Wright

Formed January 29, 1841 (79^th county)

Wright County (18,187), Hartville (593), Mountain Grove (4,312)

The tan brick Modern building was erected in 1965 to replace an 1898 version.  There were also 1849 and 1863 courthouses in Hartville, the only county seat.  The current courthouse is located on a Court Square at the intersection of Rolla and Main streets.  Roger Frangkiser is the designer of the courthouse.  Missouri State Highway 5 is Main Street in the town.  The county was formed on January 29, 1841 from Pulaski County as the 79^th county.  It is named for New York Governor Silas Wright.  Hartville is named for settler Isaac Hart. 

Wright 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 Wright, Douglas, and Ozark counties and One County Court Judge and a court clerk serve Wright County (judicial.)  Wright County is in the southeast part of the state.  Springfield, Missouri is west and Saint Louis, Missouri is northeast of the county.  The county center is 6.6 miles Northeast of Hartville.  The county is surrounded clockwise by Laclede, Texas, Douglas, and Webster counties. 

The area of the county is 682 square miles.  It is 34 out of 115 in the state.  It ranks 59 out of 115 in population in the state.  It has a density of 26.7 persons per square mile making it 65 out of 115 in the state.  Wright County has 35.9% of its population in its incorporated areas.  United States Highway 60 crosses the southern part of the county east to west from Texas County to Webster County.  The county is an overall rectangle.  Hartville is located slightly south and west of the center of the county.  Mountain Grove is in the southeast corner of the county.  Hartville is the county seat and Mountain Grove is the largest city.  Hartville is 3.3% of the county population while Mountain Grove is 23.7% of the county population.

Mountain Grove