Geography of Missouri

Introduction to Geography of Missouri

Missouri, one of the midwestern states of the United States. It is almost centrally located in the nation and is bordered by Iowa, Illinois, Kentucky, Tennessee, Arkansas, Oklahoma, Kansas, and Nebraska. The Mississippi River forms the eastern border; the Missouri River nearly bisects the state. With an area of 69,709 square miles (180,546 km 2), Missouri ranks 21st among the states.

Physical Geography

Missouri is divided among three major physical regions of the United States: the Ozark Plateau, or Ozarks; the Central Lowlands; and the Gulf Coastal Plain.

The Ozark Plateau. Most of the southern half of the state is in this region. It is an eroded tableland, consisting mainly of rolling hills and deep river valleys often lined by bluffs. The highest section is the St. Francois Mountains in the southeast. Here, amid igneous rocks that are among the oldest in the nation, stands Taum Sauk Mountain, at 1,772 feet (540 m) the highest point in the state. The plateau is honeycombed with caves, underground water channels, and sink holes—typical features of karst topography.

The Central Lowlands. Northern and western Missouri lie in this region. The northern part, stretching from Iowa to the Missouri River, consists mainly of flat to rolling prairies. Laid down by glaciers early in the Ice Age, they are more eroded and rougher than the younger prairies of the Midwest. Western Missouri, from the Missouri River southward to Joplin, is a rolling unglaciated plains region that resembles the Great Plains farther west.

The Gulf Coastal Plain, usually called the Bootheel, is in the southeastern corner of the state. Flat, low-lying, and occasionally marshy, it is part of the Mississippi River's flood plain. The region was formed millions of years ago by sediments in the Mississippi's first delta. Located here is the lowest point in the state, 230 feet (70 m) above sea level.

Missouri's rivers vary from clear, sparkling streams in the Ozarks to such muddy giants as the Missouri and the Mississippi. The Mississippi River, flowing southward to the Gulf of Mexico, receives the Des Moines, Salt, and Meramec rivers. Near St. Louis, the Mississippi is joined by the Missouri River, which forms part of the western boundary and drains eastward across the state from Kansas City. Tributaries of the Missouri include the Platte, Grand, and Chariton from the north, and the Osage and Gasconade from the south. Other rivers include the Current, Black, and St. Francis, which flow southward into Arkansas.

Lake of the Ozarks and adjoining Harry S. Truman Reservoir are the largest lakes in the state. Both are on the Osage River in west-central Missouri. Lake of the Ozarks is the center of a major resort area. Lake Taneycomo, a relatively small reservoir near the Arkansas border, is also the center of a popular resort area. Other lakes include Table Rock, Bull Shoals, and Norfolk lakes on the Missouri-Arkansas state line; Lake Wappapello, in the southeast; and Mark Twain Lake, in the northeast.

The Ozark region is noted for its many large springs. Twelve have daily flows of 64,000,000 gallons (242,000,000 liters) or more. Big Spring, with a maximum flow of 846,000,000 gallons (3,200,000,000 liters) a day, is one of the largest single springs in the nation.

Missouri has a humid continental climate similar to that of other centrally located states. Summers are long and vary from warm to hot; winters are relatively short and cold. A chief mark of the climate is its highly changeable weather.

July temperatures average 78° to 80° F. (26° to 27° C.); January temperatures 26° to 36° F. (-3° to 2° C.), the warmest area being the Bootheel. Summer temperatures often rise to more than 90° F. (32° C.) but rarely reach 100° F. (38° C.). Winter temperatures seldom fall below 0° F. (-18° C.).

The state receives roughly 35 to 50 inches (890 to 1,270 mm) of precipitation each year, the increase being from northwest to southeast. Rains are often erratic, however, and droughts occasionally occur. Snowfall averages 18 to 22 inches (460 to 560 mm) in the north and about half as much in the south. Seldom is it deep or on the ground for long. Sleet storms and tornadoes occasionally strike the state.

Forests once covered most of Missouri, but now occupy only about one-third of the state. The vast majority of the present forests consist mainly of second-growth hardwoods, particularly oaks. The southern part of the state, especially the southeast, is the principal forested area. The northern part, once covered by grasslands and forests, is now used extensively for farming.

Economy

Missouri's economy is diversified, with manufacturing, farming, construction, and mining among the chief industries. The state's central location has promoted wholesale trade and commerce and made transportation a key activity. Retail trade, banking, finance, insurance, service industries, and government are also large employers and major sources of income in the state. Attractions in St. Louis and Kansas City and in the Ozarks make tourism increasingly valuable. Tourism brings in $8 billion a year. Missouri is also known for its scenic waterways, rich soil, and valuable minerals.

