Webster County Natural Hazards Mitigation Plan Part II: Community Profile Part II: Community Profile Location Webster County is located in the western portion of south-central Missouri. It is bordered on the northwest by Dallas County, on the northeast by Laclede County, on the east by Wright County, on the southeast by Douglas County, on the southwest by Christian County, and on the west by Greene County. The county covers an area of 380,161 acres, or about 594 square miles (Dodd, 1990). Incorporated communities include the Village of Diggins and the cities of Fordland, Marshfield, Niangua, Rogersville, and Seymour. Unincorporated settlement areas include Elkland in the northern section of the county and Northview in the central-eastern portion. The City of Marshfield is the county seat. Figure 2-1 September 2009 Draft 2-1 Webster County Natural Hazards Mitigation Plan Part II: Community Profile Development History Named after Daniel Webster, the U.S. Secretary of State, Webster County was organized out of Greene County in 1855 (Secretary of State, 18 January 2005). The county seat was named for Webster’s Massachusetts home, Marshfield (City of Marshfield, History, 13 January 2005). The first settlers came to the area around 1834, mainly from Kentucky and Tennessee, attracted by the abundance of game and fish and the productive native grasses that could be used to raise livestock with little effort. Settlement growth in the county was slow, but Marshfield prospered from its location off an old Indian trail to St. Louis that later became Wire Road when the telegraph line came through in 1862. During the Civil War, two Union fortifications were built in Webster County, one in Marshfield and the other in Sand Springs. The county saw a few skirmishes, but by 1863, the Union soldiers had evacuated and the fortifications were burned by the Confederates (Dodd, 1990, p. 1; City of Marshfield, History, 13 January 2005). The rate of settlement in the county increased in the 1870s, with the building of the St. Louis and San Francisco Railroad through Marshfield and the Kansas City, Springfield, & Memphis Railroad through southern Webster County. (City of Marshfield, History, 13 January 2005). Settlers raised beef, sheep, and hogs; and grain crops, predominately corn, were becoming more and more prevalent. By the late 1890’s, large apple orchards were established in Webster County, which became one of the leading apple-producing counties in Missouri. Tomato production began around 1900 and expanded rapidly. By 1925, Webster County was one of the largest strawberry-producing counties in the state. (Dodd, 1990, pp. 2-3). Livestock production decreased by the early 1900s with the growth of the grain and fruit industries. The fruit industries declined in Webster County between 1930 and 1945 as a result of the Depression, World War II, and other economic factors. In the 1930s, commercial dairying had become the most significant industry in the county. Today, Webster County is still second in the state in milk production. By 1950, grain cropping began to give way to hay and pasture farming, and beef cattle production began to increase. In 2002, Webster County ranked 28th in the state in the number of beef cattle. (Dodd, 1990, pp. 2-3; USDA 2002 Census). During the period 1945 to 2002, the number of farms decreased from 2,848 to 1,962. The average size of the farms increased from 126 to 163 acres. Since 1950, the percentage of part-time farmers has increased. In 2002, nearly 63 percent of the county’s farmers received a part of their personal income from something other than farming. (Dodd, 1990, p. 3; USDA 2002 Census). September 2009 Draft 2-2 Webster County Natural Hazards Mitigation Plan Part II: Community Profile Form of Government Missouri is divided into 114 counties and the City of St. Louis by the Revised Statutes of Missouri (RSMo) §46.040. Counties are political subdivisions of the state “for governmental, political, and public purposes” (Freyermuth, n.d.) and have a wide range of governmental responsibilities. The Missouri legislature has established four classes of counties, based on the assessed valuation of real and personal property (Freyermuth, n.d.; RSMo §48.820). Webster County is classified as a third class county and is governed by a three-member commission. Under the provisions of RSMo §49.010, counties are divided into two districts of nearly equal population (in Webster County, the northern district and the southern district). Each district elects one commissioner and the presiding commissioner is elected by the county as a whole. Commissioners serve four-year terms. There are currently two classes of cities in Missouri--third and fourth class cities, as well as villages and home rule charter cities (Freyermuth, n.d.). Fourth class cities are those with populations greater than 500 but less than 3,000 inhabitants. Villages/towns are incorporations with less than 500 inhabitants (RSMo §72.050). There are six incorporated communities in Webster County; Diggins is incorporated