Ironton is a city and 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 ...

Iron County, Missouri Iron County is a County (United States), county located in the Lead Belt, Lead Belt region in the U.S. state of Missouri. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the population was 9,537. The largest city and county seat is Ironton, M ...

, United States. The population was 1,475 at the 2020 census.

History

Ironton was designated county seat in 1857, soon after the formation of Iron County. Like the county, Ironton was named from the deposits of

iron ore Iron ores are rocks and minerals from which metallic iron can be economically extracted. The ores are usually rich in iron oxides and vary in color from dark grey, bright yellow, or deep purple to rusty red. The iron is usually found in the f ...

found in the vicinity. A post office called Ironton has been in operation since 1858. In early August 1861, Brigader General Sam Grant led a force of four regiments in the area. In a letter to his wife he described the area as “one of the most delightful places I have ever been in.”

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 , of which is land and is water.

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 1,460 people, 639 households, and 375 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 745 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the city was 96.16%

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 ...

, 1.71%

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 ...

, 0.34% Native American, 0.07% Asian, 0.14% from other races, and 1.58% 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 639 households, of which 25.7% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 41.2% 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, 13.9% had a female householder with no husband present, 3.6% had a male householder with no wife present, and 41.3% were non-families. 37.4% of all households were made up of individuals, and 16.1% 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 2.88. The median age in the city was 41.9 years. 20.1% of residents were under the age of 18; 9.8% were between the ages of 18 and 24; 23.1% were from 25 to 44; 26.6% were from 45 to 64; and 20.2% were 65 years of age or older. The gender makeup of the city was 47.2% male and 52.8% female.

2000 census

As of the

of 2000, there were 1,471 people, 615 households, and 389 families living in the city. The population density was . There were 683 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the city was 94.97%

, 3.06%

, 0.41% Native American, 0.20% Asian, 0.20% from other races, and 1.16% from two or more races.

or Latino of any race were 0.61% of the population. There were 615 households, out of which 29.8% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 47.2% were

living together, 13.7% had a female householder with no husband present, and 36.7% were non-families. 31.9% of all households were made up of individuals, and 17.2% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.30 and the average family size was 2.88. In the city, the population was spread out, with 23.9% under the age of 18, 8.0% from 18 to 24, 24.9% from 25 to 44, 24.9% from 45 to 64, and 18.3% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 41 years. For every 100 females, there were 86.9 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 83.3 males. The median income for a household in the city was $23,808, and the median income for a family was $31,458. Males had a median income of $28,800 versus $18,162 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 $14,710. About 17.4% of families and 22.9% 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 31.1% of those under age 18 and 18.9% of those age 65 or over.

Education

Ironton students are served by the Arcadia Valley School District. Arcadia Valley High School is a small, rural school. Ironton 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 Ozark Regional Library.

Notable people

* Chris Carr, former

NBA The National Basketball Association (NBA) is a professional basketball league in North America composed of 30 teams (29 in the United States and 1 in Canada). The NBA is one of the major professional sports leagues in the United States and Ca ...

basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appro ...

player * Andrew S. Cuthbertson, Illinois state senator and lawyer * John Wesley Emerson, American lawyer and businessperson * Jeff Tesreau, American League pitcher, Major League Baseball, 1912-1917

References

External links

* Historic maps of Ironton in th
Sanborn Maps of Missouri Collection
at the

University of Missouri The University of Missouri (Mizzou or MU) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Columbia, Missouri, United States. It is Missouri's largest university and the flagship of the four-campus Univers ...

{{authority control Cities in Iron County, Missouri County seats in Missouri Cities in Missouri