Lexington, Missouri
Encyclopedia
Lexington is a city in Lafayette County, Missouri
Missouri
Missouri is a US state located in the Midwestern United States, bordered by Iowa, Illinois, Kentucky, Tennessee, Arkansas, Oklahoma, Kansas and Nebraska. With a 2010 population of 5,988,927, Missouri is the 18th most populous state in the nation and the fifth most populous in the Midwest. It...

, United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

. The population was 4,453 at the 2000 census. It is the county seat
County seat
A county seat is an administrative center, or seat of government, for a county or civil parish. The term is primarily used in the United States....

 of Lafayette County. Located in western Missouri
Missouri
Missouri is a US state located in the Midwestern United States, bordered by Iowa, Illinois, Kentucky, Tennessee, Arkansas, Oklahoma, Kansas and Nebraska. With a 2010 population of 5,988,927, Missouri is the 18th most populous state in the nation and the fifth most populous in the Midwest. It...

, Lexington lies about 40 miles east of Kansas City
Kansas City, Missouri
Kansas City, Missouri is the largest city in the U.S. state of Missouri and is the anchor city of the Kansas City Metropolitan Area, the second largest metropolitan area in Missouri. It encompasses in parts of Jackson, Clay, Cass, and Platte counties...

 and is part of the Greater Kansas City Metropolitan Area
Kansas City Metropolitan Area
The Kansas City Metropolitan Area is a fifteen-county metropolitan area that is anchored by Kansas City, Missouri and is bisected by the border between the states of Missouri and Kansas. As of the 2010 Census, the metropolitan area has a population of 2,035,334. The metropolitan area is the...

. It is the home of the Battle of Lexington State Historic Site
Battle of Lexington State Historic Site
The Battle of Lexington State Historic Site is located in Lexington, Missouri. The site was established in 1958 to preserve the site of the American Civil War battle that took place in 1861 between Confederate troops led by General Sterling Price and Federal troops led by Colonel James A. Mulligan...

, and Wentworth Military Academy and College, the oldest military school west of the Mississippi River.

Geography

Lexington is located at 39°10′59"N 93°52′30"W (39.183060, -93.875070).342343456489705439. According to the United States Census Bureau
United States Census Bureau
The United States Census Bureau is the government agency that is responsible for the United States Census. It also gathers other national demographic and economic data...

, the city has a total area of 3.7 square miles (9.6 km²), of which, 3.5 square miles (9.1 km²) of it is land and 0.2 square mile (0.517997622 km²) of it (4.92%) is water.

Demographics

As of the census
Census
A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring and recording information about the members of a given population. It is a regularly occurring and official count of a particular population. The term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common...

of 2000, there were 4,453 people, 1,815 households, and 1,210 families residing in the city. The population density
Population density
Population density is a measurement of population per unit area or unit volume. It is frequently applied to living organisms, and particularly to humans...

 was 1,279.7 people per square mile (494.1/km²). There were 2,015 housing units at an average density of 579.1 per square mile (223.6/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 91.02% White, 6.04% African American, 0.18% Native American, 0.49% Asian, 0.04% Pacific Islander, 1.06% from other races
Race (United States Census)
Race and ethnicity in the United States Census, as defined by the Federal Office of Management and Budget and the United States Census Bureau, are self-identification data items in which residents choose the race or races with which they most closely identify, and indicate whether or not they are...

, and 1.17% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 2.18% of the population.

There were 1,815 households out of which 31.1% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 48.9% were married couples
Marriage
Marriage is a social union or legal contract between people that creates kinship. It is an institution in which interpersonal relationships, usually intimate and sexual, are acknowledged in a variety of ways, depending on the culture or subculture in which it is found...

 living together, 13.3% had a female householder with no husband present, and 33.3% were non-families. 30.0% of all households were made up of individuals and 15.0% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.37 and the average family size was 2.90.

In the city the population was spread out with 25.2% under the age of 18, 8.0% from 18 to 24, 26.0% from 25 to 44, 22.7% from 45 to 64, and 18.0% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 38 years. For every 100 females there were 89.2 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 85.7 males.

