Jackson County
(Mo.) Historical Society
Portals to the Past by David W. Jackson
Natural springs drew early
pioneers
Natural Mineral Springs Once “Poured Local Flavor” Over
Independence Local tourists looking to beat the summer’s heat often ask a
thirst-quenching question, “Why wasn’t Independence settled closer to the
Missouri River?” A simple answer is that settlers needed fresh water and wood
for subsistence, and in the early 1820s found those resources bountiful about
three miles south of the precipice of the River’s cliffs. That may also be
why John Calvin McCoy platted Westport about as far from the River in 1838. Early Jackson County pioneers
were drawn to the 19 or 20 natural springs that were available on the high
ground that became Independence. While most watering holes ended up on private
land, some remained available to the public. Others drew attention at the
turn of the 20th Century for their flavorful and medicinal
properties. The
popularity of the J. B. Forbis spring, named after an 1868 emigrant to
Independence, “flowed” back to a time when it was used by Native-American
Indians; French trappers; traders watering their livestock while following
the Santa Fe Trail; and, later by farmers herding their livestock to the
Kansas City stockyards. It even became a noontime resort of boys attending
the adjacent Ott School before Henry Kloos, a homeopathic physician, acquired
the land, covered the spring, and converted it into bottling “White Springs
Mineral Water.” Over the years, the property and business changed hands and
names, and was eventually “capped” by Louis L. and Dorothea Compton, who used
the spring waters in their nationally recognized Polly’s Pop soda into the
late-1960s. Today, while the water no longer runs freely to the surface, the
Forbis spring is part of the Indpendence City-owned Polly’s Pop Green Space. Another such spring flowed at
the former Harvey Vaile estate (today the Vaile Victorian Mansion). Miss
Carey May Carroll, under her subscription company, “Vaile Pure Water Co.,”
bottled its water and sold five-gallon jugs of “pure lithia water, with
lithium salts.” It was a big attraction to the summer hotel developed as “The
Vaile Inn.” J. D.
Cusenbary, emigrant to Jackson County about 1840, had a 322-acre farm between
Independence and what would become Kansas City. After an industrious life in
a variety of pursuits, Cusenbary, in 1900, proposed a racetrack on his farm.
The attraction grew and expanded to become the wildly popular Fairmount Park.
Then there was his mineral spring, which had long been known. Publicized for
its medicinal properties, it was described in detail, including a chemical
analysis, in the 1881 History of
Jackson County, Missouri. The spring eventually fed into what became
Fairmount Park’s lake. If you’ve
visited the National Frontier Trails Museum, you might recall that it is on
the site of the former Waggoner-Gates Milling Company. The milling business
on that site predated the company, but the spring that fed onto the property
was long regarded as a watering hole for countless emigrants passing through
Independence on westward trails. The rubble produced from the 1967 explosion
and destruction of most of the complex where Queen of the Pantry flour was produced filled in the spring’s
ravine. Perhaps one day, it will be excavated and brought back to life. All of the
old springs in the 240 acres that became Independence are now “dry,”
including the four spring-fed wells at each corner of the historic
Independence Courthouse Square. One exception is the trickle of the restored
Big Spring at the corner of Noland and Truman Roads, part of the Pioneer
Spring Cabin interpretive site. More
information about this--or any other topic overviewed in this series--is
available from your Jackson County (Mo.) Historical Society’s Archives and
Research Library. David W. Jackson is archivist for the nonprofit, membership supported Jackson County (Mo.) Historical Society's Archives and Research Library at 112 W Lexington Ave, Suite 103, Independence, MO 64050. The Society collects and makes available local history documents and photographs. For more information, or to donate historical materials, visit www.jchs.org, call (816) 252-7454, or e-mail info@jchs.org. |
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