St. Mary, Missouri

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St. Mary is a city in southeastern Ste. Genevieve County, Missouri. It had a population of 360 at the 2010 census.

History[edit]

The first significant settler in the St. Mary's area was Miles A. Gilbert, who in 1839 bought land just below the point at which Saline Creek emptied into the Mississippi River and later set up a boat landing there. The site was originally known as "Yankeetown," as Gilbert was a New England native. Though freight for most of the surrounding area was offloaded at the landing, it became especially important in supplying St. Mary's Seminary, a Catholic school in Perryville, and over time became known as "St. Mary's Landing." By 1867, the post office there was officially labeled St. Mary's, later shortened to St. Mary.^[1]

The town continued to flourish during the late 19th and early 20th centuries as a shipping point for the region, as well as a milling center of some importance.^[2] The population peaked at over 700 in the 1910s; during the mid- and late 20th century, though, the construction of major highways farther west redirected most local traffic, and its economic importance and population levels have generally declined.

Geography[edit]

St. Mary is located along U.S. Route 61 in extreme southeastern Ste. Genevieve County, near the boundary with Perry County. It is about nine miles southeast of Ste. Genevieve, and about eleven miles northwest of Perryville. Its exact coordinates are 37°52’34”N 89°56’56”W.

The city was built against the former main channel of the Mississippi River, opposite the old town of Kaskaskia in Illinois; after the Mississippi changed course in the late 19th century, this became a small backwater channel. The downtown section lies upon Le Grand Champ, a narrow strip of river bottom facing this stream; the rest upon higher ground that slopes down toward it. Saline Creek flows about one mile north of St. Mary. The city has a total area of 0.61 square miles, and an average elevation of 384 feet.^[3]

Demographics[edit]

At the 2010 census, St. Mary had a total of 360 inhabitants, grouped into 159 households, with a population density of 600.0 people per square mile. This figure marked a slight decrease from the 2000 census, when St. Mary had a population of 377. 91.67% of the inhabitants were White, 4.72% were African-American, 0.28% were Native American, 0.83% were from some other race, and 2.50% were from two or more races. Hispanics of any race were 1.94% of the population.

The median age in St. Mary was 40.9 years, with 25.0% of inhabitants under the age of 18, 7.3% between 18 and 24 years old, 20.5% between 25 and 44, 29.5% between 45 and 64, and 17.8% 65 years old or older. The sex ratio was 50.0% male, 50.0% female.^[4]

According to the 2018 American Community Survey, St. Mary had a median household income of $34,318, and a median family income of $34,500. The unemployment rate was 17.8%. The per capita income was $16,831. About 20.5% of the population lived below the poverty line, including 19.8% of people under the age of 18 and 16.7% of people 65 years old or older.^[5]

Education[edit]

St. Mary is served by the Ste. Genevieve County R-II School District, whose nearest school facilities are in the city of Ste. Genevieve.

Notable People[edit]

Sonny Siebert (1937-), a Major League Baseball pitcher from 1964 to 1975, was born in St. Mary.

References[edit]