County Information

Christian County covers approximately 564 square miles in Southwest Missouri and is bordered by Greene, Lawrence, Stone, Taney, Douglas and Webster Counties. Though Christian County is one of the fastest growing counties in the State of Missouri and is considered part of the Springfield Metropolitan Statistical Area (Greene, Christian, Dallas, Polk and Webster Counties), the southern part of the County is predominantly rural in character.

     The vast majority of the County is unincorporated (555.6 square miles). Incorporated communities include the Village of Saddlebrooke and the cities of Billings, Clever, Fremont Hills, Highlandville, Nixa, Ozark, and Sparta. Of these cities, Nixa and Ozark are the largest with Census 2000 populations of 12,124 and 9,665, respectively. Saddlebrooke, which incorporated in 2003, is the smallest community with an estimated population of 15.

Development History

When the first European trappers and hunters entered the Southwest Missouri region in the early 1800s, the Christian County area was occupied by the Osage Indians. The region passed from the control of the Osage to the Spanish and French until it became a territory of the United States through the Louisiana Purchase of 1803.1 Henry Rowe Schoolcraft explored the region in 1819 and the first permanent settlers arrived within two years.2 The area’s rivers served as the avenues for exploration and focal point for the development of the first permanent communities, such as the City of Ozark, which developed along the banks of Finley Creek. Created from territories of Greene, Taney and Webster counties, Christian County was formally organized as a county by an act of the Missouri Legislature on March 8, 1859.3 Ozark was selected as the county seat because of its central location and accessibility.

Trade roads and the advent of the railroads brought new settlement patterns and economic growth to Christian County in the later 1800s. The railroad utilized the area's timber reserves for tie production and industry. While Chadwick and Ozark became shipping centers for agricultural products to and from southern Missouri and northern Arkansas, Sparta became a center for shipping railroad ties and timber. Growth of the City of Billings, located in the fertile agricultural area in the western panhandle of Christian County, was also spurred by the extension of the St. Louis and San Francisco railroad through the area. The communities of Nixa and Clever developed along road/trade routes. Nixa developed at the intersection of the Wilderness Road leading south from Springfield and a road leading west (currently Missouri Highway 14) from the Ozark area. Clever developed as a trading post along the Old Wire road, a principal road west of the Mississippi River running from St. Louis to the southwest United States.

Through the late 1800s to early 1900s, the area's agricultural base spurred related agricultural businesses, ranging from grist milling to cheese production to vegetable canning. Christian County has experienced many changes in its economy since the mid-1800s. A decreasing demand for the area’s grain crops, fruits and vegetables after the Great Depression resulted in a shift to beef and dairy cattle production as the dominant agricultural sector activity.

The primary catalyst to the County's growth and economic diversification in the later half of the 20th century has been proximity and improved road linkages with Springfield to the north. Rapid industrial growth in the Springfield area during the 1960s and 1970s provided employment opportunities within commuting distance for Christian County residents. During the 1980s, the County continued to attract new residents, many who desired to live in a more rural atmosphere but within close proximity to the amenities of the Springfield metropolitan area.

Christian County today exhibits a more diversified economic base with a pattern of development influenced by its location between the Springfield metropolitan area to the north and the Branson, Tri-Lakes area to the south. The growth of the tourism and recreation economy in the Branson area since 1990 has served as a catalyst for rapid in-migration of population and new residential and commercial development. Transportation system improvements over the past decade in the Springfield-Branson corridor have also spurred the in-migration of residents who are within commuting distance of employment centers in Springfield and the Branson/Tri-Lakes area. The northern portion of the County is quickly urbanizing with residential and service/convenience commercial activities. The southern portions of the County remain relatively undeveloped, due to the Mark Twain National Forest acreage.

Population Trends

Christian County has experienced continuous and rapid growth since the 1970s, far outpacing the rate of growth for the State of Missouri and the United States. The County’s rate of growth has been explosive since 1990, with population increasing from 32,644 in 1990 to 54,295 in 2000, a 66.3 percent rate of growth. In migration overwhelmingly accounts for the County’s rapid increase in population. During the 1990s, natural increase (births-deaths)accounted for an increase of 3,493 persons or only 16 percent of the total population increase of
21,641 persons.

Both the urban and rural populations in Christian County have steadily increased since the 1970s. In 2000, the rural population accounted for 51.2 percent of total County population. Between 1990 and 2000, the urban population increased to where the urban/rural population
ratio is nearly equal. Population estimates for 2002 rank Christian County as one of the fastest growing counties in the State and the cities of Ozark and Nixa among the fastest growing communities.