Jasper County, Missouri - Chapter 23: Joplin, Civic and Busintejss, 1912

The White Lead Works - ^Zmc Factory - ^Woolen Mill - Jopun Flouring Mill - First Street Cab Line - ^Watbr Works - ^Building AND Loan Association - The Joplin Club - ^Introduction op Telephone - Electric Lights - Crrr Pounos and Affairs - Fire Department - Banks and Banking - The North Eoad - The Splitlog (Kansas City & Southern) Railway - Schools During the 'Eighties - ^Formal Adoption op High School Course - ^Arbor Day - First Commencement - High School Library - ^District OP Joplin Organized - College op Physicians and Surgeons.

Joplin during the 'eighties made a steady and continuons growth, although there was no period that could have been designated as a boom. The following business ventures figured prominently in the upbuilding of the city.

As mentioned in our chapter on Joplin during the 'seventiefl, the white lead works revolutionized the manner of handling that ore, and when it became a fixture in the mining district the other lead furnaces, one by one, suspended operations and the smelting industry centered in the lead factory of Moflfet & Sergeant.

The original plant of the lead works was destroyed by fire on April 3, 1880, and was rebuilt at once, the new factory being double the size of the old works.

During the middle 'eighties the lead works were sold by Moffet & Sergeant to a company composed of L. P. Cunningham and others and they, in turn, sold the plant to the Picher Lead Company, the present owners of the works.

The white lead from the Picher factory is now sold in all the markets of the world, the United States government being a purchaser, using the Joplin sublimated lead to paint the battleships.

Another institution which was of vast importance to Joplin during the 'eighties and the 'nineties was the zinc works located on west Ninth street, just north of the cemetery. The company was organized in December, 1881, by P. Murphy, William Byers, Thomas Connor, T. A.

McClelland, 0. H. Picher, L. P. Cunningham, C. H. Brewster and Ei Zilliken. Here a number of furnaces were built for the reduction ot zinc and a large amount of the mineral of the Joplin district was ther^ made ready for the market. A hundred or more men were employed, and its influence was greatly felt in a manufacturing way. The war^s later became the property of the Empire Zinc Company, and when tli^ natural gas fields of Kansas offered a cheap fuel were torn down o^xiAi moved to the sunflower state.

The later part of 1882 a number of the leading business men of ^ lri.« city conceived the idea of making Joplin a manufacturing, as well^ ^"^ a mining center, and organized the Joplin Woolen Mills Company i^^it* a capital of $25,000.

During the later 'eighties the operations of the mill were not successful and the plant was leased to the Inland Lead and Paint Company and turned into a paint factory.

In 1882 John B. Sergeant built the Joplin Flouring mill, a threestory brick building on the site of the Brand-Dunwoody Milling Company's plant, Eleventh and Wall streets.

This was Joplin 's first mill and proved a great boom to the city, as it brought, to Joplin many farmers, with their grains, who previously had gone elsewhere.

barrels a day, and its elevator had a capacity of 40,000 bushels. During the first year of business the mill ground 20,000 bushels of wheat. This mill was destroyed by fire in 1892 and was rebuilt by W. G. Sergeant, a son of the original builder. The mill now belongs to the Brand- Dunwoody Milling Company who have since doubled its capacity, making it a 300-barrel a day plant.

John B. Sergeant, after having made a fortune out of the mines, did not go elsewhere to seek investment, but used the large capital he had made to further build up and develop Joplin. We noted during the 'seventies his connection with the first railway that was built by the City of Lead, and so, in the 'eighties, we find him organizing a company to build a street car line.

On November 15, 1882, a franchise was granted to John B. Sergeant to build a street car line in the city. The Joplin Street Car Company was organized with a capital of $20,000 and a mule car line built, the road extending from East Broadway to the zinc works on West Ninth and traversing Broadway in East Joplin and Main and Ninth streets in West Joplin. The car bams were on Broadway in the old Collins stable. The company operated four cars and owned eighteen cqpan of mules which were used as the motor power. Clark Craycroft was the superintendent and general manager of the road. With the advent of eiectrieity as a motive power of the old mule cars passed off the stage and made way for the up-to-date mode of transportation.

