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Carl Junction is a city of about 7,000 people just to the northwest of Joplin MO. The area that we cover houses some 250,000 to 300,000 people, most of whom either work in the Joplin area or work in northwest Arkansas.
Carl Junction is a fourth-class municipality incorporated under Missouri law. The City government is organized under a Mayor and eight-member City Council. The Council is elected from four wards on an alternating basis. The Mayor is elected at-large for a two-year term. Other municipal officials include the City Administrator, City Attorney, City Judge, City Prosecutor, City Collector, City Treasurer, City Clerk, and the administrative heads of the City departments.
Joplin is located in southwest Missouri in the "four states" region encompassing Oklahoma, Kansas, Missouri and Arkansas. At the edge of the Ozark Mountain region, Joplin has a current population of 49,024. The daytime population swells to 270,000 while the population within a 40-mile radius of Joplin is 400,000, making it Missouri's fourth largest metropolitan area. Joplin combines the beauty and hospitality of country living with the convenience and commerce of city vitality.
Incorporated in 1873, the City of Joplin is a full-service municipality. It operates under the Council-Manager form of government and has approximately 400 employees delivering a variety of services to the regional community.
Joplin is readily accessible to eight major lakes, numerous clear-water streams, and a number of entertainment and vacation attractions. Located at the crossroads of Interstate Highway 44 and U.S. Highway 71, Joplin serves as the commercial, cultural, financial, educational, medical, recreational and transportation center of a 5,000 square-mile area. Joplin's regional airport provides ready access to major transportation centers and is served by US Air to Kansas City, MO. as well as Mesa Airlines to Dallas, TX..
Carthage, Missouri is a distinctive old Route 66 town. There's a lot of the old Mother Road left here too. Originally Carthage was founded in 1842. During the Civil War guerrilla rebels attacked the town and burned the courthouse. Maybe that was a blessing in disguise because the rebuilt courthouse is one of the most beautiful I've ever seen in my opinion. As Route 66 winds its way towards Carthage the tower of this imposing structure can be seen from miles away. The downtown district around the courthouse is a picturesque plaza filled with small shops, antiques and art galleries. In many ways it will take you back one hundred years to the splendid age when Carthage had more millionaires than any other town in America at the time because of the lead and zinc mines. Today their mansions and Victorian homes offer us a glimpse of the wonder of those times.
Carthage was also involved in the marble industry around the turn of the last century. The Missouri State Capitol, U.S. Capitol and White House are faced with marble that came from the Carthage area. According to Jack Rittenhouse the famous Carthage Marble is the only true gray marble found in the United States. Another claim to fame that Carthage can be proud of is that it was also girlhood home to Belle Starr, the famous albeit notorious "Bandit Queen." Before the Civil War she spent her younger years at her father's hotel that once was located on the north side of Carthage's court house square. As you can see, there's a lot of history in Carthage. Yes indeed, Carthage is a fun town to explore!
Galena KS
Galena, an incorporated city of the second class in Cherokee county, is located near the southeast corner of the county on Short creek and at the junction of the Missouri, Kansas & Texas and St. Louis & San Francisco railroads. There is also an electric line to Joplin, Carthage and Webb City, Mo. The first railroad was completed to this point in 1871, but the town was not started until after the discovery of lead ore in the spring of 1877. The Galena Mining & Smelting company purchased 120 acres of land and laid out the town. Lots sold rapidly, and within two months the population numbered over 2,000. A postoffice was established soon after the town was platted, and in May, 1871, Galena was incorporated as a city of the third class, with G. W. Webb as the first mayor. The first school was taught in the winter of 1877-78 in a building that had been erected for mercantile purposes, and the first regular school house-a frame structure of four rooms-was built in 1879. On May 16, 1879, the first number of the Galena Miner made its appearance. This was the first newspaper.
For some time after Galena was started, the buildings were of that "balloon" type so generally found in new mining towns, and a large part of the population was composed of individuals as "rough" as the buildings. Saloons flourished, the gambler was early on the ground, drunken brawls and shooting scrapes were common. But this has been changed. The Galena of the present day is equipped with substantial business buildings, waterworks, electric lights, a fire department, a sewer system, well paved streets, good sidewalks, a telephone exchange, an electric street railway, modern public school buildings, good hotels, well stocked mercantile establishments, and a number of fine residences. Lead and zinc mining and smelting are the principal industries, but there are also foundries, stamping works, grain elevators, a novelty works, a broom factory, etc. The city has 3 banks, 1 daily and 2 weekly newspapers, an opera house, and lodges of the leading fraternal organizations. The population in 1910 was 6,096. Empire City was annexed to Galena in 1907.
Baxter Springs KS
In the spring of 1849 John J. Baxter, his wife and eight children moved from Missouri to 160 acres of land near Spring River. His land included a spring which flowed from the side of a hill near what is now Military Road, where he set up and operated an inn and general store which came to be known as "Baxter's place". "Baxter's place" was incorporated in 1868 and was renamed Baxter Springs in honor of it's early settler.
In and around 1868 there became a great demand for beef in the northern cities. Texas cattlemen and stock raisers, collecting large herds of cattle on the southern planes, used Baxter Springs as a way point for the journey to the northern markets. Knowing the benefits of continual cattle flow through the town, an active Stockyards and Drovers Association was organized for the purpose of buying and selling cattle. Corrals were constructed for approximately 20,000 head of cattle with ample grazing lands and fresh water. Texas cattle trade stimulated the economy and Baxter Springs grew rapidly. The city voted bonds to various organizations to enlarge city limits and acquired an immense debt in the process. In 1873, a bond of $4,000 for street improvements, made the indebtedness greater than the entire assessed valuation of all property. Soon after a railroad moved into Texas making it unnecessary to drive the cattle to Kansas. Since Baxter Springs was no longer a booming cattle town, most of the population left, leaving the immense debt to the few stable citizens left. In 1878 a suit was filed for the collection of the debt, when the Mayor and council members were ordered to court to explain why they had not paid, the entire staff resigned leaving no officer whatsoever. The town remained that way for more than a year and a half forcing the high court to develop a plan compromise settlement, which enabled the remaining townsfolk to carry the bond through and the debt was finally paid.
Early visitors to Southeastern Kansas were often impressed with it's beauty. The river that flows through this section of land was fed by many springs and was remarkably clear. As early as 1838 the river was known as Spring River. In 1867 a cable-ferry boat was instituted and operated into the early 1880's when the first bridge was built over the river. As the city grew, so did the activities around the river. The local citizens gathered for all manner of reasons, from the Fourth of July celebrations, to the Old Soldiers and Sailors Reunions. In the latter part of the nineteenth century a three story frame structure with two turbine water wheels, and a grinding capacity of 50 barrels of flour a day was built and known as the Baxter Springs Flouring Mill. It was the only manufacturing plant in town. Today the river is used mainly for fishing and camping.
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In our experience, a home isn't a dream home because of its room dimensions. It's about how you feel when you walk through the front door. And the way you can instantly envision your life unfolding there.