Clay County, Missouri
Historic newspapers, landmarks, and county history layers for genealogists and local historians.
At a glance
SummaryThe National Register of Historic Places includes 40 listed properties in the county, first listed in 1966; 1 is also National Historic Landmark. Most listings are in or near Liberty, Excelsior Springs, Kansas City.
Summary generated automatically from the source data on this page.
Newspapers
Library of CongressNewspaper directory data for Missouri is not yet loaded on this site. Browse Clay titles at the Library of Congress.
National Register of Historic Places
NPS NRHP24 of 40 listings mapped; some locations are restricted by NPS to protect sensitive sites.
40 listed properties
Source: National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places. Property links open NRHP nomination files at the National Archives.
County formation
Newberry AHCBClay was formed in 1822 (1822-01-02) from Ray.
CLAY created from RAY and Non-County Area 7.
Source: Newberry Library, Atlas of Historical County Boundaries.
Population by decade
CensusClay County population from 1830 to 2020 (Census historical series).
| 1830 | 1840 | 1860 | 1880 | 1900 | 1920 | 1940 | 1950 | 1960 | 1980 | 2000 | 2020 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 5,338 | 8,282 | 13,023 | 15,572 | 18,903 | 20,455 | 30,417 | 45,221 | 87,474 | 136,488 | 184,006 | 253,335 |
Sources: U.S. Census Bureau historical county population (Forstall 1790–1990) and public-domain / CC0 county population series through 2020.
National Park Service sites nearby
NPSPark units within about 40 km of the county centroid (from NPS Public POIs; no API key).
| Site | Type | Dist. |
|---|---|---|
| HSTR | Park unit | 24.7 km |
Source: NPS National Datasets / Public POIs. The NPS Developer API requires a free key and was not used.
Cemeteries & historical places
USGS GNIS55 cemeteries and 3 historical populated places (ghost towns / former settlements) recorded in USGS GNIS for this county.
Cemeteries — 55 of 55 listed
| Name |
|---|
| Antioch Cemetery |
| Baker Evans Cemetery |
| Baldwin Cemetery |
| Barry Cemetery |
| Bethel Presbyterian Cemetery |
| Brooks Cemetery |
| Buxton Cemetery |
| Cameron Cemetery |
| Crowley Cemetery |
| Crowley Cemetery |
| Crown Hill Cemetery |
| Davenport Cemetery |
| Davidson Cemetery |
| Ecton Cemetery |
| Elmwood Cemetery |
| Enon Cemetery |
| Fairview Cemetery |
| Fairview Cemetery |
| George Cemetery |
| Glenridge Cemetery |
| Goss Cemetery |
| Hillcrest Excelsior Cemetery |
| Keller Cemetery |
| Little Shoal Cemetery |
| McQuiddy Cemetery |
| Means Cemetery |
| Minaville Cemetery |
| Minneville Cemetery |
| Missouri City Cemetery |
| Moore Cemetery |
| Mount Olivet Cemetery |
| Mount Zion Cemetery |
| Muddy Fork Cemetery |
| Munkirs Cemetery |
| New Hope Cemetery |
| New Stark Cemetery |
| Old Liberty Cemetery |
| Old Providence Cemetery |
| Paradise Cemetery |
| Pence Cemetery |
| Pickett Cemetery |
| Resurrection Cemetery |
| Robertson Cemetery |
| Roger Cemetery |
| Scott Cemetery |
| Shady Grove Cemetery |
| Soper Cemetery |
| Tapp Cemetery |
| Tapp Cemetery |
| Wade Cemetery |
| Watkins Cemetery |
| Watkins Cemetery |
| White Chapel Cemetery |
| Wilson Cemetery |
| Woodland Cemetery |
Historical populated places — 3 of 3
| Name |
|---|
| Chick |
| Cooleys |
| Liberty Landing |
Source: USGS Geographic Names Information System (public domain). Cemeteries from the 2021 NationalFile archive; historical places from GNIS HistoricalFeatures topical extract.
Civil War battlefields nearby
ABPPAmerican Battlefield Protection Program (ABPP) Civil War study areas near this county.
| Battlefield | Study acres | Dist. |
|---|---|---|
| Liberty | 4,738 | 12.0 km |
| Little Blue River | 2,052 | 22.0 km |
| Independence | 1,358 | 24.7 km |
| Independence | 1,461 | 24.9 km |
| Byram'S Ford | 1,979 | 34.5 km |
Source: NPS American Battlefield Protection Program Civil War Study Areas (public ArcGIS feature service).
Historical markers
HMdb linkMarker text and photos from the Historical Marker Database (HMdb) are not embedded here. HMdb allows non-commercial reuse with attribution, but commercial/compensated use needs written permission; this is a commercial site, so we only link out.
Search HMdb for Clay County, Missouri
Terms: hmdb.org/copyright.asp. Linking is encouraged by HMdb.