Springfield, Missouri facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Springfield, Missouri
City
Hammons Field and Downtown Springfield Wonders of Wildlife Park Central Square Commercial Street Missouri State University Pythian Castle
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Nickname(s):  The "Queen City of the Ozarks" "Birthplace of Route 66"
Country	United States
State	Missouri
Counties	Greene, Christian
Founded	1834
Incorporated	1838
Government
• Type	Council–manager
Area
• City	83.70 sq mi (216.78 km2)
• Land	83.11 sq mi (215.26 km2)
• Water	0.59 sq mi (1.52 km2)
• Metro	3,021 sq mi (7,824 km2)
Elevation	1,299 ft (396 m)
Population  (2020)
• City	169,176
• Estimate  (2023)	170,188
• Rank	US: 152nd
• Density	2,035.49/sq mi (785.91/km2)
• Urban	282,651 (US: 143rd)
• Urban density	2,104.1/sq mi (812.4/km2)
• Metro	475,432 (US: 111th)
Demonym(s)	Springfieldian
Time zone	UTC−6 (CST)
• Summer (DST)	UTC−5 (CDT)
ZIP codes	65801-65810, 65814, 65817, 65890, 65897-65899
Area code(s)	417
FIPS code	29-70000
GNIS feature ID	0735864
Website	springfieldmo.gov

Springfield is the third most populous city in the U.S. state of Missouri and the county seat of Greene County. The city's population was 169,176 at the 2020 census. It is the principal city of the Springfield metropolitan area, which had an estimated population of 487,061 in 2022 and includes the counties of Christian, Dallas, Greene, Polk, and Webster, The city sits on the Springfield Plateau of the Ozarks, which ranges from nearly-level to rolling hills. Springfield is the second-largest urban area in the Ozarks.

Springfield's nicknames include "Queen City of the Ozarks" and "The Birthplace of Route 66". The city has been called the "Buckle of the Bible Belt" due to its association with evangelical Christianity. The city is the headquarters for Bass Pro Shops and the adjoining Wonders of Wildlife Museum & Aquarium. It is also home to O'Reilly Auto Parts, which began as a family business with 13 employees in 1957. Springfield is close to Wilson's Creek National Battlefield and is along the national historic Trail of Tears. In 2020, Springfield's largest ethnicities were 87.6% White, 4% Black, and 5% two or more races, placing it among the least diverse cities in the United States. The city is a regional center of medical care, with the two largest hospitals, CoxHealth and Mercy, being the largest employers in the city. Springfield hosts several universities and colleges, including Missouri State University, Drury University, and Evangel University. Springfield is an important regional center for distribution, logistics, and manufacturing.

Toponymy

The origin of the city's name is unclear, but the most common view is that it was named by migrants from Springfield, Massachusetts. One account is that James Wilson, who lived in the new settlement, offered free whiskey to anyone who would vote for the name Springfield, after his hometown in Massachusetts.

Springfield Express editor J. G. Newbill said in the November 11, 1881, issue: "It has been stated that this city got its name from the fact of a spring and field being near by just west of town. But such is not a correct version. When the authorized persons met and adopted the title of the 'Future Great' of the Southwest, several of the earliest settlers had handed in their favorite names, among whom was Kindred Rose, who presented the winning name in honor of his hometown, Springfield, Tennessee." In 1883, historian R. I. Holcombe wrote: "The town took its name from the circumstance of there being a spring under the hill, on the creek, while on top of the hill, where the principal portion of the town lay, there was a field."

History

The territory known as Missouri was included in the Louisiana Purchase of 1803. Soon after, the Delaware Native Americans received treaty land where Springfield's Sequiota Park and the antique stores of its Galloway Village stand today. To the west, 500 Kickapoo Native Americans built wickiups on the prairie that still bears their name. Missouri became a state on August 10, 1821, and in 1833 the legislature designated most of the southern portion as Greene County. The county was named in honor of American Revolutionary War General Nathanael Greene, largely through a campaign, started in 1829, by Springfield's founder, John Polk Campbell, a Tennessee homesteader. Officially, Springfield was founded in 1830, and was incorporated in 1838.

Name

The origin of the name, Springfield is unclear, but the most common view is that the city was named for Springfield, Massachusetts. One account holds that James Wilson, who lived in the then unnamed city, offered free whiskey to anyone who would vote for the name Springfield, after his home town of Springfield, Massachusetts. In 1883, the historian R. I. Holcombe wrote, to the contrary: "The town took its name from the circumstance of there being a spring under the hill, on the creek, while on top of the hill, where the principal portion of the town lay, there was a field." He further stated that, "This version of the origin of the name is disputed by the editor of the Springfield Express, Mr. J. G. Newbill, who, in the issue of his paper, November 11, 1881, says, 'It has been stated that this city got its name from the fact of a spring and field being near by just west of town. But such is not a correct version. When the authorized persons met and adopted the title of the "Future Great" of the then Southwest, several of the earliest settlers had handed in their favorite names, among whom was Kindred Rose, who presented the winning name, "Springfield," in honor of his former home town, Springfield, Robertson County, Tennessee.'"

