Reynolds County, Missouri

Reynolds County, Missouri
Location in the state of Missouri
Missouri's location in the U.S.
Founded	1845
Named for	Thomas Reynolds, former Governor of Missouri
Seat	Centerville
Largest city	Ellington
Area  - Total  - Land  - Water	814.41 sq mi (2,109 km²) 811.20 sq mi (2,101 km²) 3.21 sq mi (8 km²), 0.39%
PopulationEst.  - (2008)  - Density	6,388 8/sq mi (3/km²)
Time zone	Central: UTC-6/-5

Reynolds County is a county located in the northwestern portion of the Ozark Foothills Region in Southeast Missouri in the United States. As of the 2000 U.S. Census, the county's population was 6,689. A 2008 estimate, however, showed the population to be 6,388. Its county seat is Centerville. The county was officially organized on February 25, 1845, and was named in honor of Thomas Reynolds, the former governor of Missouri.

The county is home to Johnson's Shut-Ins State Park.

History

Reynolds County was officially organized on February 25, 1845. It is still an area of rugged beauty near the geologic center of the Ozark Highland. Reynolds County was formerly part of Ripley County which was formed in 1831 and part of Wayne County which was formed in 1818. It was also previously part of Washington County and part of Ste. Genevieve County.

The Reynolds County Courthouse has burned twice. The first time was in December 1863 when the Confederate army burned it. A new courthouse was built in the fall of 1867 on the same foundation as the previous one. This courthouse was burned in late November 1871. Both times all records were destroyed. Temporary quarters again burned May 27, 1872, while a new "fireproof" courthouse was being built.

Education

Of adults 25 years of age and older in Reynolds County, 65.2% possesses a high school diploma or higher while 7.5% holds a bachelor's degree or higher as their highest educational attainment.

Public Schools

• Bunker R-III School District - Bunker
  • Bunker Elementary School (K-06)
  • Bunker High School (07-12)
• Centerville R-I School District - Centerville
• Lesterville R-IV School District - Lesterville
  • Lesterville Elementary School (K-06)
  • Lesterville High School (07-12)
  • Lesterville Ranch Campus (K-12) - Black
• Southern Reynolds County R-II School District - Ellington
  • Southern Reynolds County Elementary School (PK-06)
  • Southern Reynolds County High School (07-12)

Religion

According to the Association of Religion Data Archives County Membership Report (2000), Reynolds County is a part of the Bible Belt with evangelical Protestantism being the majority religion. The most predominant denominations among residents in Reynolds County who adhere to a religion are Southern Baptists (78.80%), Baptist Missionary Association of America (8.24%), and Methodists (4.24%).

Geography

According to the 2000 census, the county has a total area of 814.41 square miles (2,109.3 km²), of which 811.20 square miles (2,101.0 km²) (or 99.61%) is land and 3.21 square miles (8.3 km²) (or 0.39%) is water.

Adjacent counties

• Dent County (northwest)
• Iron County (northeast)
• Wayne County (southeast)
• Carter County (south)
• Shannon County (west)

Major highways

• Route 21
• Route 49
• Route 72
• Route 106

National protected area

• Mark Twain National Forest (part)

Demographics

As of the census of 2000, there were 6,689 people, 2,721 households, and 1,915 families residing in the county. The population density was 8 people per square mile (3/km²). There were 3,759 housing units at an average density of 5 per square mile (2/km²). The racial makeup of the county was 95.65% White, 0.52% Black or African American, 1.29% Native American, 0.19% Asian, 0.21% from other races, and 2.14% from two or more races. Approximately 0.82% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race. Among the major first ancestries reported in Reynolds County were 37.6% American, 12.1% Irish, 11.6% German, and 11.4% English, according to Census 2000.

There were 2,721 households out of which 27.80% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 59.20% were married couples living together, 7.80% had a female householder with no husband present, and 29.60% were non-families. 26.00% of all households were made up of individuals and 11.10% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.40 and the average family size was 2.85.

In the county the population was spread out with 24.00% under the age of 18, 6.80% from 18 to 24, 25.00% from 25 to 44, 27.90% from 45 to 64, and 16.20% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 41 years. For every 100 females there were 101.60 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 98.60 males.

The median income for a household in the county was $31,546, and the median income for a family was $37,891. Males had a median income of $26,753 versus $18,322 for females. The per capita income for the county was $15,847. About 16.10% of families and 20.10% of the population were below the poverty line, including 25.90% of those under age 18 and 15.50% of those age 65 or over.

