Ironton, Missouri

Ironton is the county seat and largest city of Iron County, Missouri, located in the scenic Arcadia Valley. It had a population of 1,460 at the 2010 census.

History

Ironton was not among the original settlements of what became Iron County; such towns as Arcadia, Middlebrook, and Pilot Knob had already been in existence for some time and were growing thanks to the mining of iron ore. It owed its development to two local merchants, H. N. Tong and David Carson, who ran a business near the base of nearby Shepherd Mountain and who sought to profit by laying out a new town on the property, which they began to do by 1853. Upon the creation of Iron County in early 1857, Arcadia was chosen as the temporary county seat, but elections were held to select a permanent site, at which time Tong and Carson won the honors for their location by offering to donate money for the building of a courthouse. Officially chosen as the new county seat on September 7, 1857, the town, named in honor of the county, grew steadily as a result, with a population of close to 400 by 1860.

Ironton was the scene of some notable events during the Civil War; a Union brigade under Ulysses S. Grant was briefly stationed there in August 1861, and one of the last major battles of the war in Missouri, the Battle of Fort Davidson, would be fought at nearby Pilot Knob in September 1864.

During the late 19th and 20th century, the town's economy prospered, from the nearby mining operations as well as the attractions of the Arcadia Valley in which it was located. It was frequently used as a summer resort by arrivals from St. Louis and other distant cities, one of the only towns in southeast Missouri to claim such a status. The center of mining activity shifted elsewhere in subsequent decades, however, and Ironton's population has declined somewhat since the 1980s, though tourism, both for the natural scenery and for the Civil War sites, remains a mainstay of the local economy.

Geography

Ironton is located along Missouri State Highway 21 in northeastern Iron County, bounded between the cities of Arcadia to the south and Pilot Knob to the north. Its exact coordinates are 37°36’02”N 90°37’54”W.

The city lies within the Arcadia Valley, a stretch of flat land several miles in length among the St. Francois Mountains and regarded as one of the most scenic valleys in the broader Ozarks region. Taum Sauk Mountain, the highest peak in the state of Missouri, lies a few miles to the southwest, and Shepherd Mountain, itself a mountain of considerable height, rises directly west of Ironton. The city has a total area of 1.39 square miles, and an average elevation of 906 feet.