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Missouri · Southeast Missouri · #459
Cape Girardeau County, Missouri
On the Mississippi River bluffs of southeast Missouri, Cape Girardeau anchors the Bootheel region as a healthcare and education hub - and happens to be the hometown of Rush Limbaugh, whose bronze statue on the Capitol grounds in Jefferson City confirms that Missouri takes its famous sons seriously.
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Office: Cape Girardeau County Office of Emergency Management – 3555 Veterans Memorial Drive, Cape Girardeau, MO 63701 | (573) 204-0911 | Fax: (573) 204-2924; Director Samuel Herndon. Runs the Hyper Reach Alert Program for text/email emergency notifications and tests outdoor tornado sirens the first Wednesday of each month.
Sheriff: Cape Girardeau County Sheriff’s Office – 216 North Missouri Street, Jackson, MO 63755 | Non-emergency (573) 243-3551 | Crime Tip Hotline (573) 204-2933 | Email: [email protected]; Sheriff Ruth Ann Dickerson. The Communications Center operates 24/7, MULES-certified, coordinating law enforcement, fire, and EMS dispatch for Jackson, Millersville, Delta, Whitewater, Fruitland, Gordonville, and surrounding areas.
Notes: For an active emergency, call 911.
Roads & Utilities
ROADS & TRANSPORTATION
Roads: I-55 and US-61 serve the county; Jackson is the county seat, while Cape Girardeau (spanning both Cape Girardeau and Scott Counties) is the largest city.
Notes: The city of Cape Girardeau, founded 1793, carries the nicknames “Cape,” “The City of Roses,” and “River City,” and calls itself “Where the River Turns a Thousand Tales.”
Business & Permits
BUILDING & PERMITS
Office: Cape Girardeau County – confirm current phone via capecounty.us.
Notes: Cape Girardeau’s downtown Mississippi River floodwall is home to the genuinely striking Mississippi River Tales Mural, 24 panels covering nearly 18,000 square feet of the 15-foot-high flood barrier, depicting the region’s history from Native American habitation (c. 900-1200 AD) through the 1900s, painted by Chicago artist Thomas Melvin and collaborators, completed 2004-2005. A separate portion of the wall hosts the Missouri Wall of Fame, featuring portraits of 47 notable Missourians. The city hosts Southeast Missouri State University (located on the grounds of the former St. Vincent’s Seminary), and preserves 39 sites on the National Register of Historic Places, including the Spanish Colonial Revival Southeast Missourian building.
Veterans Services
VETERANS SERVICES
Office: Cape Girardeau County Veterans Service – confirm current contact via capecounty.us.
Federal: VA facilities accessible via the John J. Pershing VA Medical Center (Poplar Bluff) or a Cape Girardeau VA clinic; confirm current routing.
Libraries
LIBRARIES
Cape Girardeau Public Library – 711 North Clark Street, Cape Girardeau, MO 63701 | (573) 334-5279 | Fax: (573) 334-8334 | Hours: Mon-Thu 9 AM-9 PM, Fri-Sat 9 AM-5 PM, Sun 1-5 PM; roughly 100,000 items including books, audiobooks, and e-books.
Parks & Recreation
PARKS & RECREATION
Key Assets: The Mississippi River Tales Mural, the Cape River Heritage Museum, Southeast Missouri State University’s campus (including a large 1973 centennial mural inside Kent Library), and Riverfront Park are the county’s premier attractions.
Notes: The genuine scale and craftsmanship of the floodwall murals is a distinctive local fact.
GIS & Maps
GIS & MAPS
Appraisal/Parcel Search: Cape Girardeau County Assessor – confirm current contact via capecounty.us.
Animal Services
ANIMAL SERVICES
Humane Society of Southeast Missouri – 2536 Boutin Drive / 180 Weston St, Cape Girardeau, MO 63701 | (573) 334-5837 | Hours: typically 10 AM-5 PM; helps roughly 3,500 animals annually and operates independently without government or national Humane Society funding. IMPORTANT for InmateAid readers: the organization runs a notable “Paws for Parole” program that trains shelter dogs through an inmate training partnership, producing well-socialized, obedience-trained dogs for adoption.
