Editing New Madrid, Missouri

{{Use mdy dates|date=July 2023}}
{{Infobox settlement
|official_name            = New Madrid, Missouri
|settlement_type          = [[City]]
|nickname                 = 
|motto                    = 
<!-- Images -->
|image_skyline            = New Madrid Missouri.jpg
|imagesize                = 250px
|image_caption            = New Madrid, facing away from the Mississippi
|image_flag               = 
|image_seal               = 
|image_blank_emblem       = NewMadridMO.png
|blank_emblem_type        = Logo
|blank_emblem_size        = 115px
<!-- Maps -->
|image_map = New_Madrid_County_Missouri_Incorporated_and_Unincorporated_areas_New_Madrid_Highlighted.svg
|mapsize                  = 250px
|map_caption              = Location of New Madrid, Missouri
|image_map1               = 
|mapsize1                 = 
|map_caption1             =

<!-- Location -->
|subdivision_type = Country
|subdivision_name         = United States
|subdivision_type1        = [[U.S. state|State]]
|subdivision_name1        = [[Missouri]]
|subdivision_type2        = [[List of counties in Missouri|County]]
|subdivision_name2        = [[New Madrid County, Missouri|New Madrid]]
|government_footnotes     = 
|government_type          = 
|leader_title             = 
|leader_name              = 
|leader_title1            = 
|leader_name1             = 
|established_title        = 
|established_date         =

<!-- Area -->
|unit_pref                = Imperial
|area_footnotes           = <ref>{{cite web|title=ArcGIS REST Services Directory|url=https://tigerweb.geo.census.gov/arcgis/rest/services/TIGERweb/Places_CouSub_ConCity_SubMCD/MapServer|publisher=United States Census Bureau|accessdate=August 28, 2022}}</ref>
|area_magnitude           = 
|area_total_km2           = 11.75
|area_land_km2            = 11.66
|area_water_km2           = 0.09
|area_total_sq_mi         = 4.54
|area_land_sq_mi          = 4.50
|area_water_sq_mi         = 0.04

<!-- Population -->
|population_as_of         = [[2020 United States census|2020]]
|population_est           = 
|pop_est_as_of            = 
|population_footnotes     = 
|population_total         = 2787
|population_density_km2   = 239.05
|population_density_sq_mi = 619.20

<!-- General information -->
|timezone                 = [[Central Time Zone|Central (CST)]]
|utc_offset               = &minus;6
|timezone_DST             = CDT
|utc_offset_DST           = &minus;5
|elevation_footnotes      = <ref name=gnis/>
|elevation_ft             = 292
|coordinates              = {{coord|36|35|16|N|89|33|02|W|type:city_region:US-MO|display=it}}
|postal_code_type         = [[ZIP code]]
|postal_code              = 63869
|area_code                = [[Area code 573|573/235]]
|blank_name               = [[Federal Information Processing Standard|FIPS code]]
|blank_info               = 29-52076<ref name="gr2">{{cite web|url=https://www.census.gov|publisher=United States Census Bureau|access-date=31 January 2008|title=U.S. Census website}}</ref>
|blank1_name              = [[Geographic Names Information System|GNIS]] feature ID
|blank1_info              = 2395206<ref name=gnis>{{GNIS|2395206}}</ref>
|website                  = {{URL|http://www.new-madrid.mo.us/|new-madrid.mo.us}}
|footnotes                = 
|pop_est_footnotes        = 
}}

'''New Madrid''' ({{IPAc-en|ˈ|m|æ|d|r|ɪ|d}} {{respell|MAD|rid}}; {{langx|es|Nueva Madrid}}) is a city in [[New Madrid County, Missouri|New Madrid County]], [[Missouri]], United States. The population was 2,787 at the [[2020 United States census|2020 census]]. New Madrid is the [[county seat]] of New Madrid County.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.naco.org/Counties/Pages/FindACounty.aspx|access-date=7 June 2011|title=Find a County|publisher=National Association of Counties}}</ref> The city is located 42 miles (68&nbsp;km) southwest of [[Cairo, Illinois]], and north of an exclave of [[Fulton County, Kentucky]], across the [[Mississippi River]].

[[Image:Kentucky Bend map.png|thumb|Kentucky Bend and surrounding area
{{legend|#bfffff|[[Missouri]] (MO)|border=thin solid #999933}}
{{legend|#febffe|[[Tennessee]] (TN)|border=thin solid #999933}}
{{legend|#ffffef|[[Kentucky]] (KY)|border=thin solid #999933}}
]]
The town is on the north side of the [[Kentucky Bend]] in the Mississippi River, which is also known as "New Madrid Bend" or "Madrid Bend." The river curves in an oxbow around an exclave of Fulton County, Kentucky. Scientists expect the river eventually to cut across the neck of the peninsula and make a more direct channel, leaving the Kentucky territory as an island.

