Jackson County, Missouri

Jackson County is a in the  of Missouri. In, the population was 674,158. This county has the second-highest number of people in the state, after St. Louis County. It has two county capitals, Independence and Kansas City. The county was created December 15, 1826. It was named for  (elected 1828).

Early years
Jackson County was home to members of the Osage Native American tribe. The first known European explorers were trappers who used the  as a highway for explorations and trading with Native American tribes. Jackson County was a part of New France, until the British victory in the in 1763 resulted in the cession of this territory to Great Britain's ally,. Spain was forced by the in 1800 to return its  (of which modern Jackson County then formed a part) to France, which in turn sold it to the United States in the  of 1803.

Explorers and  passed through Jackson County on their famous  in 1804. Among other items, their report indicated a "high, commanding position" along the river within the current boundaries of Jackson County that in 1808 became Fort Osage. This stockade and trading post was one of the first U.S. military installations within the Louisiana purchase territory, and remained active until 1822.

In 1821, Jackson County became part of the newly admitted state of Missouri. Jackson County was organized on December 15, 1826 and named for Andrew Jackson, (and later President) from Tennessee. Its county seat was designated as Independence, which was at the time only a minuscule settlement near a spring. However, the rapid increase in Westward exploration and expansion ultimately made Independence the starting point for three of the great Westward Trails: the Santa Fe Trail, the Oregon Trail and the California Trail. With the American Civil War and the coming of the railroads, nearby Kansas City ultimately eclipsed Independence, though both towns remain county seats.

In 1838, a small piece of land was bought along the in northern Jackson County by the "Town Company," which established "Westport Landing" (today the River Market district). The area outside of Westport Landing was renamed the "Town of Kansas," after the local, in 1839. The town was chartered by Jackson County in 1850 and incorporated by the State of Missouri as the "City of Kansas" in 1853. In 1889, with a population of around 60,000, the city adopted a new charter and changed its name to Kansas City. In 1897, Kansas City annexed Westport.

Latter Day Saints
Jackson County figures prominently in the history of the movement. Although formed in upstate New York in 1830, in March 1831 Joseph Smith said that a location on the Missouri–Kansas border was to be the "New Jerusalem" with the "center place" located in Independence, the county seat. Traveling to the area in the Summer of 1831, Smith and some associates formally proclaimed Jackson County as the site, in a ceremony in August 1831.

Leadership and members of the Latter Day Saint movement began moving to Jackson County as soon as word of the August 1831 dedication ceremony was published. Open conflict with earlier settlers ensued, driven by religious and cultural differences, and the perception by pro-slavery Missourians that the "" "Mormons" were. Vigilantes in the public and private sector used force to drive individual Saints from Jackson to nearby counties within Missouri; eventually, Latter Day Saints were given until the end of November 6, 1833 to leave the county en masse. On November 23, 1833, the few remaining Mormon residents were ordered to leave Jackson County. By mid-1839, following the Missouri Mormon War, Mormons were driven from the state altogether, not to return to Jackson County or Missouri in significant numbers until 1867.

Today several Latter Day Saint movement churches are headquartered in Jackson County, most notably the Community of Christ, the Church of Christ (Temple Lot), the Church of Jesus Christ (Cutlerite) and the Church of. The or LDS Church (the largest of the Latter Day Saint churches) has a strong presence in the county as well, though its headquarters is located in Salt Lake City, Utah. Joseph Smith prophesied that a temple would be built in Independence "in this generation". The Community of Christ remains the only one of the aforementioned (as of 2014) to have a temple in the city on part of the 66 acres (270,000 m2) larger temple area designated by Smith. Smith's original temple site, a smaller five-acre section within that 66 acres (containing stones originally placed by Smith to mark the corners of his intended structure), is currently owned by the Church of Christ (Temple Lot), which hopes to build a temple of its own sometime in the future.

Although the opened in May 2012 in adjacent Clay County the LDS Church still believes that a temple will also be built on the Independence Temple Lot (currently owned by the Church of Christ (Temple Lot)) at some future time. An is currently situated adjacent to the, with the Community of Christ temple directly across the street.

Many early members of the Latter Day Saint movement—including Brigham Young—believed that Jackson County was the site of the biblical. Others who believed this included Heber C. Kimball, and, but there are no surviving first-hand accounts of that doctrine being definitively taught by Joseph Smith himself. Official LDS Church doctrine is unclear as to the exact location of the Garden, but according to LDS tradition it is somewhere in Jackson County in the vicinity of (in nearby Daviess County)..

Civil War
During the, Jackson County was the scene of several engagements, the most notable of which was the Battle of Westport, sometimes referred to as "the of Missouri," in 1864. The Union victory here firmly established Northern control of Missouri, and led to the failure of Confederate General Sterling Price's Missouri expedition. Other noteworthy battles were fought in Independence in 1862, Lone Jack a few days later, and again in Independence in 1864. All three battles resulted in Confederate victories.

Jackson County was heavily affected by Union General 's infamous General Order No. 11 (1863). With large numbers of Confederate sympathisers living within its boundaries, and active Confederate operations in the area a frequent occurrence, the Union command was determined to deprive Confederate bushwhackers of all local support. Ewing's decree practically emptied the rural portions of the county, and resulted in the burning of large portions of Jackson and adjacent counties. According to American artist, himself a resident of Kansas City at the time, one could see the "dense columns of smoke arising in every direction", symbolic of what he termed "a ruthless military despotism which spared neither age, sex, character, nor condition". The legacy of Ewing's "imbecilic" (according to Bingham) order haunted Jackson County for decades after the war.

