Missouri Bootheel
Missouri Bootheel | |
---|---|
Area | |
• Land | 1,708.45 sq mi (4,424.9 km2) |
Population (2019)[2] | |
• Total | 62,012 |
• Density | 36.3/sq mi (14.0/km2) |
The Missouri Bootheel is a
Until the 1920s, the district was a wheat-growing area of family farms. Following the invasion of the
History
When Missouri was admitted to the Union as part of the
According to an apocryphal story in various versions, the Bootheel was added to the state because of the request of John Hardeman Walker to remain in the state "as he had heard it was so sickly in Arkansas"; "...full of bears and panthers and copperhead snakes, so it ain't safe for civilized people to stay there over night even." Another legend has the adaptation made by a lovestruck surveyor to spare the feelings of a widow living 50 miles south of the Missouri border, but unaware of it. At one time, the area was known locally as "Lapland, because it's the place where Missouri laps over into Arkansas".[4]
During the
Until the early 20th century, the district was largely covered by wetlands and swamps, but otherwise was a wheat-growing area of family farms. Lumbering was important in the 1890s until the most valuable trees were taken.
In 1905, the Little River Drainage District built an elaborate network of ditches, canals, and levees to drain the swamps, as people believed, not understanding about the important function of wetlands in modifying river flooding, that the highest use was for agriculture.
From 1880 to 1930, the population in the area more than tripled as many workers were brought in. Cotton became the chief commodity crop.[5] Meanwhile, the boll weevil ruined the cotton crop in Arkansas, and planters moved into the Bootheel, bought up the new lands or leased them from insurance companies that had invested in the area, and recruited thousands of black sharecroppers as workers.[3]
During the 1910s, the Bootheel experienced a surge in racial violence as white tenant farmers attacked black workers who were imported by landowners from the South. This competition between white laborers and black laborers resulted in a period of extreme racial violence which took the form of lynchings in New Madrid, Charleston, and Caruthersville.[6][7][8]
In contrast to the other cotton-growing areas of the South, where blacks had been
During the Great Depression, the Farm Security Administration said that the Bootheel was a "paradox of rich land and poor people." In 1935, three-fourths of all farms were operated by tenants, most of them black.[11] Radicals in the Southern Tenant Farmers Union organized protests by hundreds of sharecroppers in early 1939, alleging that landlords had evicted masses of tenants because they did not want to share federal AAA checks with them. The Farm Security Administration, a New Deal agency, responded by providing low-cost rental housing for 500 cropper families. It awarded $500,000 (equivalent to $9 million in 2023) in grants to 11,000 families in 1939. The protest fizzled out as Communist and Socialist elements battled for control.[12]
Geography and geology
Available samples from the Bootheel and most of the southeastern Missouri counties demonstrate late
Swamp reclamation and flooding
As glaciers receded towards the end of the Ice Age and turned ice into liquid, the Mississippi River grew longer and wider. Over time, the silt deposits of the Mississippi created some of the most fertile soil in the world, ideal for agriculture. The areas around the Mississippi are composed of thick regolith that is around 100 metres (330 ft) thick. The Bootheel lies in the flood plain between the Mississippi and St. Francis rivers, so the land is very flat. Since clearing and drainage of wetlands in the early 20th century, it has been predominantly developed for agricultural purposes. Prior to the 20th century, it was mostly unsettled swampy forestland.
Between 1893 and 1989, developers cut about 85% of the native forests in the region; most clearing was done in the early decades of the 20th century. The entire landscape was transformed into farmland by extensive logging, draining of the
But the levees have changed the nature of the rivers, and cumulatively have aggravated flooding problems. They also prevent regular silt deposits, as they have increased the speed of the rivers. The reduction in wetlands has reduced important habitats for many species of migratory birds and a variety of fish and animals.
Flooding is a major concern along the Mississippi River. With such a large river basin and the vast discharge of water, the river makes the towns along its banks highly susceptible to frequent flooding. The National Weather Service reported that from 1980 to 2002, nine floods in the United States had total losses exceeding one billion dollars. In terms of monetary loss and effects on society, the Great Flood of 1993 was the worst.[13]
New Madrid fault zone
Earthquakes have long been frequent in the area. The
Great fissures opened the earth, geysers show mud and rocks hundreds of feet in the air, new hills and ridges heaved up out of the ground, and the river itself ran red with brimstone and sulfur. Whole islands in the river disappeared, the forests went under, the tall oaks snapped like twigs, and violent winds tossed bundles of fallen timbers. Deafening thunder rang to the heavens. Animals went crazy; thousands of birds hovered and screamed.[14]
The states of Missouri, Arkansas, Mississippi, Alabama, Tennessee, Kentucky, Illinois, and Indiana felt the brunt of this quake, ruining lives and leaving residents in fear of aftershocks and possible larger quakes. The New Madrid Seismic Zone is still active and frequently produces small earthquakes. Scientists have estimated that a strong earthquake is inevitable and is overdue. Residents of the area are aware of the risk, but critics say they are not well prepared for a disaster. William Atkinson, author of The Next New Madrid Earthquake, writes:
The area is well overdue for a moderately powerful tremor- which will cause major damage and undoubtedly some casualties...With each passing year, the inevitable earthquake is becoming more powerful, while the state of readiness in the Mississippi Valley remains woefully inadequate.
