Buchanan County, Missouri


Buchanan County is located in the U.S. state of Missouri. As of the 2020 United States census, the population was 84,793. Its county seat is St. Joseph. When originally formed in 1838, the county was named Roberts County, after settler Hiram Roberts. It was renamed in 1839 for James Buchanan, then a U.S. Senator and later President of the United States. The county was formed from land annexed to Missouri, as were five other counties. Buchanan County is included in the Kansas City CSA.
WWW co.buchanan.mo.us

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of, of which is land and is water.

Adjacent counties

Transportation

Major highways

Transit

Demographics

2020 census

As of the 2020 census, the county had a population of 84,793, the median age was 39.1 years, 22.0% of residents were under the age of 18, and 17.5% of residents were 65 years of age or older. For every 100 females there were 100.6 males, and for every 100 females age 18 and over there were 98.7 males age 18 and over. 86.3% of residents lived in urban areas, while 13.7% lived in rural areas.
The racial makeup of the county was 82.6% White, 5.2% Black or African American, 0.5% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.3% Asian, 0.5% Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander, 2.3% from some other race, and 7.6% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino residents of any race comprised 6.6% of the population.
There were 33,882 households in the county, of which 28.3% had children under the age of 18 living with them and 28.9% had a female householder with no spouse or partner present. About 31.7% of all households were made up of individuals and 13.5% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older.
There were 38,258 housing units, of which 11.4% were vacant. Among occupied housing units, 63.1% were owner-occupied and 36.9% were renter-occupied. The homeowner vacancy rate was 2.2% and the rental vacancy rate was 12.7%.

2000 census

As of the census of 2000, there were 85,998 people, 33,557 households, and 21,912 families residing in the county. The population density was. There were 36,574 housing units at an average density of. The racial makeup of the county was 92.73% White, 4.36% Black or African American, 0.42% Native American, 0.45% Asian, 0.02% Pacific Islander, 0.65% from other races, and 1.37% from two or more races. Approximately 2.43% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.
There were 33,557 households, out of which 30.60% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 49.30% were married couples living together, 12.00% had a female householder with no husband present, and 34.70% were non-families. 28.90% of all households were made up of individuals, and 12.50% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.42 and the average family size was 2.98.
In the county, the population was spread out, with 24.30% under the age of 18, 11.00% from 18 to 24, 28.50% from 25 to 44, 21.20% from 45 to 64, and 15.00% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 36 years. For every 100 females, there were 96.70 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 93.90 males.
The median income for a household in the county was $34,704, and the median income for a family was $42,408. Males had a median income of $31,697 versus $21,827 for females. The per capita income for the county was $17,882. About 8.50% of families and 12.20% of the population were below the poverty line, including 15.00% of those under age 18 and 9.60% of those age 65 or over.

Religion

According to the Association of Religion Data Archives County Membership Report, Buchanan County is sometimes regarded as being on the northern edge of the Bible Belt, with evangelical Protestantism being the most predominant religion. The most predominant denominations among residents in Buchanan County who adhere to a religion are Southern Baptists, Roman Catholics, and nondenominational evangelical groups.

Education

School districts include:
  • Buchanan County R-IV School District
  • East Buchanan County C-1 School District
  • Mid-Buchanan County R-V School District
  • St. Joseph School District
  • North Platte County R-I School District

Public schools

Four school districts operate schools in the county boundaries:
  • Buchanan County R-IV School District – De Kalb
  • *Rushville Elementary School
  • *De Kalb Junior/Senior High School
  • East Buchanan County C-I School District - Gower
  • *East Buchanan County C-I Middle School - Easton
  • Mid-Buchanan County R-V School District – Faucett
  • *Mid-Buchanan County Elementary School
  • *Mid-Buchanan County High School
  • St. Joseph School District – St. Joseph
  • *Carden Park Elementary School
  • *Coleman Elementary School
  • *Edison Elementary School
  • *Ellison Elementary School
  • *Field Elementary School
  • *Hosea Elementary School
  • *Hyde Elementary School
  • *Lindbergh Elementary School
  • *Oak Grove Elementary School
  • *Parkway Elementary School
  • *Pershing Elementary School
  • *Pickett Elementary School
  • *Skaith Elementary School
  • *Bode Middle School
  • *Robidoux Middle School
  • *Spring Garden Middle
  • *Truman Middle School
  • *Benton High School
  • *Central High School
  • *Lafayette High School

