Olivette, Missouri

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Olivette is a city in St. Louis County, Missouri, United States. The population was 7,438 at the 2000 census.

Key roads through Olivette include Olive Boulevard, Price Road, Dielman Road, Old Bonhomme Road, and Interstate 170.

Olivettes neighbors include Overland and unincorportated St. Louis County to the north, Creve Coeur to the west, Ladue to the south, and University City to the east.

1 History
2 Geography
3 Demographics
4 Education
5 Famous Residents
6 Interesting Facts
7 External links

[edit] History

Olivette was settled in the mid 1800s as a small farming community along an old Indian trail originally called the Bonhomme Road (now known as Olive Street). Incorporated in 1930 as Olivette by combining the communities of Central, Tower Hill, Olive, and Stratmann. It was once called Central due to its centralized location along the Central Plank Road (again, now called Olive Boulevard). In fact, Price Road and Olive Boulevard intersect at the exact midpoint between the Port of St. Louis on the Mississippi River and Howell's Landing on the Missouri River. Central became the best stop for wagons to restock on their journey between the two stops. Olivette is home to the first brick schoolhouse in St. Louis County at the corner of Price and Old Bonhomme. For the past 150 years, a schoolhouse has occupied this corner. Logos High School sits here now. Olivette is one of the communities in the county that still maintains its own municipal fire department as well as police department.

[edit] Geography

Olivette is located at 38°40′23″N, 90°22′38″W (38.672951, -90.377328)^GR1.

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 7.2 km² (2.8 mi²), all land.

[edit] Demographics

As of the census^GR2 of 2000, there were 7,438 people, 3,096 households, and 2,173 families residing in the city. The population density was 1,029.3/km² (2,667.5/mi²). There were 3,231 housing units at an average density of 447.1/km² (1,158.7/mi²). The racial makeup of the city was 70.38% White, 21.90% African American, 0.08% Native American, 5.00% Asian, 0.01% Pacific Islander, 0.75% from other races, and 1.87% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 1.57% of the population.

There were 3,096 households out of which 31.5% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 54.2% were married couples living together, 12.7% had a female householder with no husband present, and 29.8% were non-families. 25.8% of all households were made up of individuals and 10.4% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.40 and the average family size was 2.91.

In the city the population was spread out with 23.8% under the age of 18, 5.8% from 18 to 24, 25.4% from 25 to 44, 27.7% from 45 to 64, and 17.3% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 42 years. For every 100 females there were 89.0 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 84.5 males.

The median income for a household in the city was $57,669, and the median income for a family was $67,569. Males had a median income of $49,853 versus $35,278 for females. The per capita income for the city was $32,379. About 3.6% of families and 4.3% of the population were below the poverty line, including 3.8% of those under age 18 and 0.7% of those age 65 or over.

[edit] Education

The public Ladue School District serves all of Olivette. Old Bonhomme Elementary School is located within the city limits. Private schools located within the city include Logos High School and Epstein Hebrew Academy.

[edit] Famous Residents

Lou Brock - former St. Louis Cardinals pitcher Jay Randolph - former St. Louis Cardinals broadcaster Johnny Roland - former football Cardinals player Jim Hart - former football Cardinals player Jim Bakken - former football Cardinals player

[edit] Interesting Facts

1. Centerton Park was the site of the St. Martin's Cemetery dating back to the 1840s. 2. Due to its elevation (700 ft.), Olivette is home to the Stacy Park Water Reservoir built in 1926. 3. The album cover for the rock group Head East's 1975 smash record "Flat as a Pancake" was shot in the Olivette Diner on Olive Boulevard. 4. There are at least a dozen homes in Olivette which are a century old or older. 5. If you stood in the middle of Price Road where Delmar ends, you'd be in three cities at one time: Olivette, University City, and Ladue.