Stoddard County, Missouri

Stoddard County is a county located in the southeastern portion of the U.S. state of Missouri. As of the 2020 census, the population was 28,672. The county seat is Bloomfield. The county was officially organized on January 2, 1835, and is named for Amos Stoddard, the first American commandant of Upper Louisiana.

WWW Official Site

Geography

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

Adjacent counties

Major highways

National protected area

Mingo National Wildlife Refuge

Demographics

2020 census

As of the 2020 census, the county had a population of 28,672. The median age was 42.2 years, 22.5% of residents were under the age of 18, and 20.5% were 65 years of age or older. For every 100 females there were 96.0 males, and for every 100 females age 18 and over there were 93.4 males age 18 and over.
33.6% of residents lived in urban areas, while 66.4% lived in rural areas.
There were 11,917 households in the county, of which 28.5% had children under the age of 18 living with them and 26.5% had a female householder with no spouse or partner present. About 30.1% of all households were made up of individuals and 14.3% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older.
There were 13,402 housing units, of which 11.1% were vacant. Among occupied housing units, 68.9% were owner-occupied and 31.1% were renter-occupied. The homeowner vacancy rate was 2.0% and the rental vacancy rate was 9.2%.

2000 census

As of the 2000 census, there were 29,705 people, 12,064 households, and 8,480 families residing in the county. The population density was. There were 13,221 housing units at an average density of. The racial makeup of the county was 97.34% White, 0.91% Black or African American, 0.40% Native American, 0.09% Asian, 0.01% Pacific Islander, 0.24% from other races, and 1.01% from two or more races. Approximately 0.78% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race. 38.4% were of American, 15.4% German, 12.4% Irish and 8.5% English ancestry.
There were 12,064 households, out of which 30.50% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 57.40% were married couples living together, 9.40% had a female householder with no husband present, and 29.70% were non-families. 26.60% of all households were made up of individuals, and 13.70% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.39 and the average family size was 2.88.
In the county, the population was spread out, with 23.90% under the age of 18, 8.50% from 18 to 24, 26.30% from 25 to 44, 24.10% from 45 to 64, and 17.20% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 39 years. For every 100 females there were 92.60 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 88.20 males.
The median income for a household in the county was $33,120, and the median income for a family was $41,072. Males had a median income of $26,514 versus $17,778 for females. The per capita income for the county was $18,003. About 12.80% of families and 16.50% of the population were below the poverty line, including 20.20% of those under age 18 and 17.60% of those age 65 or over.

Racial and ethnic composition

The 2020 census reported that the county was 93.6% White, 1.1% Black or African American, 0.3% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.3% Asian, 0.0% Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander, 0.7% from some other race, and 4.0% from two or more races, with Hispanic or Latino residents of any race comprising 2.0% of the population.

Race / Ethnicity	Pop 1980	Pop 1990	Pop 2000	Pop 2010	Pop 2020	% 1980	% 1990	% 2000	% 2010	% 2020
Latino whites\|White] alone	28,158	28,249	28,772	28,931	26,610	97.07%	97.76%	96.86%	96.54%	92.81%
Black or African American alone	638	408	268	274	298	2.20%	1.41%	0.90%	0.91%	1.04%
Native American or Alaska Native alone	51	58	111	91	67	0.18%	0.20%	0.37%	0.30%	0.23%
Asian alone	23	41	28	51	90	0.08%	0.14%	0.09%	0.17%	0.31%
Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander alone	x	x	3	2	2	x	x	0.01%	0.01%	0.01%
Race and ethnicity in [the United States census\|Other race] alone	6	7	11	3	33	0.02%	0.02%	0.04%	0.01%	0.12%
Mixed race or Multiracial	x	x	281	260	1,006	x	x	0.95%	0.87%	3.51%
Hispanic or Latino	133	132	231	356	566	0.46%	0.46%	0.78%	1.19%	1.97%
Total	29,009	28,895	29,705	29,968	28,672	100.00%	100.00%	100.00%	100.00%	100.00%

Religion

According to the Association of Religion Data Archives County Membership Report, Stoddard County is a part of the Bible Belt with evangelical Protestantism being the majority religion. The most predominant denominations among residents in Stoddard County who adhere to a religion are Southern Baptists, Methodists, and Pentecostal.

Politics

Local

The Republican Party predominately controls politics at the local level in Stoddard County. Republicans hold ten of the elected positions in the county. In the 2016 election, Sheriff Carl Hefner, who originally ran as a Democrat, switched parties and ran as a Republican.

State

Stoddard County is divided among three legislative districts in the Missouri House of Representatives.

District 159 – Currently represented by Herman Morse and consists of most of the county, including Advance, Bell City, Bloomfield, Dexter, Dudley, and Puxico.
District 161 – Currently represented by Steve Hodges and consists of some of the southeastern portions of the county along the New Madrid County border including Baker, Essex, and Penermon.
District 163 – Currently represented by Kent Hampton and consists of the southwestern corner along the Dunklin and Butler county lines, including Bernie. Democratic incumbent Tom Todd was defeated by Republican challenger Kent Hampton in 2010.

