Gentry County, Missouri

Gentry County is a county located in the northwestern portion of the U.S. state of Missouri. As of the 2010 census, the population was 6,738.[1] Its county seat is Albany.[2] The county was organized February 14, 1841[3] and named for Colonel Richard Gentry[4] of Boone County, who fell in the Seminole War in 1837.

Gentry County
U.S. county
Gentry County Courthouse in Albany
Location within the U.S. state of Missouri
Missouri's location within the U.S.
Coordinates: 40°13′N 94°25′W
Country United States
State Missouri
FoundedFebruary 14, 1841
Named forRichard Gentry
SeatAlbany
Largest cityAlbany
Area
 • Total492 sq mi (1,270 km2)
 • Land491 sq mi (1,270 km2)
 • Water0.3 sq mi (0.8 km2)  0.06%
Population
 (2010)
 • Total6,738
 • Estimate 
(2018)
6,628
 • Density14/sq mi (5.3/km2)
Time zoneUTC−6 (Central)
 • Summer (DST)UTC−5 (CDT)
Congressional district6th
Websitegentrycounty.net

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 492 square miles (1,270 km2), of which 491 square miles (1,270 km2) is land and 0.3 square miles (0.78 km2) (0.06%) is water.[5]

Adjacent counties

Major highways

Demographics
Historical population
CensusPop.%±
18504,248—
186011,862179.2%
187011,607−2.1%
188017,17648.0%
189019,01810.7%
190020,5548.1%
191016,820−18.2%
192015,634−7.1%
193014,348−8.2%
194013,359−6.9%
195011,036−17.4%
19608,793−20.3%
19708,060−8.3%
19807,887−2.1%
19906,848−13.2%
20006,8610.2%
20106,738−1.8%
Est. 20186,628[6]−1.6%
U.S. Decennial Census[7]
1790-1960[8] 1900-1990[9]
1990-2000[10] 2010-2015[1]

As of the census[11] of 2010, there were 6,738 people, 2,674 households, and 1,789 families residing in the county. The population density was 14 people per square mile (5/km²). There were 3,209 housing units at an average density of 6 per square mile (3/km²). The racial makeup of the county was 98.38% White, 0.31% Black or African American, 0.27% Asian, 0.19% Native American, 0.16% from other races, and 0.68% from two or more races. 0.53% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.

There were 2,674 households, of which 29.06% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 55.42% were married couples living together, 8.23% had a female householder with no husband present, and 33.10% were non-families. 29.02% of all households were made up of individuals and 15.07% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.45 and the average family size was 3.03.

In the county, the population was spread out with 24.55% under the age of 18, 7.85% from 18 to 24, 20.67% from 25 to 44, 26.43% from 45 to 64, and 20.50% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 42.4 years. For every 100 females there were 93.62 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 92.43 males.

The median income for a household in the county was $35,556, and the median income for a family was $46,458. Males had a median income of $33,558 versus $25,815 for females. The per capita income for the county was $19,021. About 9.30% of families and 14.90% of the population were below the poverty line, including 24.40% of those under age 18 and 15.00% of those age 65 or over.

Religion

According to the Association of Religion Data Archives County Membership Report (2010), Gentry County is sometimes regarded as being on the northern edge of the Bible Belt, with evangelical Protestantism being the most predominant religion. The most predominant denominations among residents in Gentry County who adhere to a religion are Southern Baptists (46.29%), United Methodists (18.20%), and Disciples of Christ (13.12%).

Education

Public schools

Public libraries
  • Albany Carnegie Public Library[12]
  • Gentry County Library[13]

Politics

Local

The Democratic Party controls politics at the local level in Gentry County. Democrats hold all but three of the elected positions in the county.

Gentry County, Missouri
Elected countywide officials
Assessor Penny Woods Republican
Circuit Clerk Janet Parsons Republican
County Clerk Carol Reidlinger Democratic
Collector Linda Combs Democratic
Commissioner
(Presiding)		 Rod Dollars Republican
Commissioner
(District 1)		 Larry B. Wilson Democratic
Commissioner
(District 2)		 Gary Carlson Republican
Coroner Andrew E. Lindner Republican
Prosecuting Attorney David Parman Republican
Public Administrator Jody L. Novak Democratic
Recorder Janet Parsons Republican
Sheriff Tim Davis Democratic
Surveyor John Dole Democratic
Treasurer Linda Combs Democratic

State
Past Gubernatorial Elections Results
Year Republican Democratic Third Parties
2016 64.07% 1,940 33.35% 1,010 2.58% 78
2012 47.92% 1,429 48.89% 1,458 3.19% 95
2008 42.98% 1,400 54.16% 1,764 2.86% 93
2004 57.61% 1,901 41.03% 1,354 1.36% 45
2000 49.24% 1,522 49.27% 1,523 2.12% 46
1996 29.67% 981 68.75% 2,273 1.57% 52

Gentry County is part of the 2nd district in the Missouri House of Representatives, currently held by J. Eggleston (R-Maysville).

