Chaffee is a city in Scott County, Missouri, United States.

33.0% of all households were made up of individuals, and 16.3% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older.

32.7% of all households were made up of individuals, and 18.4% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older.

Because large amounts of cotton are produced by southeast Missouri farmers, and owing to the town's location near the Mississippi River, it made sense to process the cotton locally.

However, in the late 1990s and early 2000s, the town's economy was devastated by factory closings.

The Columbia Sportswear factory and the Florsheim Shoe Company announced that they were idling their plants and laying off workers.

This was compounded by the closure of previous factories such as the Thorngate Clothing Company, which idled its plant in 1996.

[11] Out of a population of just 3000 people, this amounted to losing over 60% of the town's employment base.