Peculiar, Missouri

Peculiar received its name in 1868 when first postmaster Edgar Thomson[?] had his first choice, Excelsior, was rejected because it already existed in Atchison County, Missouri. Several other choices were also rejected. The story goes that an annoyed Thomson wrote to the Postmater General himself to complain saying, among other things, "We don't care what name you give us so long as it is sort of 'peculiar'", with "peculiar" in quotation marks. Washington approved that name.

An historical plaque in the town is noteworthy. It reads, "In 1861-1864 while bloody battles raged throughout the southern states nothing happened here."

Geography Peculiar is located at 38°43'15" North, 94°27'24" West (38.720896, -94.456733)¹.

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 9.2 km² (3.5 mi²). 9.1 km² (3.5 mi²) of it is land and 0.1 km² (0.1 mi²) of it is water. The total area is 1.41% water.

Demographics As of the census of 2000, there are 2,604 people, 953 households, and 730 families residing in the city. The population density is 287.3/km² (744.8/mi²). There are 983 housing units at an average density of 108.4/km² (281.2/mi²). The racial makeup of the city is 97.20% White, 0.27% African American, 0.42% Native American, 0.35% Asian, 0.08% Pacific Islander, 0.19% from other races, and 1.50% from two or more races. 1.46% of the population are Hispanic or Latino of any race.

There are 953 households out of which 42.6% have children under the age of 18 living with them, 60.7% are married couples living together, 13.1% have a female householder with no husband present, and 23.3% are non-families. 19.7% of all households are made up of individuals and 8.6% have someone living alone who is 65 years of age or older. The average household size is 2.73 and the average family size is 3.14.

In the city the population is spread out with 31.8% under the age of 18, 9.0% from 18 to 24, 31.2% from 25 to 44, 18.7% from 45 to 64, and 9.3% who are 65 years of age or older. The median age is 31 years. For every 100 females there are 93.9 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there are 89.0 males.

The median income for a household in the city is $44,769, and the median income for a family is $48,534. Males have a median income of $36,921 versus $27,885 for females. The per capita income for the city is $19,104. 7.5% of the population and 5.7% of families are below the poverty line. Out of the total people living in poverty, 9.4% are under the age of 18 and 11.7% are 65 or older.