As mentioned in our section devoted to the 'seventies that the great majority of the people who came to Joplin in its early day did not expect to remain longer than to make a quick fortune. Consequently the early improvements were not of a permanent character. The houses were quickly put together, but few people dug wells or cisterns, and the main water supply was from the water wagon. S. 0. -Ellis, of East Jop- Un, had a deep well from which he secured a fine supply of water which, was sold to his customers, but the great majority of water haulers obtained their supply from the mining pumps. With these conditions the establishment of a water works system was hailed with delight.

Shortly after his election as mayor W. E. Maynard appointed a committee of citizens and the city council to act jointly and to investigate and report a feasible plan to build a water works system for Joplin. The committee consisted of L. A. Pilmore, P. Murphy, J. Hewitt, O. H. Picher, A. B. McCarty, Dan Collins, C. J. Lewis, P. E. Blow, W. L. Harris, and A. C. Blakey.

The committee held a number of sessions and during their settings listened to three propositions by C. E. Gray of St. Louis, Charles H. Puller of Decatur, Paul B. Perkins of Geneseo, Illinois. The one sub- mitted by Mr. Perkins seemed the most feasible and on the 22d of December, 1880, the committee submitted its report to the city council recommending that a franchise be granted to that gentleman and that the system of water works proposed by him be adopted.

The matter was submitted to a vote of the people and at a (fecial election held on January 11, 1881, was carried by a tremendous majority - 1,229 votes being cast in favor of the proposition and only 31 against it.

The Joplin Water Works Company, successors of Paul B. Perkins, was incorporated April 9, 1881, with a capital of $124,000. The officers of the company were 0. H. President, president ; P. Murphy, vice president and treasurer; L. P. Cunningham, secretary, and C. J. Lewis, superintendent.

The works were built during the summer and fall of 1881 ; a public test, which proved highly satisfactory, was made October 20th, and the plant was formally accepted by the city and opened to the public on November 1st.

The building of the water works was perhaps the most important event of the 'eighties and marked the beginning of the passing from an overgrown mining camp to an up-to-date city. With their building came a modem fire department and adequate fire protection. It lessened insurance rates and supplied the city with a quantity of fresh water from beautiful spring-fed Shoal creek. It made i>ossible a water supply for factories, mills and mining plants. In short, it paved the way for a greater Joplin.

The building of the water works also gave a confidence in the stability of the city and was one of the factors in its real establishment. In 1882, the first year after the construction of the water works, some $500,000 was spent in buildings of various kinds - ^not much for today, but then a considerable sum.

Perhaps no other society did more toward building up Joplin than the Building and tx)an Association, which was organized April 10, 1883. The capital stock was $200,000, consisting of 200 shares of $1,000 each. At the organization of the association it was agreed that no one should own or control more than ten shares, and in this way a large number of people were interested and the possibility of a few controlling the association was precluded.

During the 'eighties and later years this association was the means of assisting a great many people to build homes, and also benefited the city as a whole by starting the home-building boom which commenced in the 'eighties.

The Joplin Club (now the Joplin Commercial Club) was organized in October, 1888, and from then to now has been a great factor in the building of the city. The following were its first officers: President, Galen Spencer; vice president, Thos. Connor; secretary, W. H. Proudfoot; treasurer, Gilbert Barbee.

The objects of the club, when organized were two-fold - ^first, to foster and encourage whatever would build up or improve the city of Joplin and, secondly, to promote a better spirit of friendship among the business men of the city, and to this end the social feature was cultivated.

The first place of meeting was in the Barbee building, where a beautiful suite of rooms was fitted up and used until the building of the Club Theatre building in 1890, when the present quarters were occupied.

