Greenville is a city located on

U.S. Route 67 U.S. Route 67 is a major north–south U.S. highway which extends for 1,560 miles (2,511 km) in the Central United States. The southern terminus of the route is at the United States-Mexico border in Presidio, Texas, where it continues ...

near the intersection with Route D and E in Wayne 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, along the St. Francis River. The population was 443 at the 2020 census. Greenville was incorporated and founded as 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 ...

of Wayne County in 1819.

History

Greenville was named after Fort Greene Ville (now Greenville), Ohio, the site where General

Anthony Wayne Anthony Wayne (January 1, 1745 – December 15, 1796) was an American soldier, officer, statesman, and a Founding Father of the United States. He adopted a military career at the outset of the American Revolutionary War, where his military expl ...

signed a

treaty A treaty is a formal, legally binding written agreement between sovereign states and/or international organizations that is governed by international law. A treaty may also be known as an international agreement, protocol, covenant, convention ...

with the Native Americans after defeating them in the

Battle of Fallen Timbers The Battle of Fallen Timbers (20 August 1794) was the final battle of the Northwest Indian War, a struggle between Indigenous peoples of North America, Native American tribes affiliated with the Northwestern Confederacy and their Kingdom of Gre ...

on August 20, 1794. This was the final battle of the

Northwest Indian War The Northwest Indian War (1785–1795), also known by other names, was an armed conflict for control of the Northwest Territory fought between the United States and a united group of Native Americans in the United States, Native American na ...

. Wayne County was named for this military hero and Greenville was named for the place he was most famous for. Incidentally, Fort Greene Ville, Ohio, was named after

Nathanael Greene Major general (United States), Major General Nathanael Greene (August 7, 1742 – June 19, 1786) was an American military officer and planter who served in the Continental Army during the American Revolutionary War, Revolutionary War. He emerge ...

, a friend of Wayne. In 1826, Greenville flooded. On August 10, 1832, the first post office opened. Confederate Brigadier General William J. Hardee and officers

Patrick Cleburne Major general, Major-General Patrick Ronayne Cleburne ( ; March 16, 1828November 30, 1864) was a senior Officer (armed forces), officer in the Confederate States Army who commanded infantry in the Western Theater of the American Civil War, West ...

, Thomas C. Hindman, and Basil W. Duke along with about 800 men were stationed close to Greenville near the outset of the Civil War until they began to retreat to Randolph County, Arkansas on August 28, 1861. On July 20, 1862, a camp of two companies of the 12th Missouri State Militia was attacked at daylight, surprising the camp, taking most of their rifles, 16 Savage revolvers, all of their horses, 50 pairs of holster pistols, and killing four of their men. Greenville was incorporated as a village on February 23, 1893. In 1941, the village was relocated two miles to the north after the construction of Lake Wappapello. Old Greenville (23WE637) was listed on the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government's official United States National Register of Historic Places listings, list of sites, buildings, structures, Hist ...

in 1990.

Geography

Greenville is located on the southern edge of the

Ozark Mountains The Ozarks, also known as the Ozark Mountains, Ozark Highlands or Ozark Plateau, is a physiographic region in the U.S. states of Missouri, Arkansas, and Oklahoma, as well as a small area in the southeastern corner of Kansas. The Ozarks cover ...

, situated in a hilly, forested landscape.

passes through Greenville. 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. Greenville is on the east shore of Lake Wappapello, on the St. Francis River.

Education

The Greenville R-2 School District runs throughout most of eastern Wayne County. There are two elementary schools—Greenville Elementary School and Williamsville Elementary School located in the nearby town of Williamsville for pre-kindergarten through sixth-grade students. Greenville Jr. High School (grades 7–8) and Greenville High School (grades 9-12) compose the remainder of the district. There are 762 students and 57 teachers in grades K-12 in the district. The school colors are red and black and its mascot is the bear. School athletics consist of boys' and girls' basketball, girls' volleyball, boys' baseball, girls' softball, and cheerleading.Greenville R-2 School District
/ref> For adults aged 25 and older in Greenville, 26.7% possess a high school diploma or GED as their highest educational attainment and 5.5% possess a bachelor's degree or higher educational degree while 2.4% of the population possesses a post-graduate or professional degree.

Media

The single local newspaper is the weekly ''Wayne County Journal Banner''. The Greenville Sun newspaper was published from 1893 to 1966.

Notable person

Nelson McDowell Nelson McDowell (August 14, 1870 – November 3, 1947) was an American actor. He appeared in more than 170 films between 1917 and 1945. McDowell was born in Greenville, Missouri. His parents were N. B. McDowell and Anne Hampton. He attend ...

(1870–1947), actor who appeared in over 175 films

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 511 people, 192 households, and 121 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 234 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the city was 97.7%

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 ...

, 0.2%

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 ...

, 0.4% Native American, 0.2% Asian, and 1.6% 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 1.2% of the population. There were 192 households, of which 31.3% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 47.9% 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, 12.0% had a female householder with no husband present, 3.1% had a male householder with no wife present, and 37.0% were non-families. 34.4% of all households were made up of individuals, and 16.7% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.40 and the average family size was 3.10. The median age in the city was 45.9 years. 21.7% of residents were under the age of 18; 7.3% were between the ages of 18 and 24; 20% were from 25 to 44; 27% were from 45 to 64; and 24.1% 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 451 people, 190 households, and 113 families living in the city. The population density was . There were 222 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the city was 98.67%

, 0.22% Native American, and 1.11% from two or more races.

or Latino of any race were 1.33% of the population. There were 190 households, of which 28.9% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 47.4% were

living together, 10.0% had a female householder with no husband present, and 40.5% were non-families. 37.4% of all households were made up of individuals, and 22.1% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.16 and the average family size was 2.85. It was reported that in Greenville, 1.1% of all households contain

lesbian A lesbian is a homosexual woman or girl. The word is also used for women in relation to their sexual identity or sexual behavior, regardless of sexual orientation, or as an adjective to characterize or associate nouns with female homosexu ...

s. For people in the city aged 15 and over, 60.1% were married, 9.8% were divorced, 15.5% were single, never married, 11.9% were widowed, and 2.6% were separated. In the city, the population was spread out, with 21.3% under the age of 18, 7.8% from 18 to 24, 25.5% from 25 to 44, 20.2% from 45 to 64, and 25.3% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 42 years. For every 100 females, there were 72.8 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 67.5 males. The median income for a household in the city was $28,214, and the median income for a family was $39,375, and therefore lies at more than 30% below the national average. Males had a median income of $27,500 versus $17,656 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 $16,802. About 13.1% of families and 14.2% 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 ...

, including 20.4% of those under age 18 and 11.0% of those age 65 or over.

References

{{authority control Cities in Wayne County, Missouri County seats in Missouri 1819 establishments in Missouri Territory Cities in Missouri Pre-statehood history of Missouri