Office: Cape Girardeau County – confirm current contact via capecounty.us.
NOTES: Cape Girardeau County is the second county in the third batch of the Missouri v2 A+ sourced redo. The genuine scale of the floodwall murals and the InmateAid-relevant “Paws for Parole” inmate dog-training program are distinctive local facts. 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 Cape Girardeau County
Cape Girardeau County is the regional hub for southeast Missouri and a corner of southern Illinois and western Kentucky, serving communities across a multi-state area that lacks comparable medical, educational, and commercial resources within easy reach. Southeast Missouri State University, with about 12,000 students, is the county’s most significant institutional anchor, and SoutheastHEALTH hospital system serves as the regional medical center for the Bootheel region. The county’s Mississippi River position – at a natural bluff above the river – gives Cape Girardeau one of the most physically striking small-city settings in Missouri.
Rush Limbaugh grew up in Cape Girardeau and often referenced his hometown on his radio program, giving the city a national recognition disproportionate to its size. The Cape Girardeau Conservation Nature Center and the Trail of Tears State Park document the county’s natural heritage and the tragic forced removal of Cherokee people through this territory in 1838–39 – a history the region now preserves and memorializes with genuine care. The county’s agriculture – soybeans, corn, and some cotton in its southern reaches – connects it to the broader Bootheel economy.
All Services
Browse every category and topic available for this county.
Missouri assesses residential property at 19% of true value. Property owners may appeal to the County Board of Equalization. Missouri offers a Senior Citizens Property Tax Credit for qualifying residents 65 or older (or 100% disabled) with income below $30,000 (renters) or $34,000 (owners) – a state tax credit program. Missouri has no state estate or inheritance tax.
Courts & Legal
Courts & Legal
SENIOR SERVICES
Southeast Missouri Area Agency on Aging
1219 North Kingshighway, Suite A, Cape Girardeau, MO 63701
Phone: (573) 335-3331
Senior transportation, Meals on Wheels, caregiver support, home modification, and long-term care counseling for Cape Girardeau County residents.
Senior Services
Southeast Missouri Area Agency on Aging
1219 North Kingshighway, Suite A, Cape Girardeau, MO 63701
Phone: (573) 335-3331
Senior transportation, Meals on Wheels, caregiver support, home modification, and long-term care counseling for Cape Girardeau County residents.
Marriage & Vital Records
Marriage licenses, divorce records, and birth & death certificates are handled by the following office(s):
COUNTY CLERK
1 Barton Square, Jackson, MO 63755
(573) 243-4476
Genealogy
County-level record sources
Cape Girardeau County Circuit Court, Probate Division (probate case files – see Probate section above).
Local societies
No dedicated Cape Girardeau 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
Cape Girardeau County Circuit Court, Probate Division Cape Girardeau County Courthouse, 203 North High Street, Suite 129, Jackson, MO 63755 (573) 335-8253
Cape Girardeau County is in southeastern Missouri, seated in Jackson, though Cape Girardeau is the county’s largest city.
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
216 N. Missouri St., Jackson, MO 63755
(573) 243-3551
Elections & Voting
Voter registration, polling locations, and elections information are handled by the following office(s):
ELECTIONS
1 Barton Square, Jackson, MO 63755
(573) 243-4476
Health & Human Services
Offices & Contacts
Health services, social services, and assistance programs are handled by the following office(s):
MO Dept of Social Services — Cape Girardeau
(573) 290-5700
Saint Francis Medical Center
sfmc.net (Cape Girardeau — major regional hospital; Level II Trauma; flagship of SoutheastHEALTH)
Office: Cape Girardeau County Public Health Center – confirm current phone via capecounty.us.
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Last verified June 2026
County Facts
County Seat: Cape Girardeau
Population: 80,000
Area: 579 sq mi
Established: 1812
Tier: 3
Inmate Services
Care Packages
Send care packages to inmates in Cape Girardeau County facilities via Amazon.
