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Missouri County
Callaway County, Missouri
The Kingdom of Callaway and Churchill's Westminster College speech - from Callaway County's colorful nickname as the Kingdom of Callaway (during the Civil War, Callaway County's militia negotiated a mock treaty with Union forces declaring the county an independent kingdom - the tongue-in-cheek sovereignty claim has been celebrated ever since) to Westminster College in Fulton (where Winston Churchill delivered his famous Iron Curtain speech on March 5, 1946 - "From Stettin in the Baltic to Trieste in the Adriatic, an iron curtain has descended across the Continent" - one of the most consequential speeches of the 20th century, delivered at a small Missouri college) and the Missouri State Penitentiary's former Fulton campus.
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Office: Callaway County Emergency Management Agency (EMA) – 1201 State Road O, PO Box 817, Fulton, MO 65251 | (573) 592-2480; Emergency Operations Center located in the basement of the Sheriff’s Office.
Sheriff: Callaway County Sheriff’s Office – 1201 State Road O, Fulton, MO 65251 | Non-emergency (573) 642-7291 | Detention Center (573) 592-2474; Sheriff Darryl Maylee.
Notes: For an active emergency, call 911.
Roads & Utilities
ROADS & TRANSPORTATION
Roads: US-54 and MO-54 serve Fulton, the county seat, roughly 1.5 hours west of St. Louis in central Missouri.
Notes: Callaway County borders Boone County and is served by county offices at the Historic Court House, 10 East 5th Street, Fulton, MO 65251.
Business & Permits
BUILDING & PERMITS
Office: Callaway County – Historic Court House, 10 East 5th Street, Fulton, MO 65251.
Notes: Fulton holds genuine world-historic significance: on March 5, 1946, former British Prime Minister Winston Churchill delivered his famous “Sinews of Peace” address – universally remembered as the “Iron Curtain” speech – at Westminster College’s gymnasium, introduced by President Harry S. Truman, a Westminster alumnus’s personal invitation having secured Churchill’s visit. The line “an iron curtain has descended across the continent” is widely regarded as marking the symbolic start of the Cold War; contemporary reports estimated 8,000-28,000 attendees, and Churchill received an honorary degree. America’s National Churchill Museum at Westminster College preserves this legacy today, and other world figures – including Maya Angelou and George H.W. Bush – have since spoken in Fulton. Fulton is also historically notable as the site of the first mental health facility west of the Mississippi, and Callaway County itself carries a colorful Civil War-era nickname, “The Kingdom of Callaway,” after residents reportedly declared a brief mock “independent kingdom” to sidestep Union control in 1861 – a story preserved by the Kingdom of Callaway Historical Society.
Veterans Services
VETERANS SERVICES
Office: Callaway County Veterans Service – confirm current contact via callawaycounty.org.
Federal: Harry S. Truman Memorial Veterans’ Hospital (Columbia), accessible from Fulton; confirm current routing.
Libraries
LIBRARIES
Callaway County Public Library – Fulton, MO; confirm current address/phone/hours via callawaycounty.org or the library’s own site.
Parks & Recreation
PARKS & RECREATION
Key Assets: America’s National Churchill Museum at Westminster College, the Kingdom of Callaway Historical Society, and Fulton’s historic downtown are the county’s premier attractions.
Notes: The genuine 1946 “Iron Curtain” speech is one of the most world-historically significant local facts covered anywhere in this project.
GIS & Maps
GIS & MAPS
Appraisal/Parcel Search: Callaway County Assessor – Historic Court House, 2nd Floor, 10 East 5th Street, Fulton, MO 65251 | Personal Property (573) 642-0766 | Mapping (573) 642-0768.
Animal Services
ANIMAL SERVICES
Garrett Animal Shelter (Fulton Animal Control) – 611 East 8th Street, Fulton, MO 65251 | (573) 642-7443; a city-funded shelter for dogs and cats only, with room for roughly 40 dogs and 20 cats; per its own description, not a no-kill facility.
Callaway County Humane Society – PO Box 795, Fulton, MO 65251 | (573) 642-7483; a small, foster-based rescue placing animals in temporary homes rather than operating a physical shelter; runs a S.N.I.P. spay/neuter assistance program.
Environmental & Waste
ENVIRONMENTAL / WASTE MANAGEMENT
Office: Callaway County – confirm current contact via callawaycounty.org.
NOTES: Callaway County is the fourteenth and final county in this batch of the Missouri v2 A+ sourced redo. The genuine 1946 “Iron Curtain” speech by Winston Churchill is one of the most world-historically significant local facts covered anywhere in this project. All contact information above was sourced via web search as of early August 2026 and should be reconfirmed directly with the relevant office before a visit, deadline-sensitive filing, or emergency-adjacent decision.
