Steelville, Missouri

Steelville, Missouri
Country	United States
State	Missouri
Settled	1835
Population	1,642 (2010 census)
Area (sq mi)	2.42 mi²
Current mayor	Terry Beckham

Steelville is a city in Crawford County, Missouri, of which it is the county seat. It had a population of 1,642 at the 2010 census.

History

The first notable residents in the Steelville area were William Britton, a local gristmill operator, and James Steel, owner of a trading post and the namesake of the future town (its name has nothing to do with the production of steel). Despite being centrally located in the new Crawford County after its formation in 1829, the site might not have become the county seat, except that the commissioners initially chosen to establish the seat neglected to do so, and it was not until 1835 that a new commission took the task seriously. Steel, briefly a member of the commission, sold 40 acres of land he owned near the store for the laying out of a town, which was promptly named in his honor.

The new town remained small in population for many years, but nonetheless prospered, thanks to its being the seat of county government. Numerous businesses were established in the 1830s and 1840s, along with a local Masonic Lodge. However, the fact that it was bypassed to the north by the Pacific Railroad, shortly before the Civil War, meant that it would not see the rapid growth of other nearby communities, and in fact Steelville was not incorporated as a city until 1885.

One dubious claim to fame for the town arose in 1838, when Mary, the slave of a local resident, John Brinker, was executed for the murder of his young daughter, Vienna; though her age is uncertain, she was probably around 14 years old, making her the youngest person ever executed by the state of Missouri.

Steelville suffered a serious setback in 1898, due to a major flood of the Yadkin Creek that summer, killing 13 locals and inflicting some $200,000 worth of property damage. It was further devastated by a fire that destroyed much of the downtown district in 1904. The community rapidly rebuilt, though, and maintained a slow but steady growth over the ensuing decades, boosted more recently by tourism to the Meramec Valley.

Geography

Steelville is located in central Crawford County at the intersection of Missouri State Highways 8 and 19, about 14 miles east of St. James and seven miles south-southeast of Cuba. Its exact coordinates are 37°58’07”N 91°21’19”W.

The Meramec River forms part of the city's northwestern boundary, with a small tributary stream, Yadkin Creek, flowing through its center. The rest of Steelville is dominated by uplands. It has a total land area of 2.42 square miles, and an average elevation of 755 feet.

Demographics

At the 2010 census, Steelville had a total of 1,642 inhabitants, grouped into 638 households, with a population density of 678.5 people per square mile. This figure represented a significant increase from the 2000 census, when Steelville had a population of 1,429. 90.10% of the inhabitants were White, 5.97% were African-American, 1.16% were Native American, 4.43% were Asian, 0.55% were from some other race, and 0.79% were from two or more races. Hispanics of any race were 1.77% of the population.

The median age in Steelville was 36.8 years, with 24.2% of inhabitants under the age of 18, 9.1% between 18 and 24 years old, 26.4% between 25 and 44, 21.1% between 45 and 64, and 19.2% 65 years old or older. The sex ratio was 47.3% male, 52.7% female.

According to the 2018 American Community Survey, Steelville had a median household income of $30,326, and a median family income of $40,037. The unemployment rate was 5.8%. The per capita income was $15,233. About 31.8% of the population lived below the poverty line, including 48.3% of people under the age of 18 and 14.8% of people 65 years old or older.

Education

The city and the surrounding area are served by the Steelville R-III School District, a PK-12 public institution with a total enrollment of just under 1,000 students. Its mascot is the Cardinals, and the school colors are red, white, and black.

Community Life

Thanks to its location on the upper Meramec River, Steelville has benefited recently from natural recreation, billing itself as "The Floating Capital of Missouri." Several local businesses cater to canoeing and rafting, while hiking, fishing, camping, and horseback riding are also major draws.

Attractions within the town itself include the Main Street district, little changed since its rebuilding in the early 1900s, and locally-known chocolate shops and Bed & Breakfasts. There is also the Meramec Music Theatre, a 600-seat structure completed in 2001, which hosts a number of country music, bluegrass, gospel, and folk musical performances.