- This is about the city in central Missouri; Sedalia is also a very small town in Colorado.
Sedalia is a city located in Pettis County, Missouri, at the intersection of U.S. Highway 50 and U.S. Highway 65. As of the 2000 census, the city had a total population of 20,339. It is the county seat of Pettis County6 and the largest city near Whiteman Air Force Base.
Sedalia was once the residence of the famous ragtime composer Scott Joplin. Joplin, and ragtime music in general, are honored in a yearly Ragtime Festival.
The Missouri State Fair is held in Sedalia every August. The Katy Trail passes through the city.
A fun place to eat here is the Wheel In Drive In, which opened in 1947 and still serves its famous "guberburger" (a hamburger slathered in peanut butter, better than it sounds).
History
The area that became Sedalia was founded by General George R. Smith in 1857 with the name Sedville. Until it was incorporated in 1860 as Sedalia, the city existed only on paper. General Smith would later go on to found nearby Smithton, Missouri.
Both Sedville and Sedalia were named after Smith's daughter, Sarah "Sed" Smith-Cotton.
Sedalia's early prosperity was directly related to the railroad industry with tracks and machine shops for the Missouri Pacific and Missouri-Kansas-Texas Railroad lines.
Sedalia's library was built in 1895 and was the first of the Carnegie libraries in Missouri and is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
Geography Sedalia is located at 38°42'11" North, 93°13'52" West (38.702918, -93.231147)1.
According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 31 km˛ (12 mi˛), none of which is covered by water.
Demographics As of the census2 of 2000, there are 20,339 people in the city, organized into 8,628 households and 5,228 families. The population density is 656.6/km˛ (1,700.8/mi˛). There are 9,419 housing units at an average density of 304.1/km˛ (787.6/mi˛). The racial makeup of the city is 88.62% White, 4.95% African American, 0.40% Asian, 0.39% Native American, 0.02% Pacific Islander, 3.75% from other races, and 1.86% from two or more races. 5.55% of the population are Hispanic or Latino of any race.
There are 8,628 households out of which 28.8% have children under the age of 18 living with them, 44.0% are married couples living together, 12.6% have a female householder with no husband present, and 39.4% are non-families. 33.1% of all households are made up of individuals and 14.7% have someone living alone who is 65 years of age or older. The average household size is 2.32 and the average family size is 2.94.
In the city the population is spread out with 24.7% under the age of 18, 10.8% from 18 to 24, 27.7% from 25 to 44, 19.4% from 45 to 64, and 17.4% who are 65 years of age or older. The median age is 36 years. For every 100 females there are 90.0 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there are 86.3 males.
The median income for a household in the city is $28,641, and the median income for a family is $34,938. Males have a median income of $28,208 versus $19,520 for females. The per capita income for the city is $15,931. 15.3% of the population and 12.5% of families are below the poverty line. Out of the total population, 20.8% of those under the age of 18 and 10.5% of those 65 and older are living below the poverty line.
External links - Maps and aerial photos
- Street map from Mapquest (http://www.mapquest.com/maps/map.adp?latlongtype=decimal&latitude=38.702918&longitude=-93.231147&zoom=6)
- Topographic map from Topozone (http://www.topozone.com/map.asp?lat=38.702918&lon=-93.231147&s=200&size=m&layer=DRG100)
- Aerial photograph from Microsoft Terraserver (http://terraserver.microsoft.com/map.aspx?t=1&s=14&lon=-93.231147&lat=38.702918&w=750&h=500)
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