Putnam County, Missouri

Putnam County, Missouri
Location in the state of Missouri
Missouri's location in the U.S.
Founded	information needed
Seat	Unionville
Area  - Total  - Land  - Water	519.66 sq mi (1,346 km²) 517.90 sq mi (1,341 km²) 1.76 sq mi (5 km²), 0.34%
Population  - (2010)  - Density	4,979 10/sq mi (4/km²)

Putnam County is a county located in the U.S. state of Missouri. As of 2010, the population was 4,979. The name is in honor of Israel Putnam, who was a hero in the French and Indian War and a general in the American Revolutionary War. Its county seat and primary city is Unionville^[1].

History

Putnam County was established on February 28, 1845 from parts of Adair and Sullivan counties. The following year a portion of Putnam was removed for the formation of Dodge County. At this time, and until a U.S. Supreme Court decision in 1851, both Putnam and Dodge extended nearly nine miles further north than present day due to a border dispute between the states of Missouri and Iowa (see Honey War for details). Following the Supreme Court ruling Dodge County was distablished and the land consolidated back into Putnam County.^[2] During the first few years of existence the county seat changed many times, often with contentious debate. Putnamville, Bryant Station -- both no longer in existence -- and Hartford all served the purpose until in 1853 a central location first called "Harmony" later renamed Unionville was chosen.^[3]
By the 1860 U.S. Census Putnam County had 9,240 residents along with eighteen sawmills and three flour mills.^[4] Coal had been an abundant natural resource since the first white settlers ventured into the area, and following the arrival of the Burlington & Southwestern Railway in 1873, coal mining became a major employer, particularly in the eastern portion of the county. At one time three railroads crossed Putnam county -- the Chicago, Milwaukee and St. Paul; the Chicago, Burlington and Quincy; and the Iowa and St. Louis -- all running north to south.^[5] Putnam County lost over two-thirds of its population between the years 1900 and 2000 (see census data below) as America changed from a rural to a more urban society.

Demographics

As of the census^[6] of 2010, there were 4,979 people, 2,228 households, and 1,517 families residing in the county. The population density was 10 people per square mile (4/km²). There were 2,914 housing units at an average density of 6 per square mile (2/km²). The racial makeup of the county was 99.14% White, 0.06% Black or African American, 0.10% Native American, 0.13% Asian, 0.10% from other races, and 0.48% from two or more races. 0.61% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.

There were 2,228 households out of which 27.90% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 57.20% were married couples living together, 7.20% had a female householder with no husband present, and 31.90% were non-families. 28.70% of all households were made up of individuals and 15.90% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.32 and the average family size was 2.83.

In the county the population was spread out with 24.00% under the age of 18, 6.20% from 18 to 24, 24.00% from 25 to 44, 25.10% from 45 to 64, and 20.70% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 42 years. For every 100 females there were 96.10 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 91.90 males.

The median income for a household in the county was $26,282, and the median income for a family was $32,031. Males had a median income of $22,957 versus $18,884 for females. The per capita income for the county was $14,647. About 13.20% of families and 16.00% of the population were below the poverty line, including 20.60% of those under age 18 and 12.80% of those age 65 or over.

• Pre-1900 data from A History of Northeast Missouri, Published 1913

Geography

According to the 2000 census, the county has a total area of 519.66 square miles (1,345.9 km²), of which 517.90 square miles (1,341.4 km²) (or 99.66%) is land and 1.76 square miles (4.6 km²) (or 0.34%) is water.^[7]

Cities and towns

Adjacent counties

• Wayne County, Iowa (northwest)
• Appanoose County, Iowa (northeast)
• Schuyler County (east)
• Adair County (southeast)
• Sullivan County (south)
• Mercer County (west)

Major highways

• U.S. Route 136
• Route 5
• Route 129
• Route 139
• Route 149

See also

• National Register of Historic Places listings in Putnam County, Missouri

References

1. ^ "Find a County". National Association of Counties. http://www.naco.org/Counties/Pages/FindACounty.aspx. Retrieved 2011-06-07. 
2. ^ Missouri State Historical Society marker, 1958
3. ^ http://thelibrary.org/lochist/moser/putnampl.html
4. ^ The Missouri Handbook by P.M. Pinckard. Published 1865
5. ^ A History of Northeast Missouri, Vol.1 Chapter 25. Published 1913.
6. ^ "American FactFinder". United States Census Bureau. http://factfinder.census.gov. Retrieved 2008-01-31. 
7. ^ "Census 2000 U.S. Gazetteer Files: Counties". United States Census. http://www.census.gov/tiger/tms/gazetteer/county2k.txt. Retrieved 2011-02-13. 

External links

• Digitized 1930 Plat Book of Putnam County from University of Missouri Division of Special Collections, Archives, and Rare Books

	Wayne County, Iowa		Appanoose County, Iowa
	Mercer County		Schuyler County
		Putnam County, Missouri
		Sullivan County	Adair County

v t e Municipalities and communities of Putnam County, Missouri, United States County seat: Unionville City Unionville Villages Livonia Lucerne Powersville Worthington Townships Elm Grant Jackson Liberty Lincoln Medicine Richland Sherman Union Wilson York Unincorporated community Lemons

v t e  State of Missouri Jefferson City (capital) Topics Government Delegations Geography Transportation History People Visitor Attractions Society Culture Crime Demographics Economy Education Regions Bootheel Crowley's Ridge Dissected Till Plains Four State Area Henry Shaw Ozark Corridor Honey Lands Lead Belt Lincoln Hills Little Dixie Loess Hills Mid-Missouri Mississippi Embayment Missouri Rhineland Northern Plains Osage Plains Ozark Plateau Platte Purchase Pony Express St. Francois Mountains Westplex Metro areas Columbia Jefferson City Joplin Kansas City Springfield St. Joseph St. Louis Largest cities Kansas City St. Louis Springfield Independence Columbia Lee's Summit O'Fallon St. Joseph St. Charles St. Peters Blue Springs Florissant Joplin Chesterfield Jefferson City Cape Girardeau Wildwood University City Ballwin Raytown Liberty Wentzville Kirkwood Maryland Heights Hazelwood Counties and independent cities Adair Andrew Atchison Audrain Barry Barton Bates Benton Bollinger Boone Buchanan Butler Caldwell Callaway Camden Cape Girardeau Carroll Carter Cass Cedar Chariton Christian Clark Clay Clinton Cole Cooper Crawford Dade Dallas Daviess DeKalb Dent Douglas Dunklin Franklin Gasconade Gentry Greene Grundy Harrison Henry Hickory Holt Howard Howell Iron Jackson Jasper Jefferson Johnson Knox Laclede Lafayette Lawrence Lewis Lincoln Linn Livingston Macon Madison Maries Marion McDonald Mercer Miller Mississippi Moniteau Monroe Montgomery Morgan New Madrid Newton Nodaway Oregon Osage Ozark Pemiscot Perry Pettis Phelps Pike Platte Polk Pulaski Putnam Ralls Randolph Ray Reynolds Ripley St. Charles St. Clair St. Francois St. Louis (City) St. Louis (County) Ste. Genevieve Saline Schuyler Scotland Scott Shannon Shelby Stoddard Stone Sullivan Taney Texas Vernon Warren Washington Wayne Webster Worth Wright

Coordinates: 40°29′N 93°01′W / 40.48°N 93.02°W / 40.48; -93.02