About Callaway County
Callaway County holds an outsized place in American and world history – a central Missouri agricultural county where Winston Churchill’s Iron Curtain speech launched the Cold War’s ideological framework.
Fulton (the county seat, population ~12,000) hosts Westminster College (enrollment ~900) – where Churchill delivered the Iron Curtain speech on March 5, 1946, in the presence of President Harry Truman. The National Churchill Museum on the Westminster campus preserves the speech’s legacy, and a section of the actual Berlin Wall stands on the grounds.
Callaway County’s “Kingdom” nickname – from an 1861 mock treaty with Union forces – has become a source of local pride and a distinctive identity for what is otherwise a quiet agricultural and college community.
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Callaway County Assessor at 10 E. 5th Street, Fulton, MO 65251, phone 573-642-0643. MO residential assessed at 19% of true value. Appeal to Board of Equalization.
Courts & Legal
Callaway County Circuit Court at 10 E. 5th Street, Fulton, MO 65251, phone 573-642-0730, handles probate.
Marriage & Vital Records
Marriage licenses, divorce records, and birth & death certificates are handled by the following office(s):
COUNTY CLERK
10 E. 5th St., Fulton, MO 65251
(573) 642-0727
Genealogy
County-level record sources
Callaway County Circuit Court, Probate Division (probate case files – see Probate section above).
Local societies
No dedicated Callaway County genealogical society was confirmed in available directories.
Probate & Estate
Losing someone and having to deal with courts and paperwork at the same time is hard. This section won’t make that easier, but it should tell you what to expect, what it costs, and where to go – so at least you’re not walking in blind.
Where to go
Callaway County Circuit Court, Probate Division 10 E. 5th Street, Fulton, MO 65251 (573) 642-0780 Callaway County is in central Missouri, seated in Fulton.
Step 1: figure out which path applies
Missouri probate is governed by Title XXXI of the Missouri Revised Statutes (Chapters 470-475), the Probate Code.
Small Estate Affidavit (RSMo § 473.097) – available when the entire estate, less liens and encumbrances, does not exceed $40,000. A 30-day waiting period after death applies, and only if no application for letters is pending. If the property listed is worth more than $15,000, the clerk must publish a notice to creditors in a newspaper of general circulation in the county. A bond may be required. Once the court issues a certified small estate certificate, the affiant presents it directly to whoever holds the property to collect and distribute assets – avoiding full probate. Typical timeline: about two months to close, versus six months to a year or more for full probate.
Formal Administration – required for larger or more complex estates. A petition for Letters Testamentary (with a will) or Letters of Administration (without one) is filed with the probate division. After review, the court appoints the personal representative and issues the letters. Missouri offers both supervised and independent administration. Missouri requires an attorney to represent the personal representative in both types of administration.
Step 2: filing for formal probate
File a petition with the Probate Division of the Circuit Court in the county where the decedent was domiciled.
The court appoints the personal representative and issues Letters Testamentary or Letters of Administration.
The personal representative publishes a notice to creditors in a newspaper of general circulation in the county, and gives direct notice to known creditors. Creditors have 6 months from the date of first publication to file claims.
Within 30 days of appointment (unless the court extends the deadline), the personal representative files an inventory and appraisement of all estate assets.
After debts are paid and the creditor claim period expires, the personal representative distributes the remaining assets and files a final settlement with the court to close the estate.
What it costs
Missouri sets statutory minimum fees for attorneys and personal representatives based on a percentage of the estate’s value, though additional fees may be allowed for extraordinary services.
Missouri has no state estate tax and no state inheritance tax. Only the federal estate tax could apply, and only to very large estates.
Probate filings, estate administration, and guardianship matters are handled by the following office(s):
Public Safety & Arrests
Arrest records, inmate search, and law enforcement services are handled by the following office(s):
SHERIFF
10 E. 5th St., Fulton, MO 65251
(573) 642-7291
Elections & Voting
Voter registration, polling locations, and elections information are handled by the following office(s):
ELECTIONS
10 E. 5th St., Fulton, MO 65251
(573) 642-0727
Health & Human Services
Offices & Contacts
Health services, social services, and assistance programs are handled by the following office(s):
MO Dept of Social Services — Callaway
(573) 642-1700
Callaway Community Hospital
callawayhospital.org (Fulton — quality community hospital)
Public Health Information
PUBLIC HEALTH
Office: Callaway County Health Department – Historic Court House, 2nd Floor, 10 East 5th Street, Fulton, MO 65251 | (573) 642-0750.
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Last verified June 2026
County Facts
County Seat: Fulton
Population: 45,000
Area: 840 sq mi
Established: 1820
Tier: 3
Public Records
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