Iron County, Missouri

Iron County, Missouri
View from Proffit Mountain in Reynolds County, towards Iron County's Taum Sauk Mountain.
Location in the state of Missouri
Missouri's location in the U.S.
Founded	February 17, 1857
Named for	The abundant presence of iron ore
Seat	Ironton
Largest city	Ironton
Area  - Total  - Land  - Water	552.05 sq mi (1,430 km²) 551.34 sq mi (1,428 km²) 0.71 sq mi (2 km²), 0.13
PopulationEst.  - (2008)  - Density	9,918 7/sq mi (19/km²)
Time zone	Central: UTC-6/-5

Iron County is a county located in the Lead Belt region in Southeast Missouri in the United States. As of the 2000 U.S. Census, the county's population was 10,697. A 2008 estimate, however, showed the population to be 9,918. The largest city and county seat is Ironton. Iron County was officially organized on February 17, 1857, and was named so because of the abundance of iron ore found in the county.

Iron County includes the 6-mile (9.7 km)-long, 2-mile (3.2 km)-wide Arcadia Valley, the site of Pilot Knob, Ironton, and Arcadia, communities established by immigrants in the 19th Century. The valley is surrounded by the Saint Francois Mountains of the Ozarks Plateau. Iron County is also home to dozens of mountains, including the 1,772-foot (540 m) Taum Sauk Mountain, the highest point in Missouri.

The county is home to a number of state parks and historical sites including Taum Sauk Mountain State Park, Elephant Rocks State Park and Fort Davidson State Historic Site as well as 96,047 acres (390 km²) of Mark Twain National Forest.

Geography

According to the 2000 census, the county has a total area of 552.05 square miles (1,429.8 km²), of which 551.34 square miles (1,428.0 km²) (or 99.87%) is land and 0.71 square miles (1.8 km²) (or 0.13%) is water.

Cities and towns

Annapolis Arcadia Belleview

Bixby Des Arc Glover Hogan

Goodland Ironton Middle Brook

Pilot Knob Viburnum Vulcan

Adjacent counties

• Washington County (north)
• St. Francois County (northeast)
• Madison County (east)
• Wayne County (southeast)
• Reynolds County (southwest)
• Dent County (west)
• Crawford County (northwest)

National protected areas

• Mark Twain National Forest (part)
• Pilot Knob National Wildlife Refuge

Education

Of adults 25 years of age and older in Iron County, 65.2% possesses a high school diploma or higher while 8.4% holds a bachelor's degree or higher as their highest educational attainment.

Public Schools

• Arcadia Valley School District - Ironton
  • Arcadia Valley Elementary School (PK-04)
  • Arcadia Valley Middle School (05-08)
  • Arcadia Valley High School (09-12)
• Belleview R-III Elementary School - Belleview - (K-08)
• Iron County C-4 School District - Viburnum
  • Viburnum Elementary School (K-06)
  • Viburnum High School (07-12)
• South Iron County R-I School District - Annapolis
  • South Iron County Elementary School (PK-06)
  • South Iron County High School (07-12)

Vocational/Technical Schools

• Arcadia Valley Career Technical Center - Ironton - (09-12)

Transportation

State highways

• Route 21
• Route 32
• Route 49
• Route 72

Railroads

• The Iron Mountain Railroad, later incorporated into Missouri Pacific Railroad, runs through Arcadia Valley.

Religion

According to the Association of Religion Data Archives County Membership Report (2000), Iron County is a part of the Bible Belt with evangelical Protestantism being the majority religion. The most predominant denominations among residents in Iron County who adhere to a religion are Southern Baptists (56.62%), Methodists (10.60%), and Roman Catholics (7.82%).

Demographics

As of the census of 2000, there were 10,697 people, 4,197 households, and 2,963 families residing in the county. The population density was 7/km² (19/mi²). There were 4,907 housing units at an average density of 3/km² (9/mi²). The racial makeup of the county was 96.74% White, 1.56% Black or African American, 0.34% Native American, 0.09% Asian, 0.22% from other races, and 1.05% from two or more races. Approximately 0.58% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.

There were 4,197 households out of which 32.00% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 56.80% were married couples living together, 9.40% had a female householder with no husband present, and 29.40% were non-families. 25.80% of all households were made up of individuals and 11.40% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.46 and the average family size was 2.94.

In the county the population was spread out with 25.00% under the age of 18, 7.80% from 18 to 24, 25.30% from 25 to 44, 24.80% from 45 to 64, and 17.10% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 40 years. For every 100 females there were 94.80 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 90.80 males.

The median income for a household in the county was $31,276, and the median income for a family was $38,037. Males had a median income of $28,603 versus $16,615 for females. The per capita income for the county was $16,717. About 13.80% of families and 19.00% of the population were below the poverty line, including 27.60% of those under age 18 and 13.20% of those age 65 or over.

Politics

Local

Local politics in Iron County are predominantly controlled by the Democratic Party. In fact, all of Iron County's local elected officeholders are Democrats.

