Cape Girardeau County, Missouri

Cape Girardeau County is a county in southeastern Missouri. It is the most populous county in that part of the state, with a population of 75,674 at the 2010 census. Jackson is the county seat, and Cape Girardeau, for which the county is named, is the largest city.

Cape Girardeau County is one of the five original counties in Missouri, having been organized in 1812 prior to statehood. Many of the neighboring counties in southeast Missouri were wholly or partially formed from its original territory.

History

The region that later became Cape Girardeau County, since it mostly lies above the low-lying swamps near the Mississippi River, was in the pre-Columbian era inhabited by a number of native tribes, many of whom built mounds for ceremonial or dwelling purposes. Among these were the Capahas, who had a large settlement not far from the river.

The first European contact came with a Spanish expedition under Hernando de Soto in 1540, which encountered the Capahas and (aided by another tribe) fought a fierce battle with them, in which many of the Indians died. After de Soto's departure, the next known visit by Europeans came in 1673, when a French expedition under Louis Joliet and Father Marquette sailed down the Mississippi. Further arrivals by French explorers, missionaries, and fur traders followed during the late 17th and early 18th centuries, though mostly only in passing.

The first semi-permanent European presence came through Ensign Pierre Girardot, stationed with a company of French soldiers on Kaskaskia Island to the north, who traded with the local Indians. Although the exact particulars of Girardot's career are unknown, he eventually established a trading post on the Mississippi, near the point where the Ozark foothills drop off into the swamps to the south. A rocky promontory or "cape" jutting into the river led to the post being dubbed "Cape Girardot," and later "Cape Girardeau." When this occurred is uncertain, but it had evidently acquired its name by the Revolutionary War, if not before.

The Cape Girardeau district was organized by the Spanish colonial government in 1793, with Louis Lorimier, a French-Canadian fur trader, as commandant. Lorimier was friendly with the Delaware and Shawnee tribes east of the Mississippi, and encouraged many of them to settle in the area. At the same time, American settlers began arriving, mostly from states of the Upper South such as Virginia, Kentucky, and North Carolina; they resided principally around the town of Cape Girardeau itself, which was incorporated in 1808, but also along the creeks to the north and west.

On October 1, 1812, following the organization of the Missouri Territory, its five administrative districts (St. Louis, St. Charles, Ste. Genevieve, Cape Girardeau, and New Madrid) were reorganized as counties. (At that time, Cape Girardeau County also included portions of future Bollinger, Scott, Stoddard, and Wayne Counties, which would be established later). Despite Cape Girardeau's prominence, it was decided to establish the county seat closer to the geographic center of the county, and in 1815 the honor was given to the new town of Jackson, named for future President Andrew Jackson in recognition of his exploits during the War of 1812 (and the first county seat west of the Mississippi to be named for him).

Demographics

At the 2010 census, Cape Girardeau County had a total population of 75,674, with 29,848 households and 19,369 families. The population density was 129.1 per square mile. There were 32,616 housing units, or about 2.3 per square mile. The racial makeup of the county was about 88.72% White, 7.04% African-American, 0.25% Native American, 1.19% Asian, 0.03% Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander, 0.94% from some other race, and 1.84% from two or more races. Hispanics of any race were 1.95% of the population.

The median age in the county was 36.4 years. 21.93% of the population was under the age of 18, 13.96% was between the ages of 18 and 24, 24.22% was between the ages of 25 and 44, 25.57% was between the ages of 45 and 64, and 14.32% was 65 years old or older. The sex ratio was 48.4% male, 51.6% female.

According to the 2010 American Community Survey, the median income in the county was $44,479 for a household, and $54,174 for a family. Males had a median income of $37,167 versus $28,784 for females. The unemployment rate was 6.3%. The per capita income was $23,014. 14.2% of the population was below the poverty line, including 21.1% of those under the age of 18 and 7.6% of those 65 years old or older.

Due to its overall economic strength and the presence of a large population center, Cape Girardeau County is among the faster-growing counties in Missouri. A 2018 census estimate gave its current population as approximately 78,753, an increase of around 4% from 2010.

Communities

Cape Girardeau County is home to ten incorporated communities, including four cities and six villages.

Cities

• Cape Girardeau (small part in Scott County)
• Delta
• Jackson
• Scott City (mostly in Scott County)

Villages

• Allenville
• Gordonville
• Oak Ridge
• Old Appleton
• Pocahontas
• Whitewater

Government

Local government in Cape Girardeau County is provided by the elected officials. Traditionally, these have been dominated by the Republican Party, which at present holds all the elected positions.