In 1881 a telephone exchange was installed in Joplin and neighboring towns by C. W. McDaniels, and put in operation in October of that year. The interests of Mr. McDaniels were later absorbed by the Bell Telephone Company. The telephone, which then was regarded as a great curiofiily, is now in this twentieth century day of progress almost a necessity. The total number of 'phones in use in Joplin now - ^including those of both the Bell and the Home - number over 7,000.

The electric light was first seen in Joplin in 1882 at the Cole circus, where the tent and grounds were illuminated with lights generated from a dynamo and apparatus carried by the show. In 1887 G. W. Sergeant, son of J. B. Sergeant, and like his father, a man of great energy, built an electric light plant on Joplin street, between Fourth and Fifth, the site of the present office of the Empire District Light and Power Company. The first exhibition light was erected at Fourth and Main streets, and after its power and excellence had been demonstrated a contract was awarded his company to light the streets in the business district. The Empire District Electric Light and Power Company the successors to the franchises granted Mr. Sergeant and John W. Freeman, et al., has a total capacity of forty 2,000-eandle power lights.

term. The other oflScers chosen were : L. C. Hamilton, marshal ; W. B. McAntire, police judge ; George Oreor, city attorney ; A. C. Pyl^ treasurer; S. O. Elles, G. B. Young, A. P. McCarty, W. L. Harris, L. Hare, Hugh Dyer, L. A. Pilmore and W. B. Holyard, members of the city council. J. P. Newell was appointed city clerk and P. E. Williams, collector. The important event of Mr. Maynard's administration was the building of the water works, already mentioned.

In October, 1881, the city election passed off quietly, Qeleu Spencer, then one of the leading lawyers of the city, being elected mayor and, like his predecessor, being brought out by a petition signed by numerous friends. With Mr. Spencer the following gentlemen came into the council: M. P. Downy, S. Landauer, John C. Bailey, Charles Gfude, M. Clark and J. C. Mason, with Messrs. Elles and Fillmore holding over.

At the city election in October, 1883, there was but one candidate for mayor, W. B. Holyard, and with him were elected the following officers: City council - ^H. Petitt, J. C. Gaston, J. C. Bailey, and W. V. White; marshal, L. C. Hamilton; police judge, P. M. Redburn; city attorney, J. W. McAntire; treasurer, G. B. Carson.

At the election in 1884 the following were inducted into the official chairs: Mayor, A. B. McCarty; city attorney, J. W. McAntire; treasurer, Jas. B. Glover, Jr.; marshal, L. C. Hamilton; city council, Alexander Campbell, J. L. Briggs, W. H. Warren and J. A. Shepherd.

It will be noted that the entire administration was reelected. The following new members came into the council: Chancellor Livingston, Charles Schiflferdecker, J. W. Gill and Sidney Hire.

The interesting feature of the election was the choosing of a councilman in the Pirst ward. Pour candidates were in the field, all of them receiving about the same strength. Messrs. Chancellor Livingston

After the adoption of the prohibitory law in Kansas and the closing of the saloons of Galena, Joe Thornton, a desperate character, erected on the state line a double building, located half in Missouri and half in Kansas. On the Missouri side was a saloon and on the Kansas side a gambling house. Joe Thornton and his hangers-on were a source of annoyance to the oflScers of both Jasper and Cherokee counties.

On July 19, 1885, Thornton came to Joplin and Deputy Sheriff J. C. Miller, Constable H. .H. Haven and OflScer Daniel Sheehan, of the Joplin police force, went to Swarts' famous 144 (one of the popular dry goods stores), where Thornton was making some purchases, for the purpose of arresting him. Deputy Sheriff Miller walked up to Thornton and informed him that he had a warrant for his arrest. Thornton wheeled and quickly drew his revolver. The three ofScers grappled with him, and endeavored to take his revolver away. In the scuflBe Thornton discharged the weapon and killed Sergeant Sheehan. Deputy Sheriflf Miller and Constable Haven then overpowered him and safely lodged him in the city jail.

