BigDaddyData.Com: Missouri Jefferson City

    Jefferson City, in central Missouri on the Missouri River, is the capital of the state and seat of Cole County. It has a population of 35,481 (1990 census). Jefferson City is the center of trade for an agricultural region that grows grain and fruit and raises livestock. Manufactured goods include clothing, electrical appliances, and processed food. The state and local governments are important employers.

    The capitol, which was built (1911-18) in the Italian Renaissance style of Carthage marble, contains murals by painters N. C. Wyeth and Thomas Hart Benton and houses two museums. Lincoln University (1866), a state penitentiary, and a national cemetery are also located there.

    A small river settlement when chosen as state capital in 1821, Jefferson City was laid out (1822) by Daniel M. Boone, son of the frontiersman, and developed slowly with railroad and river commerce. During the Civil War, because of its divided loyalties, the city was occupied by Union troops. The city and its environs were subjected to severe flooding during the summer of 1993.