Taney

Formed January 1, 1837 (60^th county)

Taney County (56,058), Forsyth (2,732), Branson (12,643)

The modern concrete and stucco Italianate building was built in 1950 and remodeled in 1991.  The courthouse is on David Street at Main Street.  United States Highway 160 is one block south of the structure.  There were 1841, 1855, and 1890 courthouse structures earlier.  Volney A. Poulson was the architect of the current courthouse.  A Justice Center was added in 2008.  Taney County was founded on January 1, 1837 from Greene County as the 60^th county.  It is named for United States Supreme Court Chief Justice Roger Brooke Taney.  The county seat is named for United States Secretary of State John Forsyth.  Forsyth (1837 & 1845) and Bull Creek (1841) have both served as county seat. 

The area of the county is 632 square miles.  It is 46 out of 115 in the state.  It ranks 20 out of 115 in population in the state.  It has a density of 88.7 persons per square mile making it 22 out of 115 in the state.  Taney County has 42.3% of its population in its incorporated areas.  United States Highway 65 passes north to south through the county from Christian County to Arkansas.  United States Highway 160 goes east to west from Ozark County to Stone County.  The county is a rectangle with Forsyth in the northwest quarter of the county.  Branson is on the western border of the county and extends into Stone County.  Forsyth is the county seat and Branson is the largest city.  Forsyth is 4.9% of the county population while Branson is 22.6% of the county population. 

Taney 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 Taney and Christian counties and Two County Court Judges and a court clerk serve Taney County (judicial.)  The county is in southern Missouri on the border with Arkansas.  Springfield, Missouri is north and Little Rock, Arkansas is southeast of the county.  The county center is 7.6 miles East-Southeast of Forsyth near Hilda.  The county is surrounded clockwise by Christian, Douglas, and Ozark counties and Arkansas and Stone County.  The county is pronounced TAE-NEE.  This county is in the Branson Micropolitan Statistical Area.