Incorporation

Springfield was incorporated in 1838. That same year, Cherokee Native Americans were forcibly removed by the U.S. government from their homelands in Tennessee, Alabama, North Carolina and Georgia to the "Indian Territory." Their route became known as the Trail of Tears due to the thousands of Cherokee deaths on the journey and as a result of the relocation. The Trail of Tears passed through the Springfield area via what is known today as the Old Wire Road. The Trail of Tears National Historic Trail auto tour route is along Interstate 44 westward to US 160 (West By-pass in Springfield) and westward along US 60.

The Old Wire Road, then known as the Military Road, served until the mid-1840s as a connection between Springfield and the garrison at Fort Smith, Arkansas. By 1858, the Butterfield Overland Stage began utilizing the road offering passage to California. Two years later, the region's first telegraph line was strung along the road, and it was dubbed the Telegraph or Wire Road. The road proved vital during the Civil War, and its most historic connection is to the Battle of Pea Ridge in Arkansas. While portions of the road exist today, the most easily accessible is within Wilson's Creek National Battlefield.

The 1849 charter of the Pacific Railroad, established to construct a line from St. Louis westward across central Missouri, was expanded in 1852 to include a Southwest Branch. However, after defaulting on its obligations, the state seized this branch and sold it, thus creating a new company, the Southwest Pacific Railroad. (The initial line through central Missouri eventually was renamed the Missouri Pacific Railroad). Subsequent defaults led to the line toward Springfield being known as the South Pacific Railroad and the Atlantic & Pacific Railroad, before finally operating under the name St. Louis and San Francisco Railway, more commonly known as the Frisco. Commercial and industrial diversification came with the railroads, and strengthened the City of Springfield and North Springfield when the two towns merged 17 years later in 1887. As railroad construction progressed, Springfield became the crossroads of the Frisco's St. Louis to Tulsa line and the Kansas City to Memphis line, and eventually the Frisco Railroad established its headquarters in Springfield. Today visitors can enjoy the view from the Jefferson Avenue Footbridge, peering below to the locomotive path which is still in use.

Civil War

With the American Civil War imminent and Missouri a border state, Springfield was divided in its sentiments. On August 10, 1861, opposing forces clashed a few miles southwest of Springfield in the Battle of Wilson's Creek, the site of the first major conflict west of the Mississippi River, involving about 5,400 Union troops and 12,000 Confederates. Gen. Nathaniel Lyon was killed, the first Union general to die in combat, and the Confederates were victorious. Union troops fell back to Lebanon, then Rolla, and regrouped. When they returned to Springfield, the Confederates had withdrawn.

The First Battle of Springfield, or Zagonyi's Charge, occurred on October 25, 1861. It was the only Union victory that year in southwestern Missouri. The fighting led to increased military activity in Missouri and set the stage for the Battle of Pea Ridge in March 1862, which essentially cemented Union control of the state.

For the next year, possession of the city seesawed. Then on January 8, 1863, Confederate forces under Gen. John S. Marmaduke advanced toward the town square and the Second Battle of Springfield ensued. As evening approached, the Confederates withdrew. The next morning, Gen. Marmaduke sent a message to Union forces asking for proper burials for Confederate casualties. The city would stay under Union control until the end of the war.

Two years after the war ended, Springfield National Cemetery was created. The dead of both the North and the South were interred there, though separated by a low stone wall (later removed). In 1960, the National Park Service, recognizing the significance of the 1861 battle, designated Wilson's Creek National Battlefield. The 1,750-acre (7.1 km²) battlefield near Republic remains largely unchanged and stands as one of the most historically pristine battle sites in the country.

Wild Bill Hickok shootout

On July 21, 1865, Springfield helped give birth to the Wild West era when the town square was the site of the Wild Bill Hickok–Davis Tutt shootout, a "quick draw" duel between Wild Bill Hickok and Davis Tutt. Two small brass plaques inlaid into the pavement on Park Central Square mark the locations of both Hickok and Tutt during the famous shootout.

John Gotti

The notorious mobster John Gotti died in Springfield on June 10, 2002, after being transferred from a prison in Marion, Illinois for health reasons.

Birthplace of Route 66

Recognized by convention as the "Birthplace of US Route 66", it was in Springfield on April 30, 1926 that officials first proposed the name of the new Chicago-to-Los Angeles highway.

John T. Woodruff of Springfield was elected as the first president of the U.S. Highway 66 Association, organized in Tulsa, Oklahoma in 1927. Its purpose was to get U.S. 66 paved from end to end and to promote tourism on the highway. In 1938, Route 66 became the first completely paved United States Numbered Highway in America — the "Mother Road" — stretching from the Great Lakes to the Pacific Coast.