New Madrid was the [[epicenter]] of the very powerful [[1811–12 New Madrid earthquakes]].

==History==
[[File:Lithographic print made 1854 of New Madrid Missouri.jpg|thumb|left|Lithographic print made 1854 depicting New Madrid shore from the Mississippi]]

The first more or less permanent settlement at present-day New Madrid was established by bands of [[Shawnee people|Shawnee]], [[Delaware people|Delaware]], [[Creek people|Creek]], and [[Cherokee people|Cherokee]] who were turned into refugees due to the U.S. War for Independence. These refugee Native American bands accepted Spanish offers to settle on the west bank of the Mississippi River in the early 1780s. These mixed Native American groups established a settlement and informal trading post where a northward, horseshoe bend of the Mississippi met the Chepusa creek, which provided an easy place for landing boats. Native American hunters and European-American merchants made the settlement a location for processing the bounty of hunts, including the valuable but messy fat of bears and buffalo, which was used in preparing skins and furs. The settlement quickly acquired the name L’Anse a la Graise — “Cove of Grease” or “Greasy Cove.”

European Americans renamed the settlement New Madrid around 1780 under the auspices of [[Louisiana (New Spain)|Spanish]] Governor [[Bernardo de Gálvez]], who was appointed to rule [[Louisiana (New Spain)|Spanish Louisiana]] (the land west of the Mississippi River),<ref name="Morrow">Lynn Morrow, "New Madrid and its Hinterland: 1783-1826," ''Bulletin of the Missouri Historical Society'' (1980) 36#4 pp. 241-250</ref> and [[Manuel Pérez (Lieutenant Governor of Upper Louisiana)|Manuel Pérez]], [[Lieutenant Governor]] of Upper Louisiana in [[Saint Louis, Missouri|Saint Louis]].<ref>{{Cite journal|last=Foley|first=William E.|title=Manuel Pérez (1735–1819)|url=https://missouriencyclopedia.org/people/perez-manuel|journal=Missouri Encyclopedia}}</ref> They welcomed settlers from the United States, but required them to become subjects of (i.e. swear allegiance to) the Spanish crown. In addition, they had to agree to live under the guidance of his appointed [[empresario]], Colonel [[George Morgan (merchant)|George Morgan]], an [[American Revolutionary War]] veteran from [[New Jersey]]. Morgan recruited a number of American families to settle at New Madrid, attracting a few hundred people to the region. Settlement in the 1790s and early 1800s remained relatively low due to the physical geography of New Madrid and its hinterlands. Morgan made commitments to nearby natives that settlers would not be permitted to hunt game for the purposes of large-scale fur trading, thus they would not be an economic threat to natives who relied on hunting.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Savelle |first=Max |date=1932 |title=The Founding of New Madrid, Missouri |url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/1896649 |journal=The Mississippi Valley Historical Review |volume=19 |issue=1 |pages=30–56 |doi=10.2307/1896649 |issn=0161-391X}}</ref>

The Mississippi frequently washed away the town's river banks, and a Spanish fort was washed away. Surrounded by low, swampy land, New Madrid developed a well-earned reputation for diseases, especially in the summer and fall. Spanish census data from the late 1790s show around 800 residents at the village of New Madrid. New Madrid continued to operate as a site of exchange between Native Americans in the St. Francis River Valley and European American traders operating out of New Madrid.<ref name="Morrow" />

In 1800, Spain traded the territory back to France in the [[Third Treaty of San Ildefonso]]. After trying to regain control of [[Saint-Domingue]] (the present [[Haiti]]), where [[Haitian Revolution|a slave rebellion]] was underway, Napoleon gave up on his North American colonies, agreeing to sell this territory to the United States in 1803 as part of the [[Louisiana Purchase]].

