Butler County, Missouri

Butler County is a county in the southeastern part of the state of Missouri. It was officially organized on February 27, 1849 and named for William O. Butler, a prominent general and politician. The county had a population of 42,794 at the 2010 census. Poplar Bluff is the county seat and largest city.

History[edit]

The area of future Butler County was originally peopled by members of the Mississippian culture, who constructed extensive mounds and villages in the region during the first millennium AD and afterwards. An excavation west of Neelyville in the 1960s unearthed several dwellings which date to before 1200, and others have been identified elsewhere in the county. During the 18th and early 19th centuries, it was under the dominion of the powerful Osage tribe, though members of the Delaware, Shawnee, and Cherokee tribes moved into the area near the end of the period.

From the mid-18th century onward, French explorers and traders used the Black and St. Francis rivers to make contact with the natives and pan for salt; and a few may have lived in the area permanently from the 1770s onward. Serious settlement did not begin, however, until the arrival of American pioneers in the 1810s. The first region to be heavily populated was Cane Creek, in what is now the northwestern part of the county. Settlement would be concentrated along the rivers and creeks, northwest of the Mississippi bottomlands, but overall the population grew only slowly compared to other regions. Shortly before Missouri gained statehood, the area was included within the newly-organized Wayne County; due to its distance from the county seat of Greenville, however, demands for a separate administration gradually increased. In 1849, the southern portion of Wayne County was separated and organized as Butler County, named for William O. Butler (1791-1880) of Kentucky, a general of the Mexican War and the Democratic vice-presidential nominee in 1848. The site of Poplar Bluff, at the head of navigation on the Black River, was chosen for the county seat.^[1]

As Butler County did not lie along major routes of north-south travel, no significant military actions were fought within its boundaries during the Civil War; however, units of both the Union and Confederate armies passed through the county from time to time, and intermittent guerrilla warfare led to most of the population departing before the war's end. The county did not significantly recover until after 1873, when the extension of the Cairo, Arkansas, & Texas Railroad west from Illinois to Poplar Bluff provided direct access to the Mississippi River and more opportunities for economic expansion.^[2] Timber harvesting and large-scale agriculture were among the most significant activities by the turn of the century and for some time thereafter.

One of the deadlier tornadoes in American history struck the Poplar Bluff area on May 9, 1927, destroying most of the downtown region and killing 98 people.^[3] Flooding on the St. Francis River to the east was also a major problem periodically, until the construction of Wappapello Dam in 1941.

Although logging and agriculture gradually declined during the mid-20th century as a major source of employment, the county has remained fairly prosperous overall, thanks to the prominence of Poplar Bluff as a regional economic hub and to the presence of several major highways, including U.S. Routes 60 and 67. Unlike many counties in southern Missouri, its population has remained stable or even slightly increased in recent decades.

Geography[edit]

Butler County lies in southeastern Missouri, just northwest of the so-called Bootheel. It is approximately though not exactly quadrilateral in shape, the most irregular boundary being that formed on the east by the St. Francis River, which "bows" eastward in its middle. As it was formed exclusively from Wayne County, its boundaries have changed very little since its formation. It is bordered to the north by Wayne County, to the east by Stoddard County, to the southeast by Dunklin County, to the south by the state of Arkansas, to the west by Ripley County, and to the northwest by Carter County.

The county has a total area of 698.99 square miles, including 694.67 of land and 4.32 of water.^[4] It is roughly bisected by the Mississippi Escarpment, a sharp slope which runs through the county from northeast to southwest. This marks a division between two geographical regions: to the northwest are the foothills of the Ozark Plateau, characterized by high, heavily wooded hills and steep, narrow valleys. The county's highest elevation is 769 feet above sea level, located near Cane Creek in the extreme northwestern portion.^[5] Southeast of the escarpment is the Mississippi Alluvial Plain, which is generally flat, devoted to agriculture, and much lower in elevation; several points near the Arkansas state line average only about 300 feet above sea level.

Butler County has two significant rivers, both originating in the Ozarks: the St. Francis, which forms most of its eastern boundary with Stoddard and Dunklin Counties, and the Black, which flows through the center of the county from north to south and drains into the White River in Arkansas. Small boats can navigate the Black as far north as Poplar Bluff. Both rivers have been significant to county history and identity; the Twin Rivers School District takes its name from them, and they are two of the rivers referenced in the local Three Rivers Community College.

Several major highways pass through the county, the most important being U.S. Route 60, which enters from the northwest, runs southeast to Poplar Bluff, and then due east to the St. Francis; and U.S. Route 67, which runs more or less north to south. Both highways meet in Poplar Bluff, where U.S. Route 160, entering the county from the southwest, also has its eastern terminus. Secondary state roads in the county include Missouri State Highways 51, 53, and 142. There are plans to extend Interstate 57 into and through Butler County along the Route 60 and 67 corridors, but no concrete steps are expected to occur any time soon.^[6]

Demographics[edit]

At the 2010 census, Butler County had a total population of 42,794, with 17,614 households and 11,481 families. The population density was 61.2 per square mile. There were 19,731 housing units, or about 2.2 per square mile. The racial makeup of the county was about 90.81% White, 5.27% African-American, 0.55% Native American, 0.66% Asian, 0.04% Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander, 0.52% from some other race, and 2.16% from two or more races. Hispanics of any race were 1.56% of the population.