Private schools

Colleges and Universities

Public libraries

  • Rolling Hills Consolidated Library—Belt Branch
  • Saint Joseph Public Library

Communities

Cities

Villages

Census-designated place

Unincorporated communities

Extinct hamlets

Townships

Buchanan County is divided into 12 townships:

Population ranking

The population ranking of the following table is based on the 2020 census of Buchanan County.
† County seat
†† Partly within an adjacent county
RankNameMunicipal TypePopulation
1St. Joseph †Home Rule City72,473
2Gower††4th Class City1,533
3AgencyVillage671
4Dearborn††4th Class City482
5FaucettCDP248
6De Kalb4th Class City233
7Easton4th Class City227
8RushvilleVillage225
9Lewis and Clark VillageVillage96

Notable people

Politics

Local

The Republican Party predominantly controls politics at the local level in Buchanan County. Republicans hold all but two of the elected positions in the county.

State

Buchanan County is split between three legislative districts in the Missouri House of Representatives, all of which are held by Republicans.
  • District 9 – . Consists of the eastern portion of the county.
  • District 10 – . The district is entirely based in the city of St. Joseph.
  • District 11 – . Consists of the southern part of the county.
All of Buchanan County is a part of Missouri's 34th District in the Missouri Senate and is currently represented by .

Federal

All of Buchanan County is included in Missouri's 6th Congressional District and is currently represented by Sam Graves in the U.S. House of Representatives. Graves was elected to an eleventh term in 2020 over Democratic challenger Gena Ross.
Buchanan County, along with the rest of the state of Missouri, is represented in the U.S. Senate by Josh Hawley and Roy Blunt.
Blunt was elected to a second term in 2016 over then-Missouri Secretary of State Jason Kander.

Political culture

At the presidential level, Buchanan County was a swing county that has become increasingly Republican in recent years. Buchanan County strongly favored Republican Donald Trump in 2016, 2020, and 2024. Barack Obama was the last Democratic presidential nominee to carry Buchanan County in 2008 with a plurality of the vote, but a Democrat hasn't won majority support from the county's voters in a presidential election since Michael Dukakis in 1988.
Buchanan County did vote to legalize abortion in Missouri, voting for 2024 Missouri Amendment 3.

Missouri presidential preference primaries

2020

The 2020 presidential primaries for both the Democratic and Republican parties were held in Missouri on March 10. On the Democratic side, former Vice President Joe Biden both won statewide and carried Buchanan County by a wide margin. Biden went on to defeat President Donald Trump in the general election.
Incumbent President Donald Trump faced a primary challenge from former Massachusetts Governor Bill Weld, but won both Buchanan County and statewide by overwhelming margins.

2016

The 2016 presidential primaries for both the Republican and Democratic parties were held in Missouri on March 15. Businessman Donald Trump narrowly won the state overall and carried a plurality in Buchanan County. He went on to win the presidency.
On the Democratic side, former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton narrowly won statewide, but Senator Bernie Sanders carried Buchanan County.

2012

The 2012 Missouri Republican Presidential Primary's results were nonbinding on the state's national convention delegates. Voters in Buchanan County supported former U.S. Senator Rick Santorum, who finished first in the state at large, but eventually lost the nomination to former Governor Mitt Romney. Delegates to the congressional district and state conventions were chosen at a county caucus, which selected a delegation favoring Romney. Incumbent President Barack Obama easily won the Missouri Democratic Primary and renomination. He defeated Romney in the general election.

2008

In 2008, the Missouri Republican Presidential Primary was closely contested, with Senator John McCain prevailing and eventually winning the nomination. However, former Governor Mitt Romney narrowly carried Buchanan County.
Then-Senator Hillary Clinton received more votes than any candidate from either party in Buchanan County during the 2008 presidential primary. Despite initial reports that Clinton had won Missouri, Barack Obama, also a Senator at the time, narrowly defeated her statewide and later became that year's Democratic nominee, going on to win the presidency.