Christian County is located in the southwestern part of the U.S. state of Missouri. As of the 2020 census, its population was 88,842. Its county seat is Ozark. The county was organized in 1859 and is named after Christian County, Kentucky, which in turn is named for William Christian, a Kentucky soldier of the American Revolutionary War.
Part of the Springfield, Missouri metropolitan statistical area, Christian County experienced rapid growth between 2000 and 2010, becoming the fastest-growing county in Missouri and one of the fastest in the nation, largely due to Springfield's expansion.
Geography According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of , of which (0.2%) is are covered by water. The county is drained by James River and branches of the White River. The surface is undulating or hilly.
Adjacent counties Greene County (north) Webster County (northeast) Douglas County (east) Taney County (south) Stone County (southwest) Lawrence County (west)
Major highways U.S. Route 60 U.S. Route 65 U.S. Route 160 Route 13 Route 14 Route 125
National protected area Mark Twain National Forest (part)
Demographics
Racial and ethnic composition +Christian County, Missouri – Racial and ethnic compositionRace / Ethnicity (NH = Non-Hispanic)Pop 1980Pop 1990Pop 2000Pop 2010 Pop 2020% 1980% 1990% 2000% 2010% 2020White alone (NH)22,11632,12652,40972,98278,89098.72%98.41%96.54%94.27%88.80%Black or African American alone (NH)10351394335970.04%0.11%0.26%0.56%0.67%Native American or Alaska Native alone (NH)1311902814424680.58%0.58%0.52%0.57%0.53%Asian alone (NH)23741543856240.10%0.23%0.28%0.50%0.70%Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander alone (NH)x included in the Asian category in the 1980 Censusx included in the Asian category in the 1990 Census155068xx0.03%0.06%0.08%Other race alone (NH)7313292400.03%0.01%0.02%0.04%0.27%Mixed race or Multiracial (NH)x not an option in the 1980 Censusx not an option in the 1990 Census5601,2034,943xx1.03%1.55%5.56%Hispanic or Latino (any race)1152167141,8983,0120.51%0.66%1.32%2.45%3.39%Total22,40232,64454,28577,42288,842 100.00%100.00%100.00%100.00%100.00%
2020 census
As of the 2020 census, the county had a population of 88,842. The median age was 38.1 years. 26.1% of residents were under the age of 18 and 16.4% of residents were 65 years of age or older. For every 100 females there were 95.9 males, and for every 100 females age 18 and over there were 92.7 males age 18 and over.
The racial makeup of the county was 90.0% White, 0.7% Black or African American, 0.6% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7% Asian, 0.1% Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander, 1.1% from some other race, and 6.8% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino residents of any race comprised 3.4% of the population.
57.8% of residents lived in urban areas, while 42.2% lived in rural areas.
There were 33,385 households in the county, of which 36.0% had children under the age of 18 living with them and 21.4% had a female householder with no spouse or partner present. About 21.2% of all households were made up of individuals and 9.4% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older.
There were 35,134 housing units, of which 5.0% were vacant. Among occupied housing units, 74.5% were owner-occupied and 25.5% were renter-occupied. The homeowner vacancy rate was 1.2% and the rental vacancy rate was 5.2%.
2000 census As of the 2000 census, 54,285 people, 20,425 households, and 15,645 families were residing in the county. The population density was . The 21,827 housing units had an average density of . The racial makeup of the county was 97.31% White, 0.27% African American, 0.56% Native American, 0.29% Asian, 0.03% Pacific Islander, 0.42% from other races, and 1.13% from two or more races. About 1.32% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race; 23.7% were of American, 21.1% German, 12.3% English and 11.3% Irish in ancestry.
Of the 20,425 households, 38.6% had children under 18 living with them, 64.0% were married couples living together, 9.3% had a female householder with no husband present, and 23.4% were not families. Around 19.1% of all households were made up of individuals, and 7.0% had someone living alone who was 65 or older. The average household size was 2.63 and the average family size was 3.00.
In the county, the age distribution was 27.8% under 18, 8.1% from 18 to 24, 31.7% from 25 to 44, 21.8% from 45 to 64, and 10.6% who were 65 or older. The median age was 34 years. For every 100 females, there were 94.7 males. For every 100 females 18 and over, there were 91.5 males.
The median income for a household in the county was $50,200, and for a family was $58,806. Males had a median income of $31,929 versus $21,852 for females. The per capita income for the county was $23,873. About 7.10% of families and 9.10% of the population were below the poverty line, including 13.20% of those under age 18 and 7.80% of those age 65 or over.
Politics Local The Republican Party controls politics at the local level in Christian County. The Republicans hold all of the elected positions in the county.
On May 20, 2015, Sheriff Joey Kyle plead guilty to embezzling county funds and participating in an illegal fraud scheme. As a part of a plea agreement, he immediately resigned as sheriff, was sentenced to one year plus one day in federal prison, and must repay more than $50,000 in restitution to Christian County.
