Blackwater

History

Blackwater was platted in 1887, although it had long functioned as a trading point. A post office called Blackwater has been in operation since 1873. In the late nineteenth century, the Missouri Pacific Railroad sought to construct a "River Route" to link important sites like Kansas City, Boonville, and Jefferson City. A number of smaller towns and villages sprang up among the route, which provided a vital economic lifeline to otherwise isolated areas. As one of these smaller towns, Blackwater retained a small but economically stable population. First consisting of railroad workers, the discovery of a rock quarry several miles outside the town provided a new set of economic opportunities, drawing miners to the area. In subsequent decades, the town would develop drugstores, banks, hardware stores, millinery shops, cafes, a hotel, lumber yard, livery stables, a creamery, meat market, blacksmiths, and saloons. Blackwater Commercial Historic District, Blackwater Residential Historic District, and Imhoff Archeological Site are listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

Geography

Blackwater is located along Missouri Route K two miles north of I-70. The site is on the south bank of the Blackwater River, and the community of Nelson in adjacent Saline County lies two miles to the west-northwest. Lamine is six miles to the southeast on Missouri Route 41. According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of , all land.

Race & ethnicity