A placard in Park Central Square was dedicated to the city by the Route 66 Association of Missouri, and traces of the Mother Road are still visible in Downtown Springfield along Kearney Street, Glenstone Avenue, College and St. Louis streets and on Missouri 266 to Halltown. The red booths and gleaming chrome in mom-and-pop diners, the stone cottages of tourist courts and the many service stations along this route saw America fall in love with the automobile. Red's Giant Hamburg, said to be the birthplace of the drive-up order window, was located on the route.

Geography

Springfield is located at 37°11′42″N 93°17′10″W / 37.19500°N 93.28611°W / 37.19500; -93.28611 (37.195098, −93.286213), on the Springfield Plateau of the Ozarks. According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 82.31 square miles (213.2 square kilometres), of which 81.72 square miles (211.7 square kilometres) is land and 0.59 square miles (1.5 square kilometres) (0.7%) is water.

The city of Springfield is mainly flat with rolling hills and cliffs surrounding the south, east, and north sections of the city. Springfield is located on the Springfield Plateau, which reaches from Northwest Arkansas to Central Missouri. The majority of the plateau is characterized by forest, pastures and shrub-scrub habitats. Many streams and tributaries such as the James River, Galloway Creek and Jordan Creek flow within or near the city. Nearby lakes include Table Rock Lake, Stockton Lake, McDaniel Lake, Fellows Lake, and Pomme de Terre Lake. Springfield is near the population center of the United States, about 80 miles (130 km) to the east.

Climate

Springfield is characterized by four distinct seasons. It experiences an average surface wind velocity comparable to Chicago, Illinois according to information compiled at the National Climatic Data Center at NOAA. It is placed within "Power Class 3" in the Wind Energy Resource Atlas published by a branch of the U.S. Department of Energy; having an average wind speed range of 6.4 to 7.0 miles per hour.

Springfield lies in the northern limits of a humid subtropical climate (Cfa), as defined by the Köppen climate classification system. As such, it experiences times of exceptional humidity; especially in late summer. The monthly daily average temperature ranges from 32.6 °F (0.3 °C) in January to 78.2 °F (25.7 °C) in July. On average, there are 39 days of 90 °F (32 °C)+ highs, 2.0 days of 100 °F (38 °C)+ highs, 16 days where the high fails to rise above freezing, and 2.5 nights of lows at or below 0 °F (−18 °C) per year. It has an average annual precipitation of 45.6 inches (1,160 mm), including an average 17.0 inches (43 cm) of snow. Extremes in temperature range from −29 °F (−34 °C) on February 12, 1899 up to 113 °F (45 °C) on July 14, 1954.

According to a 2007 story in Forbes magazine's list of "America's Wildest Weather Cities" and the Weather Variety Index, Springfield is the city with the most varied weather in the United States. This can be confirmed by the thousands of citizens living there who experience extreme temperature changes just overnight. In May 2013, Springfield experienced a day that started out humid with a high temperature in the 70s, and by 3 pm there was a thin layer of snow covering the ground.

Demographics

Historical population
Census	Pop.		%±
1850	415		—
1860	1,235		197.6%
1870	5,555		349.8%
1880	6,522		17.4%
1890	21,850		235.0%
1900	23,267		6.5%
1910	35,201		51.3%
1920	39,631		12.6%
1930	57,527		45.2%
1940	61,238		6.5%
1950	66,731		9.0%
1960	95,865		43.7%
1970	120,096		25.3%
1980	133,116		10.8%
1990	140,494		5.5%
2000	151,580		7.9%
2010	159,498		5.2%
2020	169,176		6.1%
2023 (est.)	170,188		6.7%
U.S. Decennial Census 2022 Estimate

2020 census

As of the 2020 census, there were 169,176 people, 80,693 households, and 36,237 families residing in the city. The population density was 1,951.8 inhabitants per square mile (753.6/km2). There were 77,620 housing units at an average density of 949.8 per square mile (366.7/km2). The racial makeup of the city was 81% White, 5% African American, 0.8% Native American, 2.3% Asian, 0.2% Pacific Islander, 2.2% from other races and 9% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 6% of the population.

There were 80,693 households, of which 17.5% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 30% were married couples living together, 9.6% had a female householder with no spouse present, 5.2% had a male householder with no wife present, and 55.1% were non-families and 12.2% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 1.94 and the average family size was 2.68. The median age in the city was 33.6 years. 17.9% of residents were under the age of 18; 19.1% were between the ages of 18 and 24; 26.5% were from 25 to 44; 20.9% were from 45 to 64; and 15.6% were 65 years of age or older. The gender makeup of the city was 48.6% male and 51.4% female.

