Store, 1939
Merigold’s story
140 years in pictures
Census counts: 241 in 1910, a peak of 804 in 1930, 379 in 2020. The archive holds 21 old photos and papers going back to 1939 and 2 maps from 1935 on.
- 1886Merigold is settled
MerigoldMS
Photo: Chillin662 · CC BY-SA 4.0
Population
350
2025 Census estimate · −7.4% since 2020
Median home value
$138K
Census ACS
Household income
$51K
median
Median age
28.7
years
Jobs based here
80
A commuter town
Is Merigold a good place to live?
Merigold has fewer than 1,000 residents, too few for fair grades; the figures below are still real.
What makes Merigold stand out
Where Merigold beats most towns.
Small town
350 people, and everyone knows the way
In a town this size, neighbors are the best guide. Ask them anything.
Nearby towns
Getting set up
The full setup list →Moving to Merigold: who provides what
Who provides power, water and the rest in Merigold, and how to reach them.
PowerEntergy Mississippi13.9¢/kWh · EIA 2025HIFLD · EIA
WaterTown of Merigold water system1 health-based violation in 5 years · EPAEPA
Internet5 providers100% of addresses get 100/20 MbpsFCC
Trash & dumpNot on file yetWe don’t have Merigold’s trash rules yet
Register to voteIn personMississippi has no online registration; you can register in person until 30 days before Election Day or by mail (postmarked 30 days before).vote.govWho runs elections hereBolivar County RegistrarBolivar County; contacts on the Handbook page.FVAP, Sep 2023
ZIP codes38759, 3876238759 99% · 38762 1%Census 2020
EPA SDWIS (Oct 9, 2026) · HIFLD + EIA-861 2025 · Census 2020 ZCTAs · NCES 2024–25 · registration: vote.gov, updated Nov 18, 2024.
The data
Ordered by what stands out in Merigold.
Who lives here
More adults under 35 in Merigold than across Mississippi
Adults 18 to 34 are 37% of residents (22% statewide); adults 35 to 64 are 29% of residents (37% statewide). Merigold’s midpoint age comes in at 28.7 years. Mississippi has a quarter of adults 25 and older with a bachelor’s degree or more; here it is 31%. It is shrinking: down 7.4% since 2020, to 350 residents (2025 estimate).
28.7median age · MS 38.6
| Merigold | Mississippi towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median age | 28.7 years | 37 years | 40.5 years |
| Bachelor’s degree or more, 25+ | 31% | 25% | 29% |
| Aged 65 or older | 16% | 17% | 18% |
MerigoldMississippiUnited States
Ages · share of residents
36%
Education · adults 25 and older
No diploma8%
High school43%
Some college12%
Associate’s6%
Bachelor’s25%
Graduate7%
Women and men · all residents
Somewhere between 30% and 54% women
The Census survey reached too few of Merigold’s residents to say more: its margin here is ±11.8 points. Across Mississippi, 51.5% of residents are women.
| Merigold | MS | U.S. | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 10 | 15.5% | 12.1% | 11.6% |
| 10 to 17 | 2.5% | 11.2% | 10.3% |
| 18 to 24 | 1% | 9.8% | 9.1% |
| 25 to 34 | 36.2% | 12.6% | 13.7% |
| 35 to 44 | 10.3% | 12.6% | 13.2% |
| 45 to 54 | 8.3% | 12% | 12.2% |
| 55 to 64 | 10.1% | 12.6% | 12.7% |
| 65 to 74 | 11.8% | 10.4% | 10.2% |
| 75 and older | 4.3% | 6.8% | 7% |
| No diploma | 7.7% | 12.9% | 10.4% |
| High school | 42.9% | 29.9% | 26% |
| Some college | 12% | 21.2% | 19.1% |
| Associate’s | 6.4% | 10.9% | 8.8% |
| Bachelor’s | 24.5% | 15.3% | 21.6% |
| Graduate | 6.6% | 9.9% | 14.1% |
Census population estimates, 2025 · U.S. Census Bureau · ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates · in a town of 400, single groups can be off by several points
Work & commute
Most of Merigold’s workers head elsewhere: there are 0.5 jobs for each of them
4.8% of Merigold residents live below the poverty line, below both the Mississippi town median (21%) and the median of U.S. towns (9.6%). Just 5% of the town’s working residents have a job in town. The top destinations are Cleveland (31%), Mound Bayou (5%) and Clarksdale (3%). For half of commuters, work is under 7 miles away.
