Bates

Formed January 29, 1841 (67^th county)

Bates County (16,032), Butler (4,218)                

The stone Richardsonian Romanesque courthouse was built in 1902 and remodeled in 1974.  It sits on a square at Delaware, Dakota, Main and Ohio streets.  A clock tower sits on top of the courthouse.  United States Highway 71 Business is seven blocks to the location.  George E. McDonald is the architect.  There was an 1869 courthouse previously.  Harmony Mission (1841), Papinville (1847), Pleasant Gap (1864) and Butler (1856 & 1865) have all been the county seat.  The county was founded on January 29, 1841 from parts of Jackson and Lafayette counties as the 67^th county.  It is named for Governor Frederick Bates.  The county seat is named for Kentucky Congressman William O. Butler.  He is also the namesake of Butler County. 

Bates County government consists of a sheriff, an administrator, an attorney, a collector, a coroner, an assessor and a clerk (executive).  It has 3 Commissioners (legislative.)  One Circuit Court Judge serves Bates, Henry, and Saint Clair counties and One County Court Judge and a court clerk serve Bates County (judicial.) The county is on the western border with Kansas.  Kansas City, Missouri is north and Springfield, Missouri is southeast of the county.  The county center is 1.8 miles North-Northeast of Butler.  The county is surrounded clockwise by Cass, Henry, St. Clair, and Vernon counties and Kansas. 

The area of the county is 848 square miles.  It is 6 out of 115 in the state.  It ranks 65 out of 115 in population in the state.  It has a density of 18.9 persons per square mile making it 85 out of 115 in the state.  Bates County has 51.4% of its population in its incorporated areas.  Interstate 49 goes north to south from Cass County to Vernon County.  United States Highway 71 is joined with Interstate 49 from Cass County to Vernon County.  The county is overall rectangular.  Butler is near the center of the county.  Butler is the county seat and the largest city.  It is 26.3% of the county population.  This county is in the Kansas City Metropolitan Statistical Area.