Ste. Genevieve County, Missouri

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Sainte Genevieve County (usually abbreviated as Ste. Genevieve or sometimes Ste. Gen) is a county lying along the Mississippi River in southeastern Missouri. One of the five original counties in Missouri, it is the site of the first permanent European settlement in the state. French colonists established an outpost near the Mississippi in the mid-18th century, which they named for Genevieve, the patron saint of Paris, France, and which gave its name to the future county.

The county had a population of 18,145 at the 2010 census. The city of Ste. Genevieve, descended from the original settlement, is the county seat and the largest city.

History[edit]

Though it is definitely agreed that the Ste. Genevieve area was the site of the first permanent white settlement in Missouri, the exact founding date of that settlement is less certain, and made murkier still by the fact that well before a community was established, temporary camps were set up by fur traders and, in the 1710s and '20s, miners seeking to exploit the "Lead Belt" region farther west. Others panned for salt along Saline Creek in what is now the southern part of the county. Most traditional histories, as well as descendants of the first settlers themselves, date the first settlement to about 1735, but some suggest it must have been before 1732, and still others maintain it was not until the late 1740s.

Whatever the exact date, Ste. Genevieve began as an outpost of the older, more established French communities on the east bank of the Mississippi, including Prairie du Rocher, Fort de Chartres, and above all Kaskaskia, the regional center. French pioneers in these villages, encouraged by the authorities, crossed the river to take advantage of the rich bottomland along the river, and in the course of this founded the village of Ste. Genevieve.

Following the transfer of the lands east of the Mississippi to Great Britain after the French and Indian War, a large number of the French at Kaskaskia and other places crossed the river to resettle around Ste. Genevieve, and the area's population grew rapidly. It received a commandant, Philippe de Rocheblave, in 1766 (the region was now under Spanish control, but this was not widely recognized by the colonists), and began to be regarded as a separate district in its own right. By the late 18th century, the Ste. Genevieve area was not only heavily populated but prosperous, owing to the fertile farmland, fur trade with the local Indians, and the nearby mining activity. This continued despite such setbacks as periodic hostilities with the powerful Osage tribe, lasting until around 1800, and the necessity of relocating the village southwards after the original site was swallowed up by the Mississippi in devastating floods around 1785.

For many years, the area was noted as an essentially French community. Most houses copied styles of French architecture, the Roman Catholic Church was very dominant, and agricultural practice was for a long time done in the old European style, with common fields and long, narrow individual plots. Visitors also recorded the survival of certain customs, such as "bringing all persons charged with crime to church on Sunday and exhibiting them before the congregation after the service in order that they might be known and recognized by the whole community."^[1] Many of these settlers, including Louis Bolduc, Jean Ferdinand Rozier, and François Vallé, became very wealthy trading in lead and furs. Beginning around 1788, American settlers began to arrive from the east, especially the states of Kentucky, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, and Virginia, many intermarrying with the French locals and becoming wealthy traders themselves. During the 19th century, the area would receive another wave of immigration, this time German Catholics who arrived around 1840 and settled in the center of the county, founding such communities as New Offenburg and Zell. By now, too, some descendants of the original French colonists had moved north and south, establishing the future towns of Bloomsdale and St. Mary.

After the transfer of the Louisiana territory to Spain in 1763 following the French and Indian War, it was redivided into multiple districts, each under the authority of a commandant for civil and military affairs. There were five encompassing the future state of Missouri, Ste. Genevieve being one of these (the others were Cape Girardeau, New Madrid, St. Charles, and St. Louis). At that time, the district included all the territory between the Meramec River to the north and Apple Creek to the south. Following the Louisiana Purchase, the territory passed to the United States, which in 1812 organized part of it as the Missouri Territory. The five existing districts continued on as counties, including Ste. Genevieve County, which formally came into existence on October 1 of that year. At the time, it included all or part of the future counties of Jefferson, Madison, Perry, St. Francois, and Washington. These were carved out between 1812 and 1821, at which time the county assumed more or less its present shape.^[2]

Though the Ste. Genevieve area's relative degree of economic affluence faded as it was overtaken by St. Louis and other river cities during the 19th century, it remained generally prosperous, due especially to its rich agriculture and to the nearby lead mines, which flourished until the mid-20th century. In recent years, tourism, centering on the region's importance to Missouri history, has also played a role.

Geography[edit]

Ste. Genevieve County is one of the river counties of southeast Missouri, somewhat resembling a crude, tilted square whose northeastern face is the Mississippi River (though it actually is more irregular in shape, due to a narrower northwestward extension from the Bloomsdale area). It is bordered on the northeast by the state of Illinois, on the southeast by Perry County, on the west by St. Francois County, and on the northwest by Jefferson County.

The county has a total area of 506.77 square miles, including 499.15 of land and 7.62 of water.^[3] Most of the county consists of uplands that are an extension of the St. Francois Mountains, part of the broader Ozark Plateau. In the north and south-central regions especially, these tend to be especially rugged, with high ridges separated by deep, narrow valleys or "hollows." The Greasy Hills in the southwest contain the highest elevations, with a peak of 1,245 feet above sea level. Along the Mississippi River, there is a flat floodplain, ranging in width from a few dozen yards to well over a mile in places, where the most fertile land is located. This is the lowest-lying section, with an elevation of around 370 feet.^[4]

Apart from the Mississippi, the main bodies of water are several small streams that empty into the water, including Establishment Creek, Saline Creek, and River aux Vases, a few of which (principally in the central region near New Offenburg) have been dammed to create small lakes.

Several major highways pass through the county. The most important are Interstate 55, which crosses from northwest to southeast; and U.S. Route 61, which parallels it a short distance to the east and connects the towns of Bloomsdale, Ste. Genevieve, and St. Mary; and Missouri State Highway 32, which enters from the southwest and has its eastern terminus at Ste. Genevieve.