The median income for a household in the city was $32,759, and the median income for a family was $39,583. Males had a median income of $31,672 versus $21,646 for females. The per capita income
Per capita income
Per capita income or income per person is a measure of mean income within an economic aggregate, such as a country or city. It is calculated by taking a measure of all sources of income in the aggregate and dividing it by the total population...

 for the city was $17,879. About 12.8% of families and 14.9% of the population were below the poverty line, including 22.1% of those under age 18 and 11.5% of those age 65 or over.

History

Founding

Lexington, Missouri, located on the bluffs of the Missouri River
Missouri River
The Missouri River flows through the central United States, and is a tributary of the Mississippi River. It is the longest river in North America and drains the third largest area, though only the thirteenth largest by discharge. The Missouri's watershed encompasses most of the American Great...

, was platted in 1822, near William Jack's Ferry, which had been established three years earlier on the south bank of the river. It was settled largely by Kentuckians and was named for Lexington, Kentucky
Lexington, Kentucky
Lexington is the second-largest city in Kentucky and the 63rd largest in the US. Known as the "Thoroughbred City" and the "Horse Capital of the World", it is located in the heart of Kentucky's Bluegrass region...

. The first ferry was established in 1819 by Lexington's founder, Gilead Rupe. In 1823, Lexington became the county seat of Lafayette County and grew rapidly.

Growth as a trading center

John Aull opened a mercantile store in 1822, and he was soon joined by his brothers James and Robert Aull. The Aull Brothers firm soon had a frontier chain, also operating stores in Independence
Independence, Missouri
Independence is the fourth largest city in the U.S. state of Missouri, and is contained within the counties of Jackson and Clay. It is part of the Kansas City Metropolitan Area...

, Westport
Westport, Kansas City
Westport is a historic neighborhood in Kansas City, Missouri, USA. Originally its own town, it was annexed by Kansas City in 1897. Today, it is one of Kansas City's main entertainment districts.-Background:...

, and Liberty
Liberty, Missouri
Liberty is a city in Clay County, Missouri and is a suburb of Kansas City, Missouri. At the 2007 population estimate, the city population was 29,993...

. Other merchants came, as did farmers and planters who specialized in hemp, tobacco and cattle.

With the emphasis on trade and agriculture, Lexington and Lafayette County also had one of the largest slave populations in the state. Many homes in town still have the old slave quarters behind them.

Lexington was a bustling and prosperous city, the largest city west of St. Louis in the 1830s and '40's. During that period, it was the major center for merchants and outfitters as trappers, traders, and emigrants prepared to travel westward on the Santa Fe Trail
Santa Fe Trail
The Santa Fe Trail was a 19th-century transportation route through central North America that connected Missouri with Santa Fe, New Mexico. Pioneered in 1822 by William Becknell, it served as a vital commercial and military highway until the introduction of the railroad to Santa Fe in 1880...

, California Trail
California Trail
The California Trail was an emigrant trail of about across the western half of the North American continent from Missouri River towns to what is now the state of California...

, Oregon Trail
Oregon Trail
The Oregon Trail is a historic east-west wagon route that connected the Missouri River to valleys in Oregon and locations in between.After 1840 steam-powered riverboats and steamboats traversing up and down the Ohio, Mississippi and Missouri rivers sped settlement and development in the flat...

, and the Mormon Trail
Mormon Trail
The Mormon Trail or Mormon Pioneer Trail is the 1,300 mile route that members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints traveled from 1846 to 1868...

 to Utah. Goods sent west from Lexington were valued at $450,000 in 1843. Rope walks, slaughter houses, a foundry and a furniture factory were among other early Lexington industries. In the 1840s, Russell, Majors and Waddell
Russell, Majors and Waddell
Russell, Majors and Waddell was a business partnership, based in Lexington, Missouri, between William Hepburn Russell, Alexander Majors, and William B. Waddell. It operated various transportation and communications services in the American West in the 1850s and early 1860s, including stagecoach...