Missouri's principal manufacturing centers are St. Louis and Kansas City. Most of the state's more than 7,000 factories are in this area. Chemical production, including fertilizer, insecticide, paint, pharmaceuticals and soap, is the state's leading manufacturing activity. About a fifth of the nonfarm labor force is engaged in manufacturing. Motor vehicles, aircraft, and other transportation equipment are other leading products. Missouri ranks as a leading state in the production of trucks.

The making or processing of foods and beverages, chemicals, computer and electronic equipment, machinery, and primary metals are major economic activities, as are printing and publishing. Missouri also has numerous wood-based manufacturing industries, largely because of a relative abundance of timber in the Ozarks.

The St. Louis and Kansas City areas are the principal manufacturing centers. The nation's top beer brewer, Anheuser-Busch, is in St. Louis; Kansas City has large flour mills and it is home to the leading greeting card maker in the United States, Hallmark Cards, and one of the nation's largest dairy-processing plants is located in Springfield.

Missouri is one of the leading farm states, with livestock and livestock products bringing in about 55 per cent of the state's farm income. Missouri is also a leading state in the production of beef cattle, hogs, and turkeys, and dairy products. Chickens and sheep are also raised.

Soybeans are Missouri's leading crop in total cash sales; corn, wheat, grain sorghum, and hay are also of major significance. Much of the corn and most of the hay is used on farms as feed for livestock. Cotton is a principal crop. A variety of fruits and vegetables are produced from truck farms near St. Louis. Peaches, grapes, apples, and watermelons are the important crops.

Lead is by far the leading mineral produced in Missouri. The state's mines lead the nation's output. The lead mines also contain valuable quantities of zinc, copper, and silver. Also, coal, clays, dolomite, gemstones, granite, oil, and sand, and gravel are produced in substantial amounts.

The People

Missouri had a population of 5,595,211 in 2000, an increase of 478,138, or 9.3 per cent, over 1990. The state ranked 17th in population. With 81.2 persons per square mile (31.4 per km2), Missouri had a population density that was slightly greater than that of the nation as a whole. Whites made up about 85 per cent of the population and blacks, about 11 per cent.

Education

Public elementary and secondary education in Missouri is the responsibility of the state board of education, created in 1945. The board, appointed by the governor, appoints a commissioner of education. This official administers the state department of elementary and secondary education and supervises the public school system. School attendance is required from age 7 to 16.

A free school for Indians and needy white children was founded at the settlement of Ste. Genevieve in 1806. Although an attempt to provide public schools for all rural children was made in 1839, it was not until 1870 that a system of public education for all was formulated.

William T. Harris, superintendent of schools in St. Louis during 1870-85. was instrumental in introducing new European (especially German) educational theories into the United States. St. Louis was the site of the first public school kindergarten in the nation, opened in 1873. In 1880, industrial arts education for the first time became an organized program with the opening of the St. Louis Manual Training School.

The University of Missouri, founded in 1839, is the oldest state university west of the Mississippi. The main campus is at Columbia. The university also has campuses at St. Louis, Kansas City, and Rolla.

Government

Missouri is still governed under the Constitution adopted in 1945. The state had three earlier constitutions. The governor is the head of Missouri's government. The governor is elected to a four-year term and is limited to two terms. The lieutenant governor, secretary of state, state treasurer, attorney general, and state auditor are all elected to four-year terms. However, the governor appoints many of the other officials who head key agencies in the state government.

Missouri's legislature is known as the General Assembly, which consists of a 34-member Senate and a 163-member House of Representatives. Senators are elected to four-year terms and representatives to two-year terms.

The state Supreme Court is Missouri's highest court. The state judiciary also includes the state Court of Appeals, circuit courts, associate circuit courts, and municipal courts.

Most cities in Missouri have a mayor-council form of government. St. Louis is governed by a mayor, a board of 28 aldermen, and the president of the aldermanic board. St. Louis, however, is an dependent city and is not part of any of Missouri's 114 counties.

Transportation. Missouri has long provided important transportation routes, beginning in the stagecoach and steamboat eras. Today, both St. Louis and Kansas City are major transportation hubs for railways, highways, and airlines.

Roughly a dozen trunk railways provide service within the state; a number of eastern railways have western terminals in St. Louis. Numerous Interstate and other multilane divided highways serve the state, primarily in the St. Louis, Kansas City, Springfield, and Columbia-Jefferson City areas. Missouri has more than 250 public airports, including international airports at St. Louis and Kansas City. The Mississippi and Missouri rivers together provide more than 1,000 miles (1,600 km) of navigable waterways. The St. Louis area is one of the nation's chief inland ports.