Demographics[edit]

At the 2010 census, Ste. Genevieve County had a total population of 18,145, with 7,040 households and 5,045 families, a slight increase from its 2000 population of 17,791.^[5] The population density was 36.4 per square mile. There were 8,637 housing units, or about 17.3 per square mile. The racial makeup of the county was about 97.63% White, 0.65% African-American, 0.29% Native American, 0.27% Asian, 0.01% Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander, 0.16% from some other race, and 0.99% from two or more races. Hispanics of any race were 0.82% of the population.

The median age in the county was 42.6 years. 23.26% of the population was under the age of 18, 7.44% was between the ages of 18 and 24, 22.40% was between the ages of 25 and 44, 30.85% was between the ages of 45 and 64, and 16.04% was 65 years old or older. The sex ratio was 50.5% male, 49.5% female.^[6]

As of 2018, the median household income in the county was $56,234, and the median family income was $68,760. Males had a median income of $55,000 versus $34,614 for females. The unemployment rate was 4.3%. The per capita income was $28,578. About 14.6% of the population was below the poverty line, including 25.5% of those under the age of 18 and 7.0% of those 65 years old or older.^[7]

Culture

Ste. Genevieve County is somewhat culturally unique in Southeast Missouri, due to a large portion of its population being ethnically French or German. Many of the French colonial buildings are well-preserved, and it is one of the only places where "Missouri French" or "Paw Paw French," a dialect of French once spoken throughout the upper Mississippi Valley, may still be heard. The Catholic Church is also much more prominent than in counties to the south; parochial schools, especially Valle Catholic Schools in Ste. Genevieve, are at times larger and better known than their public counterparts.

Communities[edit]

Ste. Genevieve County is home to six incorporated communities, including three cities and three census-designated places (CDPs).

Cities[edit]

• Bloomsdale
• St. Mary
• Ste. Genevieve (county seat)

CDPs[edit]

• Grayhawk
• Ozora
• Weingarten

Government[edit]

Local government in Ste. Genevieve County is provided by the elected officials. These positions are mostly controlled by the Democratic Party, though the Republicans have gained a few in recent years.

Countywide official	Name	Party
Assessor	Linda Wagner	Democratic
Circuit Clerk	Julie Bova	Democratic
County Clerk	Sue Wolk	Democratic
Collector	Claudia Stuppy	Republican
Commissioner (presiding)	Garry Nelson	Democratic
Commissioner (District 1)	Randy Bahr	Democratic
Commissioner (District 2)	Joseph Gettinger	Democratic
Coroner	Eric Basler	Democratic
Prosecuting Attorney	Wayne Williams	Democratic
Public Administrator	Mary Jo Ramer	Democratic
Recorder	Peggy Yamnitz	Democratic
Sheriff	Gary Stolzer	Republican
Surveyor	Gerald Bader	Democratic
Treasurer	Sara Hoog	Democratic

At the state level, Ste. Genevieve County is part of two separate legislative districts for the Missouri House of Representatives. The extreme northwestern portion of the county is part of the 115th District, which also includes parts of Jefferson and St. Francois Counties. It is currently represented by Elaine Gannon (R-DeSoto), who was elected to her fourth and final term in November 2018 without opposition.

The majority of the county, including the city of Ste. Genevieve, lies within the 116th District, which also includes parts of Perry and St. Francois Counties. It is currently represented by Dale Wright (R-Farmington), who was elected to his first term in November 2018, defeating Democrat Bill Kraemer.

Candidate	Party	Votes	Vote Percentage
Dale Wright	Republican	9,531	64.014%
Bill Kraemer	Democratic	5,354	35.959%

Wright significantly underperformed within Ste. Genevieve County, winning by a margin of 3,396 votes to 2,923 for Kraemer.

In the Missouri State Senate, Ste. Genevieve County is part of the 3rd District, which also includes Iron, Reynolds, St. Francois, and Washington Counties, and part of Jefferson County. It is currently represented by Elaine Gannon (R-De Soto), who was elected to her first term in November 2020 without opposition.

At the federal level, Ste. Genevieve 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 significantly underperformed his average margin in Ste. Genevieve County, winning 58.608% of the vote.^[8]

Political Culture

As the above numbers indicate, Ste. Genevieve County is something of an outlier in southern Missouri, in that the Democratic Party continues to be relatively competitive within it, especially on the state and local level. Until recently, in fact, it was considered a stronghold for the party on the federal level as well; it voted for John Kerry in the 2004 presidential election (Missouri's only predominantly rural county to do so) and for Barack Obama in 2008. This is likely attributable to the area's ties with the unionized mining culture of the Lead Belt to the west, and to the large contingent of Catholics, who tend to skew more liberal than evangelical Protestants, especially on economic issues. However, as such groups are increasingly alienated by the Democratic Party's social radicalism, the county has been trending Republican in recent years. It narrowly voted for Mitt Romney in 2012, and in the 2016 general election, the county strongly supported Donald Trump, who won 64.90% of the vote.^[9]

Like much of southern Missouri, Ste. Genevieve County can be included within the Bible Belt--though its more Catholic demographic sometimes complicates this--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 Ste. Genevieve County with 75.25% support. In 2006, while the state overall narrowly passed an amendment to fund embryonic stem-cell research, the county defeated the measure with 56.22% voting against. At the same time, it often supports economic measures that appear to favor the working and middle class, more frequently than much of the region. In the November 2018 election, the county supported a proposed increase in the state minimum wage, with 58.14% voting in favor (it passed the state at large). These results mark Ste. Genevieve County as one of the state's "swing" or "purple" counties.

References[edit]