Fulton was established in 1837 as a county seat for the newly-created Itawamba County. It is named for Robert Fulton, inventor of the steamboat.
Geography
Fulton is located west of the center of Itawamba County at . It is bordered to the west by the Tennessee–Tombigbee Waterway. Interstate 22/U.S. Route 78 passes through the southern part of the city, with access from Exit 104. I-22 leads west to Tupelo and east to Hamilton, Alabama. Mississippi Highway 25 passes through the southeastern part of Fulton, leading south to Smithville and north to Belmont. According to the United States Census Bureau, Fulton has a total area of, of which are land and, or 2.46%, are water.
Demographics
As of the census of 2000, there were 3,882 people, 1,357 households, and 891 families residing in the city. The population density was 450.3 people per square mile. There were 1,508 housing units at an average density of 174.9 per square mile. The racial makeup of the city was 83.69% White, 14.61% African American, 0.23% Native American, 0.52% Asian, 0.28% from other races, and 0.67% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 1.26% of the population. There were 1,357 households, out of which 26.5% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 48.3% were married couplesliving together, 13.9% had a female householder with no husband present, and 34.3% were non-families. 31.8% of all households were made up of individuals, and 16.5% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.29 and the average family size was 2.88. In the city, the population was spread out, with 18.7% under the age of 18, 21.3% from 18 to 24, 20.9% from 25 to 44, 19.3% from 45 to 64, and 19.8% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 35 years. For every 100 females, there were 83.5 males. For every 100 females aged 18 and over, there were 82.8 males. The median income for a household in the city was $29,449, and the median income for a family was $42,287. Males had a median income of $33,490 versus $23,278 for females. The per capita income for the city was $15,540. About 9.7% of families and 16.9% of the population were below the poverty line, including 21.4% of those under age 18 and 17.2% of those age 65 or over.
