Moberly, Missouri
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Moberly is a city in Randolph County, Missouri, United States. The population was 13,783 as of the 2020 census. It is part of the Columbia metropolitan area and the 9-county Columbia
Jefferson City Jefferson City, informally Jeff City, is the List of capitals in the United States, capital of the U.S. state of Missouri. It had a population of 43,228 at the 2020 United States census, ranking as the List of cities in Missouri, 16th most popu ...
–Moberly combined statistical area that has 415,747 residents.


History

Moberly was founded in 1866, and named after Colonel William E. Moberly, the first president of the Chariton and Randolph County
railroads Rail transport (also known as train transport) is a means of transport using wheeled vehicles running in tracks, which usually consist of two parallel steel rails. Rail transport is one of the two primary means of land transport, next to road ...
. Moberly, which gained the nickname the "Magic City" because of its explosive growth in a railroad boom, grew from the town platted by the North Missouri Railroad (later part of the
Wabash Railroad The Wabash Railroad was a Class I railroad that operated in the mid-central United States. It served a large area, including track in the states of Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, Iowa, Michigan, and Missouri and the province of Ontario. Its primary con ...
) in 1866 to a transportation center with a 6,070 population by 1880. The North Mo. acquired the site when it took over the Chariton and Randolph R.R. after the Civil War. In 1860, the C.& R. had planned a road west to Brunswick from this point on the North Mo. then reaching toward Iowa. The Chariton and Randolph R. R. named its proposed junction for William Moberly, head of the railroad, and offered free land to residents of once nearby Allen to settle here. Patrick Lynch, who alone accepted, was given two lots by the North Missouri after the Civil War for holding the site without "the loss of a life or a house." Moberly has been a division point since 1867 when the North Mo. (Wabash) reached Brunswick. Huge railroad repair shops, one of the earliest railroad plants west of the Mississippi, were opened, 1872. The M. K. & T. formed a junction here, 1873. Transportation facilities brought industrial growth and the development of the soil, fire clay, and coal resources of the area. Moberly lies in a glacial plains area in a county organized, 1829, and names for John Randolph of Roanoke, Va. In Missouri's Little Dixie Region, it was first settled by William Holman, 1818. William Fort boiled salt at a spring near Huntsville in 1820s/ The Bee Trace, a pioneer trail, ran along the Grand Divide (the high point in The Grand Prairie) between the Missouri and Mississippi through the county. The Iowa, Sac, and Fox tribes gave up claims to the region, 1824. At Huntsville, county seat, since 1831, a plank road was built to Glasgow, 1854, and the 1855-82 Mt. Pleasant (Baptist) College was founded. County legal business has been conducted at Huntsville and Moberly since 1885. Moberly Junior College opened, 1927. World War II Gen. Omar N. Bradley, first Chairman Joint Chiefs of Staff and commander of the largest Army in United States history was born in nearby Clark, but grew up in Moberly and graduated from Moberly High School. Moberly's airport is named for him. Moberly is the home of novelist Elizabeth Seifert Gasparotti and birthplace of writer Jack Conroy. G.W. P. Hunt, first Governor of Arizona, was born in Huntsville. Hancock L. Jackson, interim Gov. of Mo., 1857; Lt. Gov., 1857–61, and the biochemist Victor C. Vaughn, were natives of Randolph County. The Missouri state Moberly Correctional Center was constructed two miles south of Moberly in 1963 as a minimum-security prison. As of 2014, it houses about 1800 minimum and medium security inmates. On Independence Day, 1995, a
tornado A tornado is a violently rotating column of air that is in contact with the surface of Earth and a cumulonimbus cloud or, in rare cases, the base of a cumulus cloud. It is often referred to as a twister, whirlwind or cyclone, although the ...
ripped through downtown Moberly. There were no reported deaths, but there was a large amount of structural damage. Another tornado hit nearby Renick on March 12, 2006. Four people were killed and thirteen were injured in the F3-level tornado. Dozens of homes were destroyed. The
World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...
-era US Navy frigate was named for the town. The ship participated mostly in convoy escort, earning a battle star for her assistance in sinking a German submarine, '' U-853''. The Burkholder-O'Keefe House, Moberly Commercial Historic District, and Moberly Junior High School are 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 ...
.