By 1810, a fort, two blocks, and a portion of a third block was washed away by expansion of the Mississippi river.<ref name=":1">{{Cite journal |last=Reps |first=John W. |date=1959 |title=New Madrid on the Mississippi |url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/987891 |journal=Journal of the Society of Architectural Historians |volume=18 |issue=1 |pages=21–26 |doi=10.2307/987891 |issn=0037-9808}}</ref>

The area is noted as the site of a [[1811–1812 New Madrid earthquakes|series of nearly 2,000 earthquakes in 1811 and 1812]], ranging up to approximately [[moment magnitude scale|magnitude]] 8, the most powerful non-[[subduction|subduction zone]] earthquake ever recorded in the United States. New Madrid lies far from any [[plate tectonics|plate]] boundaries, but it is on the [[New Madrid Seismic Zone]].<ref>The series of earthquakes took place in December 1811 and January 1812. They created, among other land features, Reelfoot Lake. See Stewart and Knox, ''The earthquake that never went away,'' pp. 17&ndash;25.</ref> The major earthquake was felt as far away as the [[East Coast of the United States|East Coast]].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://earthquake.usgs.gov/regional/states/events/1811-1812.php#february_7|title=Historic Earthquakes|author=United States Geological Survey|author-link=United States Geological Survey|access-date=25 April 2008}}</ref>

Starting in 1838, New Madrid was on the [[Trail of Tears]] that saw thousands of Indians forcefully removed from Eastern lands and moving to Oklahoma.<ref>{{Cite web |title=New Madrid and the Trail of Tears (U.S. National Park Service) |url=https://www.nps.gov/articles/000/new-madrid-and-the-trail-of-tears.htm |access-date=2024-10-05 |website=www.nps.gov |language=en}}</ref>

During the [[American Civil War|Civil War]], the [[Battle of Island Number Ten]] took place on the Mississippi River near New Madrid.

In the antebellum period, this fertile [[floodplain]] area was developed for [[cotton]] [[Plantations in the American South|plantations]], based on the labor of enslaved African Americans. They were emancipated after the Civil War and worked to make new lives. As whites struggled to re-establish dominance after the Reconstruction era, they intimidated and attacked blacks under the guise of [[Jim Crow]] laws, working to suppress voting and control their activities.

Three African-American men are documented as being [[Lynching in the United States|lynched]] by whites in New Madrid, the county seat, near the turn of the century: Unknown Negro, on November 29, 1898; Louis Wright, a musician in a [[minstrel show]] accused of altercations with whites, hanged on February 17, 1902;<ref name="minstrel">{{usurped|1=[https://web.archive.org/web/20180616103322/http://www.thiscruelwar.com/black-minstrel-lynched-in-new-madrid/ "A Black Minstrel Lynched in New Madrid, Missouri (1902)"]}}, This Cruel War blog, 16 February 2017; accessed 12 April 2018</ref> and unknown Negro, May 30, 1910.<ref>[http://cousin-collector.com/projects/index.php/saline-county/history/1754-lynching-in-missouri "Lynching in Missouri"], Saline County, Missouri/MOGenWeb Project, 1996-2018; accessed 12 April 2018</ref>

By the turn of the 20th century, some industry was being developed in New Madrid, which contained two [[lumber mill]]s, a [[grist mill]], a [[stave (wood)|stave]] and [[heading (metalworking)|heading]] factory, and a [[cotton gin]]. It was considered a rough town.<ref name="minstrel"/> There were four Protestant churches, two with independent African-American congregations, and one Catholic church.<ref>{{cite book|url=https://archive.org/details/statemissouri00willgoog|title=The State of Missouri|author=Williams, Walter|year=1904|page=[https://archive.org/details/statemissouri00willgoog/page/n501 459]}}</ref>

==Geography==
According to the [[United States Census Bureau]], the city has a total area of {{convert|4.53|sqmi|sqkm|2}}, of which {{convert|4.49|sqmi|sqkm|2}} is land and {{convert|0.04|sqmi|sqkm|2}} is water.<ref>{{cite web|title=US Gazetteer files 2010|url=https://www.census.gov/geo/www/gazetteer/files/Gaz_places_national.txt|publisher=United States Census Bureau|access-date=8 July 2012|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120125061959/http://www.census.gov/geo/www/gazetteer/files/Gaz_places_national.txt|archive-date=25 January 2012}}</ref>

===Climate===
New Madrid has a [[humid subtropical climate]] (Köppen ''Cfa'') with hot, humid summers and chilly, though not severe winters. Winter weather can vary from very mild and rainy when air masses from the [[Gulf of Mexico]] predominate, to very cold, dry and windy with northerly or northwesterly airflows as in the famous cold month of January 1977. On average there are 82 nights which fall to or below {{convert|32|F|C|disp=or}}, whilst one night falls to or below {{convert|0|F|C|1|disp=or}}, and the coldest temperature ever has been {{convert|&minus;14|F|C|1|disp=or}} on January 17, 1982. The hottest has been {{convert|107|F|C|1|disp=or}} record on August 4, 1964, whilst an average of 2.9 days exceed {{convert|100|F|C|1|disp=or}}.

