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Missouri Counties
Missouri has one hundred and fourteen counties and one independent city. St. Louis City is separate from St. Louis County and is referred to as a "city not within a county." Following the Louisiana Purchase and the admittance of Louisiana into the United States in 1812, five counties were formed out of the Missouri Territory at the first general assembly. Most subsequent counties were apportioned from these five original counties.Knox County, Missouri
Knox County Education, Geography, and History
Knox County is a county located in the northeast portion of the state of Missouri. Based on the 2010 census, the population was 4,131, making it the third-least populous county in Missouri. Its county seat is Edina. The county was organized February 14, 1845 and named for US Secretary of War General Henry Knox
Etymology - Origin of Knox County Name
Named for Henry Knox, Revolutionary War general.
Demographics:
County QuickFacts: CensusBureau Quick Facts
History of Knox County
Knox County is about twenty-five miles south of the Iowa State line and the same distance west of the Mississippi River. It was framed from Scotland County in 1843, though it remained attached to the county "until such time as it should be fully organized." Until the organization of Scotland County in 1841, it had been a part of Lewis County. Knox completed its organization by 1845, at which time it had four townships. Today it has twelve. It is bounded on the north by Scotland County, on the east by Clark and Lewis, on the south by Shelby and Macon, and on the west by Macon and Adair. The first settlers came originally from Kentucky, Maryland, Ohio, and counties farther south. The Norwegians had a considerable colony on the headwaters of Black Creek and the North Fork of Salt River. There was an early Irish colony, and a large number of Germans came in. The closest land-office was at Palmyra. Land was not open to government entry until 1840, and the settlers as a consequence resorted to "Tomahawk Claims" (q.v.). The county was settled with startling rapidity, owing to its well-watered, undulating prairie, with its luxuriant growth of grass and ready supply of timber, its water courses ranging from only four to six miles apart. Knox was one of a number of counties in the United States named in honor of General Henry Knox (1750-1806), a Boston book seller, who became Washington's chief of artillery during the Revolutionary War, and served as the first Secretary of War of the United States (1785- 1794). A doughty soldier he is said to have been the chroniclers tell us that he went about the night before the night before the battle of Trenton "tugging at his guns like a Trojan and swearing like a pirate." He was much admired for his prowess. (HIST. KNOX 1887, 555, 556, 570, 572, 740, 741; ATLAS KNOX 1876, 54; Eaton, 182; Davis & Durrie 1876, 387, 388; INTERN. CYC.)
Source: Elliott, Katherine. "Place Names of Six Northeast Counties of Missouri." M.A. thesis., University of Missouri-Columbia, 1938.
Geography: Land and Water
As reported by the Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 507 square miles (1,310 km2), of which 504 square miles (1,310 km2) is
land and 2.8 square miles (7.3 km2) (0.6%) is water.
Neighboring Counties
Bordering counties are as follows:
- Scotland County (north)
- Clark County (northeast)
- Lewis County (east)
- Shelby County (south)
- Macon County (southwest)
- Adair County (west)
Education
Public schools
Knox County R-I School District - Edina
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