Jackson County (Mo.) Historical Society

Historical Perspective

by David W. Jackson

Truman’s advice mattered

With thanksgiving and forgiveness in our hearts and minds at this time of year, here’s a local story with meaning that originates with Independence’s hometown hero, Harry S Truman. In October 1953, Truman visited Caruthersville, Mo. After breakfast at the Top Hat Café, Truman tipped his hat and shared kind words with the staff as he was leaving. Truman suggested to one 16-year-old that he, “finish high school, and attend Lincoln University in Jefferson City, Missouri.” JoeLouis Mattox followed Truman’s advice.

Then, between 1966 and 1968, Mattox took a position with the Land Clearance for Redevelopment Authority of Independence, Missouri (LCRA). Complying with a residency requirement dictating that he live in Independence was a hurdle since, at that time, African-Americans could only live in segregated neighborhoods. Mattox lived for a short time on East Waldo with his former college mate, Herb Branson (an Independence resident, who happened to be Caucasian). He then lived with Mr. and Mrs. Jessie Powell on North Noland Road across the street from William Chrisman High School. Mattox said, “the Powell’s were one of the most respected African-American families in Independence.”

He worked as a Relocation Specialist for LCRA that had opened in 1965 an office in the Northwest Parkway Renewal Area…one of two renewal areas covering a 520-acre section of Independence designated and funded by the federal government for improvement and redevelopment. The Northwest Parkway Renewal Area was located on the south side of 24 Highway, and was visible from the newly constructed Harry S Truman Presidential Museum and Library on the north side of the highway.

Mattox was responsible for finding and relocating some 125 Independence residents to decent, safe, and sanitary homes that was within their means, and that was in reasonably convenient locations. Part of the Northwest Parkway Renewal Area included a predominantly African-American neighborhood locally known as, “The Neck.” Mattox said, “In many regards ‘The Neck’ was a ghetto. The quality of housing in the blighted area designated for renewal was substandard, and, in some cases, quite unsafe. Even having come from a very rural community in southern Missouri where one might expect to see shanties and the like, I had never personally seen people living as poorly as they did there. I would not have lived [there], nor would I have wanted my parents to live in such a place.”

A number of families and individuals in “The Neck,” 10-15% of whom were Caucasian, could trace their descendants back to Independence’s frontier days. Most residents were ordinary working class families, many of whom served as maids, cooks and gardeners for well-to-do families in adjacent white neighborhoods. Some were retired, others quite elderly. Jon Taylor provides a succinct overview of the demographics of the population and cultural landscape in his new book, “A President, a Church, and Trails West: Competing Histories in Independence, Missouri.”

Mattox admits that, “while the end result was the best for some; for others it was not. People’s lives were affected and they endured pain and suffering, which I acknowledge. There are some who see me as having ‘betrayed the black community’ for the work I did. Or, that I was a ‘token for the white man.’ Some might equate me to ‘Uncle Tom.’ They have the right to their opinion, but I hope they may understand that there was a job to do, and I felt I did it with sensitivity and understanding…. I felt then as I do now that my work in community development and historic preservation has meaning.”

Eventually the redevelopment area formerly known as “The Neck,” become Bess Truman Parkway that today bisects an 18-acre McCoy Park south of 24 Highway.

It’s time to give thanks how the quality of life for all Americans has improved over the last 55 years when this story originated with Mr. Truman. Mattox describes more about his work in detail with personal recollections in a full-length feature article in the Jackson County Historical Society JOURNAL.

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