Missouri-Specific - HIST 2440 - History of Missouri - Library Guides at University of Missouri Libraries

Maps and Directories

Sanborn Maps for Missouri
The Sanborn Fire Insurance Map Company, established in 1867, compiled and published maps of United States cities and towns for the fire insurance industry to assess the risk of insuring a particular property. The maps are large scale plans of a city or town drawn at a scale of 50 feet to an inch, offering detailed information on the use made of commercial and industrial buildings, their size, shape and construction material.
Missouri State Gazatteer, Shippers' Guide and Business Directory (1866)
Turn to the indicated page in the "Index to Cities, Towns and Villages in Missouri," in this scanned volume, for information on these towns at the time of the Civil War.
Logan's Railway Business Directory [1873]
This scanned volume contains entries for many south-central and southeastern Missouri towns that had railroad stations. Sample entry: "Newport, MO. A station 62 miles from St. Louis, of little importance, drawing a large portion of its supplies from Washington ; has a population of 75 persons, principally railroad employees." Entries for larger towns will list each of the town's businesses.

There are many more Missouri state business directories at the State Historical Society of Missouri for the late 1800s to early 1900s, and they are arranged alphabetically by town. A number of them are also available in HathiTrust (see: Primary Sources tab of this guide).

Election Returns by MO County

You can find election returns by county in the Missouri Blue Books (a.k.a. Official Manual of the State of Missouri, title varies slightly over time), at the call number JK5431 .M58. There is a printed set on the 2nd floor of Ellis Library, but they are also online, from the Missouri Secretary of State website and in HathiTrust. Examples: 1888, 1936, 1960.

Historical Reports on Economic Conditions

Handbook for Community Organizers and County Social Workers (1934)
Shows conditions by Missouri county during the Great Depression, one volume per county. Volumes are stored off-site, so request a copy of the specific volume assigned to your county using the Request Item function.
Community Profiles (1970s-1990s)
The link goes to ONE example of one of these reports by the Missouri Division of Community and Economic Development. They are available for multiple Missouri communities, but must be pulled from the Depository or examined at the State Historical Society of Missouri.

Missouri: An Autobiography (1904)

Missouri: An Autobiography was made for distribution at the 1904 World’s Fair in St. Louis and gives a detailed picture of every aspect of life in the state from that time. Some highlights:

City populations in 1890 and 1900
County profiles starting with Adair. See also example of the page for Scott County, notice it shows population by race, how many foreign-born, how many people owned their farms vs. renting them, and more.
City profiles (just the biggest cities)
- St. Louis
- Springfield
- St. Joseph
- More cities are listed.

HIST 2440 - History of Missouri: Missouri-Specific

Maps and Directories

Election Returns by MO County

Historical Reports on Economic Conditions

Missouri: An Autobiography (1904)