Sergeant Sheehan was exceedingly popular, and during his long service on the police force had discharged his duties faithfully, and that night a large number of citizens came to the jail, took Thornton out and hung him to a tree at the comer of Second and Joplin streets.

The people of Joplin, in order to commemorate the memory of the brave police officer, erected a handsome marble monument at his grave in Fairview cemetery.

At the fall election, in 1886, Mr. McCarty declined to be a candidate for a third term and J. L. Briggs, the popular agent of the Trisco Railway was elected mayor. L. C. Hamilton, who for ten years had served the people as marshal, also declined to be a candidate for reelection and was succeeded by Calvin Nickel, who won over four other candidates by a margin of 39 votes. M. T. Downing was elected treasurer and Thos. Dolan city attorney.

The city electors of 1887 was an exceptionally interesting one, inasmuch as there were many aspirants for honors and also because it was exceptionally close for three of the important positions - mayor, attorney and marshal.

Chancellor Livingston, of the First Ward, was elected mayor by one vote; J. J. Cofer, city marshal, by twenty-eight, and Messrs. Thomas Dolan and J. W. McAntire being tied for city attorney.

During this administration the city surrendered its special charter and organized as a city of the third class. The proposition which had been defeated at the regular election in October, *87, carried at the special election on May 8th by a nice majority.

It will be observed that the heaviest vote cast against the new charter was in Lone Elm, where the people lived almost entirely on unplatted and mining lands and where it was thought that, with the adoption of the new charter, more stringent laws would prevail relative to stock running at large, building of streets, sidewalks, etc. The heavy vote for the proposition was in the down-town district, where laws providing for public improvements were greatly desired.

Next to the building of the water works the adoption of the thirdclass charter was the most important happening of the 'eighties, because it opened up a way for public improvements, such as street paving and the construction of sewers, as well as many police regulations not provided for in the old charter.

With these regulations and renewed confidence in Joplin's future greatness a building boom came on which did not abate until the panic of 1893. During 1888 the area of the city was increased, extending from the original southern limits at Tenth street to Fourteenth. South Joplin built up very rapidly, two additions being laid out and quickly sold that year. The next year, 1889, five more additions were placed on the market and the city limits extended to Twentieth street.

The election of this year was notable because it was the last one held without nomination from the several political parties, and also the first one held under the new charter, the time being by the new laws changed from October to April.

The following were the successful candidates: Mayor, R. B. Tyler; recorder (police judge), W. B. McAntire; city attorney, J. W. McAntire; marshal, J. J. Cofer; treasurer-collector, J. W. Calvin; councilmen. First ward, Harmon Cline and Jas. A. Sherwood ; Second ward, A. P. Hoyt and Frank Geier; Third ward, Z. A. Norris and J. A. Roach; Fourth ward, T. J. Field and W. V. White.

After the completion of the water works the matter of organizing a fire department was taken up by the city council and a call was issued for a meeting at the Tabernacle on November 6, 1882, to perfect the organization. The meeting was largely attended and a volunteer department organized from among the best citizens of Joplin.

Clark Craycroft was chosen chief and G. W. Payton assistant. Pour companies were organized, one for each ward, as follows: Hose Company No. 1. G. W. Payton, foreman ; Hose Company No. 2, A. P. Hoyt, foreman; Hose Company No. 3, Jno. C. Bailey, foreman; Hose Company, No. 4, L. A. Fillmore, foreman.

The companies were equipped with hose carts, each carrying 2,500 feet of hose, and as an inducement for proficiency the company which threw water first on a fire was given a prize of ten dollars, in addition to $1.50 which each firemen attending received.

In 1884 Major Craycroft retired from the department and (Jeorge W. Payton of Company No. 1 became chief. Excepting one year he served as such until 1890. Aaron Haughton became assistant.

