Greencastle is a city in eastern Sullivan 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 224 at the 2020 census.

History

The

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 ...

for Greencastle was surveyed on March 12, 1857, at the behest of Victor Doze, Marion Overstreet, E.E. Prindle, I.E. Wood, and M.P. Wood. It consisted of six full blocks and eight half blocks with each block containing eight lots. The area had been inhabited for some time prior to 1857 however, with the first permanent home built on the present site of Greencastle by Marion Sanders ''circa'' 1853. Moreover, the Greencastle Methodist Episcopal Church was organized in 1845 and held services just south of the town's later platted location. The Greencastle post office was established in 1857 with I.E. Wood as first postmaster, followed a short time later by the opening of the new towns' first general store. Greencastle's first

Gristmill A gristmill (also: grist mill, corn mill, flour mill, feed mill or feedmill) grinds cereal grain into flour and Wheat middlings, middlings. The term can refer to either the grinding mechanism or the building that holds it. Grist is grain that h ...

was built in 1879 and a newspaper, the ''Greencastle Independence'' began publication in 1881. It was also in 1881 that Greencastle was finally incorporated on August 8, 1881. A depot for the Quincy, Missouri, and Pacific Railroad was built in 1883. A creamery was established in 1885 and produced an average of 1,500 pounds of butter per week.

Geography

Greencastle is located on

Missouri Route 6 Route 6 is a state highway in the northern part of the U.S. state of Missouri. It travels from I-29 Bus./ US 169 in St. Joseph to US 24/ US 61 about west of Quincy, Illinois. The highway serves as a major east-west corridor ...

approximately 13 miles east-northeast of

Milan Milan ( , , ; ) is a city in northern Italy, regional capital of Lombardy, the largest city in Italy by urban area and the List of cities in Italy, second-most-populous city proper in Italy after Rome. The city proper has a population of nea ...

and 15 miles west of

Kirksville Kirksville is the county seat of and most populous city in Adair County, Missouri, United States. Located in Benton Township, Adair County, Missouri, Benton Township, its population was 17,530 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. Kirk ...

.''Missouri Atlas & Gazetteer,'' DeLorme, 1st ed., 1998, pp. 22-3

Mussel Fork Mussel Fork is a stream in Adair, Chariton, Linn, Macon and Sullivan counties in the U.S. state of Missouri. It is a tributary to the Chariton River. The stream headwaters arise just northeast of Green City in Sullivan County''Missouri Atlas & ...

flows past approximately one mile to the southwest and the Union Ridge Conservation Area on

Spring Creek A spring creek is a type of free flowing river whose name derives from its origin: an underground Spring (hydrology), spring or set of springs which produces sufficient water to consistently feed a unique river. The water flowing in a spring cree ...

is two miles north on

Missouri Route D A supplemental route is a state secondary road in the U.S. state of Missouri, designated with letters. Supplemental routes were various roads within the state which the Missouri Department of Transportation was given in 1952 to maintain in add ...

. 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 275 people, 123 households, and 71 families residing 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 147 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the city was 99.6%

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 ...

and 0.4% 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 1.5% of the population. There were 123 households, of which 27.6% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 42.3% 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, 11.4% had a female householder with no husband present, 4.1% had a male householder with no wife present, and 42.3% were non-families. 39.0% of all households were made up of individuals, and 24.4% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.24 and the average family size was 3.03. The median age in the city was 44.1 years. 23.3% of residents were under the age of 18; 8.8% were between the ages of 18 and 24; 19.6% were from 25 to 44; 25.9% were from 45 to 64; and 22.5% were 65 years of age or older. The gender makeup of the city was 48.0% male and 52.0% female.

2000 census

As of the

of 2000, there were 308 people, 133 households, and 75 families residing in the city. The population density was . There were 148 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the city was 99.68%

and 0.32% Native American. There were 133 households, out of which 28.6% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 47.4% were

living together, 6.0% had a female householder with no husband present, and 42.9% were non-families. 40.6% of all households were made up of individuals, and 18.8% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.32 and the average family size was 3.17. In the city the population was spread out, with 28.9% under the age of 18, 4.9% from 18 to 24, 26.0% from 25 to 44, 24.7% from 45 to 64, and 15.6% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 37 years. For every 100 females, there were 85.5 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 90.4 males. The median income for a household in the city was $17,500, and the median income for a family was $23,438. Males had a median income of $21,042 versus $18,625 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 $10,369. About 19.5% of families and 27.1% 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 22.6% of those under the age of eighteen and 33.3% of those 65 or over.

References

External links

* Historic maps of Greencastle 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 Sullivan County, Missouri Cities in Missouri