Moss Point’s post office opened in 1867, and 4 of its places are on the National Register
More historic than 36% of U.S. towns · #62 of 100 in Mississippi. What drives it
Most of Moss Point was built recently: 5% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1968. Below: 3 old photos and papers, maps from 1893 on, and the census since 1870.
The Moss Point post office opened in 1867, the earliest record of the town by name. Two smaller post offices, Ford (1910) and Kreole (1914), opened inside today’s city and later closed.
First census: 440 in 18702020 census: 12,147159 years
How historic is Moss Point?
C+
More historic than 36% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.
Founding year: the first Moss Point post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).The full story ↓
History grade
What drives Moss Point’s History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Moss Point is more historic than 36% of U.S. towns, #62 of 100 in Mississippi. Its National Register listings hold the grade up; its share of homes from before 1940 pulls it down.
C+
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Moss Point’s overall grade.
Mississippi towns list more on the Register than most of the country (a typical Mississippi town has 71.9 per 10,000 residents, the U.S. 2.4), so Moss Point’s 3.3 sits near the middle of its state (44% of Mississippi towns have fewer) while its 4 listings outnumber those of 68% of U.S. towns.
How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from C− to C+. The pre-1940 share (±2.8 points) is firm at this size. The founding year is the first post office, not a stated founding date.
Founding year: the first post office (other dates in Quick answers). Homes: Census ACS 2020–24. National Register: National Park Service, May 2026 list; each listing counted once (boundary changes and added documentation belong to their listing), and a historic district counts its contributing buildings. How TownRatings grades history →
What stands out about Moss Point’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
Moss Point is home to Trent Lott International Airport and the Mississippi Export Railroad.
On August 29, 2005, Moss Point was hit by the strong eastern side of Hurricane Katrina, when it passed 30 miles (48 km) east of central New Orleans with minimal gale-force winds. However, on the east side of Hurricane Katrina, much of Moss Point was flooded or destroyed in one day, by the strong hurricane-force winds which lasted several hours and a storm surge exceeding 20 feet (6.1 m) in some sections.
An EF2 tornado touched down in Moss Point on June 19, 2023 The tornado covered six miles of the city and damaged or destroyed over 300 homes and businesses.
Nothing in the archives for these yearsWeddings on Main Street, storms, parades, school pictures, the old store. If it’s in your family album, it belongs here.
Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Moss Point. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.
1943Pascagoula sheet · 1:62,500
U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (public domain), via Esri’s collection of the scans. The red ring marks the center of Moss Point.
Every building
Moss Point, building by building, 1893–1915
Fire insurance maps drew every building, what it was made of and what it was used for, so insurers could price the risk of fire. Pick a year, then a sheet.
The Moss Point post office opened in 1867, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).
How does Moss Point rank for history?
Moss Point is more historic than 36% of U.S. towns, #62 of 100 in Mississippi. The History grade combines the town’s founding era, the share of homes built before 1940 and its National Register listings. It’s a character grade, so it isn’t part of the overall grade. How it works.
What is on the National Register in Moss Point?
4 listings: 4 buildings, among them the Griffin House (listed 1983, the first).
How old are the homes in Moss Point?
5% of Moss Point’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±2.8 points), against a typical 4.5% for a Mississippi town; the median home was built in 1968.
Founding dates: Wikidata, Wikipedia, the U.S. post office records of Blevins & Helbock (CC0) and the Census. Homes by year built: Census ACS 2020–24. National Register of Historic Places: National Park Service (list of May 22, 2026). Old photos, postcards and papers: Wikimedia Commons, the Library of Congress and other public archives, credited on each item’s page. Maps: U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (via Esri) and Sanborn fire-insurance maps (Library of Congress). History text and census tables: Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0). Places that used to be: USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).
From Wikimedia Commons (9), the Library of Congress (1), Wikidata (2), the National Register of Historic Places (4), Wikipedia, Wikidata and Wikipedia for famous people, U.S. Geological Survey historical maps, U.S. Census counts (via Wikipedia), the US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock), the USGS Geographic Names Information System and Sanborn fire insurance maps (Library of Congress). Archive images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.
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