Rainfall is fairly heavy throughout the year due to moist air from the Gulf being advected on the western side of the [[Bermuda High]], plus occasional remnant depressions from hurricanes passing up the Mississippi Valley. Between 1963 and 2012, the wettest calendar year was 1990 with {{convert|71.24|in|mm|1|disp=or}} and the driest 2005 with {{convert|32.36|in|mm|1|disp=or}}. The wettest day was September 23, 2006 with {{convert|11.38|in|mm|1}} in one day, and September 2006 was also the wettest month with {{convert|15.27|in|mm|1}}, whilst no precipitation fell during October 1964.

Snowfall is very rare, as it is normally too dry to snow when cold air masses reach the [[Missouri Bootheel|Bootheel]], so that the median is only {{convert|0.4|in|m|3|disp=or}} per year and the mean just {{convert|5.7|in|m|2|disp=or}}. The most snow in one month was in January 1977 with {{convert|13.1|in|m|2|disp=or}}, whilst the snowiest season was from July 1966 to June 1967 with {{convert|19.3|in|m|2|disp=or}}.

{{Weather box
|location = New Madrid, Missouri (1971-2000; extremes 1963 to 2012)
|single line = Yes
|Jan record high F = 71
|Feb record high F = 77
|Mar record high F = 84
|Apr record high F = 94
|May record high F = 94
|Jun record high F = 104
|Jul record high F = 106
|Aug record high F = 107
|Sep record high F = 101
|Oct record high F = 92
|Nov record high F = 85
|Dec record high F = 74
|year record high F = 107
|Jan high F = 41.5
|Feb high F = 47.5
|Mar high F = 57.6
|Apr high F = 68.6
|May high F = 78.0
|Jun high F = 86.9
|Jul high F = 91.1
|Aug high F = 89.4
|Sep high F = 82.6
|Oct high F = 71.7
|Nov high F = 57.4
|Dec high F = 46.0
|year high F = 68.2
|Jan low F = 26
|Feb low F = 29
|Mar low F = 38
|Apr low F = 48
|May low F = 58
|Jun low F = 66
|Jul low F = 70
|Aug low F = 68
|Sep low F = 60
|Oct low F = 48
|Nov low F = 39
|Dec low F = 29
|year low F = 48
|Jan record low F = &minus;14
|Feb record low F = &minus;4
|Mar record low F = 8
|Apr record low F = 25
|May record low F = 35
|Jun record low F = 47
|Jul record low F = 52
|Aug record low F = 42
|Sep record low F = 35
|Oct record low F = 25
|Nov record low F = 12
|Dec record low F = &minus;11
|year record low F = &minus;14
|precipitation colour = green
|Jan precipitation inch = 3.34
|Feb precipitation inch = 3.72
|Mar precipitation inch = 4.72
|Apr precipitation inch = 5.23
|May precipitation inch = 5.06
|Jun precipitation inch = 4.21
|Jul precipitation inch = 4.05
|Aug precipitation inch = 2.62
|Sep precipitation inch = 3.47
|Oct precipitation inch = 3.65
|Nov precipitation inch = 4.67
|Dec precipitation inch = 4.69
|Jan precipitation days = 9.5
|Feb precipitation days = 8.1
|Mar precipitation days = 10.8
|Apr precipitation days = 10.1
|May precipitation days = 10.9
|Jun precipitation days = 8.8
|Jul precipitation days = 8.2
|Aug precipitation days = 6.2
|Sep precipitation days = 7.1
|Oct precipitation days = 7.5
|Nov precipitation days = 9.4
|Dec precipitation days = 9.9
|unit precipitation days = 0.01 inch
|Jan snow inch = 2.6
|Feb snow inch = 2.1
|Mar snow inch = 0.4
|Apr snow inch = 0.0
|May snow inch = 0.0
|Jun snow inch = 0.0
|Jul snow inch = 0.0
|Aug snow inch = 0.0
|Sep snow inch = 0.0
|Oct snow inch = 0.0
|Nov snow inch = trace
|Dec snow inch = 0.6
|year snow inch = 5.7
|Jan snow days = 1.4
|Feb snow days = 1.1
|Mar snow days = 0.3
|Apr snow days = 0.0
|May snow days = 0.0
|Jun snow days = 0.0
|Jul snow days = 0.0
|Aug snow days = 0.0
|Sep snow days = 0.0
|Oct snow days = 0.0
|Nov snow days = 0.0
|Dec snow days = 0.4
|unit snow days = 0.1 inch
|source 1 = [[National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration]]<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.ncdc.noaa.gov/climatenormals/clim20/mo/236045.pdf |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161002025339/http://www.ncdc.noaa.gov/climatenormals/clim20/mo/236045.pdf|archive-date=2 October 2016|url-status=live|publisher=National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration|title=Climatography of the United States No. 20, 1971-2000: New Madrid, MO|year=2004}}
Retrieved on September 29, 2016.</ref>
|date=September 2016
|source 2 = National Weather Service Paducah<ref>{{cite web|url=http://w2.weather.gov/climate/xmacis.php?wfo=pah|publisher=National Weather Service Paducah Forecast Office|title=NOW Data: NOAA Online Weather Data|year=2016}}Retrieved on September 29, 2016.</ref>}}

