Ozark County, Missouri
Ozark County | |
---|---|
Coordinates: 36°39′N 92°26′W / 36.65°N 92.44°W | |
Country | United States |
State | Missouri |
Founded | January 29, 1841 |
Named for | Ozark Mountains |
Seat | Gainesville |
Largest city | Gainesville |
Area | |
• Total | 755 sq mi (1,960 km2) |
• Land | 745 sq mi (1,930 km2) |
• Water | 10 sq mi (30 km2) 1.4% |
Population (2020) | |
• Total | 8,553 |
• Density | 11/sq mi (4.4/km2) |
Time zone | UTC−6 (Central) |
• Summer (DST) | UTC−5 (CDT) |
Congressional district | 8th |
Website | www |
Ozark County is a county in the southern portion of the U.S. state of Missouri. As of the 2020 census, the population was 8,553.[1] The largest city and county seat is Gainesville.[2] The county was organized as Ozark County, named after the Ozark Mountains, on January 29, 1841. It was renamed Decatur County, after Commodore Stephen Decatur, from 1843 to 1845, after which the name Ozark County was restored.[3]
Geography
[edit]According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 755 square miles (1,960 km2), of which 745 square miles (1,930 km2) is land and 10 square miles (26 km2) (1.4%) is water.[4] Arkansas is located to the south of Ozark County.
Adjacent counties
[edit]- Douglas County (north)
- Howell County (east)
- Fulton County, Arkansas (southeast)
- Baxter County, Arkansas (south)
- Marion County, Arkansas (southwest)
- Taney County (west)
Major highways
[edit]National protected area
[edit]- Mark Twain National Forest (part)
Demographics
[edit]Census | Pop. | Note | %± |
---|---|---|---|
1850 | 2,294 | — | |
1860 | 2,447 | 6.7% | |
1870 | 3,363 | 37.4% | |
1880 | 5,618 | 67.1% | |
1890 | 9,795 | 74.4% | |
1900 | 12,145 | 24.0% | |
1910 | 11,926 | −1.8% | |
1920 | 11,125 | −6.7% | |
1930 | 9,537 | −14.3% | |
1940 | 10,766 | 12.9% | |
1950 | 8,856 | −17.7% | |
1960 | 6,744 | −23.8% | |
1970 | 6,226 | −7.7% | |
1980 | 7,961 | 27.9% | |
1990 | 8,598 | 8.0% | |
2000 | 9,542 | 11.0% | |
2010 | 9,723 | 1.9% | |
2020 | 8,553 | −12.0% | |
U.S. Decennial Census[5] 1790-1960[6] 1900-1990[7] 1990-2000[8] 2010-2015[9] |
As of the census[10] of 2000, there were 9,542 people, 3,950 households, and 2,855 families residing in the county. The population density was 13 people per square mile (5.0 people/km2). There were 5,114 housing units at an average density of 7 units per square mile (2.7/km2). The racial makeup of the county was 97.57% White, 0.15% Black or African American, 0.65% Native American, 0.08% Asian, 0.19% from other races, and 1.36% from two or more races. Approximately 0.94% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race. Among the major first ancestries reported in Ozark County were 28.6% American, 15.9% German, 12.1% English, and 11.4% Irish.
There were 3,950 households, out of which 26.20% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 62.20% were married couples living together, 6.90% had a female householder with no husband present, and 27.70% were non-families. 24.40% of all households were made up of individuals, and 12.20% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.40 and the average family size was 2.81.
In the county, the population was spread out, with 22.10% under the age of 18, 6.90% from 18 to 24, 22.80% from 25 to 44, 28.70% from 45 to 64, and 19.50% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 44 years. For every 100 females there were 98.10 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 96.30 males.
The median income for a household in the county was $31,508, and the median income for a family was $36,622. Males had a median income of $21,685 versus $17,312 for females. The per capita income for the county was $17,302. About 16.10% of families and 21.60% of the population were below the poverty line, including 30.80% of those under age 18 and 17.20% of those age 65 or over.
Religion
[edit]According to the Association of Religion Data Archives County Membership Report (2000), Ozark County is a part of the Bible Belt with evangelical Protestantism being the majority religion. The most predominant denominations among residents in Ozark County who adhere to a religion are Southern Baptists (25.79%), Churches of Christ (24.83%), and Pentecostals (17.07%).