Given the population in the area, even a moderately sized earthquake would be disastrous.[15]
Culture and economy
The Bootheel is on the edge of the
The Bootheel once had a reputation for lawlessness. Remote settlements along the river banks, miles from paved roads, provided an ideal environment (and market) for moonshining and bootlegging.[citation needed]
Culturally, the Bootheel is considered more
- KBSI, respectively) are located in Cape Girardeau (the prior affiliate was WREG-TVin Memphis)
- ABC affiliates include WSIL-TV in Harrisburg, Illinois, and KAIT in Jonesboro, Arkansas (the prior affiliate was WATN in Memphis)
- KAIT-DT2 from Jonesboro is a secondary affiliate (the prior affiliate was WMC-TVin Memphis)
Economically, the agricultural area is one of the more
No large cities are located in the Bootheel. Sizable towns include
Hornersville, a small town in southern Dunklin County, was home to William H. "Major" Ray, a one-time 19th-century circus "midget". He later became known as the representative of the Buster Brown shoe brand. He and his wife, Jennie, are buried in a cemetery in Hornersville.[17] Caruthersville is the county seat of Pemiscot County.
The small towns of
The Missouri Bootheel is the home of two members of the musical group the Kentucky Headhunters, Doug and Ricky Phelps. They received their education at Southland C-9, the consolidated schools of Arbyrd and
Also in the northern part of Dunklin County lies the town of Malden, the home of country/rockabilly singer Narvel Felts. Felts' music has played worldwide, as he continues to tour.
Politics
Year | Democrat | Republican | Third Party | |||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
# | % | # | % | # | % | |
2020 | 5,508 | 23.53% | 17,702 | 75.64% | 194 | 0.83% |
2016 | 6,240 | 26.04% | 17,260 | 72.03% | 462 | 1.93% |
2012 | 9,121 | 37.63% | 14,732 | 60.79% | 383 | 1.58% |
2008 | 10,939 | 40.66% | 15,591 | 57.95% | 373 | 1.39% |
2004 | 11,998 | 45.46% | 14,272 | 54.08% | 120 | 0.45% |
2000 | 11,930 | 50.02% | 11,592 | 48.60% | 329 | 1.38% |
1996 | 13,250 | 56.58% | 8,003 | 34.17% | 2,167 | 9.25% |
1992 | 15,084 | 56.84% | 8,616 | 32.47% | 2,836 | 10.69% |
1988 | 12,381 | 51.82% | 11,479 | 48.05% | 32 | 0.13% |
1984 | 12,036 | 45.97% | 14,148 | 54.03% | 0 | 0% |
1980 | 14,431 | 52.35% | 12,813 | 46.48% | 325 | 1.18% |
1976 | 17,107 | 66.27% | 8,653 | 33.52% | 55 | 0.21% |
1972 | 8,293 | 35.06% | 15,358 | 64.94% | 0 | 0% |
1968 | 11,939 | 40.27% | 8,874 | 29.93% | 8,837 | 29.80% |
1964 | 20,965 | 70.66% | 8,706 | 29.34% | 0 | 0% |
1960 | 21,253 | 58.02% | 15,377 | 41.98% | 0 | 0% |
1956 | 25,181 | 66.89% | 12,464 | 33.11% | 0 | 0% |
1952 | 26,932 | 66.84% | 13,327 | 33.07% | 37 | 0.09% |
1948 | 30,173 | 81.54% | 6,797 | 18.37% | 35 | 0.09% |
1944 | 23,437 | 64.71% | 12,715 | 35.11% | 65 | 0.18% |
1940 | 30,114 | 62.65% | 17,845 | 37.13% | 107 | 0.22% |
1936 | 26,195 | 66.72% | 12,970 | 33.03% | 97 | 0.25% |
1932 | 24,887 | 70.66% | 10,160 | 28.85% | 173 | 0.49% |
1928 | 14,291 | 49.38% | 14,608 | 50.48% | 42 | 0.15% |
1924 | 14,140 | 52.49% | 12,265 | 45.53% | 532 | 1.97% |
1920 | 12,737 | 49.15% | 12,643 | 48.79% | 534 | 2.06% |
1916 | 8,885 | 57.20% | 6,039 | 38.88% | 609 | 3.92% |
