New Madrid County (/ˈmædrɪd/ MAD-rid; Spanish: Condado de Nueva Madrid; French: Comté de New Madrid) is a county located in the Bootheel of the U.S. state of Missouri. As of the 2020 census, the population was 16,434.^[1] The largest city is Portageville and county seat is New Madrid, located on the northern side of the Kentucky Bend in the Mississippi River, where it has formed an oxbow around an exclave of Fulton County, Kentucky.^[2] This feature has also been known as New Madrid Bend or Madrid Bend, for the city.

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New Madrid County
County
New Madrid County Courthouse
Location within the U.S. state of Missouri
Missouri's location within the U.S.
Coordinates: 36°35′N 89°40′W
Country	United States
State	Missouri
Founded	October 1, 1812
Named for	Madrid, Spain
Seat	New Madrid
Largest city	Portageville
Area
• Total	697 sq mi (1,810 km2)
• Land	675 sq mi (1,750 km2)
• Water	22 sq mi (60 km2)  3.1%
Population  (2020)
• Total	16,434
• Density	24/sq mi (9.1/km2)
Time zone	UTC−6 (Central)
• Summer (DST)	UTC−5 (CDT)
Congressional district	8th

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The county was officially organized on October 1, 1812, encompassing most of present-day Arkansas. Named after Nuevo Madrid, a district located in the region, the area was under Spanish rule following France's cession of Louisiana after being defeated in the Seven Years' War. The Spanish named the district after Madrid, the capital of Spain.^[3]

The county includes a large part of the New Madrid Fault that produced the 1811–12 New Madrid earthquakes. This zone remains geologically active, and had continued to produce smaller earthquakes with some frequency.

French Canadians from New France landed in this area in 1781 and established the first European settlement in the present county at New Madrid along the Mississippi River.^[4] France had ceded this area to Spain following its loss in the Seven Years' War. The Spanish governor, Bernardo de Gálvez, appointed American colonel William Morgan, a Revolutionary War veteran from New Jersey, as empresario to recruit new settlers for the area. Morgan attracted about 2,000 settlers before Spain returned this territory to France in the late 18th century. They settled mostly in the area of what is now the city of New Madrid, Missouri. After failing to regain control of its colony of Saint-Domingue, where a slave rebellion had been raging, France gave up on North America, selling its large territory west of the Mississippi River in 1803 to the United States under the Louisiana Purchase.

New Madrid County was organized on October 1, 1812, as an act of the First General Assembly of the Missouri Territory.^[5] In the floodplain of the Mississippi, this area was long cultivated by planters using enslaved African Americans for cotton production.

A series of more than 1,000 earthquakes struck the area in 1811 and 1812. The New Madrid earthquakes were the strongest non-subduction zone earthquake in the United States. A request dated January 13, 1814, by the Territorial Governor William Clark, asked for federal relief for the "inhabitants of New Madrid County."^{[citation needed]}

The county had its peak of population in 1940, according to US census records, as shown in the table. Many residents left the rural county from 1950 to 1970, seeking better work opportunities in the North and Midwest. County population has continued to decline. In 2017 the county was featured in an episode of Madrid de sol a sol, a show from Spanish public channel Telemadrid exploring locations named "Madrid".^[6]

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 697 square miles (1,810 km²), of which 675 square miles (1,750 km²) is land and 22 square miles (57 km²) (3.1%) is water.^[7]

The county is located on the Kentucky Bend of the Mississippi River, which forms a border of the county. This feature is also known as New Madrid Bend or Madrid Bend. This oxbow flows around an exclave of Fulton County, Kentucky. Scientists expect that eventually the river will cut a new channel across the narrow neck of the peninsula, which will gradually be attached by infill land to Missouri.

As of the census^[13] of 2000, there were 19,760 people, 7,824 households, and 5,508 families residing in the county. The population density was 29 people per square mile (11 people/km²). There were 8,600 housing units at an average density of 13 units per square mile (5.0/km²). The racial makeup of the county was 83.21% White, 15.36% Black or African American, 0.19% Native American, 0.14% Asian, 0.01% Pacific Islander, 0.32% from other races, and 0.78% from two or more races. Approximately 0.93% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race. Among the major first ancestries reported in New Madrid County were 32.4% American, 10.3% Irish, 8.8% English, and 8.7% German ancestry.

There were 7,824 households, out of which 32.80% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 52.00% were married couples living together, 14.60% had a female householder with no husband present, and 29.60% were non-families. 26.50% of all households were made up of individuals, and 13.20% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.48 and the average family size was 2.99.

In the county, the population was spread out, with 26.40% under the age of 18, 8.50% from 18 to 24, 26.40% from 25 to 44, 23.20% from 45 to 64, and 15.50% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 37 years. For every 100 females there were 92.40 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 86.50 males.

The median income for a household in the county was $32,758, and the median income for a family was $39,411. Males had a median income of $28,408 versus $19,186 for females. The per capita income for the county was $17,227. About 18.60% of families and 22.10% of the population were below the poverty line, including 31.40% of those under age 18 and 19.20% of those age 65 or over.

Of adults 25 years of age and older in New Madrid County, 63.6% possess a high school diploma or higher while 9.6% hold a bachelor's degree or higher as their highest educational attainment.

• National Register of Historic Places listings in New Madrid County, Missouri
• New Madrid Floodway Project
• New Madrid Seismic Zone