Maps of Missouri

Missouri is located in the southern part of the United States, bordered by Arkansas, Tennessee, Illinois, and Iowa. The state is known for its diverse terrain and rich history. Because Missouri covers 69,714 square miles, it possesses many landforms, rivers, lakes, and other geographical features.

The northern part of the state is mainly plains or prairies due to its location on the eastern fringes of the Great Plains of North America. This region possesses flat landscapes with fertile soil that produces a variety of crops. Situated just to the south of the Missouri River in the west-central part of Missouri is the Osage Plains, which extends across its borders with Kansas, Iowa, and Nebraska. The Osage Plains are mixed-tallgrass prairie, and they consist of scattered woodlands. The most notable plains in Missouri are the Bootheel; the Ozark Plateau; and the St. Francois Mountains.

Missouri's lowest point is found along the St. Francis River in the "Bootheel" region at 230ft; on its south-eastern border with Arkansas. Wheat was the primary crop grown in the Bootheel until the 1920s, but an invasive beetle toppled that industry in the 1920s. Earthquakes are surprisingly common in this region due to its proximity to the New Madrid fault zone.

The Ozark Plateau is located in southern Missouri and covers around a third of the state. It has rolling hills covered with forests, meadows, caves, springs, rivers, and streams. This highland contains limestone, dolomite, and many other sedimentary rocks that have eroded and left granite slabs exposed.

The St. Francois Mountains are located in southeastern Missouri near Farmington. These mountains consist of ancient volcanic rocks formed millions of years ago when magma cooled below ground. This mountain range covers about 8 million acres and has a maximum elevation of 1,772 feet above sea level at Taum Sauk Mountain State Park.

Several major rivers flow through or border Missouri, including the Mississippi River to the east, the White River to the south, and the Osage River in central Missouri. There are also numerous smaller rivers, such as Big Piney River in south-central Missouri; the Meramec River near St Louis; the Salt River near Hannibal; the Gasconade River near Hartville; and the Blackwater River near Nelson.

In addition to these rivers, there are also over 400 natural lakes throughout the state, such as Lake Taneycomo near Branson, Table Rock Lake near Table Rock, Stockton Lake by Stockton, Mark Twain Lake near Monroe City, Truman Lake by Warsaw, Clearwater Lake near Piedmont, and Smithville Lake north of Kansas City.

Counties Map

The State of Missouri is divided into 115 counties. In alphabetical order, these counties are: Adair, Andrew, Atchison, Audrain, Barry, Barton, Bates, Benton, Bollinger, Boone, Buchanan, Butler, Caldwell, Callaway, Camden, Cape Girardeau, Carroll, Carter, Cass, Cedar, Chariton, Christian, Clark, Clay, Clinton, Cole, Cooper, Crawford, Dade, Dallas, Daviess, DeKalb, Dent, Douglas, Dunklin, Franklin, Gasconade, Gentry, Greene, Grundy, Harrison, Henry, Hickory, Holt, Howard, Howell, Iron, Jackson, Jasper, Jefferson, Johnson, Knox, Laclede, Lafayette, Lawrence, Lewis, Lincoln, Linn, Livingston, Macon, Madison, Maries, Marion, McDonald, Mercer, Miller, Mississippi, Moniteau, Monroe, Montgomery, Morgan, New Madrid, Newton, Nodaway, Oregon, Osage, Ozark, Pemiscot, Perry, Pettis, Phelps, Pike, Platte, Polk, Pulaski, Putnam, Ralls, Randolph, Ray, Reynolds, Ripley, Saint Charles, Saint Clair, Saint Francois, Saint Louis, Saint Louis City, Sainte Genevieve, Saline, Schuyler, Scotland, Scott, Shannon, Shelby, Stoddard, Stone, Sullivan, Taney, Texas, Vernon, Warren, Washington, Wayne, Webster, Worth, and Wright.

With an area of 180,560 sq. km, the State of Missouri is the 18^th most populous state in the USA. Located on the northern corner of Ozark Plateau and to the south of the Missouri River, in the Cole County is Jefferson City (officially, the City of Jefferson) – the capital city of Missouri. Situated in the western part of Missouri, near the confluence of Missouri and Kansas River is Kansas City – the largest and the most populous city of Missouri. Kansas City serves as an important shipping and marketing center for a vast agricultural region. 

Where is Missouri?

The State of Missouri is located in the central or Midwest region of the United States. Missouri is a land-locked state that is bordered on all sides by eight different states. It is bounded by Kansas, Nebraska, and Oklahoma in the west; by Arkansas in the south; by Illinois, Kentucky, and Tennessee in the east, and by Iowa in the north.

Regional Maps: Map of North America