2010 census

As of the 2010 census, there were 159,498 people, 69,754 households, and 35,453 families residing in the city. The population density was 1,951.8 inhabitants per square mile (753.6/km²). There were 77,620 housing units at an average density of 949.8 per square mile (366.7/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 88.7% White, 4.1% African American, 0.8% Native American, 1.9% Asian, 0.2% Pacific Islander, 1.2% from other races, and 3.2% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 3.7% of the population.

There were 69,754 households, of which 23.4% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 34.4% were married couples living together, 11.8% had a female householder with no husband present, 4.7% had a male householder with no wife present, and 49.2% were non-families. 37.3% of all households were made up of individuals, and 11.8% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.13 and the average family size was 2.81.

The median age in the city was 33.2 years. 18.3% of residents were under the age of 18; 18.4% were between the ages of 18 and 24; 26% were from 25 to 44; 22.7% were from 45 to 64; and 14.5% were 65 years of age or older. The gender makeup of the city was 48.5% male and 51.5% female.

Neighborhoods

Registered neighborhoods include University Heights, Bissett, Bradford Park, Doling, Grant Beach, Heart of the Westside, Midtown, Oak Grove, Parkcrest, Phelps Grove, Robberson, Rountree, Tom Watkins, Weller, West Central, Westside Community Betterment, and Woodland Heights.

Affiliated neighborhood groups unregistered with the city include:

Economy

Springfield's economy is based on health care, manufacturing, retail, education, and tourism. In 2021, the city had a Gross Metropolitan Product of $19.49 billion, making up 6.6% of the Gross State Product of Missouri.

Total retail sales exceed $4.1 billion annually in Springfield and $5.8 billion in the Springfield MSA. Its largest shopping mall is Battlefield Mall. According to the Springfield Convention & Visitors Bureau, an estimated 3,000,000 overnight visitors and day-trippers annually visit the city. The city has more than 60 lodging facilities and 6,000 hotel rooms. The Convention & Visitors Bureau spends more than $1,000,000 annually marketing the city as a travel destination.

Positronic, Bass Pro Shops, John Q. Hammons Hotels & Resorts, BKD, Noble & Associates, Prime Inc., Springfield ReManufacturing, Andy's Frozen Custard, and O'Reilly Auto Parts all have national headquarters in Springfield. Two major American Christian denominations — General Council of the Assemblies of God in the United States of America (one of the largest of the Pentecostal denominations) and Baptist Bible Fellowship International (a fundamentalist Baptist denomination) — are headquartered in the city.

According to the Springfield Area Chamber of Commerce, these are the top 2019 employers in the metro:

#	Employer	Employees
1	CoxHealth	11,669
2	Mercy Health System	10,950
3	Walmart	5,372
4	Springfield Public Schools	4,100
5	State of Missouri	4,018
6	Bass Pro Shops/Tracker Marine	3,341
7	United States Government	3,005
8	Missouri State University	2,874
9	Jack Henry & Associates	2,174
10	O'Reilly Auto Parts	2,042
11	Citizens Memorial Healthcare	1,900
12	City of Springfield	1,655
13	Ozarks Technical Community College	1,554
14	EFCO	1,550
15	SRC Holdings	1,435

Education

Springfield has several universities, colleges, and high schools. Four of the main higher learning institutions, Missouri State University, Drury University, Evangel University, and Ozarks Technical Community College, are all located in and around downtown Springfield.

Universities

Founded in 1905 as the Fourth District Normal School, Missouri State University (MSU) is the state's second largest university by enrollment, with over 23,000 students.

Drury University is a private university with over 1,000 students Founded in 1873 by congregationalists, it is affiliated with the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ).

Evangel University, founded in 1955, is a private liberal arts university. In 2013, Central Bible College and the Assemblies of God Theological Seminary consolidated with the university. Evangel is affiliated with the Assemblies of God USA denomination

The University of Missouri opened a clinical campus in 2016 of the University of Missouri School of Medicine.

Other branches include Mercy College of Nursing and Health Sciences (in partnership with Southwest Baptist University), Bryan University, Columbia College, and University of Phoenix.

Colleges

Ozarks Technical Community College (OTC) is the second largest college in the city of Springfield, having more than 11,000 students in attendance.

Other colleges in Springfield include Mission University (formerly Baptist Bible College) and Cox College (Nursing and Allied Health).

K-12 schools

The Springfield Public School District is the largest district in the state of Missouri. Public high schools include Central High School, Kickapoo High School, Hillcrest High School, Parkview High School, and Glendale High School.

While the majority of Springfield is in the Springfield school district, portions of the city limits are in other school districts: Willard R-II School District, Republic R-III School District, Strafford R-VI School District, and Logan-Rogersville R-VIII School District.

Private high schools include Springfield Sudbury School, Summit Preparatory School, Greenwood Laboratory School, New Covenant Academy, Springfield Catholic High School, Christian Schools of Springfield, and Grace Classical Academy.

