Moberly, Missouri facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Moberly, Missouri
|
|
|---|---|
| City of Moberly | |
Location within Randolph County and Missouri
|
|
| Country | United States |
| State | Missouri |
| County | Randolph |
| Founded | 1866 |
| Incorporated | 1868 |
| Government | |
| • Type | Council-manager government |
| Area | |
| • Total | 13.22 sq mi (34.24 km2) |
| • Land | 13.18 sq mi (34.13 km2) |
| • Water | 0.04 sq mi (0.11 km2) |
| Elevation | 873 ft (266 m) |
| Population
(2020)
|
|
| • Total | 13,783 |
| • Density | 1,045.99/sq mi (403.85/km2) |
| Time zone | UTC-6 (Central (CST)) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC-5 (CDT) |
| ZIP code |
65270
|
| Area code(s) | 660 |
| FIPS code | 29-49034 |
| GNIS feature ID | 2395362 |
| Website | moberlymo.org |
Moberly is a city located in Randolph County, Missouri, in the United States. In 2020, about 13,783 people lived there. Moberly is part of the larger Columbia metropolitan area. It is also part of a bigger area that includes Columbia, Jefferson City, and Moberly, which has over 415,000 residents.
Contents
History of Moberly
Moberly was started in 1866. It was named after Colonel William E. Moberly. He was the first president of the Chariton and Randolph County railroads.
Moberly quickly became known as the "Magic City." This was because it grew very fast due to the railroad boom. By 1880, its population had reached 6,070 people. The North Missouri Railroad helped the town grow a lot.
Moberly became an important railroad hub in 1867. Large railroad repair shops opened in 1872. These were some of the first big railroad factories west of the Mississippi River. The M. K. & T. railroad also joined here in 1873. These transportation links helped industries grow. They also helped develop the area's soil, fire clay, and coal resources.
Moberly is in a flat area that was shaped by glaciers. The county was set up in 1829. It was named after John Randolph from Virginia. The area was first settled by William Holman in 1818.
Moberly Junior College opened its doors in 1927.
Famous People from Moberly
Many notable people have connections to Moberly. World War II General Omar N. Bradley grew up here. He was the first Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. He also commanded the largest army in U.S. history. Moberly's airport is named after him.
Other famous people from Moberly include:
- Elizabeth Seifert Gasparotti, a novelist.
- Jack Conroy, a writer.
- G.W. P. Hunt, the first Governor of Arizona, was born nearby.
Recent Events
In 1995, a tornado hit downtown Moberly on Independence Day. There were no deaths reported in Moberly. However, it caused a lot of damage to buildings. Another strong tornado hit nearby Renick in 2006. It caused a lot of damage, and sadly, some people were killed and injured.
The World War II-era U.S. Navy ship USS Moberly (PF-63) was named after the town. This ship helped protect other ships during the war. It even earned a battle star for helping to sink a German submarine.
Some buildings in Moberly are listed on the National Register of Historic Places. These include the Burkholder-O'Keefe House, the Moberly Commercial Historic District, and the Moberly Junior High School.
Geography and Climate
Moberly is located in the southeastern part of Randolph County. It is where U.S. Route 63 and U.S. Route 24 meet. Nearby streams include Sugar Creek, Coon Creek, and Sweet Spring Creek.
The city covers about 12.26 square miles (34.24 square kilometers). Most of this area is land, with a small amount of water.
Weather in Moberly
Moberly has a varied climate. Summers are usually warm, and winters are cold. The city gets a good amount of rain throughout the year.
| Climate data for Moberly, Missouri (1991–2020 normals, extremes 1936–present) | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
| Record high °F (°C) | 76 (24) |
82 (28) |
87 (31) |
92 (33) |
96 (36) |
102 (39) |
112 (44) |
108 (42) |
102 (39) |
96 (36) |
83 (28) |
73 (23) |
112 (44) |
| Mean daily maximum °F (°C) | 37.1 (2.8) |
42.2 (5.7) |
53.9 (12.2) |
64.7 (18.2) |
74.2 (23.4) |
82.8 (28.2) |
87.0 (30.6) |
85.6 (29.8) |
78.2 (25.7) |
66.8 (19.3) |
53.2 (11.8) |
42.0 (5.6) |
64.0 (17.8) |
| Daily mean °F (°C) | 28.0 (−2.2) |
32.5 (0.3) |
43.8 (6.6) |
54.4 (12.4) |
64.5 (18.1) |
73.2 (22.9) |
77.3 (25.2) |
75.7 (24.3) |
67.8 (19.9) |
56.3 (13.5) |
43.5 (6.4) |
33.3 (0.7) |
54.2 (12.3) |
| Mean daily minimum °F (°C) | 18.9 (−7.3) |
22.7 (−5.2) |
33.6 (0.9) |
44.1 (6.7) |
54.9 (12.7) |
63.7 (17.6) |
67.5 (19.7) |
65.7 (18.7) |
57.3 (14.1) |
45.9 (7.7) |
33.8 (1.0) |
24.7 (−4.1) |
44.4 (6.9) |
| Record low °F (°C) | −21 (−29) |
−19 (−28) |
−12 (−24) |
17 (−8) |
28 (−2) |
40 (4) |
48 (9) |
44 (7) |
32 (0) |
18 (−8) |
−4 (−20) |
−20 (−29) |
−21 (−29) |
| Average precipitation inches (mm) | 1.87 (47) |
2.06 (52) |
3.26 (83) |
4.58 (116) |
5.13 (130) |
