Lee's Summit History

Before the Civil War, the property that is now Lee’s Summit was also known by the name “Big Cedar,” near the present-day intersection of Chipman and Douglas roads. The town of Lee’s Summit was officially founded on November 4, 1868, by William Bullit Howard. Howard had purchased the land in April of 1844 but was exiled to his home state of Kentucky during the Civil War, due to his Southern sympathies. When Howard returned in 1865 and filed the original plat for the town, he named it “Strother” to honor his deceased wife’s maiden name.

There are conflicting accounts of why the town’s name was changed in 1868. The name “Summit” is rarely contested; the town was the highest point on the Missouri Pacific Railroad between St. Louis and Omaha. The origin of “Lee’s” in the name, however, is not so clear. Some believe the town was named after Dr. Pleasant Lea, a physician who was killed by Union militia at the start of the Civil War. Supposedly, railroad engineers surveyed the town from Dr. Lea’s farm and named the site after him, incorrectly spelling the name “Lee” on the side of the new train depot. Others believe the town was named after Confederate General Robert E. Lee, as Howard was a Southern sympathizer. Still others believe that the Dr. Lea story was made up in order to cover up the General Lee idea as the true meaning behind the name.

Howard was a generous man, donating town lots to churches and twenty acres for use as a park. Howard also earned a reputation as a “devout and faithful member” of the Methodist Episcopal Church South. Upon his death in 1896, it was remembered that Howard’s “faith in the creeds of his choice was strong.” As an entrepreneur, his “business habits were very methodical and he was generally successful.” Howard’s example set the standard for Lee’s Summit as a people philanthropic and wise in their business dealings. The legacy of this standard persists today.

Lee’s Summit was not simply a stop on the Missouri Pacific Railroad; it was also a prime location along well-traveled overland routes. The town was the point “where the roads from Independence to Harrisonville, and from Westport to Lone Jack and Sibley and Fort Osage crossed.”1 Travelers could stop at the Cross Roads Store, near the corner of present-day Third and Market Streets, to replenish their supplies or trade their goods. An Indian trail was nearby, used every fall by the Osage who “would go from their reservations out in the Kansas territory to Fort Osage to receive their annual annuities as yearly presents from the Government.”2 Around the same time, the Rocky Mountain fur trade and Santa Fe trade routes were being formed, bringing traffic through Lee’s Summit.

Lee’s Summit has had its share of natural disasters. The city had two major fires within years of each other: one on April 12, 1885, that destroyed 25 buildings, and one on January 25, 1896. Several other smaller fires have occurred since. A dust storm that started at noon and continued into the evening occurred in March of 1935. A drought that began in 1934 may have lasted well into 1936. In the summer of 1875, swarms of locusts descended on the area in several successive waves, prompting the following article to be published in the Lee’s Summit Ledger:
“The effectual and fervent prayer of the righteous availeth much. When a man exhausteth his ingenuity and strength, he must call on a Higher Power. The whole people should make war upon the grasshoppers, and if they fail, then call mightily upon God. He is able to deliver. Yea, call upon the Lord, and he will answer; but we must first do all in our power. The grasshoppers go in great armies and can be exterminated by the millions, if the people will only make a concerted move upon them.”3 Another grasshopper plague occurred in June of 1937. It appears that such great disasters have caused the people of Lee’s Summit to come together to assist one another and to seek the Lord, asking Him for deliverance and restoration.

Lee’s Summit has a few famous citizens, aside from William B. Howard. Quantrill’s raid, Order No. 11 (see Civil War History), and Jesse James’ gang brought fame to Lee’s Summit resident Cole Younger. Younger and his brothers enjoyed living on the run with the James brothers’ gang after numerous bank robberies across the Midwest. Cole, however, left this life behind when he had a conversion experience: “In August of 1913, he attended a revival meeting and a week later was baptized at the Christian Church of Lee’s Summit. At the time, some speculated on his motives for such a public conversion and a few newspaper editorials questioned his sincerity. However, that apparently didn’t bother Cole, who continued to attend church regularly for the rest of his life.”4 Younger spent many of his latter years as an inspirational speaker, telling his story of transformation from criminal to churchgoer.

Robert A. Long and daughter Loula Long Combs are two more famous names from Lee’s Summit. Long built Longview Farm, coined “The World’s Most Beautiful Farm” by 1918. The farm was one of the most agriculturally and technologically advanced farms in the United States, and perhaps the world. Long kept the prices of his produce low so that other farmers could benefit from his farming methods and high-quality livestock. Long was known as a man of deep Christian faith, a wise businessman, and a philanthropist. He spent each morning in Scripture and prayer. He built Longview Chapel (Disciples of Christ) on the farm so that his employees would have a place to worship; he also donated money for the construction of two other churches. Members of Longview Chapel did many special projects, including giving to the Penny Ice Fund in Kansas City, buying a bed for the St. Louis Orphans’ Home, and adopting a French orphan boy and supporting him until he was grown. Long also established “Tent City,” a free summer camp for inner-city mothers and children.

Loula inherited her father’s generous heart. She used her skills as a world-renowned horsewoman to raise money for the Boy Scouts, Animal Rescue League, Animal Protective Association, Children’s Mercy Hospital, the Red Cross, and others. She would often offer to pay for farm employees’ medical bills and put several young men through college. Ms. Combs had a special relationship with the horses she bred and rode. She “always prayed for her horses when there was a need because even if the prayer wasn’t answered to her liking she said she received comfort anyway.”5

Little is known about one final famous citizen of Lee’s Summit, a Dr. Kenneth Berg. He was the pastor of the Presbyterian church in Lee’s Summit, shepherding a membership of 1,000 in a town of only about 4,000. Dr. Berg was influential in the city’s decisions to expand its limits and to create the many scenic lakes that surround Lee’s Summit. Perhaps Rev. Berg’s greatest achievement was the establishment of John Knox Village, a retirement community, in 1969. It was the first community of its kind in the United States, in that it permits residents to pay an up-front fee for a lifetime of care, known better as a “continuing care retirement community.”

1 Donald R. Hale, A History of Lee’s Summit, Missouri, Volume 1: 1830-1945. Independence, MO: Blue & Grey Book Shoppe, 1999, p.6.

2 Ibid.

3 “Pray for Protection.” Lee’s Summit Ledger. May 1875.

4 Ken Hatfield, “The Cole Younger Story: baptism by fire.” Lee’s Summit Journal, Oct. 31, 1997, p. 9B.

5 Linda Newcom Jones, The Longview We Remember. Storm Ridge Press, 1993, p. xxii.