Population and Change. Over the period from 2000 to 2006, Christian County's population increased by 16,229, going from 54,285 to 70,514 in 2006. This was a change of 29.9 percent, as compared with Missouri (4.4%).
Components of Change. Natural Increase is defined as births minus deaths. Christian County had 2,698 more births than deaths between 2000 and 2006. Net migration is the difference between the number of people who moved into an area and the number of people who moved out. So a negative net migration means a net loss of persons due to migration, while a positive value represents a net gain. Between 2000 and 2006, Christian County had a net migration of 13,531.
Age. In 2006, Christian County reported 10.7 percent of its residents were 65 and older compared to 13.3 percent statewide. At the same time, the proportion of young people under 18 in the county was 24.5 percent. Missouri reported 24.1 percent during the same period.
Racial Diversity. The 2006 vintage estimates from the Census Bureau indicate that 97.5 percent of the population in the county was White (68,728 persons), while the estimated black population was 332 (0.5%). The same set of estimates indicated there were 321 Asians (0.5%) and 337 American Indians (0.5%). Hispanic is not considered to be a race by the Census Bureau, but rather a separate category. In 2006 there were an estimated 1,358 hispanic persons (1.9%) living in the county.
Place of Residence. Estimates for 2006 also show 47.9 percent of the population lived in places of 2,500 or more in Christian County. Those living in smaller places account for 7.4 percent of the county's population and 44.8 percent lived in unincorporated areas.
Housing. According to the Census Bureau's estimates, there were 28,240 housing units in Christian County in 2006. The homeownership rate in 2000 was 75.9 percent compared to 70.3 percent statewide. The median value of owner-occupied housing units in 2000 was $97,900 compared with a statewide median value of $89,900.
Households and Families. There were about 20,473 households in the county according to the 2000 decennial census. Families comprised 77.6 percent of households (15,893). About 31.1 percent of households were married couples with children under 18, which was more than for the state overall (23.3 percent). Single parent families in Christian County (8.2%) were fewer than Missouri (9.1%).
Families and Children. Median family income for Christian County was $44,428 in 2005 compared to $46,044 for Missouri.
The 2005 poverty rate in Christian County was 9.4 percent which was lower than that of the state (13.6%). The poverty rate among children (14.2%) was lower than that of the state (19.5%).
The annual Kids Count reports Christian County indicators on children were ranked 15 out of 114 counties and St. Louis City in the state in 2006. Kids Count indicators show that low birth weight infants decreased to 5.8 percent and births to teenage mothers were 35.5 per 1,000 girls. The area also reported child abuse cases at a rate of 30.4 per 1,000 for 2006 compared to 32.7 per 1,000 statewide.
Jobs by Sector. The October 2007 unemployment rate was 4.0 percent compared with 5.2 percent statewide. There were 28,050 jobs in Christian County in 2006. Retail Trade accounts for more than 13.9 percent of the total jobs (3,905). Construction (3,725), Other services, except public administration (2,123) and Local government (2,087) are the next highest categories.
Agriculture. The 2002 Census of Agriculture reported 1294 farms in the county with total sales of about $26.968 million and production expenses of $23.283 million. There was $3.685 million in net farm income reported in the county with 4.3 percent of all farms having sales of $100,000 or more and 64.5 percent of farms with less than $10,000 in sales.
County Income Patterns. Christian County generated over $1,695.789 million of total personal income in 2005. Per capita income was $25,195 compared with $31,231 for Missouri. Significant sources of income were:
Commuting. In Christian County, 64.3 percent of workers commute outside their home county to work in 2000. Statewide, 33.4 percent of workers traveled between 30 and 60 minutes to work, while in Christian County 31.2 percent traveled as long. At the same time, 4.3 percent of workers traveled more than 60 minutes to work compared with 5.4 percent statewide.
Educational Attainment. In Christian County, about 20.9 percent of residents aged 25 years and over (7,277) were college graduates in 2000 compared with 21.6 percent statewide. An additional 10,724 residents 25 and over in Christian County had some college education (30.8%) compared with 27.0 percent of all Missourians of that age.
The high school graduation rate in Christian County (90.3%) in 2006 as reported by the Missouri Dept. of Education and Secondary Education was higher than the state (85.8%).
Disabilities. There were 2,998 persons age 65 and older in the county who reported having a disability in 2000 (56.1%). The corresponding Missouri rate is 55.3 percent. Among the working age population (aged 16 to 64) in Christian County 3,335 reported some work disability, a rate of 9.5 percent compared to a state rate of 10.8 percent.
Health Status Indicators. In 2003, over 18.7 percent of Christian County residents report their health was “fair or poor” compared with 16.9 percent statewide. While . percent of Missourians reported having no health coverage, the percent without coverage in Christian County was estimated to be 14.4 percent. State health data report the top two prevalence indicators for the county were Overweight (BMI 25-29.9)(38.2%) and High Blood Pressure(28.9%). Missouri reported 35.3 percent and 28.5 percent in those same categories.
Age-adjusted Mortality. The top age-adjusted mortality rates (per 100,000) for Christian County are (.) and (.). Missouri's rates were . and at . respectively.
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