Jackson County’s History

It all started when…

Jackson County was home to members of the Osage Native American tribe. The first known European explorers were French trappers who used the Missouri River as a highway for explorations and trading with Native American tribes.

Explorers Meriwether Lewis and William Clark passed through Jackson County on their famous Lewis and Clark expedition in 1804. Among other items, their report indicated a "high, commanding position" along the river within the current boundaries of Jackson County that in 1808 became Fort Osage. This stockade and trading post was one of the first U.S. military installations within the Louisiana purchase territory and remained active until 1822.

In 1821, Jackson County became part of the newly admitted state of Missouri. Jackson County was organized on December 15, 1826, and named for President Andrew Jackson. Its county seat designated as Independence, which was only a minuscule settlement near a spring. However, the rapid increase in Westward exploration and expansion ultimately made Independence the starting point for three of the great Westward Trails: the Santa Fe Trail, the Oregon Trail, and the California Trail. With the American Civil War and the coming of the railroads, nearby Kansas City ultimately eclipsed Independence, though both towns remain county seats.

In 1838, a small piece of land was bought along the Missouri River in northern Jackson County by the "Town Company," which established "Westport Landing" (today the River Market district). The area outside of Westport Landing was renamed the "Town of Kansas," after the local Kanza Native Americans, in 1839. The town was chartered by Jackson County in 1850 and incorporated by the State of Missouri as the "City of Kansas" in 1853. In 1889, with a population of around 60,000, the city adopted a new charter and changed its name to Kansas City. In 1897, Kansas City annexed Westport.

Latter Day Saints

Jackson County figures prominently in the history of the Latter Day Saint movement. Although formed in upstate New York in 1830, in March 1831, founder Joseph Smith said that a location on the Missouri–Kansas border was the latter-day "New Jerusalem," with the "center place" located in Independence, Missouri. Traveling to the area in the Summer of 1831, Smith and some associates formally proclaimed Jackson County as the site in a ceremony in August 1831.

Leadership and members of the Latter Day Saint movement began moving to Jackson County as soon as word of the August 1831 dedication ceremony was published. Open conflict with earlier settlers ensued, driven by religious and cultural differences. The perception by pro-slavery Missourians that the "Yankee" "Mormons" were abolitionists highten this conflict. Vigilantes in public and private sectors used force to drive individual Saints from Jackson to nearby counties within Missouri; eventually, Latter-Day Saints were given until the end of November 6, 1833, to leave the county en masse. On November 23, 1833, the few remaining LDS residents were ordered to leave Jackson County. By mid-1839, following the Missouri Mormon War, the LDS were driven from the state altogether, not to return to Jackson County or Missouri in significant numbers until 1867.

Civil War

During the Civil War, Jackson County was the scene of several engagements, the most notable of which was the Battle of Westport, sometimes referred to as "the Gettysburg of Missouri," in 1864. The Union victory here firmly established Northern control of Missouri and led to the failure of Confederate General Sterling Price's Missouri expedition. Other battles were fought in Independence in 1862, Lone Jack a few days later, and again in Independence in 1864.

Jackson County was heavily affected by Union General Thomas Ewing's infamous General Order No. 11 (1863). A large number of Confederate sympathizers lived within its boundaries, and active Confederate operations in the area were a frequent occurrence. The Union command was determined to deprive Confederate bushwhackers of all local support. Ewing's decree practically emptied the rural portions of the county and resulted in the burning of large portions of Jackson and adjacent counties. According to American artist George Caleb Bingham, a resident of Kansas City at the time, one could see the "dense columns of smoke rising in every direction." Symbolic of what he termed, "a ruthless military despotism which spared neither age, sex, character, nor condition."

Twentieth century

The coming of the railroads and the building of stockyards led to the rapid expansion of Kansas City in the late 19th century. During the 1920s and '30s, the city became a noted center for Jazz and Blues music, as well as the headquarters of Hallmark Cards and the location of Walt Disney's first animation studio.

The county fared better than many during the Great Depression, as local political boss Thomas Pendergast worked for implementation of a $50,000,000 public works project that provided thousands of jobs. One of Pendergast's political protegés was a young World War I veteran from Independence, Harry S. Truman, who had been his nephew's commanding officer in the war. Truman was elected Presiding Judge (equivalent to the modern County Executive) of Jackson County with Pendergast's support in 1926. He then became a U.S. Senator from Missouri, Vice President, and in 1945, following the death of Franklin D. Roosevelt, the thirty-third President of the United States.

Suburban sprawl became a part of Jackson County's landscape following World War II, as returning soldiers and other workers moved into new homes being built in subdivisions that increasingly encroached on rural portions of the county. Independence, Blue Springs, and Lee's Summit experienced growth during this period, which continues to the present. Kansas City on the other hand, experienced the problems of urban decay that afflicted many large American cities during this period. Recent building projects have sought to reverse this trend, including work on the city's famous City Market, the Westport district, the 18th and Vine Historic District, and most recently, the Kansas City Power & Light District.