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Jasper County is located in the East-Central portion of Mississippi and was formed on December 13, 1833. It was created from territory acquired in 1830 from the Choctaws (occupied by the Six Town Tribe), just north of the old Mount Dexter treaty line.

The county was named in honor of Sgt. William Jasper who distinguished himself in the defense of Fort Moultrie on June 28, 1776. When a shell from a British warship shot away the flagstaff, he recovered the South Carolina flag in the Battle of Sullivan's Island, raised it on a temporary staff, and held it under fire until a new staff was installed.

Settled in early 1833, Garlandville is the oldest community in Jasper County. Among the early settlers were the families of Brown, Beard, Cowan, Dellahay, Hamlet, Harris, Hodge, Layerly, Watts, and Williams. The town also raised two companies that served in the Civil War.

Jasper is a county with two county seats, one courthouse is in Bay Springs, and the other is in Paulding, named for John Paulding who played a central role in the capture of Major Andre during U.S. Revolutionary War. By an act of the Legislature in 1906, Jasper County was divided into two Judicial Districts, with Paulding as the seat of the Eastern District and Bay Springs the seat of the Western District.

In 1935-36, a road was built from Bay Springs to Rose Hill, the first road connecting the two districts. This road facilitated travel and increased the stature of Bay Springs as a trading area. The old courthouse at Paulding was built out of local materials, including clay which was dug up and baked nearby. It burned in 1932 with the loss of all records.

Other Jasper County communities include: Heidleburg, Louin, Montrose, Baxter, Garlandville, Moss, Rose Hill, Stringer, and Vossburg. In it's first census in 1840 there were 3,958 residents listed. In the last federal census in 2010 the population was 17,062.