=== Coal pollution ===
The New Madrid coal plant owned by Associated Electric Cooperative Inc. was identified as one of 17 "deadliest coal plants in the US" by the [[Sierra Club]], citing emissions and regional haze affecting neighboring communities. [[Sulfur dioxide]] pollution in the Bootheel has been found to exceed [[National Ambient Air Quality Standards]].<ref>{{Cite web |last=Kite |first=Allison |date=2023-05-25 |title=Sierra Club calls on EPA to enforce coal plant rules, highlighting Missouri facilities • Missouri Independent |url=https://missouriindependent.com/2023/05/25/sierra-club-calls-on-epa-to-enforce-coal-plant-rules-highlighting-missouri-facilities/ |access-date=2023-05-25 |website=Missouri Independent |language=en-US}}</ref> The plant was reopened in 2018 following the application of the [[first Trump tariffs]].<ref>{{Cite news |last=McLaughlin |first=Tim |date=2020-06-02 |title=Trade war tradeoff: How a Missouri town got America's dirtiest air |url=https://www.reuters.com/article/business/environment/trade-war-tradeoff-how-a-missouri-town-got-americas-dirtiest-air-idUSKBN2391GK/ |access-date=2024-09-25 |work=Reuters}}</ref>

=== Seismic zone ===
{{See also|New Madrid Seismic Zone}}
The city is located in a web of cracks at the center of the North American Plate dating from the [[Rodinian]]. New Madrid was the epicenter of the powerful 3-month 2,000-earthquake [[1811–1812 New Madrid earthquakes]]. In 2003, the [[United States Geological Survey|U.S. Geological Survey]] predicted that another major earthquake will happen in New Madrid within the next 50 years,<ref>{{Cite web |last=Smith |first=Kiona N. |title=The New Madrid Earthquake Struck 206 Years Ago |url=https://www.forbes.com/sites/kionasmith/2018/02/07/the-new-madrid-earthquake-struck-206-years-ago/ |access-date=2024-09-25 |website=Forbes |language=en}}</ref> a theory that was rejected by the geophysicist [[Seth Stein]] in his 2010 book ''Disaster deferred: how new science is changing our view of earthquake hazards in the Midwest''.<ref name=":0">{{Cite news |last=Pellissier |first=Pauline |date=2012-02-27 |title="The big one" : la mystérieuse faille sismique de New Madrid, Missouri |url=https://www.lemonde.fr/international/article/2012/02/27/the-big-one-la-mysterieuse-faille-de-new-madrid-missouri_1647820_3210.html |access-date=2024-09-25 |language=fr}}</ref>

The city was hit by an earthquake on 28 February 2012 at 3:58&nbsp;a.m. CST, measuring 4.0.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Muskal |first=Michael |date=2012-02-21 |title=New Madrid zone earthquake felt in Missouri, 8 other states |url=https://www.latimes.com/nation/la-xpm-2012-feb-21-la-na-nn-missouri-earthquake-20120221-story.html |access-date=2024-09-25 |website=Los Angeles Times |language=en-US}}</ref> However, the tremors created a media scare as the web made it easy for everyone to search the city's seismic history, and discover the 1811-1812 earthquakes and the city's sensitive seismic situation.<ref name=":0" />

==Demographics==
{{US Census population
|1860= 610
|1870= 634
|1880= 712
|1890= 1193
|1900= 1489
|1910= 1882
|1920= 1908
|1930= 2309
|1940= 2450
|1950= 2726
|1960= 2867
|1970= 2719
|1980= 3204
|1990= 3350
|2000= 3334
|2010= 3116
|2020= 2787
|footnote=source:<ref>{{cite web|url=http://mcdc.missouri.edu/trends/tables/cities1900-1990.pdf|title=Missouri Population 1900-1990|format=[[comma-separated values|CSV]]|publisher=Missouri Census Data Center|access-date=6 October 2014|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140704072802/http://mcdc.missouri.edu/trends/tables/cities1900-1990.pdf|archive-date=4 July 2014}}</ref>
}}By 1797, the total population was 615 (including 46 slaves).<ref name=":1" />

