Missouri is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States. Ranking 21st in land area, it is bordered by eight states : Iowa to the north, Illinois, Kentucky and Tennessee to the east, Arkansas to the south and Oklahoma, Kansas and Nebraska to the west. In the south are the Ozarks, a forested highland, providing timber, minerals, and recreation. The Missouri River, after which the state is named, flows through the center into the Mississippi River, which makes up the eastern border. With more than six million residents, it is the 19th-most populous state of the country. The largest urban areas are St. Louis, Kansas City, Springfield and Columbia; the capital is Jefferson City.
St. Louis is the second-largest city in Missouri. It sits near the confluence of the Mississippi and the Missouri Rivers. In 2020, the city proper had a population of 301,578, while the bi-state metropolitan area, which extends into Illinois, had an estimated population of over 2.8 million, making it the largest metropolitan area in Missouri, the second-largest in Illinois, and the 20th-largest in the United States.
St. Louis County is located in the eastern-central portion of Missouri. It is bounded by the City of St. Louis and the Mississippi River to the east, the Missouri River to the north, and the Meramec River to the south. As of the 2020 census, the total population was 1,004,125, making it the most populous county in Missouri. Its county seat is Clayton. The county is included in the St. Louis, MO–IL metropolitan statistical area.
Hancock County is the southernmost county of the U.S. state of Mississippi and is named for Founding Father John Hancock. As of the 2010 census, the population was 43,929. Its county seat is Bay St. Louis.
St. Louis County is a county located in the Arrowhead Region of the U.S. state of Minnesota. As of the 2020 census, the population was 200,231. Its county seat is Duluth. It is the largest county in Minnesota by land area, and the largest in the United States by total area east of the Mississippi River, ahead of Aroostook County, Maine.
St. Clair County is the oldest county in Illinois; its western border is formed by the Mississippi River, bordering Missouri. It is a part of the Metro East in southern Illinois. According to the 2020 United States Census, it had a population of 257,400, making it the eighth-most populous county in Illinois and the most populous in the southern portion of the state. Its county seat is Belleville. The county was founded in 1790 by the government of the Northwest Territory, from the western half of Knox County, before the establishment of Illinois as a state as the base for the Illinois Territory. Cahokia Village in the county was founded in 1697 and was a French settlement and former Jesuit mission.
Monroe County is a county located in the U.S. state of Illinois. According to the 2020 census, it had a population of 34,962. Its county seat and largest city is Waterloo.
Madison County is a county in the U.S. state of Illinois. It is a part of the Metro East in southern Illinois. According to the 2020 census, it had a population of 264,776. The county seat is Edwardsville, and the largest city is Granite City.
Belleville is a city and the county seat of St. Clair County, Illinois, coterminous with the now defunct Belleville Township. It is also the seat of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Belleville and the National Shrine of Our Lady of the Snows. The population was 44,478 according to the Census Bureau's 2010 data, making it the largest city in the state south of Springfield.
Bay St. Louis is a city in and the county seat of Hancock County, Mississippi, in the United States. Located on the Gulf Coast on the west side of the Bay of St. Louis, it is part of the Gulfport–Biloxi Metropolitan Statistical Area. As of 2010, Bay St. Louis’ population was 9,260.
Creve Coeur is a city located in mid St. Louis County, Missouri, United States, a part of Greater St. Louis. Its population was 18,834 at the 2020 census. Creve Coeur borders and shares a ZIP code (63141) with the neighboring city of Town and Country. It is home to the headquarters of Drury Hotels, and Monsanto until its acquisition by Bayer in 2018.
Florissant is a city in St. Louis County, Missouri, within Greater St. Louis. It is a middle class, second-ring northern suburb of St. Louis. Based on the 2020 United States census, the city had a total population of 52,533, making it the 12th-largest city in Missouri and the largest municipality in St. Louis County.
Maryland Heights is a second-ring north suburb of St. Louis, located in St. Louis County, Missouri, United States. The population was 27,472 at the 2010 census. The city was incorporated in 1985. Edwin L. Dirck was appointed the city's first mayor by then County Executive Gene McNary. Mark M. Levin served as City Administrator from August 1985 to 2015.
Chesterfield is a city in St. Louis County, Missouri, United States. It is a western suburb of St. Louis. As of the 2020 census, the population was 49,999, making it the state's fourteenth-largest city. The broader valley of Chesterfield was originally referred to as "Gumbo Flats", derived from its soil, which though very rich and silty, resembled gumbo when wet.
Clayton is a city in and the seat of St. Louis County, Missouri. It borders the independent city of St. Louis. The population was 17,355 at the 2020 census. Organized in 1877, the city was named after Ralph Clayton, who donated the land for the St. Louis County courthouse.
St. Charles County is in the central eastern part of the U.S. state of Missouri. As of the 2020 census, the population was 405,262, making it Missouri's third-most populous county. Its county seat is St. Charles. The county was organized October 1, 1812, and named for Saint Charles Borromeo, an Italian cardinal.
Greater St. Louis is a bi-state metropolitan area that completely surrounds and includes the independent city of St. Louis, the principal city. It includes parts of both Missouri and Illinois. The city core is on the Mississippi Riverfront on the border with Illinois in the geographic center of the metro area. The Mississippi River bisects the metro area geographically between Illinois and Missouri; however, the Missouri portion is much more populous. St. Louis is the focus of the largest metro area in Missouri and the Illinois portion known as Metro East is the second largest metropolitan area in that state. St. Louis County is independent of the City of St. Louis and their two populations are generally tabulated separately.
Metro East is a region in southern Illinois that contains eastern and northern suburbs and exurbs of St. Louis, Missouri, United States. It encompasses five Southern Illinois counties in the St. Louis Metropolitan Statistical Area. The region's most populated city is Belleville, with 45,000 residents. The Metro East is the second largest urban area in Illinois after the Chicago metropolitan area and, as of the 2000 census, the population of the Metro East statistical area was 599,845 residents, a figure that had risen to above 700,000 in 2010. The significant growth in the Metro East is mainly due to people in smaller outlying towns in Illinois moving to the area for better economic/job opportunities.
