Jefferson City, Missouri

Jefferson City is the capitol of Missouri. Incorporated in 1839, the city of Jefferson became the state capital in 1921, after it was moved from St. Charles. The city is famous for its role during the Civil War, when the city became a battleground for control of the Midwest. Jefferson City is the principal city of the Jefferson City Metropolitan Statistical Area, which also contains the counties of Callaway, Montineu, and Osage.

Landscape

Jefferson City is located near the geographical center of the state, at an average elevation of 702 feet above sea level. The city borders the Missouri River, and extends east, south, and west along the limestone bluffs that line the river. The Jefferson City metropolitan area extends for approximately 28.3 square miles.

Highway 50 is the only highway to run directly through Jefferson City, and connects the state capital to Missouri's other major population centers. Jefferson City is approximately 27.8 miles northeast of Columbia, Missouri, and 133.8 miles west of St. Louis, Missouri.

Missouri lies in a temperate climatic zone, with significant fluctuations in temperature and precipitation between seasons. Cold air from Canada brings snow and cool temperatures during the fall and winter, while warm air from the Gulf of Mexico heats the state during the remainder of the year. Temperatures in winter can fall below twenty degrees Fahrenheit and can rise to over one hundred degrees Fahrenheit in the summer months. The city receives approximately 39.7 inches of rain each year and an average of 24 inches of snow.

Jefferson City's proximity to the Missouri River creates a danger of flooding in the spring, with major flooding events occurring in 1993, 2011, and 2019. Tornados are another natural danger, and generally occur in late spring.

People

According to 2022 estimates by the United States Census Bureau, Jefferson City's population was 42,528. As of that year, according to the Census Bureau, approximately 72.1 percent of Jefferson City residents were White and most of the remaining residents (18.3 percent) were African American. There are small populations of persons of Hispanic or Latino descent (3.3 percent) and Asians (2.6 percent).

About 20.3 percent of the population is below the age of eighteen. Many of the younger residents leave the city after high school, accounting for a median age of 38.5.

Jefferson City's culture is often described as relatively homogenous when compared to Missouri's larger cities, Columbia and St. Louis. Annual events and festivals, such as the Folk Arts Festival highlight and celebrate Missouri's folk arts, such as weaving, wood carving, and quilting, and traditional music, such as bluegrass, jazz, and country. In addition, the Juneteenth Heritage Festival commemorates the ending of American slavery, while the Jefferson City Multicultural Fall Festival is a celebration of multiculturalism.

Economy

Economic development in Jefferson City depends largely on the government, which is the largest employer in the city, followed by trade, transportation, and utilities.

Several large companies have established headquarters or major centers in the city, partially because of the relatively low cost of property ownership. Scholastic Books, which employs residents at its factory and sales department, built its first of seven major distribution centers in Jefferson City in 1968. Other large employers are based in the healthcare sector, and include Capital Region Medical Center and St. Mary's Health Center.

Much of the land surrounding Jefferson City is used by the agricultural industry. Agricultural shipments from the surrounding farmland are often brought into Jefferson City before being shipped to their final destinations. The number of farms in the county has decreased in the twenty-first century which, for example, fell by more than 4 percent between 1999 and 2005.

Jefferson City has relatively low cost of living, estimated as among the most affordable cities in the state. The unemployment rate was estimated at approximately 2.3 percent in December 2023.

Landmarks

The Jefferson City Capitol building was the third capitol built in the city and was completed in 1917, after the second capitol was destroyed in a major fire. The current capitol is modeled after Renaissance buildings in Italy, and includes imported marble floors and an intricately carved stone exterior. The domed roof rises 262 feet above the floor and has a diameter of 90 feet. A sculpture of Ceres, the Greek god of agriculture, is mounted at the top of the building.

The Cole County Historical Museum is the only historical museum documenting the history of Missouri, from the communities of the indigenous inhabitants to the state's campaign to join the Union following the Louisiana Purchase. Among the museum's notable presentations is a collection of inaugural gowns worn by the state's first ladies.

Jefferson Landing is the part of the city that runs along the Missouri River, and was the original port of the city before it was moved following the Civil War. The landing area contains several historic buildings, including the 1839 Lohman Building, which served as a warehouse and a tavern in the early days of the city. The Lohman Building now contains a visitor's center, with information and exhibits about the history of the landing and the city.

