WEBB CITY, MISSOURI

Driving into Webb City on Rt 66, you immediately notice a town with pride in their heritage.  The large praying hands monument, the flag flying from a 100 ft flag pole, then the area for statuary and monuments  recalling the town’s history, the kneeling miner and the wall dedicated to the electric rail, all located in King Jack Park.

King Jack Park, Webb City’s 144 acre community park, has a fully restored operating streetcar and the depot that is home to the area Chamber of Commerce. The first floor of the power house is now a skating rink and the clubhouse is the headquarters for the Webb City Historical Society. 

The park is home to Parks and Recreation youth baseball, softball, and soccer fields, located near the rodeo grounds and tennis courts.  There are pavilions that serve as a Farmers Market and extensive walking trails.  There are 2 fishing lakes being built next to the Georgia City Bridge in the back of the park.  The Georgia City Bridge is one the oldest all-metal vehicular bridges still in existence in the state of Missouri. Built in 1871, the one span, bowstring arch truss bridge now serves as a walking bridge over Paradise Lake. 

 Webb City, (Webbville), was platted by John C. Webb in September, 1875 and incorporated in December, 1876, with a population of 700. The city was located on a portion of Webb's 200 acre farm.  There, in 1873, Webb discovered lead while plowing.  Twenty years later 700 mines were located within the limits of Webb City and adjacent Carterville and the district ranked first in the production of zinc ore.  

The St. Louis and San Francisco Railroad came to Webb City in 1879, the Missouri Pacific in 1881.  The population increased from 1,588 in 1880 to 9,201 in 1900. 

A.H. Rogers built a mule street car line from Webb City to Carterville, 1889.  It was the predecessor of the Southwest Missouri Electric Railway, established 1893. The Southwest Missouri Railroad network expanded into Galena and Baxter Springs, Kansas, as well as Picher, Oklahoma in 1917. When complete, the electric railroad line encompassed some 94 miles, serving the Tri-State Mining Field. In 1910, Southwest Missouri Electric Railway built a Clubhouse for its employees, which was used for passing the time between shifts. It was equipped with showers, beds, card and pool tables. 

During World War I zinc and lead concentrates produced in the Webb City-Carterville Prosperity District were valued at more than $18 million. Webb City's population increased to some 15,000.

Mining declined during the post-World War I era but in the 1930s, however,  the town  diversified.  A number of factories were enticed to come to the city: leather processing,  shirts, shoes, cigars, boxes, caskets, just to name a few.  The area also expanded into the gravel industry, shipping countless tons of gravel, chat, and sand all over the country. In the 1930's and during World War II, explosives were manufactured by powder plants located near Webb City. 

In 1926, Route 66 was established, which ran right through Webb City's downtown area. Route 66 continues south on US-71 Business Route (Madison Street).