Ellsinore, Missouri
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Ellsinore is a town in Carter County,
Missouri Missouri (''see #Etymology and pronunciation, pronunciation'') is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. Ranking List of U.S. states and territories by area, 21st in land area, it border ...
, United States. The 2020 U.S. Census showed Ellsinore with a population of 416.


History

The site of the town of Ellsinore was originally
patented A patent is a type of intellectual property that gives its owner the legal right to exclude others from making, using, or selling an invention for a limited period of time in exchange for publishing an enabling disclosure of the invention."A ...
on April 15, 1857, by Robert Patterson just two years before Carter County was organized. The land was later sold to a Mr. Cook, who in October 1876, sold the land to Charles Hearin. Charles Hearin cleared the land and raised corn and pumpkins on it. In 1888 Charles Hearin gave the Houck Railroad a right of way across his land, laid out the town, and built a railroad depot on the south side of the creek. On March 2, 1889, the Current Local printed the following: “Over in the kingdom of Carter, on the land of the Cape Girardeau and Southwestern Railroad (Houck Railroad), at a point eleven miles distant from Williamsville, there is in process of evolution a little town bearing the name of Ellsinore …” It is not exactly certain how the town came to be called Ellsinore, but the most widely accepted story is that Mr. Brooks, the chief engineer of the Houck Railroad, named the town after Elsinore Castle in Denmark, the setting of
William Shakespeare William Shakespeare ( 23 April 1564 – 23 April 1616) was an English playwright, poet and actor. He is widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's pre-eminent dramatist. He is often called England's nation ...
's ''
Hamlet ''The Tragedy of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark'', often shortened to ''Hamlet'' (), is a Shakespearean tragedy, tragedy written by William Shakespeare sometime between 1599 and 1601. It is Shakespeare's longest play. Set in Denmark, the play (the ...
''. The post office however added an extra “l” making the spelling “Ellsinore.” In 1888 John Carr opened the first store in Ellsinore which catered largely to the men who were building the railroad. In early 1889 the Ellsinore Post Office was established, Silace Pace being its first postmaster. In 1889 William Crommer and Bob Evans began operating a sawmill at Ellsinore, buying up most of the timber in the area that had not already been bought up by the Missouri Lumber and Mining Company. After passing through a number of hands it finally closed down in 1903 and the equipment moved to Kelley Fork in Wayne County. In 1891 the first school was organized in Ellsinore. It consisted of a one-room school building and a two-room L-shaped building. Almost all the equipment was home made and the entire library consisted of a single very old copy of Webster's dictionary. The school was located near where the old water tower is located. In 1895 the Ellsinore Hotel, run by Mamie Seats, was built and began operations. In 1904 E. P. Queen and S. F. Jackson started up a new sawmill at Ellsinore. It was sold to the Store and Timber Company in 1908, which soon after went bankrupt. In 1904 W. E. Condray and Clarence Crites began the Carter County Canning Company (4C Brand) in Ellsinore, but the business folded in 1907 largely due to a lack of interest. In 1907 the Bank of Ellsinore was established. The bank was robbed on August 14, 1918, but no arrests were ever made. The Bank of Ellsinore closed its doors in 1930. In 1912 the Ellsinore, Crommer Town, Lower Ten Mile, Upper Ten Mile, Hogan Hollow, White's Mill and Freeland school districts consolidated for the purpose of creating a high school. In 1912 after passing through a number of owners the Ellsinore Hotel burned, and a new structure, the Seats Hotel, was built on the lot in 1913. In 1913/14 the Ellsinore High School was accredited by the State Department of Education. In 1918 “The Ellsinore News” began publication. Its name was later changed to “The Carter County News.” The newspaper folded in 1926. In 1919 a new school building, a two-story brick structure, was built on the south side of town on the site where the school currently stands. In 1920 the Farmers State Bank was established. Financial difficulty forced it to close its doors in 1924. In 1937 the Ellsinore School was rebuilt with WPA labor. In 1938 the Ellsinore Post Office became the first office for Ozark Border Electric Cooperative and its postmaster, P.G. Wingo became the cooperative's first board president. On April 13, 1939, a ceremonial first pole for Ozark Border Electric Cooperative was raised behind the Ellsinore Post Office.


