Dade County is a county located in the southwest part of the U.S. state of Missouri. As of the 2020 census, the population was 7,569. Its county seat is Greenfield. The county was organized in 1841 and named after Major Francis L. Dade of Virginia, who was killed in the Second Seminole War in 1835.
According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of , of which is land and (3.2%) is water.
As of the 2020 census, the county had a population of 7,569 people and 3,775 housing units.
The median age was 47.5 years. 21.3% of residents were under the age of 18 and 25.1% of residents were 65 years of age or older. For every 100 females there were 103.4 males, and for every 100 females age 18 and over there were 99.0 males age 18 and over.
There were 3,105 households in the county, of which 26.3% had children under the age of 18 living with them and 21.2% had a female householder with no spouse or partner present. About 28.6% of all households were made up of individuals and 14.7% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older.
There were 3,775 housing units, of which 17.7% were vacant. Among occupied housing units, 77.7% were owner-occupied and 22.3% were renter-occupied. The homeowner vacancy rate was 2.6% and the rental vacancy rate was 8.5%.
0.0% of residents lived in urban areas, while 100.0% lived in rural areas.
The racial makeup of the county was 92.4% White, 0.5% Black or African American, 0.6% Native American, 0.3% Asian, 0.0% Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander, 0.5% from some other race, and 4.4% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino residents of any race comprised 1.8% of the population.
Racial and ethnic composition is detailed below.
The median income for a household in the county was $49,899, and the median income for a family was $53,409. Males had a median income of $40,909 versus $28,750 for females. The per capita income for the county was $26,774. About 8.8% of families and 11.7% of the population were below the poverty line, including 15.4% of those under age 18 and 11.2% of those age 65 or over.
The Republican Party predominantly controls politics at the local level in Dade County. Republicans hold all but one of the elected positions in the county.
All of Dade County is a part of Missouri's 127th District in the Missouri House of Representatives and is represented by Ann Kelley (R-Lamar).
All of Dade County is a part of Missouri's 32nd District in the Missouri Senate and is currently represented by Ron Richard (R-Joplin).
All of Dade County is included in Missouri's 4th Congressional District and is currently represented by Vicky Hartzler (R-Harrisonville) in the U.S. House of Representatives.
Former Governor Mike Huckabee (R-Arkansas) received more votes, a total of 769, than any candidate from either party in Dade County during the 2008 presidential primary. He fell just 25 votes short from receiving the same number of votes cast in the entire Democratic primary in Dade County.