Osage County, Missouri

Osage County, Missouri
Osage County Courthouse in Linn
Location in the state of Missouri
Missouri's location in the U.S.
Founded	January 29, 1841
Named for	Osage River
Seat	Linn
Largest city	Linn
Area
• Total	610 sq mi (1,580 km2)
• Land	604 sq mi (1,564 km2)
• Water	6.1 sq mi (16 km2), 1.0%
Population
• (2010)	13,878
• Density	23/sq mi (9/km²)
Congressional district	3rd
Time zone	Central: UTC-6/-5
Website	.comosagecountygov

Osage County is a Osage River.^[3]

Osage County is part of the Jefferson City, MO Metropolitan Statistical Area. Its geography and the founding of Westphalia Vineyards links it to the Missouri Rhineland, extending along the Missouri River valley to the western edges of the St. Louis Metropolitan Area. Westphalia Vineyards, although started only in 2005, won the gold medal in the National Norton Festival Wine Competition in St. Louis in 2007 for the top-rated wine from the Norton grape.^[4]

According to data from the 2010 U.S. Census, Osage County is the whitest county in Missouri, with 98.85 percent of residents being white.

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 610 square miles (1,600 km²), of which 604 square miles (1,560 km²) is land and 6.1 square miles (16 km²) (1.0%) is water.^[5]

Adjacent counties

• Callaway County (north)
• Gasconade County (east)
• Maries County (south)
• Miller County (southwest)
• Cole County (west)
• Montgomery County (northeast)

Major highways

• U.S. Route 50
• U.S. Route 63
• Route 89
• Route 100

Demographics

As of the census^[11] of 2000, there were 13,062 people, 4,922 households, and 3,578 families residing in the county. The population density was 22 people per square mile (8/km²). There were 5,904 housing units at an average density of 10 per square mile (4/km²). The racial makeup of the county was 98.64% White, 0.16% Black or African American, 0.24% Native American, 0.08% Asian, 0.02% Pacific Islander, 0.07% from other races, and 0.80% from two or more races. Approximately 0.59% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.

There were 4,922 households out of which 34.90% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 61.70% were married couples living together, 6.70% had a female householder with no husband present, and 27.30% were non-families. 23.80% of all households were made up of individuals and 10.80% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.61 and the average family size was 3.10.

In the county the population was spread out with 26.30% under the age of 18, 9.50% from 18 to 24, 27.70% from 25 to 44, 21.70% from 45 to 64, and 14.70% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 36 years. For every 100 females there were 103.00 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 102.50 males.

The median income for a household in the county was $39,565, and the median income for a family was $46,503. Males had a median income of $29,538 versus $22,353 for females. The per capita income for the county was $17,245. About 5.90% of families and 8.30% of the population were below the poverty line, including 9.00% of those under age 18 and 10.40% of those age 65 or over.

Education

Public schools

• Osage County R-I School District – Chamois
  • Osage County R-I Elementary School (PK-06)
  • Chamois High School (07-12)
• Osage County R-II School District – Linn
  • Osage County R-II Elementary School (PK-06)
  • Linn High School (07-12)
• Osage County R-III School District – Westphalia
  • Fatima Elementary School (PK-06)
  • Fatima High School (07-12)

Private schools

• St. Joseph Catholic School – Westphalia (K-09) – Roman Catholic
• Immaculate Conception School – Loose Creek (K-09) – Roman Catholic
• St. George School – Linn (K-09) – Roman Catholic
• Sacred Heart School – Rich Fountain (K-09) – Roman Catholic
• Holy Family School – Freeburg (K-09) – Roman Catholic
• St. Mary’s School – Bonnots Mill (K-09) – Roman Catholic

Post-secondary

• Linn State Technical College – Linn

Politics

Local

The Democratic Party mostly controls politics at the local level in Osage County. Democrats hold a little over half of the elected positions in the county.

State

All of Osage County is a part of Missouri’s 112th District in the Missouri House of Representatives and is represented by Tom Loehner (R-Koeltztown).

All of Osage County is a part of Missouri’s 16th District in the Missouri Senate and is currently represented by Dan W. Brown (R-Rolla).

Federal

All of Osage County is included in Missouri’s 9th Congressional District and is currently represented by Blaine Luetkemeyer (R-St. Elizabeth) in the U.S. House of Representatives.

Political Culture

Missouri Presidential Preference Primary (2008)

• Former U.S. Senator Hillary Clinton (D-New York) received more votes, a total of 874, than any candidate from either party in Osage County during the 2008 presidential primary.

Communities

See also

• National Register of Historic Places listings in Osage County, Missouri

References

1. ^ ^{a b} "State & County QuickFacts". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved September 12, 2013. 
2. ^ "Find a County". National Association of Counties. Retrieved 2011-06-07. 
3. ^ Eaton, David Wolfe (1917). How Missouri Counties, Towns and Streams Were Named. The State Historical Society of Missouri. p. 337. 
4. ^ [2], Westphalia Vineyards, accessed 20 June 2008
5. ^ "2010 Census Gazetteer Files". United States Census Bureau. August 22, 2012. Retrieved November 17, 2014. 
6. ^ "Annual Estimates of the Resident Population for Incorporated Places: April 1, 2010 to July 1, 2014". Retrieved June 4, 2015. 
7. ^ "U.S. Decennial Census". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved November 17, 2014. 
8. ^ "Historical Census Browser". University of Virginia Library. Retrieved November 17, 2014. 
9. ^ "Population of Counties by Decennial Census: 1900 to 1990". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved November 17, 2014. 
10. ^ "Census 2000 PHC-T-4. Ranking Tables for Counties: 1990 and 2000" (PDF). United States Census Bureau. Retrieved November 17, 2014. 
11. ^ "American FactFinder".  

Further reading

• History of Cole, Moniteau, Morgan, Benton, Miller, Maries and Osage counties, Missouri : from the earliest time to the present, including a department devoted to the preservation of sundry personal, business,professional and the private records; besides a valuable fund of notes, original observations, etc. etc. (1889) online

External links

• The Osage County Branch of the Missouri River Regional Library
• Westphalia Vineyards Official Website
• Osage Community Players, Inc.
• Digitized 1930 Plat Book of Osage County from University of Missouri Division of Special Collections, Archives, and Rare Books