2020 Census
[edit]Race | Num. | Perc. |
---|---|---|
White (NH) | 8,000 | 93.5% |
Black or African American (NH) | 19 | 0.22% |
Native American (NH) | 38 | 0.44% |
Asian (NH) | 14 | 0.16% |
Pacific Islander (NH) | 5 | 0.06% |
Other/Mixed (NH) | 368 | 4.3% |
Hispanic or Latino | 109 | 1.27% |
Education
[edit]Of adults 25 years of age and older in Ozark County, 73.0% possesses a high school diploma or higher while 8.3% holds a bachelor's degree or higher as their highest educational attainment.
Public schools
[edit]- Thornfield R-I School District - Thornfield - (K-08)
- Lutie R-VI School District - Theodosia
- Lutie Elementary School (K-06)
- Lutie High School (07-12)
- Gainesville R-V School District - Gainesville
- Gainesville Elementary School (K-06)
- Gainesville High School (07-12)
- Dora R-III School District - Dora
- Dora Elementary School (K-06)
- Dora High School (07-12)
- Bakersfield R-IV School District - Bakersfield
- Bakersfield Elementary School (PK-05)
- Bakersfield High School (06-12)
Public libraries
[edit]Gainesville Library
Politics
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Local
[edit]The Republican Party predominantly controls politics at the local level in Ozark County. Republicans hold all but one of the elected positions in the county.
Ozark County, Missouri | |||
---|---|---|---|
Elected countywide officials | |||
Assessor | Jama Berry | Republican | |
Circuit Clerk | Jackie Smith | Republican | |
County Clerk | Brian Wise | Republican | |
Collector | Darla Sullivan | Republican | |
Commissioner (Presiding) | Terry Newton | Republican | |
Commissioner (District 1) | Gary Collins | Republican | |
Commissioner (District 2) | Layne Nance | Republican | |
Coroner | Gene Britt | Republican | |
Prosecuting Attorney | Lee Pipkins | Republican | |
Public Administrator | Melinda Abraham | Republican | |
Recorder | Jackie Smith | Republican | |
Sheriff | Cass Martin | Republican | |
Surveyor | Matt Wade | Republican | |
Treasurer | Christy Thompson | Republican |
State
[edit]All of Ozark County is a part of Missouri's 155th District in the Missouri House of Representatives and is represented by Travis Smith (R-Dora).[12]
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Republican | Lyle Rowland | 3,799 | 100.00% |
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Republican | Lyle Rowland | 2,257 | 100.00% |
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Republican | Lyle Rowland | 3,591 | 100.00% |
All of Ozark County is a part of Missouri's 33rd District in the Missouri Senate and is currently represented by Carla Eslinger (R-Wasola).
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Republican | Mike Cunningham | 3,787 | 100.00% |
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Republican | Mike Cunningham | 3,608 | 100.00% |
Federal
[edit]Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Republican | Roy Blunt | 3,085 | 69.02% | +19.04 | |
Democratic | Jason Kander | 1,113 | 24.90% | −17.45 | |
Libertarian | Jonathan Dine | 126 | 2.82% | −4.85 | |
Green | Johnathan McFarland | 70 | 1.56% | +1.56 | |
Constitution | Fred Ryman | 76 | 1.70% | +1.70 |
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Republican | Todd Akin | 2,202 | 49.98% | ||
Democratic | Claire McCaskill | 1,866 | 42.35% | ||
Libertarian | Jonathan Dine | 338 | 7.67% |
Ozark County is included in Missouri's 8th Congressional District and is currently represented by Jason T. Smith (R-Salem) in the U.S. House of Representatives. Smith won a special election on Tuesday, June 4, 2013, to finish out the remaining term of U.S. Representative Jo Ann Emerson (R-Cape Girardeau). Emerson announced her resignation a month after being reelected with over 70 percent of the vote in the district. She resigned to become CEO of the National Rural Electric Cooperative.