When Mr. Payton became chief Companies 1 and 2 were named in honor of two of the citizens who had won the favor of the community on account of their public spiritedness. No. 1 took the name of the S. C. Henderson Hose Company, in honor of Joplin 's first wholesale grocer, and No. 2 became the C. J. Lewis Hose Company, Mr. Lewis at that time being superintendent of the water company and having been prominently connected with many other public enterprises.

During the 'eighties the volunteer fire department attained a high state of proficiency and at the tournament of the Southwestern Firemen's Association carried off a number of prizes.

At the Southwestern firemen's tournament held in Carthage in June, 1888, and attended by 1,400 firemen from Missouri, Kansas, and Arkansas, S. C. Henderson Company No. 1, carried off first prize in the 100- yard contest, making the run, laying 100 feet of hose and throwing water. C. J. Lewis Company No. 2 won first prize in the 200-yard contest, their time being 1 :18.

In April, 1889, John W. Gillis was appointed chief and L. A. Fillmore assistant chief. The head of the department secured from the city council an appropriation of $500 for uniforms for his men. At the tournament at Clinton that year the Joplin department made a most elegant showing and won the prize offered for the best appearing department attending the meeting. During this year Capt. C. J. Lewis, after whom Company 2 was named, moved to Hannibal and the members of the company presented him, on the eve of his departure, with an elegant silver loving cup as a testimonial of their regard for him.

In February, 1882, Thomas W. Cmmingham established the Bank of Joplin. George A. Case, who had been the cashier of the Moflfet & Sergeant bank of Joplin, was made the cashier of the new concern, and remained with it until the middle 'nineties, when he retired on account of ill health. The Bank of Joplin had a most unique history. Its capital was $5,000. At the end of the first year the greater portion of the earnings was carried into the surplus; and at the close of each succeeding year the surplus was increased and continued to grow until 1907, when it reached $300,000, sixty times the capital. During the panic of 1907, Mr. Cunningham, with the view of helping relieve the financial stringency, nationalized his bank, thus converting $200,000 of bonds into ready cash and materially assisting in reestablishing confidence in Joplin.

The First National Bank of Joplin was organized in January, 1888, with the following officers and directors: President, Chas. Schifferdicker; vice president, D. A. Preston; cashier, J. A. Cragin; directors. E. Lloyd, Galen Spencer, L. Riseling and J. C. Stewart.

The bank opened for business during the following March. One of its first important transactions was the purchase of thirty thousand dollars of the City of Joplin funding bonds, issued on the occasion of the surrender of the old city charter and the organization of a city of the third class.

This bank showed its faith in Joplin by building a three-story brick bank building during the early 'nineties. It has recently acquired the Empire Building between Fifth and Sixth streets, on Main street, and will shortly move into larger quarters.

One of the important factors in the building up of Ancient Rome was her magnificent system of public roads. The imperial government recognized Rome as the hub around which the commerce of the nation revolved, and so, like spokes in a wheel, well built and splendidly macadamized roads were constructed in all directions from the city and an easy mode of transportation provided, so that all business would center in the city on the Tiber, **A11 roads lead to Rome."

In 1886 the business men of Joplin recognized the importance of more and better-built roads leading into Joplin, and a committee, consisting of C. J. Lewis, Charles Schiflferdecker, A. F. Donnan, and others, was appointed to devise ways and means to build a road running north from Joplin to Spring river. Some $3,000 was subscribed, the right-ofway obtained across the Kansas City Bottom and a fine road worked from First street and Main to Galesburg. This was the beginning of our splendid road system.

Pennin^on, a most accommodating and pleasant gentleman, came to Joplin as agent for the road and his affable manners soon built up for the road an extensive patronage.

This line was of immense value to Joplin and the entire mining district, because it gave another competing line to both St. Louis & Kansas City. The Missouri Pacific Railway also brought to the city another express train - the Pacific Express Company - and materially facilitated transportation facilities.

In 1887 a wealthy Indian, Mathias Splitlog, living in McDonald county, conceived the idea of building a railway from North Arkansas to Kansas City, and put up a considerable sum toward organizing a company which was formed, having for its object the building of a line from the Gulf of Mexico to Kansas City.

