Missouri

Missouri is the 21st largest state in the United States. It shares a border with Tennessee, Arkansas, Oklahoma, Iowa, Illinois, Kentucky, Kansas, and Nebraska. Missouri is the 18th highest populated state. It has 114 counties and one independent city.

The Mississippi River defines the eastern border of the state. The Missouri River runs West to East, almost connecting the two largest cities of Kansas City and St. Louis. Both are used for transportation, as St. Louis is a hub for barge traffic.

Missouri has over 5,380 registered and mapped wild caves, second only to Kentucky.http://missouricaves.com/mo-map.htm Three hundred of these caves are situated around the Lake of the Ozarks. A wild cave is one that does not have installations such as walkways and lights to aid in the viewing of the cave. There are some caves in the state that are show caves and are open to the public. These are Bridal Cave, Jacob’s Cave, Fantasy World Caverns and Ozark Caverns.http://www.odd.net/ozarks/caves.htm

Missouri was part of the Louisiana Purchase in 1803, sold to the United States from France for $15 million dollars. In 1821 Missouri developed its first Constitution, and was admitted as a slave state under the Missouri Compromise. It became a state on August 10, 1821.

Famed explorers Lewis and Clark began their historical journey from Missouri to the Pacific Ocean. Missouri was known then as the Louisiana Territory.http://www.lewisclark.net/

The major industries of Missouri are aerospace, chemicals, printing/publishing, electrical equipment, transportation equipment, food processing, light manufacturing, limestone, and beer.

Missouri is ranked sixth in the nation for its production of hogs, and seventh for cattle. Other agricultural mainstays are soybeans, dairy products, hay, corn, chicken, sorghum, and eggs. Missouri boasts more farms than any other state with the exception of Texas.http://mda.mo.gov/