Missouri House of Representatives — District 2 — Gentry County (2016)
Party Candidate Votes % ±
Republican J. Eggleston 2,659 100.00% +47.32
Missouri House of Representatives — District 2 — Gentry County (2014)
Party Candidate Votes % ±
Republican J. Eggleston 844 52.68% -16.36
Democratic Mike Waltemath 758 47.32% +47.32
Missouri House of Representatives — District 2 — Gentry County (2012)
Party Candidate Votes % ±
Republican Casey Guernsey 1,951 69.04%
Independent Jim Nash 875 30.96%

Gentry County is a part of Missouri's 12th District in the Missouri Senate and is currently represented by Dan Hegeman (R-Cosby).

Missouri Senate — District 12 — Gentry County (2014)
Party Candidate Votes % ±
Republican Dan Hegeman 1,322 100.00%

Federal
U.S. Senate — Missouri — Gentry County (2016)
Party Candidate Votes % ±
Republican Roy Blunt 1,860 61.69% +20.11
Democratic Jason Kander 1,025 34.00% -15.26
Libertarian Jonathan Dine 68 2.25% -6.91
Green Johnathan McFarland 35 1.16% +1.16
Constitution Fred Ryman 27 0.90% +0.90
U.S. Senate — Missouri — Gentry County (2012)
Party Candidate Votes % ±
Republican Todd Akin 1,235 41.58%
Democratic Claire McCaskill 1,463 49.26%
Libertarian Jonathan Dine 272 9.16%

Gentry County is included in Missouri's 6th Congressional District and is currently represented by Sam Graves (R-Tarkio) in the U.S. House of Representatives.

U.S. House of Representatives — Missouri's 6th Congressional District — Gentry County (2016)
Party Candidate Votes % ±
Republican Sam Graves 2,297 76.64% +7.23
Democratic David M. Blackwell 623 20.79% -4.30
Libertarian Russ Lee Monchil 45 1.50% -4.00
Green Mike Diel 32 1.07% +1.07
U.S. House of Representatives — Missouri’s 6th Congressional District — Gentry County (2014)
Party Candidate Votes % ±
Republican Sam Graves 1,098 69.41% -3.60
Democratic Bill Hedge 397 25.09% +0.17
Libertarian Russ Lee Monchil 87 5.50% +3.43
U.S. House of Representatives — Missouri's 6th Congressional District — Gentry County (2012)
Party Candidate Votes % ±
Republican Sam Graves 2,151 73.01%
Democratic Kyle Yarber 734 24.92%
Libertarian Russ Lee Monchil 61 2.07%

Political culture
Presidential elections results
Presidential elections results[14]
Year Republican Democratic Third parties
2016 75.7% 2,304 19.9% 605 4.4% 134
2012 66.3% 1,988 31.2% 937 2.5% 74
2008 59.7% 1,964 37.5% 1,235 2.8% 93
2004 63.0% 2,085 36.3% 1,201 0.8% 26
2000 57.0% 1,771 40.9% 1,271 2.0% 63
1996 41.4% 1,361 45.4% 1,493 13.3% 437
1992 34.2% 1,272 40.8% 1,519 25.1% 933
1988 45.3% 1,554 54.5% 1,872 0.2% 7
1984 56.1% 2,047 43.9% 1,600
1980 51.8% 2,005 44.5% 1,720 3.7% 144
1976 43.9% 1,772 55.7% 2,249 0.4% 14
1972 64.5% 2,984 35.5% 1,642
1968 48.7% 2,286 46.7% 2,189 4.6% 216
1964 34.4% 1,677 65.6% 3,198
1960 54.2% 2,888 45.8% 2,439
1956 53.2% 3,020 46.9% 2,662
1952 57.8% 3,429 42.2% 2,508
1948 43.6% 2,633 56.4% 3,410 0.0% 1
1944 49.5% 2,970 50.4% 3,022 0.1% 8
1940 48.2% 3,446 51.6% 3,689 0.3% 19
1936 42.6% 3,115 57.1% 4,173 0.3% 18
1932 33.7% 1,877 66.1% 3,677 0.2% 9
1928 56.0% 3,506 43.7% 2,735 0.2% 15
1924 45.9% 3,318 49.2% 3,555 4.8% 349
1920 49.7% 3,442 48.7% 3,374 1.6% 113
1916 42.3% 1,823 55.8% 2,404 1.9% 81
1912 30.3% 1,268 54.3% 2,268 15.4% 645
1908 44.8% 1,882 53.2% 2,236 2.1% 88
1904 46.9% 2,060 49.1% 2,157 4.0% 174
1900 45.4% 2,185 51.1% 2,459 3.4% 165
1896 40.4% 2,000 58.7% 2,906 1.0% 47
1892 37.8% 1,607 47.2% 2,003 15.0% 638
1888 42.0% 1,623 52.7% 2,039 5.3% 205