1912 | 6,285 | 48.60% | 3,567 | 27.58% | 3,079 | 23.81% |
1908 | 6,283 | 56.11% | 4,464 | 39.87% | 450 | 4.02% |
1904 | 4,861 | 58.31% | 3,306 | 39.65% | 170 | 2.04% |
1900 | 5,460 | 67.04% | 2,599 | 31.91% | 85 | 1.04% |
1896 | 5,874 | 76.47% | 1,796 | 23.38% | 11 | 0.14% |
1892 | 4,082 | 74.38% | 1,153 | 21.01% | 253 | 4.61% |
1888 | 3,551 | 73.66% | 1,269 | 26.32% | 1 | 0.02% |
1884 | 3,296 | 77.39% | 963 | 22.61% | 0 | 0% |
1880 | 3,165 | 84.33% | 588 | 15.67% | 0 | 0% |
1876 | 2,935 | 88.40% | 384 | 11.57% | 1 | 0.03% |
1872 | 2,079 | 85.07% | 365 | 14.93% | 0 | 0% |
1868 | 489 | 97.41% | 13 | 2.59% | 0 | 0% |
1864 | 9 | 8.33% | 99 | 91.67% | 0 | 0% |
1860 | 385 | 30.08% | 0 | 0% | 895 | 69.92% |
1856 | 500 | 49.36% | 0 | 0% | 513 | 50.64% |
1852 | 66 | 30.56% | 150 | 69.44% | 0 | 0% |
1848 | 210 | 36.52% | 365 | 63.48% | 0 | 0% |
1844 | 208 | 41.11% | 298 | 58.89% | 0 | 0% |
1840 | 194 | 34.83% | 363 | 65.17% | 0 | 0% |
1836 | No returns | No returns | No returns | |||
1832 | No returns | No returns | No returns | |||
1828 | 58 | 63.74% | 33 | 36.26% | 0 | 0% |
References
- ^ "United States Summary: 2010, Population and Housing Unit Counts, 2010 Census of Population and Housing" (PDF). United States Census Bureau. September 2012. pp. V–2, 1 & 41 (Tables 1 & 18). Retrieved February 7, 2014.
- ^ "Population, Population Change, and Estimated Components of Population Change: April 1, 2010 to July 1, 2019 (NST-EST2019-alldata)". Census.gov. United States Census Bureau. Archived from the original on January 26, 2020. Retrieved February 8, 2020.
- ^ ISBN 0-393-01639-0.
- OCLC 499781.
- ^ Stepenoff, Bonnie (1995). "'The Last Tree Cut Down': The End of the Bootheel Frontier, 1880-1940". Missouri Historical Review. 90 (1): 61–78.
- ISBN 0-19-503667-0.
- ^ "A Black Minstrel Lynched in New Madrid, Missouri (1902)". This Cruel War blog. February 16, 2017. Archived from the original on June 16, 2018. Retrieved April 12, 2018.
- ^ "Lynching in Missouri". Saline County, Missouri/MOGenWeb Project, 1996-2018. Retrieved April 12, 2018.
- ^ Sarvis, Will (2001). "Black Electoral Power in the Missouri Bootheel, 1920s-1960s". Missouri Historical Review. 95 (2): 182–202.
- ISBN 978-0-7391-6985-8.
- OCLC 39634483.
- JSTOR 1900154.
- ISBN 0-19-511107-9.
- ISBN 0-452-27010-3.
- ISBN 0-8093-1319-7
- ^ History of the National Weather Service: Memphis, Tennessee, National Weather Service
- ^ "Buster Brown's Grave, Hornersville, Missouri". RoadsideAmerica.com.
- ^ "Ghostlights". Ghosts.org. Archived from the original on September 8, 2009.
- ^ Yalanda Young (October 31, 2006). "Ghost Hunters Investigate the Senath Lights". Kait8.com. Archived from the original on October 31, 2006.
- ^ "Local News: Cotton Pickin' Concert, Sept. 12". DDDnews.com. Delta Dunklin Democrat. August 23, 2009.
- ^ Deanna Coronado (September 11, 2008). "Arbyrd prepares for Cotton Pickin' Festival 2008". DDDnews.com. Delta Dunklin Democrat.
- ^ Steve Dougherty (June 17, 1991). "Kentucky Headhunters". PEOPLE.com.
External links
- How Did ... Missouri Come To Include the "Bootheel"?, from Missouri's Office of the Secretary of State
- Bootheel map and statistics, from Missouri's Department of Economic Development
- Missouri Bootheel Regional Consortium