5%work in town
| Merigold | Mississippi towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Below the poverty line | 4.8% | 21% | 9.6% |
| Working residents who work in town | 5.2% | 19% | 8% |
| Average trip to work | 23 minutes | 23 minutes | 25 minutes |
Where working residents work
In Merigold5%
Cleveland31%
Mound Bayou5%
Clarksdale3%
Olive Branch3%
7 mi
median commute distance
80
jobs based in Merigold
A commuter town
jobs vs. working residents
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
Natural hazards
Top of a high hazard risk in Merigold: inland flooding
Federal disaster aid has reached households in Merigold after 2 declared disasters, most recently in 2026. Expected damage from storms and floods is higher here than in 74% of U.S. communities. 48% of the town’s expected losses from natural hazards come from inland flooding, followed by earthquakes at 18%.
74risk score of 100
FEMA risk score
Inland floodingEarthquakesTornadoes
2
federal disasters paid out here
FEMA disaster declarations and aid · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
Climate
Merigold has mild winters and hot summers
In Merigold, the July high is 91°F, close to Mississippi’s towns (91°F) and above U.S. towns (85°F).
91°summer high
Typical low → high °F
Winter36–54°
Spring53–74°
Summer71–90°
Fall53–76°
Nov 11
typical first frost
Mar 15
typical last frost
+0.5°
vs. the 20th-century average
91°
typical summer high
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
Health
How healthy Merigold is
For adults in Merigold, the share who have diabetes is 21%. Of 31 CDC measures, Merigold beats the Mississippi average on 3 and trails it on 14. 53% of adults in the town have high blood pressure; 42% get no exercise outside work. Only 6 of the 102 Mississippi towns we compare have a higher share of adults who had a checkup this year than Merigold.
| Merigold | Mississippi towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Diabetes (CDC PLACES) | 21% | 16% | 12% |
| High blood pressure (CDC PLACES) | 53% | 45% | 35% |
| Get no exercise (CDC PLACES) | 42% | 36% | 25% |
| Binge drink (CDC PLACES) | 11% | 13% | 16% |
31 measures vs. Mississippi
3 better14 too close to call14 worse
| What stands out | Merigold | MS |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer binge drinkers | 11% | 13.6% |
| More adults treating high blood pressure | 82.9% | 79.7% |
| More adults facing a utility shut-off | 16.5% | 11.2% |
Bolivar Medical Center
6.4 mi away · emergency room
3 of 3
care shortages: primary care, dental, mental health
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
Keep exploring
Everything we know about Merigold
17pages on Merigold
The big questions
Out and about
The story
After high school
Colleges nearby
1 within 15 miles of the center of Merigold
About 1 of every 100 Merigold residents are enrolled in college, against 6 across Mississippi.
A commuter town
95% of working residents leave Merigold for work
Where Merigold’s working residents go each day. Line width shows the share.
80jobs based in Merigold
5%of working residents work in town
7 mimedian commute distance
Census LEHD 2023
About Merigold
Town in Mississippi, United States
Merigold (sometimes misspelled as Marigold or Merrigold) is a town in Bolivar County, Mississippi, United States. Per the 2020 census, the population was 379.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
- Area
- 1.0 sq mi
- Elevation
- 144 ft
- ZIP code
- 38759
- Area code
- 662
Questions about Merigold
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Is Merigold, MS a good place to live?
Merigold has fewer than 1,000 residents, too few for fair grades; the figures below are still real.