as a village and Fordland, Marshfield, Niangua, Rogersville, and Seymour are fourth class cities. Fourth class cities are regulated by RSMo §79. Such cities are governed by a mayor and board of aldermen. The mayor presides over the board but may vote only to break a tie. Villages, regulated under RSMo §80, are governed by a board of trustees. The board elects a presiding officer (chair) and a clerk, and appoints the village’s officers. Table 2-1 lists the incorporated communities in Webster County, government form and regular meeting dates of the governing bodies. Table 2-1: Webster County Local Governments Local Form of Government Meeting Dates Government Webster County Commission Mon. & Tues. Diggins Chair/Board of Trustees 2nd Mon. Fordland Mayor/Board of Aldermen 2nd Tues. 5:00 p.m. Marshfield Mayor/Board of Aldermen/City 2nd & 4th Thurs. 6:00 p.m. Administrator Niangua Mayor/Board of Aldermen 2nd Mon. 7:00 p.m. Rogersville Mayor/Board of Aldermen/City 1st & 3rd Mon. 7:00 p.m. Administrator Seymour Mayor/Board of Aldermen 2nd & 4th Thurs. 6:00 p.m. September 2009 Draft 2-3 Webster County Natural Hazards Mitigation Plan Part II: Community Profile Physical Characteristics Geology and Physiography Webster County is located on the Ozarks Plateau of the Interior Highlands physiographic province. The county lies within the Springfield Plateau and the Salem Plateau divisions of the Ozarks Plateau. The southern part of the county is mostly on the Springfield Plateau while the northern section of the county lies on the Salem Plateau. The Springfield Plateau is characterized as a prairie-like, gently rolling plain. The Salem Plateau is typified by steep ridges and bluffs bordering rivers, streams and deep drainage channels. The Eureka Springs Escarpment, a northeasterly running narrow belt of hills, separates the Springfield and Salem plateaus. Webster County has the largest area of land with elevations of 1,600 feet and higher in the Ozark uplift region. The highest elevation, 1,740 feet, is in the eastern part of the county, and the lowest, 1,100 feet, is in the area where the Niangua River leaves the county. Figure 2-2 Several faults are located in the county. The Bolivar-Mansfield fault system is the most prominent, crossing the county from the northwest to southeast. This fault system is a series of parallel faults with throws up to 300 feet. Smaller faults, with displacement usually less than 150 feet, are located in the southern part of the county. These include the Fordland, Diggins and Sarvis Point faults. These faults are inactive and are not considered a seismic risk (Dodd, 1990, p. 83). September 2009 Draft 2-4 Webster County Natural Hazards Mitigation Plan Part II: Community Profile Webster County is underlain by limestones, dolomites, shales, siltstones and sandstones. Most of the exposed bedrock in the county consists of cherty limestone and cherty dolomite. Bedrock formations, from oldest to youngest, include the Gasconade Dolomite, Roubidoux Formation, Jefferson City Dolomite, Cotter Dolomite, Compton formation, Northview Formation, Pierson Formation, Elsey Formation, Burlington- Keokuk Limestone, and Pennsylvanian sandstone. The Northview Formation, consisting of silty shales, acts as an aquitard or barrier to the downward percolation of groundwater; water moves laterally along the top of the shale formation, often resurfacing as a spring. The major source of groundwater supplies in the county is from deep wells in the Cambrian and Ordovician age dolomites which produce from 300 to more than 600 gallons of water per minute. (Dodd, 1990, p. 87). The topographic landscape exhibits features of karst, including sinkholes, losing streams, springs and caves. These features result from the weathering and dissolution of the underlying limestone and dolomite bedrock by surface waters and carbonic acids in the atmosphere. These karst features allow surface water, including contaminants from development and poorly planned livestock operations, to enter the groundwater system relatively quickly with little filtration. Hydrology and Drainage Webster County lies within eight watersheds. The northern half of the county is drained by the Pomme de Terre River, Niangua River and Osage Fork of the Gasconade River, all of which flow in a northerly direction. A southeastern section of the county lies within the Upper Gasconade River watershed, which also flows to the north. Most of the southern portion of the county lies within the watersheds of the Upper James River, Finley Creek, Beaver Creek, and Upper Bryant Creek. The Upper James River, Finley Creek, and Beaver Creek are within the White River Basin, flowing south to eventual impoundment in Table Rock Lake. The extreme southeast corner of the county is drained by Upper Bryant Creek which drains to the North Fork of the White River. The Pomme De Terre River, a tributary of the Osage River, originates near the City of Marshfield, flowing in a northeasterly direction to impoundment in Pomme de Terre Lake near Hermitage, Missouri.