Ellsinore, Missouri

Ellsinore is a city in eastern Carter County, Missouri. It had a population of 446 at the 2010 census.

History

The land on which the community of Ellsinore would develop passed through several hands during the 19th century and was mostly used for farmland. In 1888, the then-owner, Charles Hearin, sold a right-of-way to the Cape Girardeau and Southwestern Railroad, a new local rail line being constructed to harvest timber from the virgin pine forests of Carter County and neighboring areas; immediately after this, Hearin began laying out a town along the railroad. A store was opened that same year, followed by a post office in 1889. The origin of the name "Ellsinore" is not certain, but the most common and plausible story is that the railroad's engineer, Major Brooks, named it for Elsinore Castle in Denmark, the setting of Shakespeare's ''Hamlet''.

Owing to the lumber operations in the area, Ellsinore grew rapidly. In 1910 it was the largest town in the county with a population of 813, and boasted many prominent businesses, including several sawmills, a hotel, and a bank, and a high school was established in 1913. By the 1920s, however, most of the forests had been cut, and the economy went into a sharp decline. By 1930, Ellsinore's population had dropped to only 238, with a very slow recovery following. A number of historic buildings from the early 20th century are still standing, and the creation of a new school district for the Ellsinore area in the 1960s has provided a new anchor for community life.

Geography

Ellsinore is located at the intersection of U.S. Route 60 and State Route A in eastern Carter County, about 15 miles southeast of Van Buren and eight miles northeast of Grandin. Its exact coordinates are 36°56’04”N 90°44’47”W.

The city sits in an upland region between Brushy and Cane Creeks, both of which flow into the Black River. It has a total land area of 0.49 square miles, and an average elevation of 745 feet.

Demographics

At the 2010 census, Ellsinore had a total of 446 inhabitants, grouped into 190 households, with a population density of 910.2 people per square mile. This figure marked a significant increase from the 2000 census, when Ellsinore had a population of 363. 99.10% of the inhabitants were White, 0.45% were Native American, and 0.45% were from two or more races. Hispanics of any race were 1.12% of the population.

The median age in Ellsinore was 37.3 years, with 25.3% of inhabitants under the age of 18, 9.9% between 18 and 24 years old, 21.3% between 25 and 44, 22.2% between 45 and 64, and 21.3% 65 years old or older. The sex ratio was 42.6% male, 57.4% female.

As of 2017, Ellsinore had an estimated median household income of $33,592, and a median family income of $37,377. The unemployment rate was 6.0%. The per capita income was $15,563. About 18.4% of the population lived below the poverty line, including 21.3% of people under the age of 18 and 48.9% of non-high school graduates.

Education

A school system has operated in the Ellsinore area since 1891, with a high school operating from 1913. In the early 1960s, neighboring districts in Grandin and Hunter consolidated with the Ellsinore school, forming the East Carter County R-II School District, which continues to serve the eastern half of the county today. It is a PK-12 public institution with an enrollment of about 715 students. Its mascot is the Cardinals, and the school colors are red, black, and white.

Notable People

The prominent Carnahan political family had its origins in the Ellsinore area. A. S. J. Carnahan (1897-1968), a Democratic member of the United States House of Representatives during the 1940s and '50s, was born and raised outside Ellsinore and was school superintendent there for a time. His son, Mel Carnahan (1934-2000), Democratic Governor of Missouri from 1993 to 2000, also grew up near Ellsinore.