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Republican | Jason T. Smith | 3,478 | 80.11% | +9.61 | |
Democratic | Dave Cowell | 723 | 16.61% | −0.85 | |
Libertarian | Jonathan Shell | 143 | 3.28% | +1.09 |
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Republican | Jason T. Smith | 1,833 | 70.50% | −1.54 | |
Democratic | Barbara Stocker | 454 | 17.46% | −2.04 | |
Libertarian | Rick Vandeven | 57 | 2.19% | −0.97 | |
Constitution | Doug Enyart | 33 | 1.27% | −4.03 | |
Independent | Terry Hampton | 223 | 8.58% | +8.58 |
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Republican | Jason T. Smith | 639 | 72.04% | −3.05 | |
Democratic | Steve Hodges | 173 | 19.50% | −1.36 | |
Libertarian | Bill Slantz | 28 | 3.16% | −0.89 | |
Constitution | Doug Enyart | 47 | 5.30% | +5.30 |
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Republican | Jo Ann Emerson | 3,264% | 75.09% | ||
Democratic | Jack Rushin | 907 | 20.86% | ||
Libertarian | Rick Vandeven | 176 | 4.05% |
Year | Republican | Democratic | Third Parties |
---|---|---|---|
2020 | 82.25% 3,963 | 15.96% 769 | 1.78% 86 |
2016 | 68.66% 3,078 | 27.39% 1,228 | 3.95% 177 |
2012 | 52.63% 2,334 | 43.92% 1,948 | 3.45% 153 |
2008 | 42.47% 1,967 | 53.63% 2,484 | 3.90% 181 |
2004 | 63.04% 2,949 | 34.80% 1,628 | 2.16% 101 |
2000 | 58.65% 2,502 | 38.54% 1,644 | 2.81% 120 |
1996 | 59.15% 2,376 | 38.16% 1,533 | 2.69% 108 |
1992 | 53.21% 2,222 | 46.79% 1,954 | 0.00% 0 |
1988 | 74.47% 2,721 | 25.18% 920 | 0.36% 13 |
1984 | 74.92% 2,742 | 25.08% 918 | 0.00% 0 |
1980 | 61.61% 2,287 | 38.20% 1,418 | 0.19% 7 |
1976 | 61.76% 1,886 | 38.21% 1,167 | 0.03% 1 |
Political culture
[edit]Year | Republican | Democratic | Third party(ies) | |||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
No. | % | No. | % | No. | % | |
2024 | 4,044 | 84.60% | 698 | 14.60% | 38 | 0.79% |
2020 | 4,064 | 83.55% | 752 | 15.46% | 48 | 0.99% |
2016 | 3,639 | 80.78% | 724 | 16.07% | 142 | 3.15% |
2012 | 3,080 | 69.17% | 1,261 | 28.32% | 112 | 2.52% |
2008 | 2,918 | 62.27% | 1,661 | 35.45% | 107 | 2.28% |
2004 | 3,083 | 65.50% | 1,561 | 33.16% | 63 | 1.34% |
2000 | 2,663 | 62.05% | 1,432 | 33.36% | 197 | 4.59% |
1996 | 1,882 | 47.18% | 1,445 | 36.22% | 662 | 16.60% |
1992 | 1,772 | 41.49% | 1,581 | 37.02% | 918 | 21.49% |
1988 | 2,404 | 64.21% | 1,329 | 35.50% | 11 | 0.29% |
1984 | 2,614 | 70.19% | 1,110 | 29.81% | 0 | 0.00% |
1980 | 2,434 | 64.56% | 1,242 | 32.94% | 94 | 2.49% |
1976 | 1,754 | 56.49% | 1,341 | 43.19% | 10 | 0.32% |
1972 | 2,119 | 77.22% | 625 | 22.78% | 0 | 0.00% |
1968 | 1,967 | 68.37% | 606 | 21.06% | 304 | 10.57% |
1964 | 1,540 | 59.14% | 1,064 | 40.86% | 0 | 0.00% |
1960 | 2,595 | 78.26% | 721 | 21.74% | 0 | 0.00% |
1956 | 2,141 | 70.71% | 887 | 29.29% | 0 | 0.00% |
1952 | 2,572 | 77.73% | 734 | 22.18% | 3 | 0.09% |
1948 | 1,967 | 69.46% | 859 | 30.33% | 6 | 0.21% |
1944 | 2,707 | 81.10% | 628 | 18.81% | 3 | 0.09% |
1940 | 3,421 | 77.66% | 965 | 21.91% | 19 | 0.43% |
1936 | 2,981 | 68.47% | 1,359 | 31.21% | 14 | 0.32% |
1932 | 1,730 | 55.70% | 1,358 | 43.72% | 18 | 0.58% |
1928 | 2,616 | 82.68% | 529 | 16.72% | 19 | 0.60% |
1924 | 1,758 | 69.05% | 688 | 27.02% | 100 | 3.93% |
1920 | 2,457 | 79.72% | 569 | 18.46% | 56 | 1.82% |
1916 | 1,331 | 65.89% | 654 | 32.38% | 35 | 1.73% |
1912 | 695 | 32.69% | 575 | 27.05% | 856 | 40.26% |
1908 | 1,233 | 65.76% | 594 | 31.68% | 48 | 2.56% |
1904 | 1,305 | 68.00% | 556 | 28.97% | 58 | 3.02% |
1900 | 1,272 | 63.28% | 695 | 34.58% | 43 | 2.14% |
1896 | 1,187 | 53.47% | 1,025 | 46.17% | 8 | 0.36% |
1892 | 881 | 57.24% | 387 | 25.15% | 271 | 17.61% |
1888 | 884 | 59.13% | 434 | 29.03% | 177 | 11.84% |
Like most counties situated in Southwest Missouri, Ozark County is a Republican stronghold in presidential elections. George W. Bush carried Ozark County in 2000 and 2004 by convincing two-to-one margins. Like many other rural counties throughout Missouri, Ozark County favored John McCain over Barack Obama in 2008. No Democratic presidential nominee has won Ozark County in over 150 years.[14]