===2020 census===
As of the [[2020 United States census]],<ref>{{cite web|title=U.S. Census website|url=https://www.census.gov|publisher=United States Census Bureau|access-date=8 July 2022}}</ref> there were 2,787 people, 1,307 households, and 711 families in the city. The [[population density]] was {{convert|613.9|PD/sqmi|PD/km²|1}}. There were 1,352 housing units at an average density of {{convert|297.8|/sqmi|/km2|1}}. The racial makeup of the city was 70.30% [[White (U.S. Census)|White]], 28.10% [[Black (U.S. Census)|Black]] or [[African American (U.S. Census)|African American]], 0.30% [[Native American (U.S. Census)|Native American]], 0.26% [[Race and ethnicity in the United States census|Asian]], and 1.30% from two or more races. [[Hispanic (U.S. Census)|Hispanic]] or [[Latino (U.S. Census)|Latino]] of any race were 3.20% of the population.

There were 1,307 households, of which 20.7% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 37.8% were [[Marriage|married couples]] living together, 11.0% had a female householder with no husband present, 5.5% had a male householder with no wife present, and 45.6% were non-families. 40.5% of all households were made up of individuals, and 17.2% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.09 and the average family size was 2.73.

The median age in the city was 47.2 years. 14.9% of residents were under the age of 18; 7.8% were between the ages of 18 and 24; 24.6% were from 25 to 44; 29.1% were from 45 to 64; and 23.6% were 65 years of age or older. The gender makeup of the city was 48.9% male and 51.1% female.

The median income for a household in the city was $41,445, and the median income for a family was $54,476. The [[per capita income]] for the city was $22,046. About 14.80% of families and 21.0% of the population were below the [[poverty line]], including 32.6% of those under age 18 and 19.3% of those age 65 or over.

===2010 census===
As of the [[2010 United States Census]],<ref>{{cite web|title=U.S. Census website|url=https://www.census.gov|publisher=United States Census Bureau|access-date=8 July 2012}}</ref> there were 3,116 people, 1,276 households, and 809 families in the city. The population density was {{convert|694.0|PD/sqmi|PD/km2|1}}. There were 1,424 housing units at an average density of {{convert|317.1|/sqmi|/km2|1}}. The racial makeup of the city was 72.30% [[White (U.S. Census)|White]], 25.55% [[Black (U.S. Census)|Black]] or [[African American (U.S. Census)|African American]], 0.22% [[Native American (U.S. Census)|Native American]], 0.26% [[Asian (U.S. Census)|Asian]], 0.13% from [[Race and ethnicity in the United States Census|other races]], and 1.54% from two or more races. [[Hispanic (U.S. Census)|Hispanic]] or [[Latino (U.S. Census)|Latino]] of any race were 0.80% of the population.

There were 1,276 households, of which 32.3% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 39.9% were [[Marriage|married couples]] living together, 18.2% had a female householder with no husband present, 5.3% had a male householder with no wife present, and 36.6% were non-families. 32.4% of all households were made up of individuals, and 14% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.34 and the average family size was 2.94.

The median age in the city was 39.8 years. 24.1% of residents were under the age of 18; 7.8% were between the ages of 18 and 24; 23.6% were from 25 to 44; 28.3% were from 45 to 64; and 16.1% were 65 years of age or older. The gender makeup of the city was 47.9% male and 52.1% female.

=== 2000 census ===
As of the [[2000 United States Census]],<ref name=gr2/> there were 3,334 people, 1,275 households, and 882 families in the city. The population density was {{convert|738.3|PD/sqmi|PD/km2|sp=us|adj=off}}. There were 1,414 housing units at an average density of {{convert|313.1|/sqmi|/km2|sp=us|adj=off}}. The racial makeup of the city was 72.56% [[Race and ethnicity in the United States Census|White]], 26.48% [[Race and ethnicity in the United States Census|African American]], 0.18% [[Race and ethnicity in the United States Census|Native American]], 0.30% [[Race and ethnicity in the United States Census|Asian]], 0.09% from [[Race and ethnicity in the United States Census|other races]], and 0.39% from two or more races. [[Race and ethnicity in the United States Census|Hispanic]] or [[Race and ethnicity in the United States Census|Latino]] of any race were 0.69% of the population.

There were 1,275 households, out of which 35.5% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 45.8% were [[Marriage|married couples]] living together, 21.0% had a female householder with no husband present, and 30.8% were non-families. 28.4% of all households were made up of individuals, and 12.9% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.47 and the average family size was 3.02.

