Missouri is a state in the Midwest of the United States, the 24th state in the federation. The population is 6,021,988 people (according to this indicator, Missouri ranks 18th in the country; 2012 data). Ethnic composition: Germans – 23.5%, Irish – 12.7%, “Americans” – 10.5%, British – 9.5%, French – 3.5%. The capital is Jefferson City, the largest cities are St. Louis and Kansas City. The official nickname is the Show Me State.
STATE NAME
Missouri got its name from the Missouri River, the largest tributary of the great American Mississippi River. The name of the Missouri River is translated from the languages of the American Indians in different ways. One version of the translation is “muddy river”, the other – “canoeing”.
GEOGRAPHY
The state of Missouri is located in the Midwest of the United States and belongs to the northwestern central states of the United States. The territory of the state of Missouri is 180,533 km2 (21st place among the US states). Missouri is bordered by eight states: Iowa to the north, Illinois to the east, Kentucky and Tennessee to the southeast, Arkansas to the south, Oklahoma to the southwest, Kansas to the west, and Nebraska to the northwest. The state of Missouri is located in the central time zone of the United States. There are three main physiographic regions in Missouri: the Northern Plains, the Ozark Plateau, and the Mississippi River Valley.
CLIMATE
Missouri has a humid continental climate, with fairly cold winters and hot summers. The average temperature of the coldest month, January, in the state’s largest city, located in the east of Kansas City, and in the state’s largest metropolitan area, St. Louis, located in the west, is from -6°C to 3°C. In summer, in July, the temperature in these cities usually ranges from 21°C to 32°C. In Missouri’s third largest city, Springfield, temperatures range from -6°C to 5°C in January and from 20°C to 32°C in July.
At the same time, the state, located almost in the middle of the North American continent, is influenced by both cold Arctic air masses coming from the north and warm tropical ones brought by winds from the Gulf of Mexico; it is not uncommon for Missouri to experience temperature drops of twenty or more degrees per day.
ECONOMY
Missouri’s primary economic sectors are services, industry, agriculture, and mining. The main mineral wealth of the state is lead ores and limestone. More lead is mined in Missouri than in any other US state (according to some reports, up to 90% of the national production of this metal, excluding secondary raw materials). Huge reserves of limestone make Missouri one of the leading producers of lime in the United States – one of the components used in the production of cement. In addition, coal, zinc ores, crushed stone and some other minerals are mined in the state.
TOURISM
Recently, tourism has been actively developing in Missouri. Both the historical monuments of the state (including the birthplaces of the famous American writer Mark Twain and the thirty-third President of the United States Harry Truman) and scenic natural attractions (including the reserves and national parks of the Ozarks) are very popular.
Largest Counties in Missouri
Admitted as part of the Missouri Compromise in 1821, Missouri was a border state during the Civil War and has a history tied to westward expansion. Missouri has 114 counties and 1 independent city (St. Louis). 10 Largest Counties in…
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