At the presidential level, Gentry County is Republican-leaning. George W. Bush carried the county easily in 2000 and 2004. Bill Clinton was the last Democratic presidential nominee to carry Gentry County in 1996, and like many of the rural counties throughout Missouri, Gentry County strongly favored John McCain over Barack Obama in 2008.

Like most rural areas throughout northwest Missouri, voters in Gentry County generally adhere to socially and culturally conservative principles which tend to 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 won in Gentry County with 79.9% of the vote. The initiative passed the state with 71% support from voters. In 2006, Missourians voted on a constitutional amendment to fund and legalize embryonic stem cell research in the state—it failed in Gentry County with 58.3% voting against the measure. The initiative narrowly passed the state with 51% of support from voters as Missouri became one of the first states in the nation to approve embryonic stem cell research. Despite Gentry 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 Gentry County with 63.3% of the vote. The proposition strongly passed every single county in Missouri with 78.99% voting in favor. (During the same election, voters in five other states also strongly approved increases in the minimum wage.)

Missouri presidential preference primaries

2012

In the 2012 Missouri Republican Presidential Primary, voters in Gentry County supported former U.S. Senator Rick Santorum (R-Pennsylvania), who finished first in the state at large, but eventually lost the nomination to former Governor Mitt Romney (R-Massachusetts). Delegates to the state convention were chosen at a county caucus, which selected a delegation favoring Santorum.

2008
  • Former U.S. Senator Hillary Clinton (D-New York) received more votes, a total of 409, than any candidate from either party in Gentry County during the 2008 presidential primary.
Gentry County, Missouri
2008 Republican primary in Missouri
John McCain217 (36.90%)
Mike Huckabee182 (30.95%)
Mitt Romney155 (26.36%)
Ron Paul23 (3.91%)
Gentry County, Missouri
2008 Democratic primary in Missouri
Hillary Clinton409 (53.32%)
Barack Obama312 (40.68%)
John Edwards (withdrawn)38 (4.95%)

Communities

Cities

Villages

Miscellaneous

On March 5, 2010, a jury awarded seven neighboring farmers $11 million in damages from Premium Standard Farms over odors emanating from a hog farm of 4,300 acres (17 km2) that processes 200,000 hogs near Berlin in Gentry County - the largest such award in history.[15]

See also
  • National Register of Historic Places listings in Gentry County, Missouri

References
  1. "State & County QuickFacts". United States Census Bureau. Archived from the original on June 7, 2011. Retrieved September 8, 2013.
  2. "Find a County". National Association of Counties. Archived from the original on May 31, 2011. Retrieved 2011-06-07.
  3. Eaton, David Wolfe (1916). How Missouri Counties, Towns and Streams Were Named. The State Historical Society of Missouri. pp. 169.
  4. Gannett, Henry (1905). The Origin of Certain Place Names in the United States. Govt. Print. Off. pp. 136.
  5. "2010 Census Gazetteer Files". United States Census Bureau. August 22, 2012. Archived from the original on October 21, 2013. Retrieved November 15, 2014.
  6. "Population and Housing Unit Estimates". Retrieved November 20, 2019.
  7. "U.S. Decennial Census". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved November 15, 2014.
  8. "Historical Census Browser". University of Virginia Library. Retrieved November 15, 2014.
  9. "Population of Counties by Decennial Census: 1900 to 1990". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved November 15, 2014.
  10. "Census 2000 PHC-T-4. Ranking Tables for Counties: 1990 and 2000" (PDF). United States Census Bureau. Retrieved November 15, 2014.
  11. "U.S. Census website". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved 2008-01-31.
  12. Breeding, Marshall. "Albany Carnegie Public Library". Libraries.org. Retrieved May 8, 2017.
  13. Breeding, Marshall. "Gentry County Library". Libraries.org. Retrieved May 8, 2017.
  14. Leip, David. "Dave Leip's Atlas of U.S. Presidential Elections". uselectionatlas.org. Retrieved 2018-03-25.
  15. Middleton, Jr, Richard (March 5, 2010). "Hog farm operators ordered to pay $11M for odor". stlouis.bizjournals.com. Retrieved 2018-03-25.

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