. About 23.7% of the population lived below the poverty line, including 31.4% of people under the age of 18 and 9.5% of people 65 years old or older.

Education

Homestown and the surrounding area are served by the North Pemiscot County R-I School District, with facilities in Portageville and nearby Wardell.