Parks and recreation

The Springfield-Greene County Park Board manages 3,200 acres and 103 sites, including the Nathanael Greene/Close Memorial Park, which contains the historic Gray-Campbell Farmstead, Mizumoto Japanese Stroll Garden, Master Gardener demonstration gardens, Bill Roston Native Butterfly House, and Springfield-Greene County Botanical Center; the Rutledge-Wilson Farm Community Park; the Mediacom Ice Park; the Cooper Park and Sports Complex; Fantastic Caverns, Dickerson Park Zoo; and various other public parks, community centers, and facilities.

The non-profit Ozark Greenways Inc. promotes trail recreation and local bicycling through the establishment of greenway trails, including a 35-mile crushed-gravel trail, the Frisco Highline Trail connecting Springfield to the town of Bolivar, and smaller trails connecting parks and sites of interest within the town and county.

The Missouri Department of Conservation operates the Springfield Nature Center and numerous nearby conservation areas.

The National Park Service operates the nearby Wilson's Creek National Battlefield.

Springfield's metropolitan area is situated within close distance of recreational lakes, waterways, caves, and forests, such as the James River, Busiek State Forest, Lake Springfield, Table Rock Lake, Buffalo National River, Ozark National Scenic Riverways, Fellows Lake, and Fantastic Caverns.

Culture

Like many cities across the nation, Springfield has seen a resurgence in its downtown area. Many of the older buildings have been, and are continuing to be, renovated into mixed-use buildings such as lofts, office space, restaurants, coffee shops, bars, boutiques, and music venues. The Downtown Springfield Community Improvement District (CID) has historic theaters that have been restored to their original state, including the Gillioz Theatre and the Landers Theatre.

In 2001, Phase I of Jordan Valley Park opened along with the Jordan Valley Ice Park. 2001 also saw the opening of The Creamery Arts Center, a city-owned building inside Jordan Valley Park. Phase II of Jordan Valley Park was completed in 2012. It provides office and meeting space for arts organizations which serve the community. The center has been renovated to include two art galleries with monthly exhibitions, an Arts Library, rehearsal studios, and classrooms offering art workshops and hands-on activities. The facilities also include an outdoor classroom.

A March 2009 New York Times article described the history and ascendancy of cashew chicken in Springfield, where local variations of the popular Chinese dish are ubiquitous.

Cultural organizations

The Ozarks Lyric Opera (formerly the Springfield Regional Opera) has operated in the city for nearly 40 years. In its history, the opera has performed various well known shows, such as The Barber of Seville, La bohème and Carmen.

The Springfield Ballet was founded in 1978 as a not-for-profit to bring ballet to the region. The first performance was held at the Springfield Art Museum in November 1976, and the first public performance in March 1977. The ballet currently performs at the Landers Theatre in downtown Springfield, and has performed with the Springfield Symphony for holiday programs.

The Springfield Little Theatre was founded in 1934 and purchased the Landers Theatre in 1970 for its permanent performance venue. The theatre is the oldest civic theatre in Missouri and one of the oldest in the Midwest, attended by 60,000 people yearly. The venue has been the setting for performances by actors such as Kathleen Turner, Tess Harper, and Lucas Grabeel.

The Springfield Symphony was founded in 1935 and is one of the oldest arts organizations in the city. The symphony was one of the founding members of the American Symphony Orchestra League, now known as the League of American Orchestras, the largest international body for symphonies and orchestras. The symphony performs monthly at Juanita K. Hammons Hall on the Missouri State University campus.

The Springfield Art Museum was started by a small group of women, headed by Deborah D. Weisel. Within two years of its original founding as an art study club, the museum had been formed and began showing travelling exhibitions from cities like New York and Philadelphia. In 1948, the museum was handed into the control of the city. In 2018, a 30-year plan was revealed with the intent of updating the museum to be comparable to the Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art in Kansas City and Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art in Northwest Arkansas, capitalizing on its central location in the city and adjacent park space.

The GLO Center is the LGBTQIA+ community center for Springfield and the Ozarks. Founded in 1996, it is the oldest operating LGBTQIA+ center in Missouri, and the only of its kind in southwest Missouri.

OLGA, founded in 2003 is the Ozarks Lesbian and Gay History Archives. It is housed at the Missouri State University, Meyer Library, and has oral histories, collections, and records of lived experiences of the LGBTQ population of southwest Missouri and the Ozarks.

In 1938, a Springfield flag was made official. It resembled the flag of St. Louis (which was later replaced by a new flag). In 2017, the Springfield Flag Movement proposed a new flag for Springfield, arguing that the current flag is disconnected from modern Springfield culture, as it "doesn't speak to the unique history and identity of Springfield". On January 10, 2022, Springfield's city council voted 7–2 in favor of adopting the Springfield Flag Movement's proposed flag as the official city flag. The new flag was officially adopted by the city on March 1, 2022.

Events

The Missouri Food Truck Festival brings food trucks from Springfield and surrounding states. Like most local events, it includes live music and specialty cuisines.

