kids encyclopedia robot

Lawrence County, Missouri facts for kids

Kids Encyclopedia Facts
Quick facts for kids
Lawrence County
U.S. county
The Lawrence County Courthouse in Mt. Vernon
The Lawrence County Courthouse in Mt. Vernon
Map of Missouri highlighting Lawrence County
Location within the U.S. state of Missouri
Map of the United States highlighting Missouri
Missouri's location within the U.S.
Country  United States
State  Missouri
Founded February 14, 1845
Named for James Lawrence
Seat Mount Vernon
Largest city Monett
Area
 • Total 613 sq mi (1,590 km2)
 • Land 612 sq mi (1,590 km2)
 • Water 1.6 sq mi (4 km2)  0.3%
Population
 (2010)
 • Total 38,634
 • Estimate 
(2018)
 38,359
 • Density 63.02/sq mi (24.334/km2)
Time zone UTC−6 (Central)
 • Summer (DST) UTC−5 (CDT)
Congressional district 7th

Lawrence County is located in the southwest portion of the U.S. state of Missouri, in the area of the Ozarks. As of the 2010 census, the population was 38,634. Its county seat is Mount Vernon. The county was organized in 1845 and named for James Lawrence, a naval officer from the War of 1812 known for his battle cry, "Don't give up the ship!"

A previous Lawrence County, established in 1815 with its county seat at what is now Davidsonville Historic State Park in Arkansas, covered much of what is now southern Missouri and the northern third of Arkansas. When the Arkansas Territory was created from Missouri Territory in 1819, some of that earlier county became organized as Lawrence County, Arkansas.

Just before that, in 1818, Missouri divided its part of the old Lawrence County into Wayne County and Madison County; with population increases, those counties were later divided into others, including the present Lawrence County.

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 613 square miles (1,590 km2), of which 612 square miles (1,590 km2) is land and 1.6 square miles (4.1 km2) (0.3%) is water.

Adjacent counties

Major highways

National protected area

Demographics

Historical population
Census Pop. %±
1850 4,859 —
1860 8,840 81.9%
1870 12,977 46.8%
1880 17,583 35.5%
1890 26,228 49.2%
1900 31,662 20.7%
1910 26,583 −16.0%
1920 24,211 −8.9%
1930 23,774 −1.8%
1940 24,637 3.6%
1950 23,420 −4.9%
1960 23,260 −0.7%
1970 24,585 5.7%
1980 28,973 17.8%
1990 30,236 4.4%
2000 35,204 16.4%
2010 38,634 9.7%
2020 38,001 −1.6%
U.S. Decennial Census
1790-1960 1900-1990
1990-2000 2010-2015

As of the census of 2000, there were 35,204 people, 13,568 households, and 9,728 families residing in the county. The population density was 57 people per square mile (22/km2). There were 14,789 housing units at an average density of 24 per square mile (9/km2). The racial makeup of the county was 95.68% White, 0.27% Black or African American, 0.76% Native American, 0.22% Asian, 0.02% Pacific Islander, 1.67% from other races, and 1.37% from two or more races. Approximately 3.39% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.

There were 13,568 households, out of which 33.60% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 58.90% were married couples living together, 9.00% had a female householder with no husband present, and 28.30% were non-families. 24.50% of all households were made up of individuals, and 11.90% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.55 and the average family size was 3.03.

In the county, the population was spread out, with 27.20% under the age of 18, 7.90% from 18 to 24, 26.90% from 25 to 44, 22.40% from 45 to 64, and 15.60% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 37 years. For every 100 females there were 97.00 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 92.10 males.

The median income for a household in the county was $31,239, and the median income for a family was $36,846. Males had a median income of $27,309 versus $18,990 for females. The per capita income for the county was $15,399. About 11.00% of families and 14.10% of the population were below the poverty line, including 19.50% of those under age 18 and 11.80% of those age 65 or over.

Communities

Cities

Villages

Census-designated place

Other unincorporated places

Education

Public schools

    • Pate Early Childhood Center (PK-02)
    • Robinson Elementary School (03-04)
    • Robinson Intermediate School (05-06)
    • Aurora Junior High School (07-08)
    • Aurora High School (09-12)
    • Marionville Elementary School (PK-05)
    • Marionville Middle School (06-08)
    • Marionville High School (09-12)
    • Central Elementary School (K-06)
    • Miller High School (07-12)
    • Mt. Vernon Elementary School (PK-02)
    • Mt. Vernon Intermediate School (03-05)
    • Mt. Vernon Middle School (06-08)
    • Mt. Vernon High School (09-12)
    • Central Elementary School (PK-05)
    • Pierce City Middle School (06-08)
    • Pierce City High School (09-12)
    • Verona Elementary School (PK-06)
    • Verona High School (07-12)

Private schools

  • Harvest Christian Academy – Aurora (K-12) – Nondenominational Christian

Public libraries

  • Barry-Lawrence Regional Library
kids search engine
All content from Kiddle encyclopedia articles (including the article images and facts) can be freely used under Attribution-ShareAlike license, unless stated otherwise. Cite this article:
Lawrence County, Missouri Facts for Kids. Kiddle Encyclopedia.