[2] The county is named for Charles Carroll of Carrollton,[3] the last surviving signatory of the Declaration of Independence.

The county is referred to in the third verse of Bobbie Gentry's 1967 hit song, "Ode to Billie Joe".

After the American Civil War, many freedmen worked as sharecroppers or tenant farmers on the plantations.

In the period from 1877 to 1950, Carroll County had 29 documented lynchings of African Americans, the second-highest number in the state.

[4] Carroll County consists of rolling hills, largely covered with trees.

[5] The county's highest point is adjacent to State Highway 35, 8 miles (13 km) WSW of Winona, at 540 ft (160 m) ASL.

[7] From 1940 to 1970, the county population declined markedly, as many African Americans left in the Great Migration to West Coast cities that had a growing defense industry.

As of the 2020 United States census, there were 9,998 people, 3,827 households, and 2,685 families residing in the county.

Carroll Academy is an area private school that is financially supported by the Council of Conservative Citizens, a white supremacist group.