SOIL SURVEY OF LAFAYETTE COUNTY MISSOURI
History
Settlement of what is now Lafayette County started in 1815, and Lillard County was formed in 1820. Lillard County included all land between the Missouri River and the Osage River. In 1824 the name of the county was changed to Lafayette, in honor of the French general, and the present boundaries were established. The early settlements were along the Missouri River, because river traffic was important and provided the best method of transportation. The prairie areas were the last areas to be settled, because the sod was very difficult to break.
The first county seat was the small settlement of Mount Vernon near the mouth of Tabo Creek. In 1822 the site of Lexington was selected for the county seat, and the town was laid out. The Civil War Battle of Lexington took place at the northern edge of town.
According to census figures Lafayette County had a population of 30,006 in 1920, and 25,274 in 1960. Lexington, the largest town, had a population of 4,695 in 1920 and 4,845 in 1960. Higginsville had a population of 2,724 in 1920 and 4,003 in 1960. In 1920 the population of the county was 24.7 percent urban and 75.3 percent rural, and in 1960 it was 35 percent urban and 65 percent rural.
Farming has always been important in Lafayette County, and, according to the 1964 U.S. Census of Agriculture, there are 1,889 farms in the county. The average size of farms is 192 acres.
Soil is the most important and the most used natural resource in Lafayette County. Coal was important and was mined by the deep shaft method, but now very little coal is mined. The coal seams lie from 45 to 120 feet below the surface and range from 18 to 40 inches in thickness. Limestone is quarried in limited amounts, mainly for farming uses and for road material.
Climate
By WABBEN M. WISNEB, climatologist for Missouri, National Weather Service, U.S. Department of Commerce.
Lafayette County has a typical continental climate characterized by frequent, and often extreme, changes in temperature, humidity, cloudiness, and winds, both from day to day and from year to year. For example, in winter it is not uncommon for the temperature to rise to 60� F. one day and to plunge to below 0� the next day.
The temperature and precipitation data given in table 8 are from the National Weather Service's Cooperative Station at Lexington, Missouri. These data are representative of the climate in Lafayette County.
The temperature exceeds 100� F. in about 6 years out of 10 years, for 3 or 4 days in a row. In 4 winters out of 5, the temperature drops below 0�. Although this condition seldom lasts more than a couple of days, there have been times when the temperature has dropped below 0� for 5 days or more in a row.
The average growing season is about 196 days. The term growing season, is somewhat misleading because different plants can tolerate different temperatures. At night during periods of light wind, radiation freezes often occur, and temperatures in valleys and depressions are generally colder than those on level ground or along ridges. Table 9 shows the last date in spring and the first date in fall when specified temperatures can be expected. The data in table 9 are based on instrument readings taken 5 feet above ground. Frost can occur at ground level when the temperature at 5 feet above the ground is above freezing.
Precipitation averages over 38 inches a year and is mostly from thundershowers that occur during the growing season. Twenty-nine percent of the annual precipitation falls in spring, thirty-five percent falls in summer, and twenty-three percent falls in autumn. The wettest months are May and June, when the warm humid air from the Gulf of Mexico pushes the cooler continental air northward. Monthly extremes have ranged from no precipitation during October and November 1945 to 17.29 inches of precipitation during July 1951.
Violent storms often result from the clash between the warm, humid air mass from the Gulf of Mexico and the cooler continental air mass. Since 1915,12 tornadoes have occurred in Lafayette County. Hail 'and damaging winds occur almost every year in some part of the county, but the greatest threat of hail is in spring when it is least damaging to crops
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