The line was first built from the Cowskin river in McDonald county, to Joplin, and formally opened January 1, 1889. On January 3rd Mayor Livingston, the city council and about 200 business men as the guests of the railroad visited Neosho and were royally entertained by the people of that place. On January 7th Neosho gave Joplin a surprise party, coming up en masse, to return the visit.

These two friendly visits were the beginning of a friendly business relation between the two cities which has existed to this day. The name of the road was shortly afterward changed to the Pittsburg & Gulf, and on its completion to Kansas City became the Kansas City & Southern.

As mentioned in our school story of the 'seventies there was three separate school districts in Joplin - ^East Joplin, West Joplin and Lone Elm. The schools were operated separately until 1889, when they were consolidated into a city district, but before taking up the narrative of the organization of the school district of Joplin we will touch briefly the important happenings of the three districts up to the consolidation.

In East Joplin the course of study was divided into eight years' work, but the eight years were equivalent to the course of study mapped out for the graded schools and most of the branches in the first two years in the high school, as now arranged. There was no attempt at a formal graduation, but on the completion of the work nearly every pupil went before the county school commissioner and took the examination for a teacher's certificate and the passing of this examination was equivalent to a completion of the course of study. Of course many of the pupils who secured certificates did not intend to teach, but secured them as a matter of personal pride and for the purpose of having something to show for their school work. Of the seventeen pupils in the A class, room 1, for 1884, every one successfully passed the teacher's examination and was granted a certificate. A high standard was maintained in East Joplin until 1886, when a crisis came which detracted from the thoroughness of the school work.

The general assembly of 1885 passed a law forbidding the issuance of a warrant when there was no money in the treasury to meet the same. It so happened that at the close of 1885 there was a deficit and warrants had been issued to pay salaries and incidental expenses of that year and had to be taken care of out of the revenue of 1886. This necessitated a short term, brought the schools to a close at the end of four months and a half and prevented the class of 1886 completing the course mapped out. During the winter of 1886 the pupils gave several entertainments to raise money for coal, one of which, by the way, was a money maker. It was given in an improvised theater - ^a store room half filled with baled hay. This was no drawback however, for where there is a will there is a way. A stage was made by piling up one tier of baled hay and covering it with planks brought in from a lumberyard. On either side of the wall the bales were extended to the ceiling giving a stage-like effect and also serving the purpose of wings. Chairs were brought in and the entertainment was given to a packed house, enough money being raised to buy coal the rest of the winter.

We append below a list of the gentlemen who served the district as members of the school board and the teaching force when it was the East Joplin School District.

In 1880 the Lone Elm school began to decline, not in eflSciency, because it continued up to the consolidation to be a strong school, but in point of numbers.

In 1879 a dispute arose between the citizens of Lone Elm and the Granby Company, the owners of the fee to the land on which the great majority of the houses were built. Up to that date no ground rent for the space occupied by the houses, had been charged to the miners working their land, and many of them owned the houses in which they lived. The later part of 1879, however, the company changed its policy and decided to charge a monthly rental for the ground. The miners felt that as they were developing the land and making for the company handsome royalties they were entitled to live near the mines and that ground rent should not be imposed. About the time that this controversy was started Messrs. Byers and Murphy laid out an addition to the city west of the 'Frisco railway tracks and placed them on the market at an exceptionally small price.

A hundred or more families from Lone Elm bought lots in the new suburb and moved their houses to this new haven of refuge, which was called Byersville. As a result of this exodus, the school enumeration of 1880 showed a decided falling off and the apportionment of the public funds gave to Lone Elm a greatly reduced sum.

The following served in the Lone Elm schools during the 'eighties: L.. Z. Burr, Tealie Underwood, D. B. Wilson, J. W. Henry, G. P. Garland, H. Phelps and Philip Arnold as principals ; and Mrs. L. Z. Burr, Mrs. Sue Phelps, A. W. Mitchel, Rachel Shaw, William H. Lee, Amanda Wilson, Helen Jones, and several others whose names are not obtainable on account of the failure to preserve the old records, as under-teachers.

