Bourbon, Missouri

Bourbon is a city in northern Crawford County, Missouri. It had a population of 1,632 at the 2010 census.

Bourbon, Missouri
Country	United States
State	Missouri
Settled	1853
Population	1,632 (2010 census)
Area (sq mi)	1.34 mi²
Current mayor	Danny Skaggs

History

The first settler in the Bourbon area was Uriah Burnes, who arrived there about 1829. A collection of farmsteads soon followed, with a post office by 1853, but an organized community did not take shape until the late 1850s, with the construction of the Pacific Railroad from St. Louis. Most of the railroad workers were Irish immigrants who were accustomed to drinking bourbon whiskey, so Richard Turner, the owner of a local general store, began importing barrels of the drink to sell to them. As a result, the workers began to refer to Turner's establishment as the "Bourbon" store, and this name was eventually extended to the growing community. Bourbon is thought to be the only town in the United States named for this whiskey.

Although not incorporated until 1907, Bourbon maintained a slow but steady growth, thanks to the railroad and later to its position alongside U.S. Route 66 (and now Interstate 44, which more recently replaced the highway). Tourism to various attractions in the general region is now a significant element of its prosperity.

Geography

Bourbon is located along Interstate 44 in northern Crawford County, about 10 miles northeast of Cuba and six miles southwest of Sullivan. Its exact coordinates are 38°09’17”N 91°14’39”W.

The city mostly lies along an elevated plateau, with the Meramec River a few miles to the east. It has a total land area of 1.34 square miles, and an average elevation of 942 feet.

Demographics

At the 2010 census, Bourbon had a total of 1,632 inhabitants, grouped into 652 households, with a population density of 1,217.9 people per square mile. This figure represented a significant increase from the 2000 census, when Bourbon had a population of 1,348. 98.71% of the inhabitants were White, 0.12% were African-American, 0.25% were Native American, 0.37% were Asian, 0.06% were from some other race, and 0.49% were from two or more races. Hispanics of any race were 0.98% of the population.

The median age in Bourbon was 35 years, with 27.9% of inhabitants under the age of 18, 9.1% between 18 and 24 years old, 25.5% between 25 and 44, 22.4% between 45 and 64, and 15.1% 65 years old or older. The sex ratio was 48.8% male, 51.2% female.

According to the 2018 American Community Survey, Bourbon had a median household income of $37,159, and a median family income of $48,293. The unemployment rate was 10.2%. The per capita income was $24,294. About 20.9% of the population lived below the poverty line, including 30.4% of people under the age of 18 and 9.1% of people 65 years old or older.

Education

Bourbon and the surrounding area are served by the Crawford County R-I School District, a PK-12 public institution with a total enrollment of about 950 students. Its mascot is the Warhawks, and the school colors are blue and white.

There is also a small private institution between Bourbon and Sullivan, Meramec Valley Christian School, associated with the Baptist denomination, serving grades K through 12 with an enrollment of about 50.

Points of Interest

Like many towns along the St. Louis-Springfield route, Bourbon makes much of its being along the famous U.S. Route 66 during its existence from the 1920s to the 1980s. Though less famous in this regard than some other communities, especially neighboring Cuba, it does include a few remaining landmarks from that period, such as the Circle Inn Malt Shop (still in operation), the Bourbon Hotel, and the Roedemeier Motel.

Onondaga Cave, a complex cavern system along the Meramec River, lies a short distance to the southwest near the village of Leasburg.