Geography

Ellsinore is located on
Missouri Route V A supplemental route is a state secondary road in the U.S. state of Missouri, designated with letters. Supplemental routes were various roads within the state which the Missouri Department of Transportation was given in 1952 to maintain in addit ...
approximately one mile north of
US Route 60 U.S. Route 60 is a major east–west United States highway, traveling from southwestern Arizona to the Atlantic Ocean coast in Virginia. The highway's eastern terminus is in Virginia Beach, Virginia, where it is known as General Booth Bouleva ...
. It is approximately 14 miles east-southeast of Van Buren and within the
Mark Twain National Forest Mark Twain National Forest (MTNF) is a U.S. National Forest located in the southern half of Missouri, composed of nine disconnected parcels. MTNF was established on September 11, 1939. It is named for author Mark Twain, a Missouri native. The ...
. According to the
United States Census Bureau The United States Census Bureau, officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the Federal statistical system, U.S. federal statistical system, responsible for producing data about the American people and American economy, econ ...
, the city has a total area of , all land. Notable Locations The Alcorn Corner House - At the North side of town by the Headstart building . Is one of the oldest buildings in the town, built around 1904. The name is derived from Lafayette and Alice Alcorn who farmed the property from about 1906 until retirement in 1943. It was later owned by Virgie Alcorn Evans. 2 Historical bridges - one In town that is part of Main Street and one connecting CR330 to town. The Pioneer Museum - On Main Street, after the first bridge. Royal Oak Charcoal - on county road 330 off highway 60


Demographics


2010 census

As of the
census A census (from Latin ''censere'', 'to assess') is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording, and calculating population information about the members of a given Statistical population, population, usually displayed in the form of stati ...
of 2010, there were 446 people, 190 households, and 112 families residing in the city. The
population density Population density (in agriculture: Standing stock (disambiguation), standing stock or plant density) is a measurement of population per unit land area. It is mostly applied to humans, but sometimes to other living organisms too. It is a key geog ...
was . There were 225 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the city was 99.10%
White White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no chroma). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully (or almost fully) reflect and scatter all the visible wa ...
, 0.45% Native American, and 0.45% from two or more races.
Hispanic The term Hispanic () are people, Spanish culture, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or broadly. In some contexts, Hispanic and Latino Americans, especially within the United States, "Hispanic" is used as an Ethnici ...
or Latino of any race were 1.12% of the population. There were 190 households, of which 28.4% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 41.6% were
married couples Marriage, also called matrimony or wedlock, is a culturally and often legally recognised union between people called spouses. It establishes rights and obligations between them, as well as between them and their children (if any), and b ...
living together, 12.6% had a female householder with no husband present, 4.7% had a male householder with no wife present, and 41.1% were non-families. 38.9% of all households were made up of individuals, and 25.2% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.35 and the average family size was 3.08. The median age in the city was 37.3 years. 25.3% of residents were under the age of 18; 9.9% were between the ages of 18 and 24; 21.3% were from 25 to 44; 22.2% were from 45 to 64; and 21.3% were 65 years of age or older. The gender makeup of the city was 42.6% male and 57.4% female.


2000 census

As of the
census A census (from Latin ''censere'', 'to assess') is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording, and calculating population information about the members of a given Statistical population, population, usually displayed in the form of stati ...
of 2000, there were 363 people, 162 households, and 99 families residing in the city. The population density was . There were 184 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the city was 98.07%
White White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no chroma). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully (or almost fully) reflect and scatter all the visible wa ...
, 0.55% Native American, and 1.38% from two or more races.
Hispanic The term Hispanic () are people, Spanish culture, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or broadly. In some contexts, Hispanic and Latino Americans, especially within the United States, "Hispanic" is used as an Ethnici ...
or Latino of any race were 0.28% of the population. There were 162 households, out of which 25.3% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 47.5% were
married couples Marriage, also called matrimony or wedlock, is a culturally and often legally recognised union between people called spouses. It establishes rights and obligations between them, as well as between them and their children (if any), and b ...
living together, 10.5% had a female householder with no husband present, and 38.3% were non-families. 36.4% of all households were made up of individuals, and 25.3% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.20 and the average family size was 2.85. In the city the population was spread out, with 22.6% under the age of 18, 9.1% from 18 to 24, 21.2% from 25 to 44, 20.4% from 45 to 64, and 26.7% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 43 years. For every 100 females, there were 78.8 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 75.6 males. The median income for a household in the city was $17,143, and the median income for a family was $27,188. Males had a median income of $26,125 versus $16,250 for females. The
per capita income Per capita income (PCI) or average income measures the average income earned per person in a given area (city, region, country, etc.) in a specified year. In many countries, per capita income is determined using regular population surveys, such ...
for the city was $11,444. About 10.6% of families and 19.7% of the population were below the
poverty line The poverty threshold, poverty limit, poverty line, or breadline is the minimum level of income deemed adequate in a particular country. The poverty line is usually calculated by estimating the total cost of one year's worth of necessities for ...
, including 22.8% of those under age 18 and 20.8% of those age 65 or over.


Education

Public education in Ellsinore is administered by East Carter County R-Ii School District, which operates one elementary school, one middle school and East Carter Co. R-II High School. The town has a lending library, a branch of the Carter County Library.


Notable people

* Melvin Eugene Carnahan (1934 – 2000), Governor of Missouri from 1993 to 2000 * Albert Sidney Johnson Carnahan (1897 – 1968), member of the United States House of Representatives for southeastern Missouri for 14 years


References


External links


Ellsinore.com
{{authority control 1888 establishments in Missouri Cities in Carter County, Missouri Populated places established in 1888 Cities in Missouri Kronborg