Government

The city of Moberly was born of a railroad auction on September 27, 1866. The county incorporated the town in 1868 with a board of trustees. The same year that the
Wabash Railroad The Wabash Railroad was a Class I railroad that operated in the mid-central United States. It served a large area, including track in the states of Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, Iowa, Michigan, and Missouri and the province of Ontario. Its primary con ...
, St. Louis & Pacific Railway shops were finished in Moberly, the city entered a charter into state record and incorporated. At the time, there was no such thing as a council-manager government, but the 1950s saw the government form come into vogue in Missouri. Now, the city of Moberly has a council-manager government. The council consists of five members elected for three-year terms and one city counselor who drafts ordinances and acts as legal counsel. Each year, the council elects one of its members as mayor and one as mayor ''
pro tempore ''Pro tempore'' (), abbreviated ''pro tem'' or ''p.t.'', is a Latin phrase which best translates to 'for the time being' in English. This phrase is often used to describe a person who acts as a '' locum tenens'' ('placeholder'). The phrase is ...
'' to serve for one year. To manage the city and oversee day-to-day operations, the council selects a city manager. In 2024, the government had these officers:


City Council

*Brandon L. Lucas, Mayor *John W. Kimmons, Jr., Mayor Pro-Tempore *Mike Skubic, Councilman *Chuck McKeown, Councilman *Sarah Barfield Graff, Councilman *Randall Thompson, City Counselor *Michael R. Bugalski, City Manager


Geography

Moberly is in southeast Randolph County at the intersection of U.S. Route 63 and
U.S. Route 24 U.S. Route 24 or U.S. Highway 24 (US 24) is one of the original United States Numbered Highways of 1926 which runs east and west for most of its routing. It originally ran from Pontiac, Michigan, in the east to Kansas City, Misso ...
. Nearby streams include Sugar Creek to the northwest, Coon Creek to the east and Sweet Spring Creek to the southwest.''Missouri Atlas & Gazetteer,'' DeLorme, 3rd ed. 2007, p. 30 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 an area of , of which is land and is water.


Climate


Demographics

The Moberly Micropolitan Statistical Area consists of Randolph County.


2020 census

The 2020 United States census counted 13,783 people, 4,708 households, and 2,968 families in Moberly. The population density was 1,045.8 per square mile (403.8/km). There were 5,603 housing units at an average density of 425.1 per square mile (164.2/km). The racial makeup was 82.39% (11,356)
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 ...
, 9.13% (1,258) black or African-American, 0.52% (71) Native American, 0.49% (67) Asian, 0.04% (6)
Pacific Islander Pacific Islanders, Pasifika, Pasefika, Pacificans, or rarely Pacificers are the peoples of the list of islands in the Pacific Ocean, Pacific Islands. As an ethnic group, ethnic/race (human categorization), racial term, it is used to describe th ...
, 0.76% (105) from other races, and 6.67% (920) 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 was 2.1% (287) of the population. Of the 4,708 households, 30.6% had children under the age of 18; 36.4% were married couples living together; 39.4% had a female householder with no husband present. Of all households, 32.8% consisted of individuals and 15.1% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.5 and the average family size was 3.1. 23.0% of the population was under the age of 18, 8.9% from 18 to 24, 29.6% from 25 to 44, 23.4% from 45 to 64, and 14.6% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 36.4 years. For every 100 females, the population had 114.4 males. For every 100 females ages 18 and older, there were 115.9 males. The 2016-2020 5-year
American Community Survey The American Community Survey (ACS) is an annual demographics survey program conducted by the United States Census Bureau. It regularly gathers information previously contained only in the long form of the United States census, decennial census ...
estimates show that the median household income was $39,327 (with a margin of error of +/- $3,442) and the median family income was $50,714 (+/- $7,271). Males had a median income of $31,651 (+/- $3,623) versus $25,865 (+/- $4,420) for females. The median income for those above 16 years old was $28,497 (+/- $4,084). Approximately, 18.3% of families and 21.2% 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 33.7% of those under the age of 18 and 8.1% of those ages 65 or over.


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 13,974 people, 4,960 households, and 3,019 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 5,687 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the city was 86.4%
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 ...
, 9.7%
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, 0.6% Asian, 0.3% from other races, and 2.6% 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 2.1% of the population. There were 4,960 households, of which 32.5% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 40.1% 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, 15.9% had a female householder with no husband present, 4.8% had a male householder with no wife present, and 39.1% were non-families. 33.4% of all households were made up of individuals, and 14.1% 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 2.97. The median age in the city was 35.7 years. 22% of residents were under the age of 18; 10.9% were between the ages of 18 and 24; 29.7% were from 25 to 44; 23.5% were from 45 to 64; and 13.9% were 65 years of age or older. The gender makeup of the city was 53.8% male and 46.2% female.


