O'Fallon, Missouri


O'Fallon is a city located along Interstates 64 and 70 between Lake St. Louis and St. Peters in St. Charles County, Missouri, United States. It is part of the St. Louis Metropolitan Statistical Area. As of the 2010 census, O'Fallon had a population of 79,329, making it the largest suburb of St. Louis, as well as the largest municipality in St. Charles County and the seventh-largest in the state of Missouri. O'Fallon's namesake in St. Clair County, Illinois is also part of the St. Louis Metropolitan Statistical Area. The two O'Fallons are one of the few pairs of same-named municipalities to be part of the same MSA.

History

O'Fallon was founded in 1856 by Nicholas Krekel. The community was named by Krekel's older brother, Judge Arnold Krekel, after John O'Fallon, the president of the North Missouri Railroad. A post office called O'Fallon has been in operation since 1859 with its first postmaster being Nicholas Krekel. The St. Mary's Institute of O'Fallon was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2007.
In 2006, Money Magazine named O'Fallon 39th in its "Best 100 Places to Live." Money Magazine also ranked O'Fallon 68th out of 100 in 2008, 26th out of 100 in 2010, and 42nd out of 100 in 2017.

Geography

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of, of which is land and is water.

Demographics

2010 census

As of the census of 2010, there were 79,329 people, 28,234 households, and 21,436 families residing in the city. The population density was. There were 29,376 housing units at an average density of. The racial makeup of the city was 89.9% White, 4.0% African American, 0.2% Native American, 3.2% Asian, 0.1% Pacific Islander, 0.8% from other races, and 1.8% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 2.7% of the population.
There were 28,234 households of which 44.7% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 61.6% were married couples living together, 10.0% had a female householder with no husband present, 4.3% had a male householder with no wife present, and 24.1% were non-families. 19.3% of all households were made up of individuals and 6.2% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.80 and the average family size was 3.23.
The median age in the city was 34.3 years. 30% of residents were under the age of 18; 7.1% were between the ages of 18 and 24; 30.8% were from 25 to 44; 23.1% were from 45 to 64; and 8.9% were 65 years of age or older. The gender makeup of the city was 48.8% male and 51.2% female.

Economy

has a major presence in O'Fallon. Venture Stores was headquartered and maintained a distribution center in O'Fallon, until its dissolution. The buildings are now occupied by True Manufacturing. Shell Oil Company announced on February 27, 2012 it will close its regional distribution center here by the end of 2012, costing more than a dozen jobs. Lou Fusz Automotive Dealership in O'Fallon, won the 2012 State of Missouri Bid Contract for Police vehicles for the second year in a row.
Air Evac Lifeteam, an Airplane Service for the rural areas of The Ozarks moved their Headquarters to O'Fallon in 2015.

Sports

O'Fallon was the home of the River City Rascals independent Frontier League baseball team. The Rascals played at CarShield Field in O'Fallon, which was built in 1999. It is located on Tom Ginnever Boulevard and T.R. Hughes Boulevard near downtown.
The organization ceased operations after the 2019 season.

Parks and recreation

O'Fallon has a humid subtropical climate. Summers are hot and humid, while winters are moderately cold.

Government

O'Fallon operates under a charter form of government. In 2010, the current four wards were redistricted and a new, fifth ward was created. The current mayor is William "Bill" Hennessy. The current City Council members are: Dave Hinman, Rick Lucas, Rose Mack, Tom Herweck, Reid Cranmer, Jeff Schwentker, Jeff Kuehn, Mike Pheney, and Debbie Cook.
Laws

Education and libraries

O'Fallon is served mostly by the Fort Zumwalt School District, and the westernmost part is served by the Wentzville R-IV School District. The south to southeastern part of the city is served by the Francis Howell R-III School District. St. Dominic High School is a private Catholic school located in O'Fallon; Christian High School is a non-denominational Christian secondary school also located in O'Fallon. Satellite campuses of Webster University and Lindenwood University are located in O'Fallon.
O'Fallon is served by the St. Charles City-County Library system, which has three branches in the area: two standard and one "express" location.

Infrastructure

Fire protection is mostly provided by the O'Fallon Fire Protection District, which in 2007 became the first Internationally Accredited Fire Agency in the state of Missouri. The award was made by the Center for Public Safety Excellence's Commission on Fire Accreditation International. The CFAI has approved accreditation status for only 120 fire agencies worldwide.
The southern portion of the city is served by the Wentzville Fire Protection District.

Notable people