Bethel, Missouri

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Bethel is a village in Shelby County, Missouri, United States. The population was 121 at the 2000 census.

1 History
2 Geography
3 Demographics
4 External links

[edit] History

Bethel was founded in 1844 by Dr William Keil (1811 - 1877), a Prussian-born preacher who had been a member of the Methodist church. By 1850, Bethel had a population of 650. However, the construction of the Hannibal & St. Joseph Railroad threatened his theocracy. In 1855, he led his followers westward over the Oregon Trail, to eventually settle Aurora, Oregon.

[edit] Geography

Bethel is located at 39°52′38″N, 92°1′28″W (39.877205, -92.024433)^GR1.

According to the United States Census Bureau, the village has a total area of 0.4 km² (0.1 mi²), all land.

[edit] Demographics

As of the census^GR2 of 2000, there were 121 people, 56 households, and 31 families residing in the village. The population density was 333.7/km² (856.5/mi²). There were 77 housing units at an average density of 212.4/km² (545.0/mi²). The racial makeup of the village was 98.35% White, and 1.65% from two or more races.

There were 56 households out of which 26.8% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 44.6% were married couples living together, 10.7% had a female householder with no husband present, and 44.6% were non-families. 42.9% of all households were made up of individuals and 17.9% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.16 and the average family size was 3.03.

In the village the population was spread out with 24.0% under the age of 18, 10.7% from 18 to 24, 24.0% from 25 to 44, 25.6% from 45 to 64, and 15.7% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 40 years. For every 100 females there were 112.3 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 80.4 males.

The median income for a household in the village was $22,083, and the median income for a family was $53,750. Males had a median income of $22,292 versus $21,000 for females. The per capita income for the village was $13,958. There were no families and 6.8% of the population living below the poverty line, including no under eighteens and 42.9% of those over 64.