There are 114
counties
A county is a geographic region of a country used for administrative or other purposesChambers Dictionary, L. Brookes (ed.), 2005, Chambers Harrap Publishers Ltd, Edinburgh in certain modern nations. The term is derived from the Old French ...
and one
independent city
An independent city or independent town is a city or town that does not form part of another general-purpose local government entity (such as a province).
Historical precursors
In the Holy Roman Empire, and to a degree in its successor states ...
in the
U.S. State
In the United States, a state is a constituent political entity, of which there are 50. Bound together in a political union, each state holds governmental jurisdiction over a separate and defined geographic territory where it shares its sover ...
of
Missouri
Missouri 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 is bordered by eight states (tied for the most with Tennessee ...
. Following the
Louisiana Purchase
The Louisiana Purchase (french: Vente de la Louisiane, translation=Sale of Louisiana) was the acquisition of the territory of Louisiana by the United States from the French First Republic in 1803. In return for fifteen million dollars, or app ...
and the admittance of
Louisiana
Louisiana , group=pronunciation (French: ''La Louisiane'') is a state in the Deep South and South Central regions of the United States. It is the 20th-smallest by area and the 25th most populous of the 50 U.S. states. Louisiana is borde ...
into the United States in 1812, five counties were formed out of the
Missouri Territory
The Territory of Missouri was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from June 4, 1812, until August 10, 1821. In 1819, the Territory of Arkansas was created from a portion of its southern area. In 1821, a southeas ...
at the first general assembly:
Cape Girardeau
Cape Girardeau ( , french: Cap-Girardeau ; colloquially referred to as "Cape") is a city in Cape Girardeau and Scott Counties in the U.S. state of Missouri. At the 2020 census, the population was 39,540. The city is one of two principal citi ...
,
New Madrid,
Saint Charles,
Saint Louis, and
Ste. Genevieve. Most subsequent counties were apportioned from these five original counties. Six more counties were added through the 1836
Platte Purchase
The Platte Purchase was a land acquisition in 1836 by the United States government from American Indian tribes of the region. It comprised lands along the east bank of the Missouri River and added to the northwest corner of the state of Miss ...
, the acquired lands of which formed the northwest tip of the state and consisted of
Andrew
Andrew is the English form of a given name common in many countries. In the 1990s, it was among the top ten most popular names given to boys in List of countries where English is an official language, English-speaking countries. "Andrew" is freq ...
,
Atchison Atchison may refer to:
Places
In the United States:
*Atchison, California, a former settlement
*Atchison, Kansas, a city
*Atchison County, Kansas
*Atchison County, Missouri
People with the surname
* Bob Atchison (born 1941), Canadian drag race ...
,
Buchanan,
Holt,
Nodaway, and
Platte counties.
In Missouri, the county level of government comes between those of the city and the state. Its primary responsibilities include maintaining roads, providing security, prosecuting criminals, and collecting taxes. Elected officials at this level include a
sheriff
A sheriff is a government official, with varying duties, existing in some countries with historical ties to England where the office originated. There is an analogous, although independently developed, office in Iceland that is commonly transla ...
,
prosecuting attorney
A prosecutor is a legal representative of the prosecution in states with either the common law adversarial system or the civil law inquisitorial system. The prosecution is the legal party responsible for presenting the case in a criminal tria ...
, and
assessor.
Most of the counties in Missouri are named after politicians. One such county,
Cass
Cass may refer to:
People and fictional characters
* Cass (surname), a list of people
* Cass (given name), a list of people and fictional characters
* Big Cass, ring name of wrestler William Morrissey
* Cass, in British band Skunk Anansie
* Cass, ...
, was originally named Van Buren County after President
Martin Van Buren
Martin Van Buren ( ; nl, Maarten van Buren; ; December 5, 1782 – July 24, 1862) was an American lawyer and statesman who served as the eighth president of the United States from 1837 to 1841. A primary founder of the Democratic Party (Uni ...
