Benton is a city in Scott County,

Missouri Missouri (''see #Etymology and pronunciation, pronunciation'') is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. Ranking List of U.S. states and territories by area, 21st in land area, it border ...

, United States. The population was 866 at the 2020 census. It is the

county seat A county seat is an administrative center, seat of government, or capital city of a county or parish (administrative division), civil parish. The term is in use in five countries: Canada, China, Hungary, Romania, and the United States. An equiva ...

of Scott County.

History

Benton was settled as early as 1796. The town site was

plat In the United States, a plat ( or ) (plan) is a cadastral map, drawn to scale, showing the divisions of a piece of land. United States General Land Office surveyors drafted township plats of Public Lands Survey System, Public Lands Surveys to ...

ted in 1822. The community was named after Thomas Hart Benton. A post office has been in operation at Benton since 1823.

Geography

According to the

United States Census Bureau The United States Census Bureau, officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the Federal statistical system, U.S. federal statistical system, responsible for producing data about the American people and American economy, econ ...

, the city has a total area of , all land.

Demographics

2010 census

As of the

census A census (from Latin ''censere'', 'to assess') is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording, and calculating population information about the members of a given Statistical population, population, usually displayed in the form of stati ...

of 2010, there were 863 people, 311 households, and 214 families living in the city. The

population density Population density (in agriculture: Standing stock (disambiguation), standing stock or plant density) is a measurement of population per unit land area. It is mostly applied to humans, but sometimes to other living organisms too. It is a key geog ...

was . There were 339 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the city was 94.21%

White White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no chroma). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully (or almost fully) reflect and scatter all the visible wa ...

, 4.87%

Black Black is a color that results from the absence or complete absorption of visible light. It is an achromatic color, without chroma, like white and grey. It is often used symbolically or figuratively to represent darkness.Eva Heller, ''P ...

African American African Americans, also known as Black Americans and formerly also called Afro-Americans, are an Race and ethnicity in the United States, American racial and ethnic group that consists of Americans who have total or partial ancestry from an ...

, 0.23% from other races, and 0.70% from two or more races.

Hispanic The term Hispanic () are people, Spanish culture, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or broadly. In some contexts, Hispanic and Latino Americans, especially within the United States, "Hispanic" is used as an Ethnici ...

or Latino of any race were 1.51% of the population. There were 311 households, of which 35.0% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 54.0% were

married couples Marriage, also called matrimony or wedlock, is a culturally and often legally recognised union between people called spouses. It establishes rights and obligations between them, as well as between them and their children (if any), and b ...

living together, 10.9% had a female householder with no husband present, 3.9% had a male householder with no wife present, and 31.2% were non-families. 27.0% of all households were made up of individuals, and 10.9% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.45 and the average family size was 2.97. The median age in the city was 35.5 years. 24.2% of residents were under the age of 18; 9.5% were between the ages of 18 and 24; 30.5% were from 25 to 44; 24.7% were from 45 to 64; and 11.1% were 65 years of age or older. The gender makeup of the city was 52.8% male and 47.2% female.

2000 census

As of the

of 2000, there were 732 people, 287 households, and 191 families living in the city. The population density was . There were 301 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the city was 97.54%

, 2.05%

and 0.41% Native American.

or Latino of any race were 1.23% of the population. There were 287 households, out of which 32.8% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 53.3% were

living together, 9.1% had a female householder with no husband present, and 33.4% were non-families. 30.0% of all households were made up of individuals, and 16.7% 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 3.02. In the city, the population was spread out, with 23.2% under the age of 18, 10.5% from 18 to 24, 29.8% from 25 to 44, 21.0% from 45 to 64, and 15.4% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 36 years. For every 100 females there were 92.6 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 95.1 males. The median income for a household in the city was $33,365, and the median income for a family was $45,179. Males had a median income of $27,014 versus $20,662 for females. The

per capita income Per capita income (PCI) or average income measures the average income earned per person in a given area (city, region, country, etc.) in a specified year. In many countries, per capita income is determined using regular population surveys, such ...

for the city was $16,161. About 4.2% of families and 7.5% of the population were below the

poverty line The poverty threshold, poverty limit, poverty line, or breadline is the minimum level of income deemed adequate in a particular country. The poverty line is usually calculated by estimating the total cost of one year's worth of necessities for ...

, including 8.9% of those under age 18 and 7.2% of those age 65 or over.

Education

It is in the Scott County R-IV School District, which operates one elementary school, one middle school, and Thomas W. Kelly High School. Prior to 1954, the community had its own school district. That year, it consolidated into Scott County R-IV. Kelly High was scheduled to open on August 29, 1957. It was named after a man from Benton who died as a soldier in World War II. Benton has a

public library A public library is a library, most often a lending library, that is accessible by the general public and is usually funded from public sources, such as taxes. It is operated by librarians and library paraprofessionals, who are also Civil servic ...

, a branch of the Riverside Regional Library. Three Rivers College's service area includes Scott County.

References

{{authority control Cities in Scott County, Missouri County seats in Missouri Populated places established in 1860 Cities in Missouri