The median age in the county was 40.6 years. 23.30% of the population was under the age of 18, 8.27% was between the ages of 18 and 24, 23.77% was between the ages of 25 and 44, 27.68% was between the ages of 45 and 64, and 16.98% was 65 years old or older. The sex ratio was 48.2% male, 51.8% female.^[7]

According to the 2010 American Community Survey, the median income in the county was $33,525 for a household, and $43,641 for a family. Males had a median income of $36,154 versus $26,737 for females. The unemployment rate was 6.4%. The per capita income was $19,368. 20.4% of the population was below the poverty line, including 29.6% of those under the age of 18 and 14.1% of those 65 years old or older.^[8]

Communities[edit]

Butler County is home to six incorporated communities, including four cities and two census-designated places (CDPs).

Cities[edit]

• Fisk
• Neelyville
• Poplar Bluff (county seat)
• Qulin

CDPs[edit]

• Fairdealing (part)
• Harviell

Government[edit]

Local government in Butler County is provided by the elected officials. Traditionally, these have been dominated by the Republican Party, which at present holds all the elected positions.

Countywide official	Name	Party
Assessor	Chris Rickman	Republican
Circuit Clerk	Cindi Bowman	Republican
County Clerk	Tonyi Deffendall	Republican
Collector	Emily Parks	Republican
Commissioner (presiding)	Vince Lampe	Republican
Commissioner (District 1)	Don Anderson	Republican
Commissioner (District 2)	Dennis LeGrand	Republican
Coroner	Andy Moore	Republican
Prosecuting Attorney	Kacey Proctor	Republican
Public Administrator	Sharron Payne	Republican
Recorder	Debby Lundstrom	Republican
Sheriff	Mark Dobbs	Republican
Surveyor	Jim Mathis	Republican
Treasurer	Tammy Marler	Republican

At the state level, Butler County lies within parts of two separate legislative districts for the Missouri House of Representatives. Most of the southern half of the county, including most of the city of Poplar Bluff, is part of the 152nd District, which also includes a portion of Dunklin County. It is currently represented by Hardy Billington (R-Poplar Bluff), who was elected to his first term in November 2018, defeating Democrat Robert L. Smith.

Candidate	Party	Votes	Vote Percentage
Hardy Billington	Republican	7,373	69.036%
Robert L. Smith	Democratic	3,307	30.964%

Billington slightly overperformed in Butler County, winning by a margin of 5,890 votes to 2,623 for Smith.

Most of the northern half of the county, including some of the outlying neighborhoods of Poplar Bluff, is in the 153rd District, which also includes all of Carter and Ripley Counties and a portion of Wayne County. It is currently represented by Jeff Shawan (R-Poplar Bluff), who was elected to his first term in November 2018, defeating Democrat Matt Michel.

Candidate	Party	Votes	Vote Percentage
Jeff Shawan	Republican	9,717	74.471%
Matt Michel	Democratic	3,331	25.529%

Shawan significantly overperformed in Butler County, winning by a margin of 4,249 votes to 988 for Michel.

In the Missouri State Senate, Butler County is part of the 25th District, which also includes Carter, Dunklin, Mississippi, New Madrid, Pemiscot, Shannon, and Stoddard Counties. It is currently represented by Doug Libla (R-Poplar Bluff), who was re-elected in November 2016, defeating Democrat Bill Burlison.

Candidate	Party	Votes	Vote Percentage
Doug Libla	Republican	44,373	69.354%
Bill Burlison	Democratic	19,607	30.646%

Libla significantly overperformed in Butler County, winning 12,741 votes to 3,989 for Burlison.

At the federal level, Butler 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 2018, defeating Democrat Kathy Ellis.

Candidate	Party	Votes	Vote Percentage
Jason Smith	Republican	194,042	73.39%
Kathy Ellis	Democratic	66,151	25.019%
Jonathan Shell	Libertarian	4,206	1.591%

Smith somewhat overperformed his average margin in Butler County, winning 79.65% of the vote.^[9]

Political Culture

As the above numbers indicate, Butler County is solidly Republican at the state and federal level. Though its voting patterns somewhat mirror those of the Deep South, with a white majority voting heavily in favor of the GOP on a consistent basis, the county has supported Republicans for office much longer than other parts of Southeast Missouri. From 1900 to the present, it has voted for a Democrat for president only six times, the last in 1992. (Notably, unlike most of Missouri, it only voted for Franklin D. Roosevelt once, in 1932.) In the 2016 general election, the county overwhelmingly supported Donald Trump, who won 79.09% of the vote.^[10]

Like much of southern Missouri, Butler 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 Butler County with 88.83% support. In 2006, while the state overall narrowly passed an amendment to fund embryonic stem-cell research, the county decisively defeated the measure with 61.21% 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 51.30% voting against (though it passed the state at large). These results mark Butler County as one of the state's most reliably conservative regions.

References[edit]