, and was changed to its present name in support of Van Buren's
Democratic opponent
Lewis Cass
Lewis Cass (October 9, 1782June 17, 1866) was an American military officer, politician, and statesman. He represented Michigan in the United States Senate and served in the Cabinets of two U.S. Presidents, Andrew Jackson and James Buchanan. He w ...
during the
presidential election of 1848. Other counties are named after war heroes, natural resources, explorers, and
former U.S. territories.
The city of
St. Louis
St. Louis () is the second-largest city in Missouri, United States. It sits near the confluence of the Mississippi and the Missouri Rivers. In 2020, the city proper had a population of 301,578, while the bi-state metropolitan area, which e ...
is an independent city, and is not within the limits of a county. Its residents voted to secede from
St. Louis County in 1876. Throughout the United States, St. Louis is one of three independent cities outside the state of
Virginia
Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern regions of the United States, between the Atlantic Coast and the Appalachian Mountains. The geography and climate of the Commonwealth ar ...
(the other two are
Baltimore
Baltimore ( , locally: or ) is the List of municipalities in Maryland, most populous city in the U.S. state of Maryland, fourth most populous city in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic, and List of United States cities by popula ...
, Maryland and
Carson City, Nevada
Carson City is an independent city and the capital of the U.S. state of Nevada. As of the 2020 census, the population was 58,639, making it the sixth largest city in Nevada. The majority of the city's population lives in Eagle Valley, on the ...
).
Population figures are based on the 2021
Census
A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording and calculating information about the members of a given population. This term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common censuses incl ...
estimate. According to that census estimate, the population of Missouri is 6,168,187, an increase of 0.2% from 2020. The average population of Missouri's counties is 53,636;
St. Louis County is the most populous (997,187), and
Worth County is the least (1,983). The average land area is . The largest county is
Texas County (1,179 sq mi, 3,054 km
2) and the smallest is
St. Louis city (61.9 sq mi, 160 km
2).
[U.S. Census Bureau]
, ("Missouri County Selection Map")
The
Federal Information Processing Standard
The Federal Information Processing Standards (FIPS) of the United States are a set of publicly announced standards that the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) has developed for use in computer systems of non-military, American ...
(FIPS) is used by the U.S. government to uniquely identify counties, and is provided for each entry. These codes link to the
United States Census Bureau
The United States Census Bureau (USCB), officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the U.S. Federal Statistical System, responsible for producing data about the American people and economy. The Census Bureau is part of the ...
's "quick facts" for each county. To distinguish from counties in other states, one must use Missouri's FIPS code, 29. For example,
Adair County's unique nationwide identifier is 29001.
Counties
Former county names
See also
*
List of cities in Missouri
Missouri is a state located in the Midwestern United States. In Missouri, cities are classified into three types: 3rd Class, 4th Class, and those under constitutional charters. A few older cities are incorporated under legislative charters (Car ...
*
List of municipalities in Missouri
The following is a list of all incorporated communities in the state of Missouri. There are 958 municipalities.
References
{{reflist
Missouri, List of cities in
Municipalities
A municipality is usually a single administrative divi ...
*
List of U.S. counties by population
A ''list'' is any set of items in a row. List or lists may also refer to:
People
* List (surname)
Organizations
* List College, an undergraduate division of the Jewish Theological Seminary of America
* SC Germania List, German rugby unio ...
*
Missouri census statistical areas
The U.S. currently has 34 statistical areas that have been delineated by the Office of Management and Budget (OMB). On March 6, 2020, the OMB delineated seven combined statistical areas, eight metropolitan statistical areas, and 19 micropolit ...
*
Demographics of Missouri
References
External links
Missouri Association of Countiesfrom
University of Missouri
The University of Missouri (Mizzou, MU, or Missouri) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Columbia, Missouri. It is Missouri's largest university and the flagship of the four-campus Universit ...
Division of Special Collections, Archives, and Rare Books
{{featured list
Missouri
Missouri 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 is bordered by eight states (tied for the most with Tennessee ...
Counties
A county is a geographic region of a country used for administrative or other purposesChambers Dictionary, L. Brookes (ed.), 2005, Chambers Harrap Publishers Ltd, Edinburgh in certain modern nations. The term is derived from the Old French ...