Bell City is a city in northeastern Stoddard 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. It was founded as a

sawmill A sawmill (saw mill, saw-mill) or lumber mill is a facility where logging, logs are cut into lumber. Modern sawmills use a motorized saw to cut logs lengthwise to make long pieces, and crosswise to length depending on standard or custom sizes ...

town ''circa'' 1900, and lies at the

foothills Foothills or piedmont are geography, geographically defined as gradual increases in elevation at the base of a mountain range, higher hill range or an highland, upland area. They are a transition zone between plains and low terrain, relief hill ...

Crowley's Ridge Crowley's Ridge (also Crowleys Ridge) is a geological formation that rises 250 to above the alluvial plain of the Mississippi embayment in a line from southeastern Missouri to the Mississippi River near Helena, Arkansas. It is the most p ...

Missouri Route 91 Route 91 is a short highway in southeastern Missouri. Its northern terminus is at Route 51 in Bollinger County Bollinger County is a county located in the southeastern part of the U.S. state of Missouri. As of the 2020 census, the county ...

. The population was 464 at the 2020 census. Dorothy Burton is the current mayor.

History

A post office called Bell City has been in operation since 1890. The community was named after brothers Gesper Albert and Ralford Stephen Bell, proprietors of a local sawmill. Bell City was situated along the

St. Louis Southwestern Railway The St. Louis Southwestern Railway Company , known by its nickname of "The Cotton Belt Route" or simply "Cotton Belt", was a Class I railroad that operated between St. Louis, Missouri, and various points in the U.S. states of Arkansas, Tennessee ...

Geography

Bell City is located on the western edge of the lowland region of southeast Missouri.

Sikeston Sikeston () is a city located both in southern Scott County, Missouri, Scott County and northern New Madrid County, Missouri, New Madrid County, in the state of Missouri, United States. It is situated just north of the "Missouri Bootheel", althou ...

lies 15 miles to the southeast. The head of

Little River Little River may refer to several places: Australia Streams New South Wales *Little River (Dubbo), source in the Dubbo region, a tributary of the Macquarie River * Little River (Oberon), source in the Oberon Shire, a tributary of Coxs River (Haw ...

is three miles to the east.

passes through the community, connecting with

U.S. Route 61 U.S. Route 61 or U.S. Highway 61 (U.S. 61) is a major United States highway that extends between New Orleans, Louisiana and the city of Wyoming, Minnesota. The highway generally follows the course of the Mississippi River and is designat ...

at Morley, ten miles to the east. 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 448 people, 182 households, and 124 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 212 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the city was 94.64%

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 ...

, 1.79%

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 ...

, 1.34% Native American, and 2.23% 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 0.22% of the population. There were 182 households, of which 37.4% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 47.3% 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, 12.6% had a female householder with no husband present, 8.2% had a male householder with no wife present, and 31.9% were non-families. 26.9% of all households were made up of individuals, and 12.6% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.46 and the average family size was 2.98. The median age in the city was 36.6 years. 25% of residents were under the age of 18; 11.7% were between the ages of 18 and 24; 25.3% were from 25 to 44; 26.1% were from 45 to 64; and 12.1% were 65 years of age or older. The gender makeup of the city was 50.7% male and 49.3% female.

2000 census

As of the

of 2000, there were 461 people, 196 households, and 126 families living in the city. The population density was . There were 220 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the city was 98.48%

, 1.08%

, 0.22% Native American, and 0.22% from two or more races.

or Latino of any race were 0.87% of the population. There were 196 households, out of which 36.2% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 45.4% were

living together, 15.3% had a female householder with no husband present, and 35.7% were non-families. 34.2% of all households were made up of individuals, and 13.8% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.35 and the average family size was 3.02. In the city the population was spread out, with 28.9% under the age of 18, 8.9% from 18 to 24, 27.5% from 25 to 44, 21.5% from 45 to 64, and 13.2% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 35 years. For every 100 females, there were 85.1 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 77.3 males. The median income for a household in the city was $23,125, and the median income for a family was $28,636. Males had a median income of $22,125 versus $16,333 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 $12,664. About 11.8% of families and 19.4% 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 27.1% of those under age 18 and 23.7% of those age 65 or over.

Education

It is in the Bell City R-II School District.
Text list
/ref>

Notable People

* Dave Barham - Founded

Hot Dog on a Stick Hot Dog on a Stick is a fast food company that was founded by Dave Barham in Santa Monica, California, in 1946, and later branched out into malls and shopping centers. From 2014 to 2021, the company was owned by Global Franchise Group based ...

References

{{authority control Cities in Stoddard County, Missouri 1890 establishments in Missouri Cities in Missouri