Bollinger County, Missouri
Bollinger County is a county located in the southeastern part of the U.S. state of Missouri. As of the 2020 census, the county's population was 10,567. The county seat, largest and only city, is Marble Hill. The largely rural county is supported by agriculture and construction. The county was officially organized in March 1851 from portions of Wayne, Cape Girardeau and Stoddard Counties, and named in honor of George Frederick Bollinger, an early settler.
Bollinger County is part of the Cape Girardeau, MO–IL Metropolitan Statistical Area. The county is the home of the "Missouri dinosaur" discovered at an archaeological dig near Glen Allen in 1942. Blue Pond, the deepest natural pond in Missouri, is located in the southern portion of the county.
History
In fall 1799, George Frederick Bollinger, a North Carolina settler of German descent persuaded 20 other families to leave North Carolina and settle in a region immediately west of what is now Cape Girardeau, Missouri. To acquire the land, Bollinger first had to sign off a document asserting that he and his fellow settlers were all Roman Catholics. In reality, most of the group were members of the German Reformed Church and none were actually Catholic. However, Don Louis Lorimier, the Spanish Land Commandant of Cape Girardeau, had been impressed by Bollinger on an earlier visit and decided to bend the rules for him and his fellow settlers.Lorimier's willingness to place German Reformed settlers west of Cape Girardeau is somewhat perplexing given his earlier role in placing a group of Shawnee settlers in that same location. Lorimier had earlier fled Ohio Country with his half-Shawnee wife and a band of Shawnee after a raid by men under George Rogers Clark in 1782. He eventually migrated across the Mississippi River and settled at Cape Girardeau in 1793. Later he was appointed Land Commandant at Cape Girardeau.
The Bollinger-led group of families moved into an area that became known as the "Dutch Settlement" along the Whitewater River in January 1800, crossing their wagons over the Mississippi River after an unusually cold stretch of weather had frozen the surface all the way across.
Meanwhile, ownership of the region shifted in quick succession from Spain to France and then in 1803 to the United States via the Louisiana Purchase. The change in national ownership did not bode well for the earlier Shawnee settlers. In 1825 they were removed permanently when the U.S. government enacted the treaty with the Shawnee in 1825. This treaty, whose first signatory was William Clark of the Lewis and Clark Expedition fame, required that the Shawnee move to what is now known as Shawnee Mission, Kansas, on land that had previously belonged to the Osage tribes. One of the Cherokee Trail of Tears routes passed through Sedgewickville, while another passed through Glennon and Zalma.
The region west of Cape Girardeau was organized as a county in 1851 and was named Bollinger County in honor of George Frederick Bollinger. The county seat was Dallas, renamed Marble Hill in 1865. In the next county to the west, Madison County, the settlement of Fredericktown was also named after Bollinger.
Geography
According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of, of which is land and is water. The county's terrain ranges from the Mississippi Delta flatlands in the south to the Ozark Hills in the north.Adjacent counties
- Perry County
- Cape Girardeau County
- Stoddard County
- Wayne County
- Madison County
Major highways
- 20px Route 34
- 20px Route 51
- 20px Route 72
National protected area
- Mark Twain National Forest
Demographics
2020 census
As of the 2020 census, the county had a population of 10,567. The median age was 45.5 years. 22.0% of residents were under the age of 18 and 21.9% of residents were 65 years of age or older. For every 100 females there were 102.3 males, and for every 100 females age 18 and over there were 100.6 males age 18 and over. 0.0% of residents lived in urban areas, while 100.0% lived in rural areas.The racial makeup of the county was 93.33% White, 0.33% Black or African American, 0.3% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.2% Asian, 0.03% Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander, and 4.4% from other or multiracial groups, while Hispanic or Latino residents of any race comprised 1.5% of the population.