Like most rural areas throughout the Bible Belt in Southwest Missouri, voters in Ozark County traditionally adhere to socially and culturally conservative principles which tend to influence their Republican leanings. In 2004, Missourians voted on a constitutional amendment to define marriage as the union between a man and a woman—it overwhelmingly passed Ozark County with 82.18 percent of the vote. The initiative passed the state with 71 percent of support from voters as Missouri became the first state to ban same-sex marriage. In 2006, Missourians voted on a constitutional amendment to fund and legalize embryonic stem cell research in the state—it narrowly failed in Ozark County with 51.07 percent voting against the measure. The initiative narrowly passed the state with 51 percent of support from voters as Missouri became one of the first states in the nation to approve embryonic stem cell research. Despite Ozark County's longstanding tradition of supporting socially conservative platforms, voters in the county have a penchant for advancing populist causes like increasing the minimum wage. In 2006, Missourians voted on a proposition (Proposition B) to increase the minimum wage in the state to $6.50 an hour—it passed Ozark County with 76.94 percent of the vote. The proposition strongly passed every single county in Missouri with 78.99 percent voting in favor as the minimum wage was increased to $6.50 an hour in the state. During the same election, voters in five other states also strongly approved increases in the minimum wage.
Missouri presidential preference primary (2008)
[edit]In the 2008 presidential primary, voters in Ozark County from both political parties supported candidates who finished in second place in the state at large and nationally. Former Governor Mike Huckabee (R-Arkansas) received more votes, a total of 766, than any candidate from either party in Ozark County during the 2008 presidential primary.
Communities
[edit]City
[edit]- Gainesville (county seat)
Villages
[edit]Census-designated places
[edit]Unincorporated communities
[edit]See also
[edit]References
[edit]- ^ "Explore Census Data". data.census.gov. Retrieved December 6, 2021.
- ^ "Find a County". National Association of Counties. Retrieved June 7, 2011.
- ^ "Disappearing Missouri Names". The Kansas City Star. March 19, 1911. p. 15. Retrieved August 15, 2014 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "2010 Census Gazetteer Files". United States Census Bureau. August 22, 2012. Archived from the original on October 21, 2013. Retrieved November 17, 2014.
- ^ "U.S. Decennial Census". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved November 17, 2014.
- ^ "Historical Census Browser". University of Virginia Library. Retrieved November 17, 2014.
- ^ "Population of Counties by Decennial Census: 1900 to 1990". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved November 17, 2014.
- ^ "Census 2000 PHC-T-4. Ranking Tables for Counties: 1990 and 2000" (PDF). United States Census Bureau. Archived (PDF) from the original on March 27, 2010. Retrieved November 17, 2014.
- ^ "State & County QuickFacts". United States Census Bureau. Archived from the original on June 7, 2011. Retrieved September 12, 2013.
- ^ "U.S. Census website". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved January 31, 2008.
- ^ "P2 HISPANIC OR LATINO, AND NOT HISPANIC OR LATINO BY RACE – 2020: DEC Redistricting Data (PL 94-171) – Ozark County, Missouri".
- ^ "Missouri House of Representatives District 155". Ballotpedia. Retrieved May 2, 2023.
- ^ Leip, David. "Dave Leip's Atlas of U.S. Presidential Elections". uselectionatlas.org. Retrieved March 26, 2018.
- ^ Brandt, Maxwell; ‘A Few Lists of 2008 Election Results’
External links
[edit]- Digitized 1930 Plat Book of Ozark County Archived August 16, 2011, at the Wayback Machine from University of Missouri Division of Special Collections, Archives, and Rare Books