, the largest trading firm in the West, established its headquarters on Main Street. In the 1850s, these three men had 3500 wagons carrying goods from Missouri to Sacramento, Denver, and other points, and in 1860, they would found the Pony Express
Pony Express
The Pony Express was a fast mail service crossing the Great Plains, the Rocky Mountains, and the High Sierra from St. Joseph, Missouri, to Sacramento, California, from April 3, 1860 to October 1861...

.

The steamboat trade on the river became a hugely profitable investment, and the wharf was a center of commerce. In 1852, one of the worst steamboat accidents in Missouri history occurred at Lexington. The side-wheeler Saluda (steamship)
Saluda (steamship)
The explosion of the steamer Saluda, near Lexington, Missouri in 1852, was one of the worst disasters in Missouri River history.In March 1852, the Saluda left St. Louis for Council Bluffs, Iowa, carrying many Mormon immigrants from England and Wales. The river was muddy, icy, and running high as...

 was carrying 250 Mormons
Mormons
The Mormons are a religious and cultural group related to Mormonism, a religion started by Joseph Smith during the American Second Great Awakening. A vast majority of Mormons are members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints while a minority are members of other independent churches....

 en route to Salt Lake City when its boilers exploded, killing over 150 people. Many children orphaned by the blast were adopted by Lexingtonians. Productive coal mines, among the first in the state, were dug into the surrounding river bluffs to provide fuel for river steamers.

Architecture

Lexington was also noted for its architecture, especially in its public buildings. The Greek Revival Lafayette County Courthouse, built in 1847 on Main Street, is the oldest courthouse in continuous use west of the Mississippi. The Masonic College
Masonic College
Masonic College was a higher education institution in Missouri that was established by Freemasons in 1844 and operated until 1857.-History:The Grand Lodge of Missouri opened the first Masonic College in Philadelphia, Missouri beginning in spring of 1844. The institution was initially operated...

, also built in the Greek Revival style, operated from 1847 to 1857, and after the Civil War
American Civil War
The American Civil War was a civil war fought in the United States of America. In response to the election of Abraham Lincoln as President of the United States, 11 southern slave states declared their secession from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America ; the other 25...

, it housed the Central College for Women
Central Female College
Central Female College, was a women's college located in Lexington, Missouri. The institution was associated with the Methodist Episcopal Church, South and operated from 1869 to 1924.-Early history:...

. The Gothic Revival Christ Episcopal Church, built in 1848, has an interior finished in walnut and a ceiling ornamented with a Gothic truss arch. Lexington is still home to over 150 homes and public buildings built before the Civil War, and annually holds well-attended tours of its historic homes and buildings.

Civil War and aftermath

Lexington was the site of two of the largest battles in the western campaign of the American Civil War
American Civil War
The American Civil War was a civil war fought in the United States of America. In response to the election of Abraham Lincoln as President of the United States, 11 southern slave states declared their secession from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America ; the other 25...

. The better-known Battle of Lexington
Battle of Lexington I
The First Battle of Lexington also known as the Battle of the Hemp Bales, was an engagement of the American Civil War, occurring from September 13 to September 20, 1861, between the Union Army and the pro-Confederate Missouri State Guard, in Lexington, the county seat of Lafayette County, Missouri...

 is commonly referred to as the Battle of the Hemp Bales. On September 12, 1861, between 6,000 and 10,000 soldiers of the Missouri State Guard, led by Major General Sterling Price
Sterling Price
Sterling Price was a lawyer, planter, and politician from the U.S. state of Missouri, who served as the 11th Governor of the state from 1853 to 1857. He also served as a United States Army brigadier general during the Mexican-American War, and a Confederate Army major general in the American Civil...

, began a siege against the Federal military post in the old Masonic College
Masonic College
Masonic College was a higher education institution in Missouri that was established by Freemasons in 1844 and operated until 1857.-History:The Grand Lodge of Missouri opened the first Masonic College in Philadelphia, Missouri beginning in spring of 1844. The institution was initially operated...

 commanded by Colonel James A. Mulligan
James A. Mulligan
James A. Mulligan was colonel of the 23rd Illinois Volunteer Infantry Regiment in the Union Army during the American Civil War. On February 20, 1865, the United States Senate confirmed the posthumous award to Colonel Mulligan of the rank of brevet brigadier general of U.S...

