Cape Girardeau County, Missouri

Cape Girardeau County is a county in southeastern Missouri. It is the most populous county in that part of the state, with a population of 75,674 at the 2010 census. Jackson is the county seat, and Cape Girardeau, for which the county is named, is the largest city.

Cape Girardeau County is one of the five original counties in Missouri, having been organized in 1812 prior to statehood. Many of the neighboring counties in southeast Missouri were wholly or partially formed from its original territory.

History[edit]

The region that later became Cape Girardeau County, since it mostly lies above the low-lying swamps near the Mississippi River, was in the pre-Columbian era inhabited by a number of native tribes, many of whom built mounds for ceremonial or dwelling purposes. Among these were the Capahas, who had a large settlement not far from the river.

The first European contact came with a Spanish expedition under Hernando de Soto in 1540, which encountered the Capahas and (aided by another tribe) fought a fierce battle with them, in which many of the Indians died. After de Soto's departure, the next known visit by Europeans came in 1673, when a French expedition under Louis Joliet and Father Marquette sailed down the Mississippi. Further arrivals by French explorers, missionaries, and fur traders followed during the late 17th and early 18th centuries, though mostly only in passing.

The first semi-permanent European presence came through Ensign Sieur Jean Baptiste de Girardot, stationed with a company of French soldiers on Kaskaskia Island to the north, who traded with the local Indians. Although the exact particulars of Girardot's career are unknown, he eventually established a trading post on the Mississippi, near the point where the Ozark foothills drop off into the swamps to the south. A rocky promontory or "cape" jutting into the river led to the post being dubbed "Cape Girardot," and later "Cape Girardeau." When this occurred is uncertain, but it had evidently acquired its name by the Revolutionary War, if not before.

The Cape Girardeau district was organized by the Spanish colonial government in 1793, with Louis Lorimier, a French-Canadian fur trader, as commandant. Lorimier was friendly with the Delaware and Shawnee tribes east of the Mississippi, and encouraged many of them to settle in the area. At the same time, American settlers began arriving, mostly from states of the Upper South such as Virginia, Kentucky, and North Carolina; they resided principally around the town of Cape Girardeau itself, which was incorporated in 1808, but also along the creeks to the north and west.

On October 1, 1812, following the organization of the Missouri Territory, its five administrative districts (St. Louis, St. Charles, Ste. Genevieve, Cape Girardeau, and New Madrid) were reorganized as counties. (At that time, Cape Girardeau County also included portions of future Bollinger, Scott, Stoddard, and Wayne Counties, which would be established later). Despite Cape Girardeau's prominence, it was decided to move the county seat closer to the geographic center of the county, and in 1815 the honor was given to the new town of Jackson, named for future President Andrew Jackson in recognition of his exploits during the War of 1812 (and the first city in the United States to be named for him).^[1]

Though it lost some of its southern and western territory to the formation of new counties, Cape Girardeau County grew rapidly during the first half of the 19th century. More Americans arrived from east of the Mississippi, drawn by the fertile farmland of the interior and the economic opportunities provided by steamboat trade at Cape Girardeau especially; and many German immigrants settled in the 1820s, '30s, and '40s, founding several small communities such as Friedheim and Tilsit. This growth was interrupted first by the Civil War, which saw the establishment of a Union garrison at Cape Girardeau, where a small battle was fought in 1863, and general guerrilla warfare and lawlessness throughout the county; and later by the decline of steamboat traffic on the river, which led to considerable economic stagnation. Recovery began near the end of the late 19th century, with the construction of a railroad network linking Cape and Jackson with towns to the south, as well as the development of the State Normal School in Cape (the future Southeast Missouri State University). The county's population passed the 25,000 mark in the early 1900s, and steadily increased throughout the 20th century, reaching 50,000 in the early 1970s. Growth was spurred beginning in the 1960s by the construction of Interstate 55, which led to much commercial development in the outlying areas of Cape and Jackson.

Though the drainage of the swamps in the southern part of the county in the early 20th century allowed the bottomlands to be cleared for agriculture, it indirectly made them more prone to flooding, especially during the major floods of 1973, 1993, and 2011. The village of Dutchtown, which had been repeatedly damaged by these floods, was disincorporated in March 2018, with most of its properties being bought out.^[2] Most of the county remains highly prosperous, however, thanks to Cape Girardeau's position as a regional economic hub.

Geography[edit]

Cape Girardeau County is located in southeastern Missouri, with its eastern border formed by the Mississippi River. It is bordered on the north by Perry County on the east by the state of Illinois, on the south by Scott County, on the southwest by Stoddard County, and on the west by Bollinger County.

Downtown Cape Girardeau, Missouri

The county has a total area of 586.33 square miles, including 578.54 of land and 7.79 of water.^[3] Most of the county is part of the foothills of the Ozark Plateau, characterized by low, rolling hills that gradually become more rugged to the north and west. The highest point of the county, an unnamed peak 820 feet above sea level, is located near Trail of Tears State Park in the east-central portion. South of the Mississippi Escarpment, which runs from just south of Cape Girardeau west through Dutchtown and Whitewater and marks the southeastern edge of the Ozarks, is the generally flat and lower-lying Mississippi Alluvial Plain (though broken near Delta by Hickory Ridge, an outcropping of Crowley's Ridge). The lowest point is about 325 feet above sea level, near the border with Scott County.^[4]

The two most important highways in the county are Interstate 55 and U.S. Route 61, which run through it from northwest to southeast, connecting Cape Girardeau and Jackson with smaller nearby communities such as Fruitland and Oak Ridge, as well as larger cities to the north and south. Other highways include Missouri State Highways 25, 34, 72, and 74.