Another landmark in the Jefferson Landing area is the Union Hotel, which was built in 1855. The hotel grew to prominence because of the large number of passengers arriving along the Pacific Railroad. The upper levels of the Union Hotel have been converted into a gallery, named in honor of Elizabeth Rozier, one of the city's early prominent residents. The lower level of the hotel is still tied to the railroad industry, and serves as an Amtrak Station.

Jefferson Landing also contains the Carnahan Memorial Garden, named in honor of Mel Carnahan, the governor of Missouri from 1993 to 2000. The garden was originally built in the 1930s using funds from the federal Works Progress Administration (WPA), an effort to provide employment for citizens left unemployed during the Great Depression. The garden was renamed in honor of Carnahan after his death in 2000, while a candidate for the US Senate.

History

The region was believed to have been occupied for thousands of years by Native American tribes of Missouri. One of the more prominent tribes, commonly known as the Mound Builders, were responsible for building the largest prehistoric city in the United States, in Cahokia, Illinois, some 160 miles from Jefferson City.

Frontier explorers Meriwether Lewis and William Clark passed along the Missouri River in their exploration of the area in 1804. Shortly thereafter, frontier explorer Daniel Boone and his family moved to Missouri. Daniel Morgan Boone, son of the famous frontiersman Daniel Boone, carved a path through the state, called the Boone's Lick Trail, which became the basis for Interstate Highway 70.

The city of St. Louis served as the first state capital until the administration moved to St. Charles, Missouri, in the early nineteenth century. The state legislature was determined to build a new capital and chose the area now called Jefferson City because of its central and strategic location along the Missouri River. The town was incorporated in 1825 and occupied by the state government in 1826.

For some time after the completion of the capital, other cities in Missouri argued that the capital should be moved. The construction of the Missouri State Penitentiary, which was completed in 1836, cemented Jefferson City as the capital of the state. A large influx of German immigrants into the city, over the next two decades, brought an increase in agricultural production to the surrounding area and strengthened the local economy.

The Civil War divided the state among those who supported retaining slavery and those who favored abolition. Missouri Governor Claiborne Jackson refused to support the Union Army while the State Assembly of Missouri favored remaining with the union. Governor Jackson created an informal militia to support the Confederate Army, but the Union Army captured Jefferson City and retained it for the duration of the war.

In the wake of the Civil War, the city's expansion was driven by railroad and river freight. The government also expanded after the 1904 World's Fair in St. Louis brought a wealth of revenue into the state. The first two decades of the twentieth century saw the construction of the Supreme Court Building, a new hospital system, a public street car system, and a new Capitol building, completed in 1924 after a fire destroyed the previous state house.

From the 1930s to the 1990s, residents gradually left the farms surrounding Jefferson City and moved into the city to work in the manufacturing, government, or services industries. While St. Louis, Missouri's largest city, experienced periods of metropolitan growth and decline, Jefferson City followed a more gradual path of expansion, as the population slowly rose over the course of the ensuing decades.

In the twenty-first century, Jefferson City remains one of Missouri's smaller cities, with government service as its primary interest. Gradually, the city shifted much of its city records and services to the Internet. While keeping pace with modern technology, the city is still known for its relatively town-like atmosphere and its historic landmarks.

Bibliography

Amick, Jeremy P. Jefferson City at War: 1916–1975. Charleston: Arcadia, 2014. Print.

Gass, Linda T., and Albert L. Lang. Jefferson City. Charleston: Arcadia, 2014. Print.

Gerteis, Louis S. The Civil War in Missouri: A Military History. Columbia: U of Missouri P, 2012. Print.

“History/Heritage of Jefferson City.” The City of Jefferson Missouri, www.jeffersoncitymo.gov/live‗play/history‗heritage/index.php#. Accessed 22 Feb. 2024.

“Jefferson City City, Missouri.” United States Census Bureau, www.census.gov/quickfacts/fact/table/jeffersoncitycitymissouri/. Accessed 22 Feb. 2024.

“Jefferson City, MO.” Bureau of Labor Statistics, 21 Feb. 2024, www.bls.gov/eag/eag.mo‗jeffersoncity‗msa.htm. Accessed 22 Feb. 2024.

News Tribune. Jefferson City 150: 150 Years of Jefferson City through the Eyes of the News Tribune and Its Readers. Battle Ground: Pediment, 2014. Print.

Rasmussen, Jamie Pamela. The Missouri State Penitentiary: 170 Years inside “The Walls." Columbia: U of Missouri P, 2012. Print.

Summers, Joseph S., and Dottie Summers Dallmeyer. Jefferson City, Missouri. Charleston: Arcadia, 2000. Print.