| Race / Ethnicity | Pop 1980 | Pop 1990 | Pop 2000 | Pop 2010 | Pop 2020 | % 1980 | % 1990 | % 2000 | % 2010 | % 2020 |
| White alone | 10,242 | 10,479 | 11,714 | 12,037 | 9,862 | 99.43% | 98.68% | 97.38% | 97.36% | 93.33% |
| Black or African American alone | 0 | 12 | 25 | 32 | 35 | 0.00% | 0.11% | 0.21% | 0.26% | 0.33% |
| Native American or Alaska Native alone | 9 | 30 | 83 | 73 | 30 | 0.09% | 0.28% | 0.69% | 0.59% | 0.28% |
| Asian alone | 7 | 28 | 25 | 26 | 20 | 0.07% | 0.26% | 0.21% | 0.21% | 0.19% |
| Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander alone | x | x | 0 | 0 | 3 | x | x | 0.00% | 0.00% | 0.03% |
| Other race alone | 19 | 0 | 3 | 4 | 22 | 0.18% | 0.00% | 0.02% | 0.03% | 0.21% |
| Mixed race or Multiracial | x | x | 111 | 93 | 442 | x | x | 0.92% | 0.75% | 4.18% |
| Hispanic or Latino | 24 | 70 | 68 | 98 | 153 | 0.23% | 0.66% | 0.57% | 0.79% | 1.45% |
| Total | 10,301 | 10,619 | 12,029 | 12,363 | 10,567 | 100.00% | 100.00% | 100.00% | 100.00% | 100.00% |
There were 4,177 households in the county, of which 28.2% had children under the age of 18 living with them and 20.8% had a female householder with no spouse or partner present. About 26.2% of all households were made up of individuals and 12.5% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older.
There were 5,037 housing units, of which 17.1% were vacant. Among occupied housing units, 80.1% were owner-occupied and 19.9% were renter-occupied. The homeowner vacancy rate was 2.0% and the rental vacancy rate was 9.5%.
2000 census
As of the 2000 census, there were 12,029 people, 4,576 households, and 3,464 families residing in the county. The population density was. There were 5,522 housing units at an average density of. The racial makeup of the county was 97.79% White, 0.72% Native American, 0.22% Asian, 0.21% Black or African American, 0.13% from other races, and 0.93% from two or more races. Approximately 0.57% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.There were 4,576 households, out of which 34.30% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 63.80% were married couples living together, 8.40% had a female householder with no husband present, and 24.30% were non-families. 21.60% of all households were made up of individuals, and 10.50% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.59 and the average family size was 3.00.
In the county, the population was spread out, with 26.20% under the age of 18, 7.80% from 18 to 24, 26.80% from 25 to 44, 24.50% from 45 to 64, and 14.80% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 38 years. For every 100 females, there were 97.90 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 95.80 males.
The median income for a household in the county was $36,744, and the median income for a family was $42,948. Males had a median income of $26,078 versus $17,588 for females. The per capita income for the county was $16,387. About 10.90% of families and 13.80% of the population were below the poverty line, including 15.40% of those under age 18 and 17.40% of those age 65 or over.
The most commonly reported first ancestries in Bollinger County were 34% German, 24% United States or American, 10% Irish, 9% English, 3% Dutch, 2% French, and 1% Scottish.
Religion
According to the Association of Religion Data Archives County Membership Report, Bollinger County is part of the Bible Belt, with evangelical Protestantism being the most predominant religion. The most predominant denominations among residents in Bollinger County who adhere to a religion are Southern Baptists, Roman Catholics, and United Methodists.Economy
Like many rural areas, the standard of living in Bollinger County is significantly lower than many other places. In 2008, the cost of living index in Bollinger County was low compared to the U.S. average of 100. The unemployment rate in Bollinger County is also lower than the state and national levels. According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, the October 2008 unemployment rate in the United States was 6.7 percent whereas in Missouri it was 6.5 percent. According to economic research compiled by the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis, the October 2008 unemployment rate in Bollinger County was 5.6 percent.The most common industries providing employment in Bollinger County consist of manufacturing, educational, health and social services, construction, and retail trade while other kinds of industries account for the rest. The most common industries for males in Bollinger County are construction, agriculture, forestry, fishing and/or hunting, truck transportation, transportation equipment, metal and metal products, repair and maintenance, and paper. The most common occupations for males in the county included driving/sales workers and truck drivers, other production occupations including supervisors, electrical equipment mechanics and other installation, maintenance and repair occupations including supervisors, vehicle and mobile equipment mechanics, installers and repairers, metal and plastic workers, carpenters, and hand-laborers and material movers. For females, the most common industries are health care, educational services, apparel, accommodation and food services, finance and insurance, public administration, and metal and metal products. The most common occupations for females includes other production occupations including supervisors, textile, apparel and furnishings workers, secretaries and administrative assistants, other sales and related workers including supervisors, building and grounds cleaning and maintenance occupations, other office and administrative support workers including supervisors, and retail sales workers not including cashiers.
A majority of employees in Bollinger County receive a private wage or salary, 10% work in public or government jobs, 11% is self-employed while another 1% performs some sort of unpaid family work. A majority of workers in the county drive their own cars to work, 16% carpools, 5% works at home, 2% walks, 1% takes a bus or trolley bus, and less than 1 percent rides to work on a motorcycle or uses some other form of transportation.