5.16 (131) |
4.53 (115) |
3.94 (100) |
3.95 (100) |
3.38 (86) |
2.65 (67) |
2.19 (56) |
42.70 (1,085) |
| Average snowfall inches (cm) | 5.6 (14) |
3.2 (8.1) |
1.2 (3.0) |
0.2 (0.51) |
0.0 (0.0) |
0.0 (0.0) |
0.0 (0.0) |
0.0 (0.0) |
0.0 (0.0) |
0.1 (0.25) |
0.7 (1.8) |
4.0 (10) |
15.1 (38) |
| Average precipitation days (≥ 0.01 in) | 6.4 | 6.8 | 9.2 | 10.9 | 12.1 | 9.6 | 7.9 | 7.8 | 7.4 | 8.7 | 7.3 | 7.0 | 101.1 |
| Average snowy days (≥ 0.1 in) | 2.3 | 1.9 | 0.6 | 0.1 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.1 | 0.3 | 2.0 | 7.3 |
| Source: NOAA | |||||||||||||
Population and People
Moberly has grown quite a bit since it was founded. Here's how its population has changed over the years:
| Historical population | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Census | Pop. | %± | |
| 1870 | 1,514 | — | |
| 1880 | 6,070 | 300.9% | |
| 1890 | 8,215 | 35.3% | |
| 1900 | 8,012 | −2.5% | |
| 1910 | 10,923 | 36.3% | |
| 1920 | 12,808 | 17.3% | |
| 1930 | 13,772 | 7.5% | |
| 1940 | 12,920 | −6.2% | |
| 1950 | 13,115 | 1.5% | |
| 1960 | 13,170 | 0.4% | |
| 1970 | 12,988 | −1.4% | |
| 1980 | 13,418 | 3.3% | |
| 1990 | 12,839 | −4.3% | |
| 2000 | 11,945 | −7.0% | |
| 2010 | 13,974 | 17.0% | |
| 2020 | 13,783 | −1.4% | |
| source: | |||
What the 2020 Census Showed
In 2020, there were 13,783 people living in Moberly. There were 4,708 households. Most of the people were white (82.39%). About 9.13% were Black or African-American. Other groups included Native American, Asian, and people of two or more races. About 2.1% of the population was Hispanic or Latino.
About 23% of the people were under 18 years old. The average age in Moberly was 36.4 years.
What the 2010 Census Showed
In 2010, Moberly had 13,974 people. The city had 4,960 households. About 32.5% of households had children under 18 living with them.
The racial makeup was similar to 2020. About 86.4% were White, and 9.7% were African American. The average age was 35.7 years.
Fun Things to Do
Moberly has many parks and fun activities for everyone!
- The Moberly Parks and Recreation department manages about 500 acres of parkland. This includes five parks with open spaces, forests, and lakes.
- The Howard Hils Athletic Complex has eight baseball/softball fields and three football/soccer fields.
- You can also visit the Moberly Aquatic Center for swimming.
- The Magic City Line is a one-mile-long miniature train track that kids love.
- There are over two miles of paved trails for walking or biking.
- You can also enjoy fishing, paddleboat, and canoe rentals at the lakes.
- The Moberly Midget League offers a summer baseball program for local youth. It has teams for ages 8U to 14U.
- The Moberly Optimist Club also runs a summer youth baseball program, from T-ball to 8U.
- The Randolph County Historical Society has two museums in Moberly. One teaches about county history. The other is all about the Wabash, MKT, and CB&Q railroads.
Education in Moberly
Moberly is home to two colleges: Central Christian College of the Bible and Moberly Area Community College.
The Moberly School District has several schools for different age groups:
- The Early Childhood Center is for preschoolers.
- North and South Park Elementary schools are for grades K-2.
- Gratz Brown Elementary serves grades 3-5.
- Moberly Middle School is for grades 6-8.
- Moberly High School and Moberly Area Technical Center are for grades 9–12.
- There is also an alternative school called ACES (Alternative Center for Educational Success).
- Maranatha Adventist School and St. Pius X Catholic Elementary School are also in Moberly.
Moberly also has a public library. It is a part of the Little Dixie Regional Libraries system.
Getting Around Moberly
Moberly has its own airport, The Omar Bradley Airport. For commercial flights, you can go to Columbia Regional Airport in Columbia, about 33 miles south. You can also use shuttle services to larger airports like STL and MCI.
Major roads like U.S. Route 63 and U.S. Route 24 pass through Moberly. U.S. Route 63 has a bypass around the city. The old route, called Business 63 and Morley Street, goes right through town.
The Norfolk Southern Railway serves Moberly. Trains run west towards Kansas City, Missouri and east towards Hannibal, Missouri. Norfolk Southern also has a rail yard in Moberly.
Media
Moberly has a weekly newspaper called the Moberly Monitor-Index. The Kwix Kres Kirk radio station also broadcasts from downtown Moberly.
Notable People
Many interesting people have lived in or are from Moberly. Here are a few:
- George W. Althouse, a Nebraska state legislator.
- Russ Ball, an NFL executive.
- Omar Bradley, a famous United States Army general.
- Brent Briscoe, an actor.
- Jack Conroy, an author and activist.
- Jerry Doggett, a sports broadcaster.
- Elizabeth Seifert, an author.
- Melvin B. Tolson, a poet and professor.
See also
In Spanish: Moberly (Misuri) para niños