.

On September 18, Price's army mounted an assault. Some of Price's army used hemp bales as moving breastworks
Breastwork (fortification)
A breastwork is a fortification. The term is usually applied to temporary fortifications, often an earthwork thrown up to breast height to provide protection to defenders firing over it from a standing position...

 while they moved up the river bluffs and closed in on Mulligan's headquarters. On September 20, 1861, Mulligan's troops surrendered. Combined casualties were 73 dead, 270 wounded. The battlefield on the bluffs of the Missouri River
Missouri River
The Missouri River flows through the central United States, and is a tributary of the Mississippi River. It is the longest river in North America and drains the third largest area, though only the thirteenth largest by discharge. The Missouri's watershed encompasses most of the American Great...

 is now a state park, and the cannonball stuck in one of the upper pillars of the Courthouse has become a symbol for the town.

The Second Battle of Lexington
Battle of Lexington II
The Second Battle of Lexington was a minor skirmish during the American Civil War, taking place on October 19, 1864, in Lexington, the county seat of Lafayette County, Missouri. It formed a part of Confederate Maj. Gen...

 occurred during Price's Missouri Expedition
Price's Raid
Price's Missouri Expedition, also known as Price's Raid, was an 1864 Confederate cavalry raid through the states of Missouri and Kansas during the American Civil War. While Confederate Major General Sterling Price enjoyed some successes during this campaign, he was decisively beaten at the Battle...

 on October 19, 1864.

Lexington was known as a center for Quantrill's Raiders
Quantrill's Raiders
Quantrill's Raiders were a loosely organized force of pro-Confederate Partisan rangers, "bushwhackers", who fought in the American Civil War under the leadership of William Clarke Quantrill...

 during the war. Two months after the Civil War ended, many of these guerrilla fighters who had refused to honor the cease fire finally decided to turn themselves in at Lexington. While riding into town, reportedly under a white flag, they skirmished with Union soldiers, and Jesse James
Jesse James
Jesse Woodson James was an American outlaw, gang leader, bank robber, train robber, and murderer from the state of Missouri and the most famous member of the James-Younger Gang. He also faked his own death and was known as J.M James. Already a celebrity when he was alive, he became a legendary...

 was severely wounded. Some credit this event as a major contributing factor to his post-war career as a legendary bank robber. It is likely not a coincidence that the James-Younger Gang
James-Younger gang
The James-Younger Gang was a notable 19th-century gang of American outlaws that included Jesse James.The gang was centered in the state of Missouri. Membership fluctuated from robbery to robbery, as the outlaws' raids were usually separated by many months...

 targeted the Alexander Mitchell bank in Lexington for the second daylight bank robbery in United States history. In December 1866, Archie Clement
Archie Clement
Archie Clement , a.k.a "Little Arch", was a pro-Confederate guerrilla leader in the American Civil War, known for his brutality towards Union soldiers and pro-Union civilians in Missouri.-Little Archie, the bushwhacker:...

, an accomplice of the James brothers and perhaps the most notorious of all the guerrilla fighters, terrorized the town and was shot from his horse and killed by a sniper perched in the second floor of the Courthouse.

Athens of the West

Lexington never returned to its pre-war prominence, replaced by Kansas City as the most important city in western Missouri. Particularly harmful was arrival of the transcontinental railroad
Transcontinental railroad
A transcontinental railroad is a contiguous network of railroad trackage that crosses a continental land mass with terminals at different oceans or continental borders. Such networks can be via the tracks of either a single railroad, or over those owned or controlled by multiple railway companies...

