Laclede

Formed February 27, 1849 (98^th county)

Laclede County (36,042), Lebanon (15,017)

The red brick Federalist facility is located on 2^nd Street and Adams Avenue.  Missouri State Highway 5 is one block to the southwest of the courthouse.  The facility architect is Earl Hawkins.  The courthouse was enlarged in 1997.  The county was organized on February 27, 1849 from parts of Camden and Pulaski counties as the 98^th county.  Lebanon has always been the county seat.  This latest courthouse was built in 1924 to replace the classier 1894 structure.  There was also an 1850 courthouse for the county.  The county is named for St. Louis founder Pierre Laclede.  The county seat is named for Lebanon, Tennessee.  Laclede County was the birthplace for 1 Missouri Governor, Philip M. Donnelly. 

Laclede County government consists of a sheriff and 3 Commissioners.  Three Circuit Court Judges serve Laclede, Camden, Miller, Moniteau, and Morgan counties and Two County Court Judges serve Laclede County.  The county is in southern Missouri.  Springfield, Missouri is southwest and Saint Louis, Missouri is northeast of the county.  The county center is 8.1 miles East-Northeast of Lebanon nearer Sleeper.  The county is surrounded clockwise by Camden, Pulaski, Texas, Wright, Webster, and Dallas counties. 

The area of the county is 766 square miles.  It is 17 out of 115 in the state.  It ranks 32 out of 115 in population in the state.  It has a density of 47.1 persons per square mile making it 39 out of 115 in the state.  Laclede County has 44.5% of its population in its incorporated areas.  Interstate Highway 44 crosses the county east to west from Pulaski County to Webster County.  The county looks like a capital letter F lying on its back.  Lebanon is located in the western third of the county.  Lebanon is the county seat and the largest city.  It is 41.7% of the county population.  This county is in the Lebanon Micropolitan Statistical Area.