State
+ Past Gubernatorial Elections Results Year Republican Democratic Third Parties202474.71% 37,65823.51% 11,8221.78% 897202074.60% 34,82723.30% 10,8632.1% 970201668.97% 28,61827.94% 11,5933.09% 1,285201258.01% 21,90239.73% 15,0002.26% 852200849.65% 18,55647.73% 17,8402.61% 977200468.61% 21,40030.27% 9,4431.12% 348200058.90% 13,64639.49% 9,1481.61% 373199656.69% 10,55940.22% 7,4913.10% 577
Christian County is divided into three legislative districts in the Missouri House of Representatives, all of which are represented by Republicans.
District 138 — Don Phillips (R-Kimberling City). Consists of the communities of Billings and part of Republic.
District 139 — Rep. Jered Taylor (R-Nixa). Consists of the communities of Clever, Highlandville, Nixa, and Spokane.
District 140 — Rep. Lynn Morris (R-Ozark). Consists of the communities of Fremont Hills, Ozark, Saddlebrook, and Sparta.
All of Christian County is a part of Missouri's 20th District in the Missouri Senate and is currently represented by Eric Burlison (R-Battlefield).
Federal
All of Christian County is included in Missouri's 7th Congressional District and is currently represented by Eric Burlison (R-Ozark) in the U.S. House of Representatives.
Political culture
Like most counties situated in Southwest Missouri, Christian County is a Republican stronghold in presidential elections. George W. Bush carried Christian County in 2000 and 2004 by more than two-to-one margins, and like many other rural and exurban counties throughout Missouri, Christian County strongly favored John McCain over Barack Obama in 2008. The only Democratic presidential candidate to win Christian County since the Civil War has been Franklin Delano Roosevelt in 1932.Menendez, Albert J.; The Geography of Presidential Elections in the United States, 1868–2004, pp. 239, 241, 244 In the 2016 presidential election, Donald Trump was the favored candidate receiving 30,941 votes.
Like most areas throughout the Bible Belt in Southwest Missouri, voters in Christian County traditionally adhere to socially and culturally conservative principles which tend to strongly influence their Republican leanings. In 2004, Missourians voted on a constitutional amendment to define marriage as the union between a man and a woman—it overwhelmingly passed Christian County with 80.46 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 a constitutional amendment to fund and legalize embryonic stem cell research in the state—it failed in Christian County with 58.98 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 Christian 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 (Proposition B) to increase the minimum wage in the state to $6.50 an hour—it passed Christian County with 73.01 percent of the vote. The proposition strongly passed every single county in Missouri with 78.99 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)
Voters in Christian County from both political parties supported candidates who finished in second place in the state at large and nationally. Former Governor Mike Huckabee (R-Arkansas) received more votes, a total of 5,852, than any candidate from either party in Christian County during the 2008 Missouri Presidential Preference Primary.
Education School districts in the county, including those based in other counties with segments of this county, include: - Text list
Ava R-I School District Billings R-IV School District Bradleyville R-I School District Chadwick R-I School District Clever R-V School District Fordland R-III School District Logan-Rogersville R-VIII School District Marionville R-IX School District Nixa Public Schools Ozark R-VI School District Republic R-III School District Sparta R-III School District Spokane R-VII School District
Public schools Billings R-IV School District - Billings Billings Elementary School (PK-06) Billings High School (07-12) Chadwick R-I School District - Chadwick Chadwick Elementary School (PK-06) Chadwick High School (07-12) Clever R-V School District - Clever Clever EleMiddle School (PK-08) Clever High School (09-12) Logan-Rogersville R-VIII School District - Rogersville Logan-Rogersville Primary School - (PK-01) Logan-Rogersville Elementary School - (02-03) Logan-Rogersville Upper Elementary School - (04-06) Logan-Rogersville Middle School - (07-08) Logan-Rogersville High School - (09-12) Nixa Public Schools - Nixa Nixa Early Childhood Center (PK) High Pointe Elementary School (K-04) Mathews Elementary School (K-04) Century Elementary School (K-04) Espy Elementary School (K-04) John Thomas School of Discovery (K-06) Nicholas A. Inman Intermediate School (05-06) Summit Intermediate School (05-06) Nixa Jr. High School (07-08) Nixa Public High School (09-12) Ozark R-VI School District - Ozark North Elementary School (K-04) East Elementary School (K-04) West Elementary School (K-04) South Elementary School (K-04) Upper Elementary School (05-06) Ozark Jr. High School (07-08) Ozark High School (09-12) Sparta R-III School District - Sparta Sparta Elementary School (PK-05) Sparta Middle School (06-08) Sparta High School (09-12) Spokane R-VII School District - Spokane Highlandville Elementary School (PK-05) - Highlandville Spokane Middle School (06-08) Spokane High School (09-12)
Private schools Faith Christian School - Spokane - (PK-12) - Baptist
Colleges and universities Ozarks Technical Community College - Richwood Valley Campus - Public
Public libraries
Christian County Library System