All of Stoddard County is a part of Missouri's 25th District in the Missouri Senate and is currently represented by State Senator Rob Mayer. In 2008, Mayer defeated Democrat M. Shane Stoelting 65.32%-34.68% in the district. The 25th Senatorial District consists of Butler, Dunklin, New Madrid, Pemiscot, Ripley, Stoddard, and Wayne counties.

Year	Republican	Democratic	Third Parties
2024 [Missouri gubernatorial election\|2024]	87.00% 11,683	11.57% 1,554	1.43% 192
2020	84.50% 11,269	13.90% 1,855	1.2% 162
2016	73.80% 9,792	24.00% 3,179	1.0% 127
2012	50.99% 6,514	46.81% 5,980	2.19% 280
2008	52.85% 6,919	45.33% 5,934	1.82% 239
2004	61.63% 8,152	37.35% 4,940	1.03% 136
2000	52.83% 6,537	45.98% 5,689	1.19% 147
1996	39.80% 4,423	58.49% 6,501	1.71% 190
1992	46.69% 5,487	53.31% 6,265	0.00% 0
1988	63.64% 6,634	36.30% 3,784	0.06% 6
1984	59.47% 6,421	40.53% 4,376	0.00% 0
1980	53.42% 6,093	46.54% 5,308	0.04% 5
1976	46.48% 4,617	53.50% 5,315	0.02% 2

Federal

Stoddard County is included in Missouri's 8th Congressional District and is currently represented by Jason T. Smith in the U.S. House of Representatives. Smith won a special election on Tuesday, June 4, 2013, to finish out the remaining term of U.S. Representative Jo Ann Emerson. Emerson announced her resignation a month after being reelected with over 70 percent of the vote in the district. She resigned to become CEO of the National Rural Electric Cooperative.

Political culture

At the presidential level, Stoddard County generally tends to lean Republican. John McCain carried Stoddard County over Barack Obama by more than a two-to-one margin in 2008. George W. Bush also carried Stoddard County twice in 2000 over Al Gore and in 2004 over John Kerry when he received just under 70 percent of the vote. Bill Clinton did manage to carry Stoddard County in 1992 but narrowly lost it in his reelection bid in 1996 to Bob Dole.
Like most rural areas, voters in Stoddard County generally adhere to socially and culturally conservative principles which strongly influence their Republican leanings. In 2004, Missourians voted on Missouri [Constitutional Amendment 2 (2004)|a constitutional amendment to define marriage as the union between a man and a woman]—it overwhelmingly passed Stoddard County with 88.29 percent of the vote. The initiative passed the state with 71 percent of support from voters as Missouri became the first state to ban same-sex marriage. In 2006, Missourians voted on [Missouri Constitutional Amendment 2 (2006)|a constitutional amendment to fund and legalize embryonic stem cell research in the state]—it failed in Stoddard County with 60.65 percent voting against the measure. The initiative narrowly passed the state with 51 percent of support from voters as Missouri became one of the first states in the nation to approve embryonic stem cell research. Despite Stoddard County's longstanding tradition of supporting socially conservative platforms, voters in the county have a penchant for advancing populist causes like increasing the minimum wage. In 2006, Missourians voted on a proposition to increase the minimum wage in the state to $6.50 an hour—it passed Stoddard County with 72.02 percent of the vote. The proposition strongly passed every single county in Missouri with 75.94 percent voting in favor as the minimum wage was increased to $6.50 an hour in the state. During the same election, voters in five other states also strongly approved increases in the minimum wage.

Missouri presidential preference primary (2008)

In the 2008 presidential primary, voters in Stoddard County from both political parties supported candidates who finished in second place in the state at large and nationally.
Former U.S. Senator Hillary Clinton received more votes, a total of 2,225, than any candidate from either party in Stoddard County during the 2008 presidential primaries.

Education

School districts including sections of the county, no matter how slight, even if the relevant schools and/or administration buildings in another county:

Public schools

Advance R-IV School District - Advance
*Advance Elementary School
*Advance High School
Bell City R-II School District - Bell City
*Bell City Elementary School
*Bell City High School
Bernie R-XIII School District - Bernie
*Bernie Elementary School
*Bernie High School
Bloomfield R-XIV School District - Bloomfield
*Bloomfield Elementary School
*Bloomfield Middle School
*Bloomfield High School
*Bloomfield Juvenile Center
Dexter R-XI School District - Dexter
*Southwest Elementary School
*Central Elementary School
*T.S. Hill Middle School
*Dexter High School
Puxico R-VIII School District - Puxico
*Puxico Elementary School
*Puxico Jr. High School
*Puxico High School
*Mingo Technical High School
Richland R-I School District - Essex
*Richland Elementary School
*Richland High School

Public libraries

Advance Community Library
Bernie Public Library
Bloomfield Public Library
Keller Public Library
Puxico Public Library