Countywide official	Name	Party
Assessor	Robert L. Adams	Republican
Circuit Clerk	Charleen Biester	Republican
County Clerk	Kara Clark Summers	Republican
Collector	Barbara Gholson	Republican
Commissioner (presiding)	Clint Tracy	Republican
Commissioner (District 1)	Paul Koeper	Republican
Commissioner (District 2)	Charles Herbst	Republican
Coroner	John Clifton	Republican
Prosecuting Attorney	Mark Welker	Republican
Public Administrator	Lisa Reitzel	Republican
Recorder	Andrew David Blattner	Republican
Sheriff	Ruth Ann Dickerson	Republican
Treasurer	Roger Hudson	Republican

At the state level, Cape Girardeau County makes up two separate legislative districts for the Missouri House of Representatives. Most of the county outside of the city of Cape Girardeau, including Jackson and the areas to the north and west, is part of the 146th District. It is currently represented by Barry Hovis (R-Whitewater), who was elected to his first term in November 2018, defeating Democrat Gayla A. Dace.

Candidate	Party	Votes	Vote Percentage
Barry Hovis	Republican	15,289	81.891%
Gayla A. Dace	Democratic	3,381	18.109%

The city of Cape Girardeau, as well as some rural areas to the southwest, comprises the 147th District. It is currently represented by Kathryn "Kathy" Swan (R-Cape Girardeau), who was elected to her fourth and final term in November 2018, defeating Democrat Renita Green.

Candidate	Party	Votes	Vote Percentage
Kathryn Swan	Republican	8,616	64.777%
Renita Green	Democratic	4,685	35.223%

In the Missouri State Senate, Cape Girardeau County is part of the 27th District, which also includes Bollinger, Madison, Perry, Scott, and Wayne Counties. It is currently represented by Wayne Wallingford (R-Cape Girardeau), who was re-elected in November 2016, defeating Democrat Donnie Owens.

Candidate	Party	Votes	Vote Percentage
Wayne Wallingford	Republican	56,750	74.440%
Donnie Owens	Democratic	19,486	25.560%

Wallingford slightly overperformed in Cape Girardeau County, winning 27,062 votes to 8,739 for Owens.

At the federal level, Cape Girardeau County is part of Missouri's 8th Congressional District, which includes most of southeast and south-central Missouri. It is represented by Jason Smith (R-Salem), who won re-election in November 2018, defeating Democrat Kathy Ellis.

Candidate	Party	Votes	Vote Percentage
Jason Smith	Republican	194,042	73.39%
Kathy Ellis	Democratic	66,151	25.019%
Jonathan Shell	Libertarian	4,206	1.591%

Smith slightly overperformed his average margin in Cape Girardeau County, winning 74.413% of the vote.

Political Culture

As the above numbers indicate, Cape Girardeau County is solidly Republican at the state and federal level, and is in fact known as a traditional base of support for the Missouri GOP. It has not voted for a Democrat for president since 1964, or for governor since 1968. Generally speaking, the Republicans are strongest in the northern and northwestern regions, where the population is predominantly Protestant German-American and historically Republican, and weakest in portions of the city of Cape Girardeau with a lower-class and sometimes heavily African-American population. The Cape Girardeau area has also produced many well-known conservative leaders, including former Missouri lieutenant governor Peter Kinder, radio host Rush Limbaugh, and his brother, author David Limbaugh. In the 2016 general election, the county overwhelmingly supported Donald Trump, who won 72.94% of the vote.

Like much of southern Missouri, Cape Girardeau County can be included within the Bible Belt, and tends to combine social conservatism with economic populism. In 2004, it voted overwhelmingly in favor of Constitutional Amendment 2, which recognized marriage as between a man and a woman only—the measure passed in Cape Girardeau County with 83.19% support. In 2006, while the state overall narrowly passed an amendment to fund embryonic stem-cell research, the county decisively defeated the measure with 63.12% voting against. At the same time, it frequently supports economic measures that appear to favor the working and middle class--though this happens less frequently than elsewhere in Southeast Missouri, possibly because of its longer tradition of identifying with the Republican Party. In the November 2018 election, the county rejected a proposed increase in the state minimum wage, with 51.48% voting against (though it passed the state at large). These results mark Cape Girardeau County as one of the state's most reliably conservative regions.