About Missouri

Named for the Missouri River which runs through it, which in turn was named for a Siouan Indian tribe whose name roughly translates to “those who have dugout canoes”, the American State of Missouri was part of the 1803 Louisiana Purchase (the territory was bought from the French) before it became a slave state (and an actual state, for that matter) in 1821 at the event of the Missouri compromise. It soon became known as the “Gateway to the West” among travelers, and eventually an economy reliant on the river and agriculture was cultivated. Later on, the culture was slavery was abolished all over the nation and Missouri became a free man's state.

Since those days, Missouri has ranked as eighteenth in the list of the United States of America's most populous states, made up of one hundred and fourteen counties and one independent city. Its current capital is Jefferson City, even though its largest city is Kansas City (yes, we recognize the irony of Kansas City not being in the state of Kansas) and its largest metropolitan area is St. Louis. Today, Missouri is considered as a bellwether state, or a state that has been known to consistently vote for the winner of the presidential elections.