Brief History of Springfield Missouri

From the beginning

Springfield was founded by John Polk Campbell, a settler from Maury County, Tennessee. He arrived with his brother in 1829 and upon finding a “natural well,” he carved his initials on an ash tree to establish his claim. Campbell went back to Tennessee for his family and returned to the Ozarks in March of 1830. Other settlers arrived almost daily and before long, a rather sizeable log cabin settlement developed. Springfield was incorporated in 1838, but the town site was platted in 1835 when Campbell deeded 50 acres of land for the county seat. There was a post office as early as 1834, and the first permanent courthouse was constructed in 1837. Springfield’s city charter was adopted in 1951 and serves as our constitution. The City of Springfield employs about 2,300 employees in more than 20 distinct departments, from the Springfield-Branson National Airport to the Dickerson Park Zoo.

Springfield is considered the birthplace of Route 66. It was on April 30, 1926 at the Colonial Hotel, via telegram, that Springfield businessman John T. Woodruff and Oklahoma businessman Cy Avery first proposed U.S. 66 as the name for the new Chicago-to-Los Angeles highway.