Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
A town of 1,337, settled in 1886.
The best of Shaw’s subject grades is a B for cost of living; the weakest is a D− for health. 38% of residents live below the poverty line in Shaw, where Mississippi’s towns sit at 21% and U.S. towns at 9.6%. On health, just 11 of Mississippi’s 187 towns do worse. Most errands need a car: it is less walkable than 93% of U.S. towns. Shaw Consolidated School is on the National Register of Historic Places. Shaw has fewer than 2,500 residents, so it gets subject grades but no overall grade.
1,952 counted in 2010 and 1,457 in 2020; an estimated 1,337 in 2025.
U.S. Census 2010 & 2020 counts · Census Bureau estimate, July 1, 2025
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Mississippi), ordered by how far Shaw is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Census counts: 201 in 1890, a peak of 2,513 in 1970, 1,457 in 2020. The archive holds 9 old photos and papers going back to 1930 and 2 maps from 1939 on.
1 place on the National Register of Historic Places.
Who provides power, water and the rest in Shaw, and how to reach them.
EPA SDWIS (Oct 9, 2026) · HIFLD + EIA-861 2025 · Census 2020 ZCTAs · NCES 2024–25 · registration: vote.gov, updated Nov 18, 2024.
Ordered by what stands out in Shaw.
39% of Shaw adults say their health is fair or poor, above both the Mississippi town median (27%) and the median of U.S. towns (19%). 41% of Shaw adults feel lonely. Among 102 Mississippi towns, just 3 have a higher share of adults who report frequent physical distress than Shaw.
| Shaw | Mississippi towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fair or poor health (CDC PLACES) | 39% | 27% | 19% |
| Obesity (CDC PLACES) | 53% | 42% | 35% |
| Diabetes (CDC PLACES) | 26% | 16% | 12% |
| Get no exercise (CDC PLACES) | 49% | 36% | 25% |
| What stands out | Shaw | MS |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer binge drinkers | 8.8% | 13.6% |
| Fewer adults who have had cancer | 5.4% | 7.6% |
| More adults facing a utility shut-off | 24.5% | 11.2% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
Its public schools are run by the West Bolivar Consolidated School District. Its two schools are below.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| McEvans Elementary SchoolLargest public elementary schoolGrades K–6 | Grades K–6 | 204 | – |
| Shaw High SchoolLargest public high schoolGrades 7–12 | Grades 7–12 | 200 | – |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within MS on state tests and graduation
Shaw’s median rent is $556 a month. Typical home values fell 12% in the year to September 2026.
| Shaw | Mississippi towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median rent | $556 a month | $905 a month | $1,185 a month |
| Households that own their home | 63% | 62% | 73% |
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
Most working residents leave Shaw for work: only 4% work in town. The median household income in Shaw is $30,000. Jobs based in Shaw fell to 103 in 2023, 123 fewer than in 2013.
| Shaw | Mississippi towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median household income | $30,000 | $50,000 | $80,000 |
| Working residents who work in town | 3.5% | 19% | 8% |
| Average trip to work | 23 minutes | 23 minutes | 25 minutes |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
Shaw has mild winters and warm summers, with plenty of rain. July afternoons reach 92°, January nights drop to 35° and about 2 inches of snow falls in a winter.
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
Expected storm and flood damage is higher than in 65% of U.S. communities. Since 1979, 5 flood insurance claims have been paid out in Shaw.
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
Adults 18 to 34 are 18% of residents (22% statewide). 16% of adults 25 and older hold a bachelor’s degree or more in Shaw. Shaw has lost 8.5% of its people since 2020, down to 1,337 in the Census Bureau’s 2025 estimate.
| Shaw | Mississippi towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bachelor’s degree or more, 25+ | 16% | 25% | 29% |
| Median age | 38.8 years | 37 years | 40.5 years |
54% women, 46% men
That’s an even split within the survey’s margin of ±6.2 points. Across Mississippi, 51.5% of residents are women.
| Shaw | MS | U.S. | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 10 | 10.6% | 12.1% | 11.6% |
| 10 to 17 | 16.1% | 11.2% | 10.3% |
| 18 to 24 | 4.4% | 9.8% | 9.1% |
| 25 to 34 | 14% | 12.6% | 13.7% |
| 35 to 44 | 14.3% | 12.6% | 13.2% |
| 45 to 54 | 8.2% | 12% | 12.2% |
| 55 to 64 | 14.5% | 12.6% | 12.7% |
| 65 to 74 | 11.5% | 10.4% | 10.2% |
| 75 and older | 6.3% | 6.8% | 7% |
| No diploma | 16.7% | 12.9% | 10.4% |
| High school | 25.1% | 29.9% | 26% |
| Some college | 34.9% | 21.2% | 19.1% |
| Associate’s | 7% | 10.9% | 8.8% |
| Bachelor’s | 8.7% | 15.3% | 21.6% |
| Graduate | 7.6% | 9.9% | 14.1% |
Census population estimates, 2025 · U.S. Census Bureau · ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates · in a town of 1,300, single groups can be off by several points
1 within 15 miles of the center of Shaw
About 5 of every 100 Shaw residents are enrolled in college, about the same as Mississippi.
In a town this size, neighbors are the best guide. Ask them anything.
5 notable people were born in Shaw.
City in Mississippi, United States
Shaw is a city in Bolivar and Sunflower counties, Mississippi, United States, located in the Mississippi Delta region. The name was derived from an old Indian tribe northeast of this region. As of the 2020 census, Shaw had a population of 1,457.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Cost of living, which also weighs rents, property taxes and how many households pay 30% or more of their income for housing, grades B.
5 notable people were born here, including David Edwards and Katie G. Dorsett.
