Branson Area Information

General

• Land Area: 18.3 square miles
• Elevation: 947 feet
• Lakes: 3
• Parks: 13
• Theaters: 52
• Theater Seats: 60,317
• Restaurants: 445
• Restaurant Seats: 37,048
• Hotels & Motel Rooms: 18,578
• Convention Facilities: 12
• Radio Stations: 1 AM, 4 FM
• Television Stations: 5

Population

• Total Population: 6,807
• Median Age: 43 years
• Under 18: 22.7%25
• Over 65: 20.2%25
• Median Home Price: $121,600
• Average Household Size: 2.21

Tax Rates

• Retail Tax: 7.475%25
• Restaurant Tax: 11.475%25
• Entertainment Tax: 11.475%25
• Property Tax: $0.4853 per $100 assessed (For a $150,000 home, annual city property tax would be $138)

City Services

• Budget: $40 million
• Fire Department Personnel: 45
• Police Department Personnel: 40
• Residential Water: $1.55 per 1,000 gallons
• Commercial Water: $2.32 per 1,000 gallons
• Residential Sewer: .96%A2 per 1,000 gallons
• Commercial Sewer: $1.84 per 1,000 gallons

Tourism

• March through December
• Over 7.8 million people visit a year
• $50 million in yearly sales tax revenue

Mileage To Branson

• Joplin: 123
• Kansas City: 215
• St. Louis: 253
• Tulsa: 230
• Topeka: 273
• Memphis: 301
• Oklahoma City: 334
• Wichita: 356
• Des Moines: 401
• Omaha: 401
• Dallas: 433
• Indianapolis: 499
• Chicago: 547
• Cincinnati: 609
• Minneapolis: 677
• San Antonio: 707
• Houston: 716
• Cleveland: 811

Landmarks & Historic Places

• American Presidential Museum
• Bonniebrook Historical Society
• Ralph Foster Museum
• Roy Rogers-Dale Evans Museum
• Veterans Memorial Museum
• The Titanic Museum
• Laura Ingalls Wilder Home & Museum

Major Shopping Areas

• Branson Landing
• Grand Country Square
• Grand Village
• Engler Block
• Factory Merchants Outlet
• The Shoppes at Branson Meadows
• Tanger Outlet Center
• Branson Mall
• Coffelt Country Crossroads

Major Attractions

• Silver Dollar City
• White Water Park
• Celebration City
• Dixie Stampede Dinner & Show
• Branson Landing
• Jim Stafford
• Lawrence Welk Champagne Theatre
• Shoji Tabuchi
• Yakov Smirnoff
• Shepard of the Hills
• The Baldknobbers
• Moe Bandy
• Andy Williams
• Mickey Gilley
• Presleys’ Country Jubilee
• Branson IMAX
• Country Tonight
• Ride the Ducks
• Joseph & The Technicolor Dream Coat
• The Incredible Acrobats of China
• Cirque
• The Legends
• Ripley's Believe It Or Not!
• The Hollywood Wax Museum
• Kirby Van Birch
• Table Rock Lake Recreation Area
• Branson Scenic Railroad
• Showboat Branson Belle
• Recreational activities

Major Dining

• Applebee’s
• B.T. Bones Steakhouse
• Bob Evans
• Branson Cafe
• Buckingham's
• Candlestick Inn
• Chateau Grille
• Cracker Barrel
• Devil's Pool
• Fall Creek Steak House
• Golden Corral
• Grand Country Buffet
• IHOP
• Kentucky Fried Chicken
• Krispy Kreme
• Landry's Seafood House
• Little Hacienda
• Lonestar Steakhouse & Saloon
• Luigi's Pizza Kitchen
• Majestic Steakhouse
• Mazzio's Pizza
• McDonald's
• Olive Garden
• OutBack Steak & Oyster Bar
• Panera
• Papa John's
• Golden Paradise Grill & Steakhouse
• Pasta House Co.
• Red Lobster
• Rib Crib
• Shoney's
• Shorty Smalls
• Showboat Branson Belle
• Sonic Drive-In
• Steak N Shake
• Taco Bell
• Tony Z's Italian Ristorante
• Top of the Rock
• Wendy's
• Zoey’s