First Friday is a monthly event held in Downtown Springfield that allows local artists to show off their works and encourages people to stroll the streets and art galleries to look at local works of art. The event is sponsored by the Springfield Regional Arts Council and has been a regular event in the city since 2001.

Cider Days is a two-day event held on Walnut Street downtown featuring local artists showing their crafts, fall themed activities and performances by local groups, as well as cider sampling. Arts Fest is held in May also on Walnut Street downtown, and features similar art vendors showing crafts as well as entertainment for children.

Since 2010, the city has hosted the annual Birthplace of Route 66 Festival in the downtown area along the historic Route 66 and in Park Central Square. A parade starts the event with a collection of dozens of vintage cars traveling along the former highway. There are also live performances in Park Central Square as people move around St. Louis Street to observe classic cars and browse items from vendors selling artwork and literature about Route 66. The event also holds a 6.6 kilometer run. The 2018 festival lasted two days and was attended by 56,000 people.

The Japanese Fall Festival usually takes place in September at the Springfield Botanical Gardens in Nathanael Greene Park. The event is put on by the Sister Cities Association and commemorates Japanese culture, often involving visitors from Springfield's sister city of Isesaki, offering Japanese tea, giving live performances and selling traditional items like Bonsai and kimono dresses. Springfield in turns sends local groups to Isesaki's city festival each year.

Pridefest is an annual LGBTQ gathering, taking place every June, first organized in 1998. The GLO Center organises the event, as well as Pride in the Park, a yearly event in October.

Several holiday events take place in Springfield, including the yearly Downtown Christmas Parade showcasing local schools and businesses sponsoring floats. There's also a yearly lighting of a Christmas tree at Park Central Square and the Festival of Lights in Jordan Valley Park.

Points of interest

Sports

Springfield hosts college teams from Missouri State University (NCAA Division I), Drury University (NCAA Division II), and Evangel University (NAIA). Great Southern Bank Arena (capacity 11,000) opened in 2008 and hosts the Missouri State Bears and Lady Bears basketball teams, the O'Reilly Family Event Center, which opened in 2010, hosts the Drury Panthers men's and women's basketball teams, and the AGFinancial Arena, which opened in 2024, hosts the Evangel Valor men's and women's basketball teams and volleyball team.

The Springfield Cardinals, the Double-A affiliate of the St. Louis Cardinals, have played at Hammons Field in downtown Springfield since their inaugural season in 2005 after the team moved from El Paso. There have been more than 100 Springfield Cardinals who have gone on to play for St. Louis. Springfield has had minor league teams dating back to 1905, and this city has hosted various exposition games.

Springfield Rugby Football Club (SRFC) was established in 1983 and is a well-known rugby club in the Midwestern United States. SRFC plays in Division II of the Frontier Region of the Western Conference which runs teams for men, women and youth.

The PGA sponsored Price Cutter Charity Championship is played at Highland Springs Country Club on the southeast side of Springfield every year. The event is sponsored by Dr Pepper. Since the event started in 1990, more than $14 million has been raised for local children's charities.

Springfield has hosted various sporting events. Missouri State's campus in Springfield has hosted the Missouri Special Olympics several times. Springfield has also hosted the Show-Me Games and regularly hosts the Missouri Winter Games in the sports of racquetball, trap shooting, swimming, volleyball and gymnastics. In 2019 and 2020 Springfield hosted the NAIA Softball Championship World Series. Springfield has also been the host of the Missouri Valley Conference baseball tournament, as well as finals for the Missouri Valley Conference in sports like tennis and volleyball. As a city with a World TeamTennis team, the Springfield Lasers, Springfield has hosted final games at Cooper Tennis Complex.

The Missouri Sports Hall of Fame is located in the city. Opening in 1994, the hall of fame contains over four thousand sports related items and exhibits. Each year the hall inducts new members who have contributed to sports in the state of Missouri, including athletes, broadcasters, coaches, physical therapists, winning sports teams and Olympic athletes.

Beginning in 2003, Springfield was only one of thirteen cities in the United States to be a part of the US Olympic Committee's Olympic Development Program. The goal of the program was to develop beginning athletes into elite athletes, with Springfield's program focusing on archery, hockey, tennis and volleyball. Despite the end of the Olympic program in all cities, the city maintains the program as the Community Sports Development Program sponsored by the Springfield Greene County Park Board.

On March 9, 2023, Springfield was announced as the first of four teams in The Arena League, an indoor football league with its inaugural season in 2024. The Ozarks Lunkers hosts games at the Wilson Logistics Arena at the Ozark Empire Fairgrounds.

