Population and Change. Over the period from 2000 to 2007, Cole County's population increased by 2,301, going from 71,397 to 73,698. This was a change of 3.2 percent, compared to 5.1 percent for the state.
Components of Change. Natural Increase is defined as births minus deaths. Cole County had 2,761 more births than deaths between 2000 and 2007. Net migration is the difference between the number of people who moved into an area and the number of people who moved out. A negative net migration means a net loss of persons due to migration (more out-movers than in-movers), while a positive value represents a net gain. Between 2000 and 2007, Cole County had an estimated net migration of -462.
Age. In 2007, an estimated 11.8 percent of Cole County residents were 65 and older compared to 13.4 percent statewide. At the same time, the Census Bureau estimated that young people (under 18) made up 23.3 percent of the county's population, compared to 24.2 percent for the state.
Racial Diversity. The 2007 vintage estimates from the Census Bureau indicate that 86.7 percent of the population in the county was White (63,863 persons), while the estimated Black population was 7,659 (10.4%). The same set of estimates indicated there were 1,009 Asians (1.4%) and 276 American Indians (0.4%). (These are all "race alone" figures.) Hispanic is not considered to be a race by the Census Bureau/OMB, but rather a separate ethnic category. In 2006, an estimated 1,271 Hispanic persons (1.7%) were living in the county.
Place of Residence. Sub-county estimates for 2007 indicate that 55.0 percent of the county's population lived in incorporated places of 2,500 or more. Those living in smaller places accounted for 5.9 percent of the county's population, while 39.1 percent lived in unincorporated areas.
Housing. According to the 2007 Census Bureau's estimates, there were 32,071 housing units in Cole County. The homeownership rate in 2000 was 67.8 percent compared to 70.3 percent statewide. In 2000, the median value of owner-occupied housing units was $97,200 compared with a statewide figure of $89,900.
Households and Families. There were about 27,064 households in the county according to the 2000 decennial census. Families comprised 66.5 percent of households (17,990). About 26.3 percent of households were married couples with children under 18, which was more than for the state overall (23.3%). Single parent families accounted for 8.3 percent of all Cole County households, compared to 9.1 percent in Missouri.
Families and Children. Median family income for Cole County was $53,416 in 1999, compared to $46,044 for Missouri.
Jobs by Sector. The May 2008 unemployment rate (per BLS, preliminary and not seasonally adjusted) was 4.1 percent, compared with 5.7 percent statewide. According to Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA) estimates, in 2006 there were 66,658 jobs in Cole County. State government accounted for more than 27.5 percent of the total jobs (18,323). Retail Trade (7,758), Health care and social assistance (6,069) and Construction (4,085) were the next largest industries for this county.
Agriculture. The 2002 Census of Agriculture reported 1098 farms in the county with total sales of $24.658 million and production expenses of $22.966 million. In Cole County, $1.692 million in net farm income was reported with 3.6 percent of all farms having sales of $100,000 or more and 65.1 percent of farms with less than $10,000 in sales.
County Income Patterns. BEA estimates indicate that Cole County generated over $2,582.621 million dollars of total personal income in 2006. Per capita income was $35,278, compared with $32,789 for Missouri. Significant sources of income were:
Commuting. In Cole County, 9.5 percent of workers commuted outside their home county to work in 2000. Statewide, 25.2 percent of workers traveled between 30 and 60 minutes to work, while in Cole County 11.4 percent traveled as long. At the same time, 2.7 percent of workers traveled more than 60 minutes to work, compared with 5.4 percent statewide.
Educational Attainment. In 2000, about 27.4 percent of Cole County residents aged 25 years and over (12,980) were college graduates, compared to 21.6 percent statewide. An additional 12,271 had some college education (25.9%) compared with 27.0 percent of all Missourians over the age of 25.
In 2006, the high school graduation rate in Cole County (82.5%) was less than the statewide rate (85.8%), as reported by the Missouri Department of Elementary and Secondary Education.
Disabilities. In 2000, 4,180 persons age 65 and older in Cole County reported having a disability (54.7%). The corresponding Missouri rate was 55.3 percent. Among the working age population (16 to 64) of Cole County, 3,876 reported some work disability, which was 9.0 percent of all persons in that age cohort, compared to a statewide figure of 10.8 percent.
Health Status Indicators. In 2003, over 12.8 percent of Cole County residents reported their health was “fair or poor” compared with 16.9 percent statewide. While 12.3 percent of Missourians reported having no health coverage, the percent without coverage in Cole County was estimated at 5.8 percent. State health data report the top two prevalence indicators for the county were High Blood Pressure (30.3%) and High Cholesterol (35 years and older) (27.7%). Missouri reported 28.5 percent and 37.3 percent in those same categories.
Age-adjusted Mortality. The age-adjusted cause-of-mortality rate (per 100,000) significantly higher than the state for Cole County was Breast Cancer (20.1). The corresponding Missouri rate was 16.0.
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