Christian County
County
The Historic Christian County Courthouse in Ozark
Location within the U.S. state of Missouri
Missouri's location within the U.S.
Coordinates: 36°58′N 93°11′W / 36.97°N 93.19°W / 36.97; -93.19
Country	United States
State	Missouri
Founded	March 8, 1859[1]
Named for	William Christian
Seat	Ozark
Largest city	Nixa
Area
• Total	564 sq mi (1,460 km2)
• Land	563 sq mi (1,460 km2)
• Water	1.2 sq mi (3 km2)  0.2%
Population  (2020)
• Total	88,842
• Density	160/sq mi (61/km2)
Time zone	UTC−6 (Central)
• Summer (DST)	UTC−5 (CDT)
Congressional district	7th
Website	christiancountymo.gov

Christian County is located in the southwestern part of the U.S. state of Missouri. As of the 2020 census, its population was 88,842. Its county seat is Ozark.^[2] The county was organized in 1859 and is named after Christian County, Kentucky, which in turn is named for William Christian, a Kentucky soldier of the American Revolutionary War.^[3]

Christian County is part of the Springfield, MO Metropolitan Statistical Area. Between 2000 and 2010, it was the fastest-growing county in the state and one of the fastest growing ones in the nation as the county became more suburban due to the booming growth in Springfield.^[4]

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 564 square miles (1,460 km²), of which 563 square miles (1,460 km²) is land and 1.2 square miles (3.1 km²) (0.2%) is water.^[5] The county is drained by James River and branches of the White River. The surface is undulating or hilly.^[6]

Adjacent counties

• Greene County (north)
• Webster County (northeast)
• Douglas County (east)
• Taney County (south)
• Stone County (southwest)
• Lawrence County (west)

Major highways

• U.S. Route 60
• U.S. Route 65
• U.S. Route 160
• Route 13
• Route 14
• Route 125

National protected area

• Mark Twain National Forest (part)

Demographics

As of the census^[12] of 2000, there were 54,285 people, 20,425 households, and 15,645 families residing in the county. The population density was 96 inhabitants per square mile (37/km²). There were 21,827 housing units at an average density of 39 units per square mile (15/km²). The racial makeup of the county was 97.31% White, 0.27% Black or African American, 0.56% Native American, 0.29% Asian, 0.03% Pacific Islander, 0.42% from other races, and 1.13% from two or more races. Approximately 1.32% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race. 23.7% were of American, 21.1% German, 12.3% English and 11.3% Irish ancestry.

There were 20,425 households, out of which 38.60% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 64.00% were married couples living together, 9.30% had a female householder with no husband present, and 23.40% were non-families. 19.10% of all households were made up of individuals, and 7.00% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.63 and the average family size was 3.00.

In the county, the population was spread out, with 27.80% under the age of 18, 8.10% from 18 to 24, 31.70% from 25 to 44, 21.80% from 45 to 64, and 10.60% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 34 years. For every 100 females, there were 94.70 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 91.50 males.

The median income for a household in the county was $50,200, and the median income for a family was $58,806. Males had a median income of $31,929 versus $21,852 for females. The per capita income for the county was $23,873. About 7.10% of families and 9.10% of the population were below the poverty line, including 13.20% of those under age 18 and 7.80% of those age 65 or over.

2020 Census

Politics

Local

The Republican Party controls politics at the local level in Christian County. The Republicans hold all of the elected positions in the county.

On May 20, 2015, Sheriff Joey Kyle plead guilty to embezzling county funds and participating in an illegal fraud scheme. As a part of a plea agreement, he immediately resigned as sheriff, was sentenced to one year plus one day in federal prison, and must repay more than $50,000 in restitution to Christian County.^[14]

State

Christian County is divided into three legislative districts in the Missouri House of Representatives, all of which are represented by Republicans.

• District 138 — Don Phillips (R-Kimberling City). Consists of the communities of Billings and part of Republic.

• District 139 — Rep. Jered Taylor (R-Nixa). Consists of the communities of Clever, Highlandville, Nixa, and Spokane.

• District 140 — Rep. Lynn Morris (R-Ozark). Consists of the communities of Fremont Hills, Ozark, Saddlebrook, and Sparta.