Skidmore, Missouri

Skidmore is a city in Nodaway County, Missouri, United States. The population was 284 at the 2010 Census. The small farming community had a yearly "Punkin' Show" until 2004.[6]

Skidmore, Missouri
City
Location within Nodaway County and Missouri
Coordinates: 40°17′19″N 95°4′44″W
CountryUnited States
StateMissouri
CountyNodaway
Area
 • Total0.33 sq mi (0.85 km2)
 • Land0.33 sq mi (0.85 km2)
 • Water0 sq mi (0 km2)
Elevation
945 ft (288 m)
Population
 • Total284
 • Estimate 
(2016)[3]
269
 • Density860/sq mi (330/km2)
Time zoneUTC-6 (Central (CST))
 • Summer (DST)UTC-5 (CDT)
ZIP code
64487
Area code(s)660
FIPS code29-68132 [4]
GNIS feature ID0726506 [5]

History

The Skidmore area was first settled in 1840 by William Bunton shortly after the Platte Purchase opened the area to settlement. Skidmore itself was platted in 1880 when M. Skidmore donated 20 acres (81,000 m2) to the Nodaway Valley Railroad Company (the agent for the Kansas City, St. Joseph and Council Bluffs Railroad which was eventually taken over by the Burlington Northern Railroad).[7] The railroad no longer operates.

The St. Oswald's Protestant Episcopal Church was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1992.[8]

Crime

On July 10, 1981, Ken McElroy was shot to death with at least two different guns, while sitting in his truck in front of the pool hall in town. Though dozens of people saw the event, all denied seeing anything that would help identify the shooters.[9] McElroy had a reputation as the "town bully," and he had fended off over 20 charges for acts of theft, rape, and other violence (often by means of witness intimidation). In the months before his death, he was appealing a light sentence for shooting a 70-year-old grocer in the neck. Town residents had been upset over the inability of the courts to deal with him. Author Harry N. MacLean recounted the incident and its background in a bestselling and award-winning book, In Broad Daylight.[10] In 1991 the incident was portrayed in a made-for-TV movie starring Brian Dennehy and Cloris Leachman (although filmed in Texas).[11] The Ken McElroy shooting was also the focus of the A&E Network program City Confidential, season 2, episode 22 entitled, "Skidmore: Frontier Justice".

On October 16, 2000, Greg N. Dragoo beat and dragged his girlfriend, Wendy Gillenwater, down several country roads outside of Skidmore, causing her to die. Gillenwater's body was found outside her Skidmore home. Dragoo was charged with murder and given a life sentence by a Nodaway County judge. Dragoo is currently incarcerated in Western Missouri Correctional Center in Cameron.[12][13]

On the afternoon of April 11, 2001, 20 year-old Skidmore resident Branson Perry disappeared after exiting his father's home, to return a pair of jumper cables to a shed in its yard. No one has been charged with a crime in relation to the disappearance. One suspect, Fulton resident Jack Wayne Rogers, now in prison for unrelated crimes, had initially bragged of murdering Branson, but later denied knowing him.

On December 16, 2004, Skidmore was once again the focus of national attention when Bobbie Jo Stinnett, a relative of Branson Perry, was murdered and had her unborn baby cut from her womb.[14] The baby, Victoria Jo Stinnett, was found alive two days later in Topeka, Kansas. The killer, Lisa Montgomery, received a federal death sentence.

Geography

Skidmore is located at 40°17′19″N 95°04′44″W.[15] According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 0.33 square miles (0.85 km2), all land.[1]

Demographics
Historical population
CensusPop.%±
1900561—
19105620.2%
1920528−6.0%
19305381.9%
1940498−7.4%
1950485−2.6%
1960425−12.4%
19704403.5%
1980437−0.7%
1990404−7.6%
2000342−15.3%
2010284−17.0%
Est. 2016269[3]−5.3%
U.S. Decennial Census[16]

2010 census

As of the census[2] of 2010, there were 284 people, 122 households, and 81 families living in the city. The population density was 860.6 inhabitants per square mile (332.3/km2). There were 172 housing units at an average density of 521.2 per square mile (201.2/km2). The racial makeup of the city was 99.3% White, 0.4% Native American, and 0.4% from two or more races.