2000 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 2000, there were 11,945 people, 5,001 households, and 3,090 families residing in the city. The population density was . There were 5,812 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the city was 90.51%
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 ...
, 6.71%
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 ...
, 0.37% Native American, 0.64% Asian, 0.03%
Pacific Islander Pacific Islanders, Pasifika, Pasefika, Pacificans, or rarely Pacificers are the peoples of the list of islands in the Pacific Ocean, Pacific Islands. As an ethnic group, ethnic/race (human categorization), racial term, it is used to describe th ...
, 0.39% from other races, and 1.34% 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 1.67% of the population. There were 5,001 households, out of which 29.3% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 44.2% 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, 13.6% had a female householder with no husband present, and 38.2% were non-families. 33.2% of all households were made up of individuals, and 16.1% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.30 and the average family size was 2.89. In the city, the population was spread out, with 24.8% under the age of 18, 11.1% from 18 to 24, 25.4% from 25 to 44, 20.1% from 45 to 64, and 18.7% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 36 years. For every 100 females, there were 86.6 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 80.8 males. The median income for a household in the city was $28,519, and the median income for a family was $37,488. Males had a median income of $27,152 versus $19,508 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 $15,478. About 11.1% of families and 15.0% 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 20.5% of those under age 18 and 14.7% of those age 65 or over.


Recreation

* Moberly Parks and Recreation operates approximately 500 acres of parkland through five parks including maintained grounds, forest, lakes, the Howard Hils Athletic Complex consisting of eight baseball/softball fields and three football/soccer fields, the Moberly Aquatic Center, Thompson Campground, The Lodge, Municipal Auditorium, the Magic City Line - a one mile long miniature train track, over two miles of paved trails, boat ramps, fishing lakes, paddleboat/canoe rentals, and shelters. * Moberly Midget League has provided a summer baseball program for the local youth since 1950. The program currently ranges from 8U to 14U. * The Moberly Optimist Club has provided a summer youth baseball for decades. The program currently ranges from T-ball to 8U. * The Randolph County Historical Society has its headquarters in Moberly, and has two museums: one dedicated to county history and genealogy, and another dedicated to the Wabash, MKT, and CB&Q railroads.


Education

Moberly is home to two colleges; Central Christian College of the Bible and Moberly Area Community College. The Moberly School District consists of seven schools. The Early Childhood Center serves preschoolers; North and South Park Elementary serve grades K-2; grades 3-5 attend Gratz Brown Elementary; grades 6-8 attend Moberly Middle School; and Moberly High School and Moberly Area Technical Center serve grades 9–12. East Park School served as an alternative school until the new ACES (alternative center for educational success) was opened in the second part of the 2023-2024 school year. The Seventh-day Adventist church operates Maranatha Adventist School, a K-8 school. The St. Pius X Catholic Elementary School, operated by the Catholic Church of the same name, serves grade K-8. Moberly has a
public library A public library is a library, most often a lending library, that is accessible by the general public and is usually funded from public sources, such as taxes. It is operated by librarians and library paraprofessionals, who are also Civil servic ...
, a branch of the Little Dixie Regional Libraries.


