Jefferson City is the capital of the State of
Missouri and the county seat of Cole
County. It is the principal city of the Jefferson City metropolitan
area which encompasses both Callaway and Cole counties. As of 2006, the population is 39,274[1]. Jefferson City was named after the third president of the United States of America, Thomas Jefferson. Jefferson City is on the northern edge of the
Ozarks on the Missouri River near the geographic center of the state, and is
dominated by a domed Capitol, rising from a bluff overlooking the Missouri River.
Lewis and Clark passed beneath that bluff on their historic expedition.
History
In pre-Columbian times, this region was home of an ancient people known only as the Mound Builders. By the time European settlers began arriving here, the Mound Builders had already
vanished into history and the indigenous peoples were called the Osage Indians. When the
Missouri Territory was organized in 1812, St. Louis
was the seat of government. St. Charles served as the capital until Jefferson
City was chosen as the new capital in 1821. In 1821 Jefferson City was known as Lohman's Landing.
When the city was first chosen to be the state capital, they proposed the name "Missouriopolis", but later settled on Jefferson
City.[2] It was little more than a trading post located in
the wilderness about midway between St. Louis and Kansas City. In 1826 the Missouri legislature first met here and in 1839 the
site was incorporated as a city. Jefferson City was occupied by Union troops during the American Civil War.
Geography
Jefferson City is located at 38°38′58″N, 92°12′52″W (38.572954,
-92.189283)1. According to the
United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 73.2
km² (28.3 mi²). 70.6 km² (27.2 mi²) of it is land
and 2.6 km² (1.0 mi²) of it (3.61%) is water.
Demographics
As of the census2 of 2000, there were 39,636 people, 15,794 households, and 9,207 families
residing in the city. The population density was 561.6/km² (1,454.4/mi²). There were
16,987 housing units at an average density of 240.7/km² (623.3/mi²). The racial makeup of the city was 81.50% White, 14.70% Black or African American, 0.38% Native American, 1.23% Asian, 0.05% Pacific Islander, 0.62% from other races, and 1.52% from two or more races. 1.55% of the population
were Hispanic or Latino of any race.
There were 15,794 households out of which 27.9% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 44.4% were married couples living together, 10.8% had a female householder with no husband present, and 41.7% were
non-families. 36.1% of all households were made up of individuals and 11.9% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or
older. The average household size was 2.21 and the average family size was 2.90.
In the city the population was spread out with 20.9% under the age of 18, 11.0% from 18 to 24, 32.1% from 25 to 44, 22.0% from
45 to 64, and 14.0% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 36 years. For every 100 females there were 105.3 males.
For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 106.6 males.
The median income for a household in the city was $39,628, and the median income for a family was $52,627. Males had a median
income of $35,050 versus $25,521 for females. The per capita income for the city was
$21,268. About 7.3% of families and 11.5% of the population were below the poverty
line, including 17.1% of those under age 18 and 7.1% of those age 65 or over.
Education
Jefferson City is served by the Jefferson City Public School
District, which operates Jefferson City High School. There is also
Helias, a Catholic high school.
Lincoln University, a historically black college (HBCU), is also located in Jefferson City.
Transportation
Notable sites
- Jefferson City is sister city to the German (Northern Bavaria) City of Muenchberg (Münchberg), Hof County (Landkreis Hof).
Incidently, the historically German section of Jefferson City is called "Old Munichburg."
- A submarine, the USS Jefferson City
(SSN-759), is named for the State Capital of Missouri.
Notable Citizens
References
- ^ Population Finder: Jefferson City, Missouri – American FactFinder, U.S. Census
Bureau.]
- ^ McMillen, Margot Ford & Murphy, Dennis. A to Z: The Dictionary of
Missouri Place Names. Columbia, MO. Pebble Publishing, 1996. ISBN 0-9646625-4-X.
External links
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