Sports teams

Club	League	Sport	Venue	Established	Championships
Springfield Cardinals	Texas League	Baseball	Hammons Field	2005	1
Springfield Lasers	WTT	Team tennis	Cooper Tennis Complex	1996	1
Demize NPSL	NPSL	Soccer	Cooper Stadium	2014	0
Ozarks Lunkers	The Arena League	Arena Football	Wilson Logistics Arena	2024	0

Transportation

Highways

Springfield is served by I-44, which connects the city with St. Louis and Tulsa, Oklahoma. Route 13 (Kansas Expressway) carries traffic north towards Kansas City. US 60, US 65, and US 160 pass through the city. The average commuting time was 17.7 minutes from 2013 to 2017.

Major streets include Glenstone Avenue, Sunshine Street (Route 413), National Avenue, Division Street, Campbell Avenue, Kansas Expressway, Battlefield Road, Republic Road, West Bypass, Chestnut Expressway, and Kearney Street.

Springfield is also the site of the first diverging diamond interchange within the United States, at the intersection of I-44 and MO-13 (Kansas Expressway) (at 37°15′01″N 93°18′39″W / 37.2503°N 93.3107°W / 37.2503; -93.3107 (Springfield, Missouri, diverging diamond interchange)).

US 66 and US 166 formerly passed through Springfield, and sections of historic US 66 can still be seen in the city. US 166's eastern terminus was once in the northeast section of the city, and US 60 (westbound) originally ended in downtown Springfield. US 60 now goes through town on James River Freeway. In mid-November 2013, the city began discussing plans to upgrade sections of Schoolcraft Freeway (US 65) and James River Freeway (US 60) through the city to an auxiliary route of Interstate 44. The main reason is to minimize confusion should there be an incident on I-44 as a detour route. In early 2023, plans were announced to widen James River Freeway to 6 lanes, 3 lanes each way, and designate the Schoolcraft Freeway and James River Freeway to possibly I-244.

Airport

Springfield-Branson National Airport serves the city with direct flights to 14 cities. It is the principal air gateway to the Springfield region. The Downtown Airport is also a public-use airport located near downtown. In May 2009, the Springfield-Branson airport opened a new passenger terminal. Financing included $97 million in revenue bonds issued by the airport and $20 million of discretionary federal aviation funds, with no city taxes used. The building includes 275,000 square feet (25,500 m²), 10 gates (expandable to 60) and 1,826 parking spaces. Direct connections from Springfield are available to Atlanta, Austin, Charlotte, Chicago, Dallas/Fort Worth, Denver, Destin/Fort Walton Beach, Punta Gorda/Fort Myers, Houston, Las Vegas, Los Angeles, Orlando, Phoenix and St. Petersburg/Clearwater. No international flights have regular service into Springfield-Branson, but it does serve international charters.

Trains

Passenger trains have not served Springfield since 1967, but more than 65 freight trains travel to, from, and through the city each day. Springfield once hosted the headquarters and main shops of the St. Louis-San Francisco Railroad (Frisco). Into the 1960s, the Kansas City-Florida Special ran from Kansas City Union Station to Jacksonville, Florida, and the Sunnyland ran between Kansas City and Birmingham and New Orleans. The railroad also operated two daily trains to St. Louis Union Station through its Springfield station: the Meteor and the Will Rogers. Both continued southwest to Oklahoma City Union Station via Tulsa Union Depot. The Meteor continued on to Lawton, Oklahoma. The Frisco's final passenger train was the Southland (Kansas City - Memphis - Birmingham), a successor to the Sunnyland.

As late as 1949 the Missouri Pacific had a short branch line connection from the company's Springfield station to Crane, whereupon connections could be made to the Southern Scenic on the railroad's Kansas City to Newport, Arkansas, line.

The Frisco was absorbed by the Burlington Northern (BN) in 1980, and in 1994 the BN merged with the Santa Fe, creating the current Burlington Northern Santa Fe (BNSF) Railway. BNSF has three switch yards (two small) in Springfield. Mainlines to and from Kansas City, St. Louis, Memphis, and Tulsa converge at the railroad's yard facility in northern Springfield. In October 2006, BNSF announced plans to upgrade its Tulsa and Memphis mainlines into Springfield to handle an additional four to six daily intermodal freight trains between the West Coast and the Southeast. The Missouri and Northern Arkansas Railroad operates several miles of (former Missouri Pacific) industrial track in the city.

Buses

City Utilities of Springfield operates local bus service. Greyhound Lines serves Springfield on its line from New York to Los Angeles. Jefferson Lines serves Springfield on its line from Kansas City to Little Rock/Pine Bluff.

Healthcare

Springfield is a regional medical hub with the healthcare field employing a large number of people in the city. Major care providers include CoxHealth, Mercy, Ozarks Community Hospital and Jordan Valley Community Health Center, with Mercy being classified amongst the top 100 hospitals in the country. The industry employs more than 30,000 people in the Springfield metro.