It will be noted by these figures that West Joplin had outstripped both East Joplin and Lone Elm and contained a population of approximately 1,500 more than the other two districts combined and was by this time counted the main part of the town. Naturally, therefore, the West Joplin schools grew in importance - ^and West Joplin was the first district to establish a high school.

During the fall of 1879 J. C. Mason resigned the superintendency to take up the practice of law and the Rev. J. P. Martin filled out the unexpired term, teaching the High School, as the highest room was called, in the study of the Tabernacle. For the term of 1880-1 Philip Arnold was made superintendent and served until 1884, when Mr. Mason was again recalled and the high school placed in charge of Mr. Arnold. During Mr. Arnold's incumbency and as superintendent, Messrs. C. H. Lethbridge, Henry Phelps and .J. M. Stephenson had charge of the High School.

At a special election held February 7, 1883, the West Joplin School District voted $20,000 in bonds for the erection of school houses ; $16,200 was apportioned for the Central school building ; $2,500 for a two-room

-Theie figures represent the entire population and Include a few hundred residing on the outskirts of the city, but a part of the several school districts.

The teaching force was increased and the pupils nicely taken care of until after the consolidation of the three districts in 1889, when a building boom came on.

Until 1886 the school board had not formally adopted a specific course of study for the high school, or prescribed the standard of excellency for graduation, but had left the course of study and the rules and regulations largely to the superintendent and high school teachers. New branches had been added from time to time until the course of study pursued equalled that of Carthage, Springfield and other southwestern Missouri cities, but no attempt had been made at graduation. On the coming of Superintendent Hammer, however, the board formally promulgated a high school course and the pupils, who heretofore worked at random - ^that is, so far as graduation was concerned - were classified and began to work toward a definite end, the first class graduating in 1888.

The first high school course consisted of three years* work, as follows: First year - ^Higher arithmetic, United States history, grammar, zoology, composition, physiology and botany.

Arbor day was first observed in the Joplin schools, April 16, 1886, when a large number of trees were planted and the school yards beautified. At the Central school, in April, 1887, appropriate exercises were held and a large number of trees planted by the pupils, each room purchasing and planting a tree which was named after some great citizen of the nation. The two trees planted by the High School were named Peter Cooper and Lafayette, while other rooms in the grade planted trees commemorating Washington, Jefferson, Garfield and other noted statesmen. Many of these trees lived and to this day furnish shade in the old school grounds.

This first class from the West Joplin schools was graduated May 18, 1888. The following are its members and the grades made at the final examination : Ida Coffee, 96.8 ; Cora Lichliter, 96.7 ; Mamie Robertson, 96.5; Johanna Becker, 96; Tillie Hamilton, 95.6; Lee Lichliter, 95.1; William A. Nickell, 94.5; Blanche Sergeant, 94.4; Taylor Snapp, 91.9;

Of this class the first seven became teachers ; one of them, W. A. Nickell, principal of the Jackson school, is still connected with the schools and is the oldest teacher of the corps in point of continuous service.

Leroy Lapsley became an electrician of note and William Lackie, later a graduate of Cornell, a skilled mechanical engineer. Miss Cora Hoyt entered the drygoods house of Christman & Blendurg, and later married one of the firm, while Miss Sergeant, rich in her own right, did not enter the business world other than to look after her real estate holdings.

^In the section of this work devoted to the last decade will be found a list of the graduates from 1888 to 1910, together with such data as is obtainable from the superintendent's report for 1910.]

The High School Alumni was organized the week following the graduation of the first class in 1888, with W. A. Nickell as president and Johanna Becker as secretary.

The honor of founding the Joplin Public School Library belongs to Philip Arnold, and connected with its establishment is the following incident.