Transportation

Moberly is served by The Omar Bradley Airport. Commercial service is available 33 miles to the south in Columbia at the Columbia Regional Airport or the MO-X (an airport shuttle to and from STL and MCI), 60 miles to the south in
Jefferson City Jefferson City, informally Jeff City, is the List of capitals in the United States, capital of the U.S. state of Missouri. It had a population of 43,228 at the 2020 United States census, ranking as the List of cities in Missouri, 16th most popu ...
via the
Amtrak The National Railroad Passenger Corporation, Trade name, doing business as Amtrak (; ), is the national Passenger train, passenger railroad company of the United States. It operates intercity rail service in 46 of the 48 contiguous United Stat ...
station, 45 miles to the north in
La Plata La Plata () is the capital city of Buenos Aires province, Argentina. According to the 2022 Argentina census, census, the La Plata Partido, Partido has a population of 772,618 and its metropolitan area, the Greater La Plata, has 938,287 inhabit ...
via the
Amtrak The National Railroad Passenger Corporation, Trade name, doing business as Amtrak (; ), is the national Passenger train, passenger railroad company of the United States. It operates intercity rail service in 46 of the 48 contiguous United Stat ...
station, or 55 miles to the North in Kirksville at the Kirksville Regional Airport. The city is served by U.S. Route 63 to the east on a bypass. The old route is designated as both Business 63 and Morley Street and goes through town.
U.S. Route 24 U.S. Route 24 or U.S. Highway 24 (US 24) is one of the original United States Numbered Highways of 1926 which runs east and west for most of its routing. It originally ran from Pontiac, Michigan, in the east to Kansas City, Misso ...
goes through town as well. Route M (formerly Route 3) also skirts the edge of town. Other routes include Route DD (indirectly goes to Sugar Creek Lake), EE, A, and AA (past the prison). At one time there was a Business 24 that ran from Morley Street via West Coates Street to Johnson Street to Concannon Street turning North on Holman St to current U.S. 24. This route was de-numbered in the late 1960s. State Route 22 was also multiplexed with U.S. 63 to U.S. 24. When U.S. 63 was re-routed in the mid-1960s Highway 22 was truncated to its current end at U.S. 63 near Sturgeon, MO. The
Norfolk Southern Railway The Norfolk Southern Railway is a Class I freight railroad operating in the Eastern United States. Headquartered in Atlanta, the company was formed in 1982 with the merger of the Norfolk and Western Railway and Southern Railway. The comp ...
serves Moberly running west toward
Kansas City, Missouri Kansas City, Missouri, abbreviated KC or KCMO, is the largest city in the U.S. state of Missouri by List of cities in Missouri, population and area. The city lies within Jackson County, Missouri, Jackson, Clay County, Missouri, Clay, and Pl ...
and east toward
Hannibal, Missouri Hannibal is a city along the Mississippi River in Marion County, Missouri, Marion and Ralls County, Missouri, Ralls counties in the U.S. state of Missouri. According to the 2020 United States census, 2020 U.S. Census, the population was 17,108, ...
and points on. Norfolk Southern also runs south between Moberly and
St. Louis, Missouri St. Louis ( , sometimes referred to as St. Louis City, Saint Louis or STL) is an Independent city (United States), independent city in the U.S. state of Missouri. It lies near the confluence of the Mississippi River, Mississippi and the Miss ...
(via Centralia and Mexico, MO) and points on. Moberly was once the northern terminus of the Missouri-Kansas-Texas Railroad that ran between Moberly and
Boonville, Missouri Boonville is a city and the county seat of Cooper County, Missouri, United States. The population was 7,964 at the 2020 census. The city was the site of a skirmish early in the American Civil War, Civil War, on July 17, 1861. Union forces defeat ...
. Much of this route is still somewhat visible in satellite images. Moberly is home to one of Norfolk Southern's many rail yards. Norfolk Southern used to have a line that ran north from Moberly to Albia, Iowa, but it was abandoned in the spring of 1992. The line was reopened from 1993–1995 to help in recovery efforts after the great Flood of 1993. By 1997, the line was dismantled between Moberly and Moulton, Iowa. The
Centerville, Iowa Centerville is a city in and the county seat of Appanoose County, Iowa, United States. The population was 5,412 in the 2020 census, a decline from 5,924 in 2000. After the turn of the 20th century Centerville's coal mining industry attracted ...
-owned Appanoose County Community Railroad currently operates the section from Moulton to Albia, Iowa.


Media

Moberly is served by a
weekly newspaper Weekly newspaper is a general-news or Current affairs (news format), current affairs publication that is issued once or twice a week in a wide variety broadsheet, magazine, and electronic publishing, digital formats. Similarly, a biweekly newspap ...
, the '' Moberly Monitor-Index''. The KWIX KRES KIRK KTCM radio stations operate from downtown.


Notable people

* George W. Althouse, Nebraska state legislator * Russ Ball, NFL executive *
Omar Bradley Omar Nelson Bradley (12 February 1893 – 8 April 1981) was a senior Officer (armed forces), officer of the United States Army during and after World War II, rising to the rank of General of the Army (United States), General of the Army. He wa ...
, United States Army general * Brent Briscoe, actor * David Clohessy, executive director of SNAP, the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests * Jack Conroy, author and activist * Jerry Doggett, sports broadcaster * Maud Durbin, actress * Jered Eames, musician * Brad Hunt, actor * Howard Wight Marshall, professor, folk historian, and fiddler * Leroy Matlock, baseball pitcher in the
Negro leagues The Negro leagues were United States professional baseball leagues comprising teams of African Americans. The term may be used broadly to include professional black teams outside the leagues and it may be used narrowly for the seven relativel ...
* Dennis L. McKiernan, author * Hartman Rector Jr., former LDS General Authority * Luann Ridgeway, politician * Elizabeth Seifert, author * Melvin B. Tolson, poet and professor at
Wiley College Wiley University (formerly Wiley College) is a private historically black college in Marshall, Texas. Founded in 1873 by the Methodist Episcopal Church's Bishop Isaac Wiley and certified in 1882 by the Freedman's Aid Society, it is one of the ...
, poet laureate of
Liberia Liberia, officially the Republic of Liberia, is a country on the West African coast. It is bordered by Sierra Leone to Liberia–Sierra Leone border, its northwest, Guinea to Guinea–Liberia border, its north, Ivory Coast to Ivory Coast–Lib ...


References

*


External links


City of MoberlyMoberly Area Economic Development Corporation
* Historic maps of Moberly 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 Randolph County, Missouri Cities in Missouri Columbia metropolitan area (Missouri) Populated places established in 1866 1866 establishments in Missouri