CoxHealth is a private not-for-profit healthcare system headquartered in Springfield. It is ranked in the top ten hospitals in Missouri and it is a seven time top 100 hospital system operating six hospitals, over 80 clinics, health plans and other facilities and employing over 12,100 people in southwest Missouri and Northwest Arkansas. The largest of the network's hospitals, Cox South is a level one trauma, stroke, and STEMI Center. Cox also runs a Children's Miracle Network Hospital for specialized pediatric care.

Mercy Hospital Springfield, part of the Mercy Health System based in St. Louis, is ranked number six in the state. It has a Level 1 Trauma Center and runs a pediatric cancer center. Mercy Springfield is one of only six St. Jude Children's Research Hospital affiliates in the country, located inside the Jane Pitt Pediatric Cancer Center named for Jane Pitt, mother of actor and Springfield native, Brad Pitt, who helped to fund the center with help from his brother, businessman Douglas Pitt, sister Julie, and then partner, actress Angelina Jolie.

Both Cox and Mercy maintain Ronald McDonald House Charities and houses for families of those who have children undergoing medical treatment.

The United States Medical Center for Federal Prisoners, one of six federal institutions designed to handle federal inmates' medical concerns, is located at the corner of W. Sunshine Street and Kansas Expressway. Several high-profile criminals, including several mob bosses have been housed at the center. Among them, Joseph Bonanno of the Bonanno crime family and John Gotti of the Gambino crime family, who died in the center. The center also housed mass murderer Jared Lee Loughner, who perpetrated the 2011 Tucson shooting injuring US Representative Gabby Giffords.

Media

Print

The city's major daily newspaper is the Springfield News-Leader, which circulates to more than 50,000 people on Sundays. Other newspapers for Springfield include Daily Events, Springfield Business Journal, which is a weekly paper that provides comprehensive business news, and The Standard which is Missouri State University's in-school newspaper, and Ozarks Independent, an online local news publication.

In addition to newspapers, Springfield is the base of 417 Magazine, a local lifestyle and entertainment magazine showcasing restaurants, attractions and local businesses in the 417 area code. The Magazine also maintains 417 Biz for business and networking information highlighting local businesspeople and entrepreneurs, as well as 417 Bride for wedding and bridal related content.

Television

As of 2021, the Springfield media market ranks 74th in the nation, amongst markets like Omaha, Nebraska, and Columbia, South Carolina. The area is composed of 31 counties in southwest Missouri and Arkansas. As of 2021, there are 432,370 television-owning households.

Springfield Area Television

Station	Channel	Network	Subchannels
KYTV	3	NBC	3.4 Circle 3.5 Justice Network 3.6 Quest
KRFT	8	Court TV	8.2 Light TV 8.3 This TV 8.4 Heartland 8.5 QVC 8.6 Nuestra Visión 8..8 Dabl 8.9 Buzzr
KOLR	10	CBS	10.2 Laff 10.3 Grit 10.4 CBN News
KYCW	24	The CW	3.2 WeatherNation TV 3.3 Cozi TV
KOZK	21	PBS	21.2 PBS Kids 21.3 Create 21.4 World Channel
KOZL	27	MyNetworkTV	27.2 Court TV Mystery 27.3 Bounce TV
KSPR	33	ABC	33.2 The CW 33.3 Antenna TV
KRBK	49	Fox	49.2 MeTV 49.3 Movies!

Radio

KGBX-FM KADI-FM KKLH-FM KOMG-FM KOSP-FM KQRA-FM KSCV-FM KSGF-FM KSMU-FM KSPW-FM

KTOZ-FM KTTS-FM KTXR-FM KWFC-FM KWND-FM KWTO-FM KXUS-FM

KWTO (AM) KBNN-AM KSWM-AM KBFL-AM KSGF-AM KICK KGMY-AM KMRF-AM KRZD

Film

Film and television has been in Springfield since the 1950s. Several films, such as The Winning Team (1952) starring Doris Day, Frank Lovejoy and future U.S. President Ronald Reagan, held their premieres in Springfield at the Gillioz Theatre downtown. It was attended by Ronald and Nancy Reagan, and President Harry S. Truman.

Springfield hosted the country music television show Ozark Jubilee.

In 2007, Springfield was one of more than a dozen other Springfields in the country vying to host the premiere of The Simpsons Movie through an online video competition voted on by readers of USA Today. The premiere was ultimately hosted in Springfield, Vermont.

Springfield hosts the SATO 48 film contest (Springfield And The Ozarks 48-Hour Film Challenge) every spring in which filmmakers have 48 hours to make a film running five minutes or less.

In 2018, a new film festival, Rated SGF, began in Springfield. The event is hosted by the Film and Media Association of Springfield and the Downtown Springfield Association.

Notable people

• List of people from Springfield, Missouri

Sister cities

Springfield Sister Cities

City	Subdivision	Country
Tlaquepaque	Jalisco	Mexico
Isesaki	Gunma Prefecture	Japan

See also

In Spanish: Springfield (Misuri) para niños