Twentieth century
The coming of the railroads and the building of stockyards led to the rapid expansion of Kansas City in the late 19th century. During the 1920s and '30s, the city became a noted center for and  music, as well as the headquarters of  and the location of 's first animation studio. The county fared better than many during the Great Depression, as local political boss Thomas Pendergast worked for implementation of a $50,000,000 public works project that provided thousands of jobs (and a great deal of money for the corrupt Pendergast). One of Pendergast's political protegés was a young World War I veteran from Independence,, who had been his nephew's commanding officer in the war. Truman was elected Presiding Judge (equivalent to a County Executive) of Jackson County with Pendergast support in 1926, then went on to become a from Missouri,, and in 1945, following the death of , the thirty-third.

Suburban sprawl became a part of Jackson County's landscape following, as returning soldiers and other workers moved into new homes being built in subdivisions that increasingly encroached on rural portions of the county. Independence, Blue Springs and Lee's Summit experienced growth during this period, which continues to the present. Kansas City, on the other hand, experienced the problems of urban decay that afflicted many large American cities during this period. Recent building projects have sought to reverse this trend, including work on the city's famous City Market, the district, the 18th and, and most recently the.

Geography
The county is located in northwest Missouri on the south bank of the, borders Kansas to the west and has an area of 1,596 sqmi, of which 30 sqmi are water. The following neighboring counties border Jackson County.

Adjacent counties

 * Clay County (north)
 * Ray County (northeast)
 * Lafayette County (east)
 * Johnson County (southeast)
 * Cass County (south)
 * Johnson County, Kansas (southwest)
 * Wyandotte County, Kansas (northwest)

Major highways

 * [[Image:I-29 (MO).svg|20px]]
 * [[Image:I-35 (MO).svg|20px]]
 * [[Image:I-49 (MO).svg|20px]]
 * [[Image:I-70 (MO).svg|20px]]
 * [[Image:I-435 (MO).svg|20px]]
 * [[Image:I-470 (MO).svg|20px]]
 * [[Image:I-670 (MO).svg|20px]]
 * [[Image:US 24.svg|20px]]
 * [[Image:US 40.svg|20px]]
 * [[Image:US 50.svg|20px]]
 * [[Image:US 56.svg|20px]]
 * [[Image:US 71.svg|20px]]
 * [[Image:US 169.svg|20px]]
 * [[Image:MO-7.svg|20px]]
 * [[Image:MO-150.svg|20px]]
 * [[Image:MO-291.svg|20px]]
 * [[Image:MO-350.svg|20px]]

2010 census
As of the 2010 census Jackson County had a population of 674,158. The racial and ethnic makeup of the population was 63.3% non-Hispanic white, 23.7% non-Hispanic black, 0.5% Native American, 1.6% Asian, 0.4% Pacific Islander alone or in combination with one or more other races, 0.1% non-Hispanic from some other race, 3.8% reporting two or more races and 8.4% Hispanic or Latino.

2000 census
As of the of 2000, there were 654,880 people, 266,294 households, and 166,167 families residing in the county. The was 1,083 people per square mile (418/km²). There were 288,231 housing units at an average density of 476 per square mile (184/km²). The racial makeup of the county was 70.10% White, 23.27% Black or African American, 0.48% Native American, 1.28% Asian, 0.18% Pacific Islander, 2.43% from other races, and 2.25% from two or more races. 5.37% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race. 16.7% were of, 9.1% American, 8.9% and 8.8%  ancestry.

There were 266,294 households out of which 29.90% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 43.40% were living together, 14.70% had a female householder with no husband present, and 37.60% were non-families. 31.20% of all households were made up of individuals and 9.90% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.42 and the average family size was 3.05.

In the county, the population was spread out with 25.80% under the age of 18, 9.10% from 18 to 24, 31.10% from 25 to 44, 21.50% from 45 to 64, and 12.50% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 35 years. For every 100 females there were 92.90 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 89.00 males.

The median income for a household in the county was $39,277, and the median income for a family was $48,435. Males had a median income of $35,798 versus $27,403 for females. The for the county was $20,788. About 9.00% of families and 11.90% of the population were below the, including 16.40% of those under age 18 and 8.70% of those age 65 or over.

Religion
According to the Association of Religion Data Archives County Membership Report (2010), Jackson 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 Jackson County who adhere to a religion are (19.51%),  (17.96%), and non-denominational evangelical Christians (11.52%).

Cities

 * Blue Springs
 * Buckner
 * Grain Valley
 * Grandview
 * Greenwood
 * Independence (county seat)
 * Kansas City
 * Lake Lotawana
 * Lake Tapawingo
 * Lee's Summit
 * Levasy
 * Lone Jack
 * Oak Grove
 * Sugar Creek

Villages

 * River Bend
 * Sibley
 * Unity Village

Census-designated place

 * Martin City

Unincorporated Communities

 * Blue Summit
 * Kaw
 * Waldo
 * Ward Park Place