Scott City, Missouri

Scott City is a city in Scott and Cape Girardeau Counties, Missouri. The population was 4,565 at the 2010 census.

Scott City is technically among the newest communities in the county, having been formed in 1960 through the consolidation of several older towns.

History

Scott City originally existed as three separate communities: Ancell, Fornfelt, and Illmo, lying in close proximity to one another roughly from west to east. The area was first settled by German immigrants in the years before the Civil War, but the towns were not incorporated until after the extension of a railroad bridge across the Mississippi River to Thebes, Illinois, in 1904, which brought more commerce to the area.

After this point, the towns grew rapidly. Fornfelt and Illmo were the largest, Illmo boasting numerous churches, a movie theater, and even an opera house (the latter being destroyed by fire in 1930).

Owing to their being so close to one another, a movement eventually arose to unite the three towns. Fornfelt and Ancell (which was much smaller) finally did so on March 7, 1960, renaming their new community Scott City in honor of the county. Illmo remained separate for a time, eventually joining in 1980.

Geography

Scott City is immediately south of Cape Girardeau, Missouri, located along (and mostly east of) Interstate 55 and U.S. Route 61 in northern Scott County, near the Cape Girardeau County line. Its exact coordinates are 37°13’7”N, 89°31’27”W.

The city has a total land area of 4.77 square miles, and an average elevation of 371 feet. A small portion of the city falls within Cape Girardeau County, this being uninhabited land near the Cape Girardeau Regional Airport.

Like most of Southeast Missouri, Scott City has a humid subtropical climate, resulting in hot summers and cool winters with abundant rainfall. The average temperature ranges between 32°F in January and 79°F in July. Annual precipitation averages about 46 inches.