Office	Incumbent	Party
Assessor	David L. Huff	Democratic
Circuit Clerk	T. June Miller	Democratic
Clerk	Virginia Queen	Democratic
Collector	Linda Kemp	Democratic
Commissioner – Southern District	Dustin N. Walker	Democratic
Commissioner – Western District	Bradford V.S. Johnson	Democratic
Coroner	Anthony N. Cole	Democratic
Presiding Commissioner	Don Barzowski	Democratic
Prosecuting Attorney	Brian Parker	Democratic
Public Administrator	Sandra Trask	Democratic
Recorder	Karen K. Reagan	Democratic
Sheriff	Roger Medley	Democratic
Treasurer	Denise Bates	Democratic

State

Past Gubernatorial Elections Results

Year	Republican	Democratic	Third Parties
2008	33.45% 1,483	64.14% 2,844	2.41% 107
2004	50.62% 2,359	47.53% 2,215	2.85% 86
2000	45.42% 2,002	51.23% 2,258	3.35% 148
1996	35.54% 1,470	62.60% 2,589	1.86% 77

In the Missouri House of Representatives, all of Iron County is a part of Missouri’s 152nd District and is currently represented by J.C. Kuessner (D-Eminence). Kuessner is term limited and is finishing out his last term. He will be succeeded by a Republican, Paul Fitzwater, in the next legislative session in January 2011.

Missouri House of Representatives - District 152 - Iron County (2010)
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Republican	Paul Fitzwater	1,774	58.61	+37.97
	Democratic	Shane Van Steenis	1,253	41.39	-35.89

In the Missouri Senate, all of Iron County is a part of Missouri's 3rd District and is currently represented by Kevin Engler (R-Farmington). In 2008, Engler defeated Dennis Riche (D) 58.72-41.28 percent in the district. The 3rd Senatorial District consists of Carter, Iron, Reynolds, St. Francois, Ste. Genevieve and Washington counties as well as parts of Jefferson County.

Missouri Senate - District 3 - Iron County (2008)
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Republican	Kevin Engler	2,599	59.12
	Democratic	Dennis Riche	1,797	40.88

Federal

In the U.S. House of Representatives, Iron County is represented by Jo Ann Emerson (R-Cape Girardeau) who represents all of Southeast Missouri as part of Missouri's 8th Congressional District.

U.S. House of Representatives - District 8 - Iron County (2010)
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Republican	Jo Ann Emerson	1,626	53.17	-11.22
	Democratic	Tommy Sowers	1,270	41.53	+8.39
	Libertarian	Rick Vandeven	85	2.78	+1.08
	Independent	Larry Bill	77	2.52	+2.52

Political Culture

Past Presidential Elections Results

Year	Republican	Democratic	Third Parties
2008	47.35% 2,090	50.14% 2,213	2.51% 111
2004	52.94% 2,477	46.10% 2,157	0.96% 45
2000	50.68% 2,237	46.31% 2,044	3.01% 133
1996	31.92% 1,328	53.39% 2,221	14.69% 611

At the presidential level, Iron County is fairly independent-leaning but unlike many rural counties, it has a tendency to often lean Democratic. While George W. Bush carried Iron County in 2000 and 2004, the margins of victory were significantly smaller than in many of the other rural areas. Bill Clinton also carried Iron County both times in 1992 and 1996 by convincing double-digit margins, and unlike most of the other rural counties in Missouri, Iron County was one of only nine counties in Missouri that favored Barack Obama over John McCain in 2008.

Like most rural areas throughout Southeast Missouri, voters in Iron County generally adhere to socially and culturally conservative principles but are more moderate or populist on economic issues, typical of the Dixiecrat philosophy. In 2004, Missourians voted on a constitutional amendment to define marriage as the union between a man and a woman—it overwhelmingly passed Iron County with 80.90 percent of the vote. The initiative passed the state with 71 percent of support from voters as Missouri became the first state to ban same-sex marriage. In 2006, Missourians voted on a constitutional amendment to fund and legalize embryonic stem cell research in the state—it failed in Iron County with 56.03 percent voting against the measure. The initiative narrowly passed the state with 51 percent of support from voters as Missouri became one of the first states in the nation to approve embryonic stem cell research. Despite Iron County’s longstanding tradition of supporting socially conservative platforms, voters in the county have a penchant for advancing populist causes like increasing the minimum wage. In 2006, Missourians voted on a proposition (Proposition B) to increase the minimum wage in the state to $6.50 an hour—it passed Iron County with 78.25 percent of the vote. The proposition strongly passed every single county in Missouri with 75.94 percent voting in favor as the minimum wage was increased to $6.50 an hour in the state. During the same election, voters in five other states also strongly approved increases in the minimum wage.

Missouri Presidential Preference Primary (2008)

In the 2008 Missouri Presidential Preference Primary, voters in Iron County from both political parties supported candidates who finished in second place in the state at large and nationally.

• Former U.S. Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton (D-New York) received more votes, a total of 1,180, than any candidate from either party in Iron County during the 2008 Missouri Presidential Primaries. She also received more votes altogether than the total number of votes cast in the entire Republican Primary in Iron County.

Iron County, Missouri
2008 Republican primary in Missouri
John McCain	269 (32.80%)
Mike Huckabee	354 (43.17%)
Mitt Romney	138 (16.83%)
Ron Paul	43 (5.24%)

Iron County, Missouri
2008 Democratic primary in Missouri
Hillary Rodham Clinton	1,180 (70.53%)
Barack Obama	406 (24.27%)
John Edwards (withdrawn)	72 (4.30%)

See also

• National Register of Historic Places listings in Iron County, Missouri

External links

• Iron County from the Western Historical Manuscript Collection of Missouri University of Science and Technology
• Plat book of Iron County from the Missouri Digital Heritage website of the Missouri Secretary of State