• Home
  • About CJ
    • About CJ - History of Carl Junction
    • About CJ - Mission & Vision Statements
    • About CJ - Chamber of Commerce
  • Government
    • Government - Council Meetings
    • Government - Departments
      • Government - Departments - Police Department
    • Government - Elected Officials
    • Government - Financial Reports
    • Government - Planning & Zoning
    • Government - Stormwater
    • Government - Water Quality Reports
  • Municipal Court
    • Municipal Court - McMullen, Trace
  • Our Community
    • Our Community - Carl Junction Schools
    • Our Community - Parks & Recreation
    • Our Community - Senior Center
  • Public Notices
  • Resources
  • Calendar
  • Contact Us
  • Staff Directory
Quick Links
Skip to main contentSkip to navigation

City of Carl Junction

Follow Us

FacebookFacebookYouTubeYouTube Pay Utilities
  • Departments
    City HallPolice DepartmentElected OfficialsMunicipal Court
  • Quicklinks
    City Code Book
  • 75°
    Current conditions as of 31 Mar 16:53 pm CDT

    Mostly cloudy and windy

    Location:
    Carl Junction
    Feels like:
    NA°
    Humidity:
    16
    Wind:
    W 31 mph
    Mostly cloudy and windy75°
    This Afternoon
    Sunny, with a steady temperature around 75. Windy, with a southwest wind around 33 mph, with gusts as high as 65 mph.
    Tonight
    Clear, with a low around 39. Breezy, with a west wind 17 to 23 mph, with gusts as high as 38 mph.
    Saturday
    Sunny, with a high near 58. Wind chill values as low as 31 early. Northwest wind 10 to 20 mph, with gusts as high as 30 mph.
    Weather forecast provided by weather.gov.
    Sign InSign In Link
    Main Navigation
    Return to home

    City of Carl Junction Logo

    MenuToggle Button

    About CJ

    1. Home
    2. breadcrumbs: About CJ
    3. breadcrumbs: History of Carl Junction

    Loading...

    Website Navigation   As Staff Page Only

    Set as Default Template Help

     

    HTML Editor:

    Your session will expire in 0 minutes.

    Feature & Share

    Working...

    Ajax Loading Image

     

    History of Carl Junction

    In 1848, pioneer Daniel Hunt moved from Pipgras, Cooper County, Missouri, to the area just south of Center Creek, presently about three miles southwest of Carl Junction. There, he opened a trading post on the mound. He bartered with the Native Americans for horses and pelts.

    Lead mining was carried out here before the war, but no large deposits were found until 1870, one of which led to the founding of the city of Joplin, Missouri. A second set of railroad spur lines was built to connect the boomtown to pre-established rail lines, and to the Kansas coal mines, which fueled the smelters for separating the metal from the ore. Several towns arose as way stations for the new spurs, including the creation of Carl Junction. In April of 1877, Miami County, Kansas merchant, Charles L. Skinner platted Carl Junction with 81 lots, seven streets and four alleys. Skinner chose the name Carl, after his original German first name, which he had changed when he immigrated to America. The town was situated to take advantage of the junction being created by E. R. Moffett and John B. Sergeants' proposed Joplin & Girard Railway where it crossed the Kansas City, Fort Scott & Gulf line nine miles northwest of Joplin. Later, both lines were taken over by Frisco. The first train ran through Carl Junction on the newly completed line July 20, 1879. A railroad section facility, switching yard, coal and water chute, a depot and an office were constructed about a decade later and employed 42.

    Carl Junction got the nation's attention in August of 1892, when the fossilized remains of two adult and two infant elephants were discovered at the 20 foot level of a mine belonging to Silas A. Stuckey, on the south end of town. These bones of the extinct species, Elephas Americanus, were purchased by a St. Louis businessman and displayed at the Columbian Exposition of the Chicago World's Fair in 1893, and one of the skeletons was reputed to have been the largest ever found for the species up to that time.

    By 1903, Carl Junction boasted two banks: the Bank of Carl Junction, organized in 1891 by T. W. Cunningham and William Carter and later owned by the Chitwood Family; the Citizen's Bank organized in 1902 by a board of directors including Harve Chitwood and Dr. H. L. Isherwood. The banks merged in 1930. Various hotels were opened, including the Stroud Hotel, the Carl Junction Hotel, the Carlton, the Nilson, the Marr and the Rock Haven, but only one lasted beyond two decades. Boarding houses and apartments proved more lucrative with nearly 100% occupancy.

    Train Station
    Carl Junction Fire Department
    Fire Truck
    Store Front
    Store
    Old Main
    Miners
    Photo of Carl Junction train stationLaunch the media gallery 1 player - media #1
    Train Station
    Photo of men sitting on an old car that worked for the fire departmentLaunch the media gallery 1 player - media #2
    Carl Junction Fire Department
    photo of old fire truckLaunch the media gallery 1 player - media #3
    Fire Truck
    Photo of an old storefrontLaunch the media gallery 1 player - media #4
    Store Front
    Photo of men and children inside an old general storeLaunch the media gallery 1 player - media #5
    Store
    Photo of old Main StreetLaunch the media gallery 1 player - media #6
    Old Main
    Photo of a group of minersLaunch the media gallery 1 player - media #7
    Miners

    Share via email

    Permits/Licenses

    Obtain Building Permits & Business Licenses

    Municipal Court

    Agendas & Minutes

    Council Meetings held on first and third Tuesday of every month at 7PM.

    Follow Us

    FacebookYouTube

    Contact Us

    303 N. Main Street (PO Box 447)
    Carl Junction, MO  64834
    Phone: 417-649-7237
    Fax: 417-649-6843

    Download Our App. Stay Informed.

    Optimized for your mobile phone, our app will keep you informed while on the go. Download today from the links below.

    Download on the App Store Get it on Google Play
    SOCS-Simplified Online Communication System  (socs04)SOCS logo for printingSOCS Logo Link© 2023 City of Carl JunctionAccessibilityPrivacy Pledge
    This institution is an equal opportunity provider.
    carljunction.socs.net