The city's population contained 28.2% under the age of 18, 8.7% from 18 to 24, 26.0% from 25 to 44, 21.8% from 45 to 64, and 15.4% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 36 years. For every 100 females, there were 87.7 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 79.5 males.

The median income for a household in the city was $27,422, and the median income for a family was $34,464. Males had a median income of $30,705 versus $21,045 for females. The [[per capita income]] for the city was $14,639. About 22.6% of families and 25.0% of the population were below the [[poverty line]], including 36.9% of those under age 18 and 17.5% of those age 65 or over.

==Education==
New Madrid County R-I School District operates six schools in the New Madrid area, including [[New Madrid County Central]] high school.

New Madrid has a lending library, a branch of the New Madrid County Library.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.newmadridcountylibrary.com/locations.php|title=Our Locations|publisher=New Madrid County Library|access-date=1 June 2019}}</ref>

==Government==
The city of New Madrid is located in [[Missouri's 8th congressional district]].
{| class="wikitable sortable"
!Mayor
!Took office
!Left office
!Additional information
|-
|Dr. Welton Neville O'Bannon Jr.
|N/A
|N/A
|First Mayor of New Madrid.<ref>{{cite web|date= |title=Dr. Welton Neville O'Bannon, first Mayor of New Madrid|url=http://www.usgennet.org/usa/mo/county/newmadrid/gallery/gallery1/g01-1t.htm|publisher= |accessdate=1 November 2014}}</ref> The O'Bannon Family Care Center obstetrics unit at Missouri Delta Medical Center in [[Sikeston, Missouri]], bears the name of his son and wife as remembered from a donation from his grandson Welton Neville O'Bannon. (1854–1910){{citation needed|reason=Your explanation here|date=April 2016}}
|-
|Milton G. Hatcher
|1876
|1878
|Physician and druggist born in Kentucky who served one term as mayor.<ref name="Goodspeed's SE MO">{{cite web|date= |title=Goodspeed's History of Southeast MO|url=http://www.new-madrid.mo.us/index.aspx?NID=120|publisher= |accessdate=1 November 2014}}</ref> (1840–1892)<ref>{{cite web|date= |title=Ancestry.com: Milton G. Hatcher|url=http://records.ancestry.com/milton_g_hatcher_records.ashx?pid=5066758|publisher= |accessdate=1 November 2014}}</ref>
|-
|John William Brownell
|1878
|1885
|Brownell was mayor when the town was incorporated as a second-class city in 1878.<ref>{{cite book|author=Robert Sidney Douglass|title=History of Southeast Missouri: A Narrative Account of Its ..., Vol. 1|publisher=The Lewis Publishing Co.|year=1912|location=Chicago}}</ref> He fought under Confederate General [[Sterling Price]] as a first lieutenant. (1841–1924)
|-
|N/A
|1885
|1917
|{{citation needed|reason=Your explanation here|date=August 2018}}
|-
|D. R. Hunter
|1917
|1918
|{{citation needed|reason=Your explanation here|date=April 2016}}
|-
|N/A
|1918
|1937
|{{citation needed|reason=Your explanation here|date=August 2018}}
|-
| rowspan="1" |Samuel Latham Hunter
|1937
|1946
|(1880–1962);<ref>{{cite web|date= |title=Pemiscot County, MO Gen Web|url=http://pemiscot.mogenweb.org/firstfamilies/laforgepierrea.htm|publisher= |accessdate=1 November 2014}}</ref> 1937 is approximate {{citation needed|reason=Your explanation here|date=August 2018}}
|-
| rowspan="1" |Thomas F. Hunter
|1946
|1958
|
|-
| rowspan="1" |Robert Riley Sr.
|1958
|1960
|His terms as mayor included the construction of a new city hall and a new sewage lagoon and water treatment plant. (1915–2011)<ref name="Riley Sr. obit">{{cite web|date= |title=Robert Riley Sr.: obituary|url=http://www.richardsfuneralhomeinc.com/obits/printout.php?oid=122741&cs=9c777a961c37fdc9b5f72f44252526cb&ap=1|publisher= |accessdate=1 November 2014}}</ref>
|-
| rowspan="1" |O. W. Lewis
|1960
|1962
|
|-
| rowspan="1" |Robert Riley Sr.
|1962
|1974
| bgcolor="#f7f7ff" |He previously served as mayor. (1915–2011)<ref name="Riley Sr. obit" />
|-
| rowspan="1" |James H. Cravens
|1974
|1984
|
|-
| rowspan="1" |William R. "Dick" Phillips Jr.
|1984
|1994
|Navy veteran, farmer, and agri-businessman who served 26 years as the mayor and an alderman and who helped lead the effort to pass the single-largest industrial bond issue for any community of any size up to that time.<ref>{{cite web|date= |title=Distinguished Servant: W.R. "Dick" Phillips|url=http://www.gpo.gov/fdsys/pkg/CREC-1994-04-13/html/CREC-1994-04-13-pt1-PgE23.htm|publisher= |accessdate=1 November 2014}}</ref>
|-
|Lawrence H. Rost
|1994
|1996
|
|-
|Mark Baker<ref>{{cite book|url=http://cdm.sos.mo.gov/cdm/compoundobject/collection/bluebook/id/62064/rec/61|title=Official Manual State of Missouri 1997–1998|publisher=|year=|editor=Jim Grebing|location=|page=837|id=}}{{Dead link|date=December 2024 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}</ref><ref>{{cite book|url=http://cdm.sos.mo.gov/cdm/compoundobject/collection/bluebook/id/63585/rec/62 |title=Official Manual State of Missouri 1999–2000|publisher= |year= |editor=Julius Johnson|location= |page=817|id=}}</ref>
|1996
|2004
|
|-
|Donnie Brown
|2004
|2016
|
|-
|Richard "Dicky" Bodi<ref>{{cite web|date= |title=April 5th, 2016 Local Election Results|url=http://www.kfvs12.com/link/738126/election-preview-mo-local-races|publisher= |accessdate=6 April 2016}}</ref>
|2016
|2022
|
|-
|Donnie Brown <ref>{{cite web|date= 19 April 2022|title=New Madrid mayor and board members sworn into office|url=https://standard-democrat.com/story/2945123.html|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220708162236/https://standard-democrat.com/story/2945123.html|archive-date=8 July 2022|publisher=Standard Democrat|editor=Jill Bock|accessdate=8 July 2022}}</ref><ref>{{cite web | url=https://standard-democrat.com/story/2978503.html | title=Brown resigns as New Madrid mayor | date=January 4, 2023 }}</ref>
|2022
|2023
|
|-
|Kevin Lyons<ref>{{Cite web | title=New Madrid City Council welcomes a new mayor | url=https://standard-democrat.com/story/2980368.html | access-date=2025-05-19 | website=standard-democrat.com}}</ref>
|2023
|2024
|
|-
|Nick White<ref>{{Cite web |last=Bock |first=Jill |date=2024-04-17 |title=City of New Madrid officials are sworn in |url=https://standard-democrat.com/story/3036908.html |access-date=2024-10-05 |website=Sikeston Standard Democrat |language=en}}</ref>
|2024*
|
|}
Philip Raidt, who was born in Württemberg, Germany in 1825, helped to organize the first free school in New Madrid County. In April 1884, he was elected mayor of the city of New Madrid, but he did not serve. In the fall of 1884, he became a candidate for county judge and was elected to this position.<ref name="Goodspeed's SE MO"/>

