Crawford County was established in 1829 and the County Seat of Steelville was laid out in 1836.[4]
Geography
According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 744 square miles (1,930 km2), of which 743 square miles (1,920 km2) is land and 1.2 square miles (3.1 km2) (0.2%) is water.[5][6]
U.S. Decennial Census[7] 1790–1960[8] 1900–1990[9] 1990–2000[10] 2010[11]
At the 2000 census,[12] there were 22,804 people, 8,858 households and 6,351 families residing in the county. The population density was 31 per square mile (12/km2). There were 10,850 housing units at an average density of 15 units per square mile (5.8/km2). The racial makeup of the county was 98.26% White, 0.14% Black or African American, 0.43% Native American, 0.13% Asian, 0.06% Pacific Islander, 0.14% from other races, and 0.82% from two or more races. Approximately 0.77% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.
There were 8,858 households, of which 32.80% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 58.70% were married couples living together, 9.00% had a female householder with no husband present, and 28.30% were non-families. 24.30% of all households were made up of individuals, and 11.30% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.53 and the average family size was 3.00.
26.30% of the population were under the age of 18, 7.90% from 18 to 24, 26.90% from 25 to 44, 23.10% from 45 to 64, and 15.80% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 38 years. For every 100 females there were 97.30 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 94.60 males.
The median household income was $37,554 and the median family income was $45,059. Males had a median income of $28,005 compared with $18,736 for females. The per capita income was $18,203. About 12.70% of families and 16.30% of the population were below the poverty line, including 23.30% of those under age 18 and 14.10% of those age 65 or over.
Crawford County is split between two of the districts that elect members of the Missouri House of Representatives, both of which are currently represented by Republicans.
District 62 — Tom Hurst (R-Meta). Consists of the northwest corner of the county.
Missouri House of Representatives — District 62 — Crawford County (2018)
Crawford County is like most rural counties, socially conservative and vote in favor of the Republican Party. Bill Clinton was the last Democratic presidential nominee to win Crawford County in 1996. Since then, voters in the county have substantially supported Republicans at the national level.
2008 Missouri presidential primary
In the 2008 Missouri Presidential Primary, voters in Crawford County from both political parties supported candidates who finished in second place in the state at large and nationally.