Cape Girardeau, Missouri
Cape Girardeau is a city located in the
county of the same name in
Missouri, 100 miles south of
Saint Louis. As of the
2000 census, the city population was 35,349. The Cape Girardeau-Jackson, MO-IL Micropolitan Statistical Area embraces
Alexander County, Illinois,
Bollinger County, Missouri and
Cape Girardeau County, Missouri.
The city is named after Jean Baptiste de Girardot, who established a temporary trading post in the area around 1733; he was a French soldier stationed at Kaskaskia, Illinois, 1704-1720.
Encyclopedia
Cape Girardeau is a city located in the
county of the same name in
Missouri, 100 miles south of
Saint Louis. As of the
2000 census, the city population was 35,349. The Cape Girardeau-Jackson, MO-IL Micropolitan Statistical Area embraces
Alexander County, Illinois,
Bollinger County, Missouri and
Cape Girardeau County, Missouri.
The city is named after Jean Baptiste de Girardot, who established a temporary trading post in the area around 1733; he was a French soldier stationed at Kaskaskia, Illinois, 1704-1720. The Cape in the city name was a rock promontory overlooking the
Mississippi River, later destroyed by railroad construction. As early as 1765, a bend in the Mississippi about sixty miles south of the French village of Ste. Genevieve had been referred to as Cape Girardot or Girardeau. The settlement there dates from 1793 when the Spanish government, which had secured
Louisiana in 1762, granted Louis Lorimier, a French-Canadian, the right of establishing a trading post. His grant gave him extensive trading privileges and a large tract of land surrounding his post. Lorimier was made commandant of the district and prospered from the returns of his land sales and trade with the Indians including the Ozark Bluff Dwellers and the Mississippian. The town of Cape Girardeau was incorporated in 1808, prior to Missouri statehood, and was reincorporated as a city in 1843. The advent of the
steamboat in 1835 led it to become the biggest port on the
Mississippi River between
Saint Louis and
Memphis. The
Civil War Battle of Cape Girardeau took place on April 26, 1863. The Union and Confederate Armies collided in a fierce, four-hour artillery, on that day,
23 Union and 30 Confederate soldiers were killed.Today, Cape Girardeau is the home to numerous Civil War sites and memorials such as,
— Fort D
— Old Lorimier Cemetery
— Port Cape Girardeau
— Union Monument & Fountain
— Common Pleas Courthouse
— Confederate War Memorial
— Minton House
— Location of "Battle of Cape Girardeau"
Trivia
- The city is home to Southeast Missouri State University. The Show Me Center, a joint project of the city and the university, opened in 1987.
- Talk radio star Rush Limbaugh was born to a prominent family of lawyers in Cape Girardeau; some "dittoheads" make pilgrimages there. Rush's brother, David, runs a law firm in the city. Rush's cousin Stephen N. Limbaugh, Jr., a Missouri Supreme Court Judge, also resides in the city.
- Dale Dye was also born in Cape Girerdeau.
- Since 1964 the city has been protected by a floodwall which saved the city from the Great Flood of 1993. A two-block span of the wall is covered with murals depicting scenes of the history of the area as well as a mural now known as the Missouri Wall of Fame, which depicts famous Missourians of the past and present.
- The city is not the county seat of Cape Girardeau County as some visitors mistakenly assume. The county seat of Cape Girardeau County is Jackson, Missouri
- The city is known to some as "The City of Roses" because of a nine mile stretch of highway that was once lined with dozens of rose bushes. There also used to be many prominent rose gardens around the community. Few of these gardens persist today.
- The "cape" that the city is named after no longer exists. A rock which remains from the previously existing cape can be seen on a promontory which overlooks the Mississippi River in Cape Rock Park.
- The city has been called "The only inland cape in the world."
- In December of 2003, a new four-lane cable-stay bridge crossing the Mississippi River at Cape Girardeau was opened. Its official name is The two towers of the bridge reach a height of approximately 91 meters. The old bridge was completed in September 1928 to replace a ferry. It was built for Model-T cars and was only 20 feet wide.
- James McMurtry's Song for a Deck Hand's Daughter is set in Cape Girardeau.
- The book Killshot by Elmore Leonard is partly set in Cape Girardeau. In January 2006, some scenes were shot on location for the movie adaptation starring Diane Lane, Thomas Jane, Johnny Knoxville, and Mickey Rourke.
- The city is home to two large, acute-care hospitals: St. Francis Medical Center established in 1875, and Southeast Missouri Hospital established in 1928.
Geography
Cape Girardeau is located at .
According to the
U.S. Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 26.4 mi² .
Demographics
As of the
census of 2000, there were 35,349 people, 14,380 households, and 8,297 families residing in the city. The
population density was 562.4/km² . There were 15,827 housing units at an average density of 251.8/km² . The racial makeup of the city was 87.32%
White, 9.30%
Black or
African American, 1.13% Asian, 0.39% Native American, 0.04% Pacific Islander, 0.43% from
other races, and 1.40% from two or more races.
Hispanic or Latino of any race were 1.10% of the population.
There were 14,380 households out of which 25.7% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 43.8% were married couples living together, 10.9% had a female householder with no husband present, and 42.3% were non-families. 33.6% of all households were made up of individuals and 11.5% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.24 and the average family size was 2.90.
The age distribution is 20.5% under the age of 18, 18.4% from 18 to 24, 25.6% from 25 to 44, 19.9% from 45 to 64, and 15.5% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 34 years. For every 100 females there were 89.5 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 86.9 males.
The median income for a household in the city was $32,452, and the median income for a family was $43,917. Males had a median income of $31,575 versus $21,392 for females. The per capita income for the city was $18,918. About 8.5% of families and 15.2% of the population were below the
poverty line, including 16.5% of those under age 18 and 8.6% of those age 65 or over.
Four of the largest employers in Cape Girardea are Southeast Missouri Hospital, St. Francis Medical Center, Proctor and Gamble, and Southeast Missouri State University.
References
Four of the largest employers in Cape Girardeau are Southeast Missouri Hospital, St. Francis Medical Center, Proctor and Gamble, and Southeast Missouri State University
External links
