Where Is Missouri?

Missouri is one of the fifty states which together comprise the United States of America. Located approximately in the centre of the country, both geographically and culturally it straddles the ground between the American Midwest and the American South. Two major rivers, the Mississippi, and the Missouri, by acting as a conduit for trade and immigration, have helped shape much of the state's history.
At various times, the territory of present-day Missouri was ruled by the colonial powers of Spain and France, but it formed part of a block of territory sold by France to the United States during the Napoleonic wars. Missouri was first organised as a U.S. territory in 1812, and admitted to the American union as a fully-fledged state in 1821.
Today its population stands at just over five million, making it the 17th most populous state in the United States. Jefferson City is the state capital, while its other major cities include Kansas City, Springfield, Independence and St. Louis.