Missouri Home Loans

With the 21st largest total area and the 18th biggest population in the country, is made up of 114 counties and the independent city of St. Louis. Jefferson City is the capital, and the four largest urban areas are Columbia, Kansas City, Springfield and St. Louis. The state has a population of nearly six million (5, 982, 413). In the Midwestern part of the U.S., Missouri is unique as it borders eight other states. The Geography of the state includes everything from scenic river bluffs to the Ozarks. Major industries that play an important role in the economy of Missouri include aerospace and transportation equipment. Although the state has no official nickname, residents have unofficially christened it several things including “The Lead State”, “The Bullion State”, “The Ozark State”, “The Iron Mountain State”, and most famously, and perhaps most appropriately the “Show-Me State.” This nickname has several back stories, but is widely attributed to Congressmen Willard Vandiver who once said “I come from a state that raises corn and cotton, cockleburs and Democrats, and frothy eloquence neither convinces nor satisfies me. I’m from Missouri, and you have got to show me.”

The state has a history largely influenced by the indigenous peoples who first inhabited the area and the European exploration and settlement of the area. An integral agricultural center, the wheat, corn and tobacco shipped from the state to lower Louisiana were paramount for the survival of lower Louisiana. St. Louis was founded by the French of New Orleans in 1764 and stayed under European control until the Louisiana Purchase in 1803. Missouri became a state in 1821.

Today the state is largely known for its outdoor activities such as horseback riding, hiking, floating, canoeing and kayaking; as well as the metropolitan areas of St. Louis and Kansas City which offer numerous distinct happenings. A popular Friday night adventure in Kansas City is an art crawl through the Crossroads Art District.

The state is home to several military installations including, the, and . Missouri has a total current military personnel population of 51, 510, and the veteran population is over 505, 000.