Golf Courses

• Pointe Royale Golf Course: A 6,067 yard, 18-hole course, Pointe Royale is a premier championship course located in a scenic condominium resort setting in Branson on Lake Taneycomo just below Table Rock Dam.
• Thousand Hills Golf Resort: A 5,111 yard, 18-hole course, Thousand Hills is conveniently located in the heart of Branson.
• Holiday Hills Golf Club: Located just three miles east of Branson, newly renovated Holiday Hills offers a 5,771 yard, 18-hole course.
• Ledgestone Golf Course: Located in Stonebridge Village, Ledgestone is a 6,724 yard, 18-hole course with scenic and challenging terrain.
• Branson Creek Golf Club: This all-new Tom Fazio-designed 18-hole course offers 7,012 yards of scenic and challenging golf.
• Top of the Rock Golf Course: This 9-hole executive course was designed by Jack Nicklaus and offers 1,330 yards overlooking Table Rock Lake.

Fun Facts

• Branson attracts over 7.3 million visitors annually from around the world.
• Branson boasts the #1 theme park in the world: Silver Dollar City.
• There are over 45 music theatres, 300 hotels, and 200 restaurants.
• Offers more theatre seats than Broadway and Las Vegas combined.
• Roy Clark was the first of the national country stars to give his name to a theatre.
• Silver Dollar City was created by those making crafts while waiting outside the depths of Marvel Cave.
• Originally, Branson drew tourists because it had a commercial ice plant, soft drink bottling plant, candy factory, and an ice cream factory all next to the waterfront.
• Tourists came to Branson in the 1930's largely due to Harold Bell Wright. He wrote the Shepherd of the Hills, a novel based on the the Ozark area and its settlers.
• It took 4 years to build Table Rock Dam with an estimated construction cost of $65,420,000.
• The Presley's were the first to erect a simple metal building on the road west of Branson and waited each night for guests to show up.

Notable Moments

• 1907: Harold Bell Wright publishes the novel "Shepherd of the Hills".
• 1912: Branson is incorporated with 1,200 residents.
• 1932: Lake Taneycomo becomes a popular destination and inexpensive vacation spot.
• 1945: Hugo Herschend and his family relocate from Chicago and lease Marvel Cave.
• 1958: Table Rock Dam is completed after four years of construction.
• 1959: The "Baldknobbers" hold their show in the basement of Branson City Hall.
• 1961: Silver Dollar City opens as a "crafts show" for the local artisans.
• 1975: Gerken & Associates is established!
• 1976: A 2-lane highway with alternating third passing lane is completed to accommodate the large and ever increasing number of visitors driving to Branson.
• 1982: Three new large-scale theaters are completed, including the Starlite Theater.
• 1987: Box Car Willie becomes the first celebrity to open his own theater in Branson.
• 1988: The Factory Merchants Outlet Mall, commonly referred to as the “Red Roof Mall” opens.
• 1989: Inspiration Tower at Shepherd of the Hills opens to the public.
• 1990: The Ozark Mountain Christmas celebration takes place for the first time, thus extending Branson’s tourism season by four months.
• 1991: Branson receives national recognition as a great place for entertainment from Time Magazine, People, The Los Angeles Times, Wall Street Journal and 60 Minutes.
• 1993: Over 22 theaters feature national stars like Mel Tillis, Mickey Gilley, Ray Stevens, Moe Bandy, Buck Trent and Shoji Tabuchi.
• 1995: Other famous music stars like Andy Williams, the Osmonds, Tony Orlando, Bobby Vinton, Wayne Newton, and Jim Stafford arrive in town and construct their own theaters.
• 1997: Shepherd of the Hills celebrates its 5,000th show to become America's most performed outdoor drama.
• 2003: Branson hosts over seven million visitors, almost half of them coming from 300 or more miles away.
• 2004: Branson Landing is announced and downtown planning begins.
• 2006: Branson Landing opens and the Branson Chamber of Commerce membership exceeds 1,200.

*Source: Branson Chamber of Commerce