One day the topic in history was about the founding of Yale. The lesson was a reminiscence of the struggle undergone in the establishment of the Tale college library, and related at length how eleven preachers had each brought a book, and dedicated it to the founding of that famous collection.

The next morning Mr. Arnold brought a book to the school, and presented it as the initial volume for the founding of a high school library. Some of the pupils followed his example and thus was the nucleus formed for the present magnificent collection of works on all scientific and educational topics.

This small collection of books gradually grew and in 1888, on the 22nd of February a library entertainment was given by the public schools and annually thereafter for a number of years on that date, a library benefit was had. In 1890 the school board made an appropriation for library purposes and from then until now a library fund has been a part of the annual taxation. In 1891 the library work was extended to the grade schools and a number of good books placed in each room in the city. Previous to the building of the public library the high school list of books had grown to 3,000 volumes, but now, with the magnificent collection at the public reading rooms, the school library is not as much used as formerly.

During the middle 'eighties the matter of consolidatiiig East Joplin, Lone Ehn and West Joplin into a city district was agitated, but local jealousies prevented the union, the matter having twice been voted down. But during the winter of '88-9 a campaign of education was formally taken up by the school boards of East and West Joplin and the voters were made acquainted with the benefits to be derived from an abandonment of the county school district c^ystem.

The matter was submitted to a vote of the three districts in April, 1889, and resulted as follows: For consolidation - East Joplin, 124; West Joplin, 252 ; Lone Elm, 5.

Lone Elm having voted against the consolidation, made it necessary to refer the matter to the county commissioner for decision, and Commissioner J. M. Stevenson decided in favor of the union and formally issued his proclamation organizing the school district of Joplin and calling for an election of six directors for the new district.

At the special election for members of the board of education there were sixteen candidates and the voting was heavy. The following received the higher number of votes and were declared elected: P. E. Williams, W. B. Halyard, George W. Payton, O. B. Hamlin, D. A. Preston and W. V. White. The board organized by the election of P. E. Williams as president, O. B. Hamlin, vice president and D. W. Wenrich, clerk.

The new board of education selected the following corps for the consolidated school district of Joplin: Superintendent, R. D. Shannon; principal High School, S. A. Underwood; assistant High School, V. L. Vawter.

With the consolidation of the schools, the high school curriculum was revised and made a full four-years' course and for the past twelve years has been recognized by the State University and State Teachers' Normal Schools, its graduates being admitted without examination to those institutions

The boom which came on in 1889 brought to the city a great number of people and the public schools were crowded from the veiy beginning. In many of the primary rooms more than a hundred pupils were enrolled and it became necessary to resort to half -day sessions in ten of the twenty-six rooms.

In 1885 the Our Lady of Mercy Convent was established in Joplin by the Sisters of Mercy. The school was formally opened in the fall of 1886 and was patronized by some of the best families of Joplin, irrespective of religious belief.

The first commencement exercises of the convent occurred in May, 1887, and the following pupils received honorable mention for excellence during the school year : Ida Murphy, Tillie Collins, Tamson WorMzer, John Workizer, Maggie Shelhan, Maggie Ryan, Maggie Furgison, Helen Spencer, Annie Furgison, Carrie Crane, Maude Vangrundy, Belle Stafford and Belle Gillis.

The convent has always been a most excellently conducted school and has sent into the world graduates well-grounded in mental attainments and with a special training in good morals and gentle manners which makes them honorable as well as useful members of society.

In 1880 Dr. J. C. Petit conceived the idea of organizing a medical college for southwestern Missouri and interested in the scheme a number of the best educators and business men of the city, among them S. A. Underwood, county superintendent of schools ; Prof. J. T. Martin, later principal of the West Joplin school; C. H. Montgomery and others. On September 20th a charter for the school was issued by the secretary of state.

J. F. Martin was chosen president of the college and the institution was opened with a faculty which contained a number of men high up in the medical world. The college building was located on the East Joplin hill, at the comer of Broadway and John streets, an old hotel building being fitted up for the purpose. This building was burned in March, 1884.