From 1937 to 1994, all mayors of New Madrid were affiliated with the democratic party.{{Citation needed|date=June 2022}}

==See also==
* [[1865 Memphis earthquake]]
* [[Mayor of New Madrid, Missouri|List of New Madrid mayors]]

==References==
{{Reflist|2}}

==External links==
{{commons category}}
* {{cite web|url=http://newmadridmuseum.com/city_history.html|title=New Madrid - 220+ Years Old and Counting|access-date=1 November 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141102004728/http://newmadridmuseum.com/city_history.html|archive-date=2 November 2014|url-status=dead}}
* Historic maps of New Madrid in the [http://dl.mospace.umsystem.edu/mu/islandora/object/mu%3A138912 Sanborn Maps of Missouri Collection] at the [[University of Missouri]]

==Gallery==
<gallery>
Map_of_New_Madrid,_Mo.,_and_Vicinity,_showing_the_position_of_the_fortifications._Surveyed_%26_drawn_by_Louis..._-_NARA_-_305776.jpg|1865 map of New Madrid and Vicinity
</gallery>

{{New Madrid County, Missouri}}
{{Missouri county seats}}

{{Authority control}}

[[Category:Cities in Missouri]]
[[Category:Cities in New Madrid County, Missouri]]
[[Category:Missouri populated places on the Mississippi River]]
[[Category:County seats in Missouri]]
[[Category:Populated places established in 1788]]
[[Category:French colonial settlements of Illinois Country]]
[[Category:1788 establishments in New Spain]]
[[Category:Pre-statehood history of Missouri]]