Cole County, Missouri


Cole County is located in the central part of the U.S. state of Missouri. As of the 2020 census, its population was 77,279. Its county seat and largest city is Jefferson City, the state capital. The county was organized November 16, 1820, and named after pioneer William Temple Cole who built Cole's Fort in Boonville.
Cole County is in the Jefferson City, MO Metropolitan Statistical Area. It is south of the Missouri River.
In 2010, the center of the population of Missouri was in Cole County, near the village of Wardsville.
WWW colecounty.org

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of, of which is land and is water. It is the third-smallest county in Missouri by area.

Adjacent counties

Major highways

Demographics

2020 census

As of the 2020 census, the county had a population of 77,279. The median age was 39.8 years. 22.1% of residents were under the age of 18 and 17.4% of residents were 65 years of age or older. For every 100 females there were 102.9 males, and for every 100 females age 18 and over there were 101.8 males age 18 and over.
The racial makeup of the county was 80.5% White, 10.5% Black or African American, 0.3% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.3% Asian, 0.1% Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander, 1.3% from some other race, and 6.0% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino residents of any race comprised 3.4% of the population.
65.7% of residents lived in urban areas, while 34.3% lived in rural areas.
There were 30,478 households in the county, of which 29.6% had children under the age of 18 living with them and 28.2% had a female householder with no spouse or partner present. About 30.7% of all households were made up of individuals and 12.2% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older.
There were 33,211 housing units, of which 8.2% were vacant. Among occupied housing units, 67.1% were owner-occupied and 32.9% were renter-occupied. The homeowner vacancy rate was 1.6% and the rental vacancy rate was 8.4%.
Race / Ethnicity Pop 1980Pop 1990Pop 2000Pop 2010Pop 2020% 1980% 1990% 2000% 2010% 2020
White alone 51,76657,83761,68463,24761,47491.36%90.97%86.40%83.23%79.55%
Black or African American alone 4,2034,7767,0498,4218,0417.42%7.51%9.87%11.08%10.41%
Native American or Alaska Native alone 772262192141750.14%0.36%0.31%0.28%0.23%
Asian alone 1872556219569650.33%0.40%0.87%1.26%1.25%
Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander alone xx204456xx0.03%0.06%0.07%
Other race alone 1323865693050.23%0.06%0.09%0.09%0.39%
Mixed race or Multiracial xx8241,2443,602xx1.15%1.64%4.66%
Hispanic or Latino 2984479151,7952,6610.53%0.70%1.28%2.36%3.44%
Total56,66363,57971,39775,99077,279 100.00%100.00%100.00%100.00%100.00%

2000 census

As of the census of 2000, there were 71,397 people, 27,040 households, and 17,927 families residing in the county. The population density was. There were 28,915 housing units at an average density of. The racial makeup of the county was 87.06% White, 9.92% Black or African American, 0.33% Native American, 0.88% Asian, 0.04% Pacific Islander, 0.54% from other races, and 1.23% from two or more races. Approximately 1.28% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race. 40.1% were of German, 13.6% American, 7.8% English and 6.9% Irish ancestry.
There were 27,040 households, out of which 33.60% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 53.00% were married couples living together, 10.00% had a female householder with no husband present, and 33.70% were non-families. 28.70% of all households were made up of individuals, and 9.30% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.43 and the average family size was 3.00.
In the county, the population was spread out, with 24.20% under the age of 18, 9.80% from 18 to 24, 32.30% from 25 to 44, 22.40% from 45 to 64, and 11.30% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 36 years. For every 100 females, there were 105.60 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 106.50 males.
The median income for a household in the county was $42,924, and the median income for a family was $53,416. Males had a median income of $33,769 versus $25,189 for females. The per capita income for the county was $20,739. About 5.80% of families and 8.70% of the population were below the poverty line, including 11.50% of those under age 18 and 7.30% of those age 65 or over.

Infrastructure

The Missouri Department of Corrections operates the Jefferson City Correctional Center in Jefferson City. The current JCCC was opened on September 15, 2004, replacing the Missouri State Penitentiary in Jefferson City.

Education

School districts including sections of the county, no matter how slight, even if the relevant schools and/or administration buildings in another county:
  • Blair Oaks R-II School District
  • Cole County R-I School District
  • Cole County R-V School District
  • Jamestown C-1 School District
  • Jefferson City Public Schools

Public schools

Private schools

Post-secondary education

Public libraries

  • Missouri River Regional Library

Communities

Cities

Villages

Census-designated place

Unincorporated communities

Government and politics

Political culture

Like many other counties in Mid-Missouri, Cole County is mostly Republican. The last Democratic to win the county in a presidential election was Harry S Truman in 1948.
In 2004, state residents voted on a constitutional amendment to define marriage as the union between a man and a woman. This passed Cole County with 74.24% of the vote. The initiative passed the state with 71 percent of support from voters; Missouri became the first state to ban same-sex marriage.

Local

The Republican Party controls politics at the local level in Cole County. Republicans hold all but one of the elected positions in the county. The Democratic Party do not hold any elected positions on the county level.

State

Missouri House of Representatives

Cole County is divided into five legislative districts in the Missouri House of Representatives, all of which elected Republicans.
  • District 49 — . Consists of a small unincorporated area of the county just west of the city of Jefferson City.
  • District 50 — Sara Walsh. Consists of unincorporated areas in the northwest corner of the county.
  • District 59 — Rudy Veit. Consists of the communities of Centertown, Eugene, Lohman, Russellville, St. Martins, Taos, and Wardsville.
  • District 60 — Dave Griffith Consists of the city of Jefferson City.
  • District 62 — Consists of the community of St. Thomas.

Missouri Senate

Cole County is a part of Missouri's 6th District in the Missouri Senate and is currently represented by Mike Bernskoetter.

Federal

US House of Representatives

All of Cole County is included in Missouri's 3rd congressional district and is currently represented by Blaine Luetkemeyer in the U.S. House of Representatives.

Missouri presidential preference primary (2008)

Former U.S. Senator and President Barack Obama received more votes, a total of 4,642, than any candidate from either party in Cole County during the 2008 presidential primary. Cole County was one of only six counties that backed Obama in Missouri.