Hernando
de Soto
visited the Missouri area in 1541. France's claim to the entire region was based
on Sieur de la Salle's travels in 1682. French fur traders established Ste. Genevieve
in 1735, and St. Louis was first settled in 1764.
The
U.S. gained Missouri from France as part of the Louisiana Purchase in 1803, and
the territory was admitted as a state following the Missouri Compromise of 1820.
Throughout
the pre–Civil War period and during the war, Missourians were sharply divided
in their opinions about slavery and in their allegiances, supplying both Union
and Confederate forces with troops. However, the state itself remained in the
Union.
Historically,
Missouri played a leading role as a gateway to the West, St. Joseph being the
eastern starting point of the Pony Express, while the much-traveled Santa Fe and
Oregon trails began in Independence.
Missouri's
economy is highly diversified. Service industries provide more income and jobs
than any other segment, and include a growing tourism and travel sector. Wholesale
and retail trade, manufacturing, and agriculture also play significant roles in
the state's economy.
Missouri
is a leading producer of transportation equipment (including automobile manufacturing
and auto parts), beer and beverages, and defense and aerospace technology. Food
processing is the state's fastest-growing industry.
Missouri
mines produce 90% of the nation's principal (non-recycled) lead supply. Other
natural resources include iron ore, zinc, barite, limestone, and timber.
The
state's top agricultural products include grain, sorghum, hay, corn, soybeans,
and rice. Missouri also ranks high among the states in cattle and calves, hogs,
and turkeys and broilers. A vibrant wine industry also contributes to the economy.
Tourism
draws hundreds of thousands of visitors to a number of Missouri points of interest:
the country-music shows of Branson; Bass Pro Shops national headquarters (Springfield);
the Gateway Arch at the Jefferson National Expansion (St. Louis); Mark Twain's
boyhood home (Hannibal); the Harry S Truman home and library (Independence); the
scenic beauty of the Ozark National Scenic Riverways; and the Pony Express and
Jesse James museums (St. Joseph). The state's different lake regions also attract
fishermen and sun-seekers from throughout the Midwest.
Coming
Soon!
See
more on Missouri: Encyclopedia: Missouri Encyclopedia: Geography Encyclopedia:
Economy Encyclopedia: Government Encyclopedia: History Monthly Temperature
Extremes
Accredited
Colleges and Universities
Selected
famous natives and residents:
Robert Altman film director; Burt
Bacharach songwriter; Josephine Baker singer and dancer; Wallace Beery
actor; Robert Russell Bennett composer; Yogi Berra baseball player; Thomas
Hart Benton painter; Susan Elizabeth Blow educator; Bill Bradley basketball
player and N.J. senator; Omar N. Bradley general; Grace Bumbry soprano;
William Burroughs writer; Sarah Caldwell opera director and conductor;
Martha Jane Canary (Calamity Jane) frontierswoman; George Washington Carver
scientist; Don Cheadle actor; Walter Cronkite TV newscaster; Robert
Cummings actor; Jane Darwell actress; Walt Disney artist; Jeanne Eagels
actress; T. S. Eliot poet; Eugene Field poet; Redd Foxx actor and
comedian; Betty Grable actress; Dick Gregory comic and activist; Jean
Harlow actress; Coleman Hawkins jazz musician; George Hearn actor; Al
Hirschfeld artist; Edwin Hubble astronomer; Langston Hughes poet; John
Huston film director; Jesse James outlaw; Scott Joplin composer; Bernarr
MacFadden physical culturist; Mary Margaret McBride TV hostess; Marianne
Moore poet; Geraldine Page actress; James C. Penney merchant; Marlin
Perkins TV host, zoo director; John Joseph Pershing general; Vincent Price
actor; Joseph Pulitzer journalist; Doris Roberts actress; Ginger Rogers
dancer and actress; Ted Shawn dancer and choreographer; Casey Stengel
baseball player; Gladys Swarthout soprano; Sara Teasdale poet; Virgil
Thomson composer; Harry S. Truman president; Mark Twain author; Dick
Van Dyke actor; Ruth Warrick actress; Dennis Weaver actor; Pearl White
actress; Mary Wickes actress; Laura Ingalls Wilder author; Roy Wilkins
civil rights leader.
Capital:
Jefferson City
State
abbreviation/Postal code: Mo./MO
Governor:
Matt Blunt, R (to Jan. 2009)
Lieut.
Governor: Peter Kinder, R (to Jan. 2009)
Senators:
Christopher S. Bond, R (to Jan. 2011); James M. Talent, R (to Jan. 2009)
U.S.
Representatives: 9
Secy.
of State: Robin Carnahan (to Jan. 2009)
Treasurer:
Sarah Steelman, R (to Jan. 2009)
Atty.
General: Jeremiah “Jay” W. Nixon, D (to Jan. 2009)
Organized
as territory: June 4, 1812
Entered
Union (rank): Aug. 10, 1821 (24)
Present
constitution adopted: 1945
Motto:
Salus populi suprema lex esto (The welfare of the people shall be the supreme
law)
State
symbols: flower hawthorn (1923) bird bluebird (1927) aquatic animal
paddlefish (1997) fish channel catfish (1997) song “Missouri Waltz”
(1949) fossil crinoid (1989) musical instrument fiddle (1987) rock
mozarkite (1967) mineral galena (1967) insect honeybee (1985) tree
flowering dogwood (1955) tree nut eastern black walnut (1990) animal mule
(1995) dance square dance (1995) Missouri Day third Wednesday in October
(1969)
Nickname:
Show-me State
Origin
of name: Named after the Missouri Indian tribe. “Missouri” means
“town of the large canoes.”
10
largest cities (2003 est.): Kansas City, 442,768; St. Louis, 332,223; Springfield,
150,867; Independence, 112,079; Columbia, 88,534; Lee's Summit, 77,052; St. Joseph,
72,663; O'Fallon, 63,677; St. Charles, 61,253; St. Peter's, 53,397
Land
area: 68,886 sq mi. (178,415 sq km)
Geographic
center: In Miller Co., 20 mi. SW of Jefferson City
Number
of counties: 114, plus 1 independent city
Largest
county by population and area: St. Louis, 1,009,235 (2004); Texas, 1,179 sq
mi.
2000
resident census population (rank): 5,754,618 (17). Male: 2,720,177 (48.6%);
Female: 2,875,034 (51.4%). White: 4,748,083 (84.9%); Black: 629,391 (11.2%); American
Indian: 25,076 (0.4%); Asian: 61,595 (1.1%); Other race: 45,827 (0.8%); Two or
more races: 82,061 (1.5%); Hispanic/Latino: 118,592 (2.1%). 2000 percent population
18 and over: 74.5; 65 and over: 13.5; median age: 36.1.
1.
Includes wildlife areas, natural history areas, state forests, and tower sites.