Demographics[edit]

At the 2010 census, Cape Girardeau County had a total population of 75,674, with 29,848 households and 19,369 families. The population density was 129.1 per square mile. There were 32,616 housing units, or about 2.3 per square mile. The racial makeup of the county was about 88.72% White, 7.04% African-American, 0.25% Native American, 1.19% Asian, 0.03% Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander, 0.94% from some other race, and 1.84% from two or more races. Hispanics of any race were 1.95% of the population.

The median age in the county was 36.4 years. 21.93% of the population was under the age of 18, 13.96% was between the ages of 18 and 24, 24.22% was between the ages of 25 and 44, 25.57% was between the ages of 45 and 64, and 14.32% was 65 years old or older. The sex ratio was 48.4% male, 51.6% female.^[5]

According to the 2010 American Community Survey, the median income in the county was $44,479 for a household, and $54,174 for a family. Males had a median income of $37,167 versus $28,784 for females. The unemployment rate was 6.3%. The per capita income was $23,014. 14.2% of the population was below the poverty line, including 21.1% of those under the age of 18 and 7.6% of those 65 years old or older.^[6]

Due to its overall economic strength and the presence of a large population center, Cape Girardeau County is among the faster-growing counties in Missouri. A 2018 census estimate gave its current population as approximately 78,753, an increase of around 4% from 2010.

Communities[edit]

Cape Girardeau County is home to ten incorporated communities, including four cities and six villages.

Cities[edit]

• Cape Girardeau (small part in Scott County)
• Delta
• Jackson
• Scott City (mostly in Scott County)

Villages[edit]

• Allenville
• Gordonville
• Oak Ridge
• Old Appleton
• Pocahontas
• Whitewater

Government[edit]

Local government in Cape Girardeau County is provided by the elected officials. Traditionally, these have been dominated by the Republican Party, which at present holds all the elected positions.^[7]

At the state level, Cape Girardeau County makes up two separate legislative districts for the Missouri House of Representatives. Most of the county outside of the city of Cape Girardeau, including Jackson and the areas to the north and west, is part of the 146th District. It is currently represented by Barry Hovis (R-Whitewater), who was elected to his second term in November 2020 without opposition.

The city of Cape Girardeau, as well as some rural areas to the southwest, comprises the 147th District. It is currently represented by Wayne Wallingford (R-Cape Girardeau), who was elected to his first term in November 2018, defeating Democrat Andy Leighton.

In the Missouri State Senate, Cape Girardeau County is part of the 27th District, which also includes Bollinger, Madison, Perry, Scott, and Wayne Counties. It is currently represented by Holly Rehder (R-Sikeston), who was elected to her first term in November 2020, defeating Democrat Donnie Owens.

Rehder slightly underperformed in Cape Girardeau County, winning 28,941 votes to 10,391 for Owens.

At the federal level, Cape Girardeau County is part of Missouri's 8th Congressional District, which includes most of southeast and south-central Missouri. It is represented by Jason Smith (R-Salem), who won re-election in November 2020, defeating Democrat Kathy Ellis.

Smith roughly matched his average margin in Cape Girardeau County, winning 72.929% of the vote.^[8]

Political Culture

As the above numbers indicate, Cape Girardeau County is solidly Republican at the state and federal level, and is in fact known as a traditional base of support for the Missouri GOP. It has not voted for a Democrat for president since 1964, or for governor since 1968. Generally speaking, the Republicans are strongest in the northern and northwestern regions, where the population is predominantly Protestant German-American and historically Republican, and weakest in portions of the city of Cape Girardeau with a lower-class and sometimes heavily African-American population.^[9] The Cape Girardeau area has also produced many well-known conservative leaders, including former Missouri lieutenant governor Peter Kinder, radio host Rush Limbaugh, and his brother, author David Limbaugh. In the 2016 general election, the county overwhelmingly supported Donald Trump, who won 72.94% of the vote; he won 71.51% of the vote in the 2020 general election.^[10]

Like much of southern Missouri, Cape Girardeau County can be included within the Bible Belt, and tends to combine social conservatism with economic populism. In 2004, it voted overwhelmingly in favor of Constitutional Amendment 2, which recognized marriage as between a man and a woman only—the measure passed in Cape Girardeau County with 83.19% support. In 2006, while the state overall narrowly passed an amendment to fund embryonic stem-cell research, the county decisively defeated the measure with 63.12% voting against. At the same time, it frequently supports economic measures that appear to favor the working and middle class--though this happens less frequently than elsewhere in Southeast Missouri, possibly because of its longer tradition of identifying with the Republican Party. In the November 2018 election, the county rejected a proposed increase in the state minimum wage, with 51.48% voting against (though it passed the state at large). These results mark Cape Girardeau County as one of the state's most reliably conservative regions.

References[edit]