Crystal City is a city in eastern Jefferson County,

Missouri Missouri is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States. Ranking 21st in land area, it is bordered by eight states (tied for the most with Tennessee): Iowa to the north, Illinois, Kentucky and Tennessee to the east, Arkansas t ...

, United States. The population was 4,855 at the 2010 census.U.S. Census Bureau - Crystal City
U.S. Census Bureau It was 4,247 at the 2000 census. Crystal City and its neighbor Festus are often collectively known as the "Twin Cities".

History

Crystal City was originally called New Detroit. A post office called Crystal City has been in operation since 1872. In the 1860s,

Pittsburgh Plate Glass Company PPG Industries, Inc. is an American Fortune 500 company and global supplier of paints, coatings, and specialty materials. With headquarters in Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, PPG operates in more than 70 countries around the globe. By re ...

opened a glass manufacturing plant, which is the origin of the city's name. Currently, the PPG plant property remains empty and undeveloped. It was purchased by Wings Enterprises in the mid-2000s with the intentions of constructing an iron ore smelter on the property. In the early 2000s, the state of Missouri forced

Doe Run Company The Doe Run Resources Corporation, known by the trade name The Doe Run Company, is a privately held natural resources company and global producer of lead, copper, and zinc concentrates. It owns four mills, six mines and a lead battery recycling pl ...

to purchase 160 homes in Herculaneum after it was found over 56% of children within a quarter-mile (0.4 km) of the plant had high levels of

lead Lead is a chemical element with the symbol Pb (from the Latin ) and atomic number 82. It is a heavy metal that is denser than most common materials. Lead is soft and malleable, and also has a relatively low melting point. When freshly cu ...

in their

blood Blood is a body fluid in the circulatory system of humans and other vertebrates that delivers necessary substances such as nutrients and oxygen to the cells, and transports metabolic waste products away from those same cells. Blood in the cir ...

. This prompted greater concern when Crystal City engaged in discussions over building a $1 billion dollar iron-ore smelter on the lands of the abandoned factory.

Geography

Crystal City is located adjacent to the

Mississippi River The Mississippi River is the second-longest river and chief river of the second-largest drainage system in North America, second only to the Hudson Bay drainage system. From its traditional source of Lake Itasca in northern Minnesota, it fl ...

floodplain to the east and the city of Festus to the west. According 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 t ...

, the city has a total area of , of which is land and is water.

Demographics

2010 census

As of the

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 in ...

of 2010, there were 4,855 people, 1,894 households, and 1,228 families living in the city. The

population density Population density (in agriculture: 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 geographical ...

was . There were 2,078 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the city was 93.2%

White White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no hue). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully reflect and scatter all the visible wavelengths of light. White o ...

, 3.7%

African American African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American" generally denotes descendants of ens ...

, 0.4% Native American, 0.6% Asian, 0.3% from

other races Other often refers to: * Other (philosophy), a concept in psychology and philosophy Other or The Other may also refer to: Film and television * ''The Other'' (1913 film), a German silent film directed by Max Mack * ''The Other'' (1930 film), a ...

, and 1.9% from two or more races.

Hispanic The term ''Hispanic'' ( es, hispano) refers to people, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or Hispanidad. The term commonly applies to countries with a cultural and historical link to Spain and to viceroyalties forme ...

or Latino of any race were 1.0% of the population. There were 1,894 households, of which 36.0% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 45.9% were married couples living together, 13.7% had a female householder with no husband present, 5.2% had a male householder with no wife present, and 35.2% were non-families. 29.4% of all households were made up of individuals, and 12.3% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.47 and the average family size was 3.06. The median age in the city was 37.1 years. 25.7% of residents were under the age of 18; 7.8% were between the ages of 18 and 24; 25.9% were from 25 to 44; 24.2% were from 45 to 64; and 16.5% were 65 years of age or older. The gender makeup of the city was 47.6% male and 52.4% female.

2000 census

As of the

of 2000, there were 4,247 people, 1,622 households, and 1,111 families living in the city. The population density was . There were 1,769 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the city was 92.11%

, 5.34%

, 0.26% Native American, 0.52% Asian, 0.07% from

, and 1.70% from two or more races.

or Latino of any race were 0.49% of the population. There were 1,622 households, out of which 32.2% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 51.2% were married couples living together, 13.8% had a female householder with no husband present, and 31.5% were non-families. 28.2% of all households were made up of individuals, and 13.6% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.44 and the average family size was 2.97. In the city, the population was spread out, with 24.0% under the age of 18, 8.5% from 18 to 24, 25.7% from 25 to 44, 21.5% from 45 to 64, and 20.3% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 40 years. For every 100 females, there were 87.6 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 81.1 males. The median income for a household in the city was $36,117, and the median income for a family was $45,288. Males had a median income of $41,111 versus $23,750 for females. The

per capita income Per capita income (PCI) or total income measures the average income earned per person in a given area (city, region, country, etc.) in a specified year. It is calculated by dividing the area's total income by its total population. Per capita i ...

for the city was $17,816. About 12.6% of families and 15.2% 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 t ...

, including 21.6% of those under age 18 and 6.3% of those age 65 or over.

Education

Crystal City 47 Public Schools operates one elementary school and

Crystal City High School Crystal City High School is a high school that serves the city of Crystal City, Texas, as well as the unincorporated communities of Chula Vista-River Spur, Amaya, Loma Grande, Cometa, and southern Zavala County. It is part of the Crystal City I ...

. The town has a lending library, the Crystal City Public Library.

Notable people

* Bill Bradley, former NBA player and

United States Senator The United States Senate is the upper chamber of the United States Congress, with the House of Representatives being the lower chamber. Together they compose the national bicameral legislature of the United States. The composition and powe ...

* Margaret B. Kelly, former Missouri State Auditor * Danny Kladis, auto racer * Dan LaRose, football player * Tom Santschi (Paul William Santschi), silent film actor

References

External links

Crystal City's Website

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

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

{{authority control Missouri populated places on the Mississippi River Cities in Jefferson County, Missouri Defunct glassmaking companies Cities in Missouri