Cities and towns

Black Bunker

Centerville Ellington

Reynolds Lesterville

Politics

Local

Politics at the local level in Reynolds County is completely controlled by the Democratic Party. All of Reynolds County's elected officeholders are Democrats.

Office	Incumbent	Party
Assessor	Rick Parker	Democratic
Circuit Clerk & Ex Officio Recorder	Randy L. Cowin	Democratic
Clerk	Mike Harper	Democratic
Collector	Judy A. Cook	Democratic
Commissioner – District 1	Doug Warren	Democratic
Commissioner – District 2	Wayne Henson	Democratic
Coroner	Jeffrey N. McSpadden	Democratic
Presiding Commissioner	Donald Barnes	Democratic
Prosecuting Attorney	Robert A. Johnson	Democratic
Public Administrator	Heather Stucker	Democratic
Sheriff	Tom Volner	Democratic
Treasurer	Elaine Albert	Democratic

State

Past Gubernatorial Elections Results

Year	Republican	Democratic	Third Parties
2008	37.73% 1,223	58.65% 1,901	3.61% 117
2004	53.61% 1,746	45.13% 1,470	1.25% 41
2000	46.29% 1,416	48.38% 1,480	5.33% 163
1996	30.81% 886	66.93% 1,925	2.26% 65

Reynolds County is divided into two legislative districts in the Missouri House of Representatives.

• District 150 – Currently represented by Jason T. Smith (R-Salem) and consists of the extreme northwestern parts of the county and includes the town of Bunker. In 2010, Smith ran unopposed and was reelected with 100 percent of the vote.

Missouri House of Representatives - District 150 - Reynolds County (2010)
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Republican	Jason T. Smith*	44	100.00	+38.46

• District 152 – Currently represented by J.C. Kuessner (D-Eminence) and consists of most of the entire county and includes Ellington, Lesterville and Centerville. 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 - Reynolds County (2010)
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Republican	Paul Fitzwater	1,259	52.02	+28.63
	Democratic	Shane Van Steenis	1,161	47.98	-26.10

In the Missouri Senate, all of Reynolds County is a part of Missouri's 3rd District and is currently represented by State Senator 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 - Reynolds County (2008)
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Republican	Kevin Engler	1,942	60.29
	Democratic	Dennis Riche	1,279	39.71

Federal

In the U.S. House of Representatives, Reynolds 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 - Reynolds County (2010)
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Republican	Jo Ann Emerson	1,440	57.53	-7.85
	Democratic	Tommy Sowers	967	38.63	+5.83
	Independent	Larry Bill	48	1.92	+1.92
	Libertarian	Rick Vandeven	48	1.92	+0.82

Political Culture

Past Presidential Elections Results

Year	Republican	Democratic	Third Parties
2008	54.21% 1,782	43.14% 1,418	2.65% 87
2004	56.36% 1,896	43.07% 1,449	0.57% 19
2000	56.28% 1,762	41.46% 1,298	2.26% 71
1996	30.51% 903	55.10% 1,631	14.39% 426

At the presidential level, Reynolds County is fairly independent-leaning but unlike many rural counties, it has a tendency to lean Democratic. While George W. Bush carried Reynolds County in 2000 and 2004, the margins of victory were smaller than in many of the rural areas. Bill Clinton also carried Reynolds County both times in 1992 and 1996, and like most of the rural counties in Missouri, Reynolds County favored John McCain over Barack Obama in 2008, although not as strongly as the rest of the rural areas.

Like most rural areas throughout Southeast Missouri, voters in Reynolds 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 Reynolds County with 85.41 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 Reynolds County with 54.15 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 Reynolds 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 Reynolds County with 77.50 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 Reynolds 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 741, than any candidate from either party in Reynolds County during the 2008 Missouri Presidential Preference Primary. She also received more votes than the total number of votes cast in the entire Republican Primary in Reynolds County.

Reynolds County, Missouri
2008 Republican primary in Missouri
John McCain	202 (32.90%)
Mike Huckabee	283 (46.09%)
Mitt Romney	93 (15.15%)
Ron Paul	25 (4.07%)

Reynolds County, Missouri
2008 Democratic primary in Missouri
Hillary Rodham Clinton	741 (66.22%)
Barack Obama	277 (24.75%)
John Edwards (withdrawn)	70 (6.26%)
Uncommitted	16 (1.43%)

See also

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

External links

• Digitized 1930 Plat Book of Reynolds County from University of Missouri Division of Special Collections, Archives, and Rare Books