Welcome to Cape Girardeau County

The History

Cape Girardeau County was organized on Oct. 1, 1812, and was named after Ensign Jean Girardot, a French officer who developed a trading post in the present city of Cape Girardeau. The county seat is in Jackson, also the first city named in honor of President Andrew Jackson.

The first County Courthouse was built in 1818 by John Davis. The present courthouse in Jackson was designed by P.H. Weathers and completed in 1908.

In 1987, the new County Administration Building opened at 1 Barton Square in Jackson, where it continues to house most of the county's administrative offices.

From its vantage point overlooking the Mississippi River, the Common Pleas Courthouse in Cape Girardeau has been a seat of justice since its construction in 1854. During the Civil War, Confederate soldiers were jailed in its dungeon.

quick facts

County Courthouse
1 Barton Square
Jackson, Mo., 63755
Phone: 573-243-1052
County population trends
1980 1990 2000 2005
58,745 61,633 68,693 71,161
County seat: Jackson
Year organized: 1812
Square miles: 579
Size of board: 3

Elected county officials

Gerald Jones, presiding commissioner
Paul Koeper, 1st district commissioner
Jay Purcell, 2nd district commissioner
H. Morley Swingle, prosecuting attorney
Phyllis Schwab, public administrator
John Clifton, coroner
John Jordan, sheriff
Roger Hudson, treasurer
Janet Fenimore-Robert, recorder
David Ludwig, auditor
Jerry Reynolds, county assessor
Diane Diebold, collector
Kara Clark, county clerk
Charles Hutson, circuit clerk