There were 122 households of which 29.5% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 52.5% were married couples living together, 8.2% had a female householder with no husband present, 5.7% had a male householder with no wife present, and 33.6% were non-families. 27.9% of all households were made up of individuals and 13.9% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.33 and the average family size was 2.80.

The median age in the city was 45.4 years. 21.8% of residents were under the age of 18; 5.6% were between the ages of 18 and 24; 21.7% were from 25 to 44; 32.1% were from 45 to 64; and 18.7% were 65 years of age or older. The gender makeup of the city was 52.8% male and 47.2% female.

2000 census

As of the census[4] of 2000, there were 342 people, 148 households, and 96 families living in the city. The population density was 1,058.8 people per square mile (412.6/km²). There were 173 housing units at an average density of 535.6 per square mile (208.7/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 99.42% White, 0.29% African American, and 0.29% from two or more races.

There were 148 households out of which 29.7% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 52.0% were married couples living together, 7.4% had a female householder with no husband present, and 35.1% were non-families. 31.8% of all households were made up of individuals and 12.8% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.31 and the average family size was 2.89.

In the city the population was spread out with 23.7% under the age of 18, 7.9% from 18 to 24, 26.9% from 25 to 44, 25.7% from 45 to 64, and 15.8% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 40 years. For every 100 females there were 102.4 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 94.8 males.

The median income for a household in the city was $30,500, and the median income for a family was $36,250. Males had a median income of $27,500 versus $20,156 for females. The per capita income for the city was $13,881. About 14.7% of families and 22.1% of the population were below the poverty line, including 36.8% of those under age 18 and 10.9% of those age 65 or over.

References
  1. "US Gazetteer files 2010". United States Census Bureau. Archived from the original on 2012-01-25. Retrieved 2012-07-08.
  2. "U.S. Census website". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved 2012-07-08.
  3. "Population and Housing Unit Estimates". Retrieved June 9, 2017.
  4. "U.S. Census website". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved 2008-01-31.
  5. "US Board on Geographic Names". United States Geological Survey. 2007-10-25. Retrieved 2008-01-31.
  6. "Skidmore Revisited Part 3: Promising Lights - 2018". Missouri Life Magazine. 2018-02-22. Retrieved 2019-02-13.
  7. "Past and Present of Nodaway County Missouri – B.F. Owen & Co. – 1910". Digital.library.umsystem.edu. Retrieved 2012-04-08.
  8. "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. July 9, 2010.
  9. "Ken McElroy Murderer, rapist and consummate intimidator — Keep an Eye on Him — Crime Library on truTV.com". Crimelibrary.com. 1981-07-10. Retrieved 2012-04-08.
  10. Harry N. MacLean, In Broad Daylight: A Murder in Skidmore, Missouri. New York: Harper & Row, 1988.
  11. In Broad Daylight on IMDb
  12. "Charge now reads 2nd-degree murder". 28 November 2000. Archived from the original on 11 October 2013. Retrieved 19 July 2013. Cite journal requires |journal= (help)
  13. "Murdered woman's town has been in spotlight before". 19 December 2004. Archived from the original on 26 March 2018.
  14. "Women Who Kill, Part Two — Obsessed with Babies — Crime Library on truTV.com". Crimelibrary.com. 2004-12-16. Retrieved 2012-04-08.
  15. "US Gazetteer files: 2010, 2000, and 1990". United States Census Bureau. 2011-02-12. Retrieved 2011-04-23.
  16. "Census of Population and Housing". Census.gov. Retrieved June 4, 2015.
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