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Neshoba County is located in the central portion of Mississippi. Neshoba County was formed by the state legislature on December 23, 1833, from the territory ceded by the Choctaw nation three years earlier. Neshoba County has a rich American Indian history - even the name Neshoba is from the Choctaw word "nashoba" meaning "wolf." The county is the home of the famous Neshoba County Fair, started in 1889 and held annually since.

In 1964, three civil rights workers were murdered in Neshoba County. The crime and legal aftermath was the basis for the 1988 movie Mississippi Burning.

The Pearl River, which flows east to west through Neshoba County, was an important waterway for early settlers, especially between 1830 and 1860. It reportedly took 15 days to travel by keel boat from Philadelphia to Jackson and about 30 days of vigorous labor to bring a keel boat upstream from Jackson to Philadelphia.

Federal Colonel Benjamin Grierson’s grandstanding expedition through Neshoba County in the spring of 1863 was the only significant action of the Civil War near Philadelphia. However, hundreds of Neshoba County men were killed in battle, died from the “fevers” that plagued Civil War camps, or were maimed for life by federal shot and shell. In addition to the human loss, Neshoba Countians also lost tens of thousands of dollars in precious hard currency invested in Confederate bonds and other financial instruments that were worthless when the rebellion failed.

Share-cropping and other forms of hard-scrabble farming characterized the post-war years in Neshoba County. The “one-mule farm” became a standard operation. By 1880 the county’s natural timber resources were becoming an important economic factor, and by 1910 Neshoba County sawmills were too numerous to count. Today, local businesses have continued to develop Neshoba County’s timber and land resources for the benefit of their investors and hundreds of local people employed in forest products industries.

Philadelphia became the county seat of Neshoba County on August 15, 1837. Other Neshoba County communities include: Union, Bogue Chitto, Pearl River, Tucker, Burnside, Choctaw, Neshoba, and Stallo. In it's first census in 1840 there were 2,437 residents listed. In the last federal census in 2010 the population was 29,676.