, which supplanted the river commerce. A number of institutions of higher education were established, leading the town to bill itself as the “Athens of the West.”. Especially significant were three schools for women, the Elizabeth Aull Seminary, Lexington Ladies College, and Central College for Women. Wentworth Military Academy
Wentworth Military Academy
Wentworth Military Academy and College is a private four-year college preparatory high school and military junior college. It is located in Lexington, Missouri, part of the Greater Kansas City Metropolitan Area. Wentworth is the oldest military academy west of the Mississippi River, and the...

, founded in 1880, still draws students from throughout the country and around the world today.

Lexington businesses

Until the 1980s Lexington was the headquarters and main distribution point for Mattingly's/Matco Stores, which was purchased by P.M. Place Stores
P.M. Place Stores
P.M. Place Stores, also known as Place's Discount Stores was a Bethany, Missouri-based, employee-owned chain of discount stores in the United States. The company primarily operated in towns with a population of 1,500 to 4,000 people in Illinois, Iowa, Kansas, and Missouri.-Origins:P.M. Place...

. In 2000 the Place's stores were purchased by ShopKo to be converted into Pamida
Pamida
Pamida is a chain of department stores with more than 175 locations in 16 Midwestern and West Central U.S. states. Pamida stores are generally located in smaller communities that range from 3,000 to 8,000 in population...

 stores. In 2004 the former Mattingly warehouse was sold by Pamida. In August 2004 liquidation of the former Matco #101, then a Pamida, began and the store was closed by the end of October. This was the end of the Mattingly store legacy in Lexington. Hugh Mattingly had been a mentor to Wal-Mart founder, Sam Walton
Sam Walton
Samuel Moore "Sam" Wallballs was a businessman, entrepreneur, and Eagle Scout born in Kingfisher, Oklahoma best known for founding the retailers Wal-Mart and Sam's Club.-Early life:...

.

Lexington is a location for the Maid-Rite
Maid-Rite
Maid-Rite is an American casual dining franchise restaurant chain. Before it became a restaurant chain, it was a single restaurant, opened in 1926 by Fred Angell. By the end of the 1920s, there were four franchises granted; these four restaurants are still in operation.Maid-Rite Corporation's CEO...

 restaurant franchise, famous in the midwestern United States for its loose meat hamburgers and other traditional diner fare.

Dunbrooke began as a dress shirt company in 1939 in Lexington, Missouri has grown to become one of the nation’s premiere logoed apparel manufacturers. Over the past 65 years, the company has borne witness to several changes, encompassing everything from its products to its name. The company has manufactured several types of apparel, from dress shirts to bowling shirts to nylon gym shorts and jackets. Dunbrooke’s signature jacket line had its beginnings in the 1950s when the company was under government contract to produce nylon jackets for the Korean War. The company’s name also underwent several transformations from its original name “Dunhill” (1939) to “Dunbrooke Shirt Company” (1963) to “Dunbrooke Sportswear” (1971) to Dunbrooke Apparel Corp (2003). The current managers purchased Dunbrooke from parent company American Marketing Industries (AMI) in October 2003. Under its new ownership, Dunbrooke today maintains two offices – corporate headquarters in Independence, MO, and a modern decorating and distribution center located in El Dorado Springs, MO, built in 1998

Government

  • Ike Skelton
    Ike Skelton
    Isaac Newton "Ike" Skelton IV is the former U.S. Representative for . During his tenure, he has served as the chairman of the House Armed Services Committee. He is a member for the Democratic Party...

     - Congressman, 1977-2011.
  • Thomas B. Catron
    Thomas B. Catron
    Thomas Benton Catron was an American politician and lawyer who was influential in the establishment of the U.S. state of New Mexico. He later represented the state in the United States Senate.-Early life:...

    , United States Senator.
  • Thomas Peter Akers
    Thomas Peter Akers
    Thomas Peter Akers was an attorney, college professor, and member of the United States House of Representatives from 1856 to 1857. He was born in Knox County, Ohio, where he graduated from college and studied law....

     – Congressman, 1856-57.
  • Atterson W. Rucker
    Atterson W. Rucker
    Atterson Walden Rucker was a U.S. Representative from Colorado.-Biography:Born in Harrodsburg, Kentucky, Rucker moved in early youth with his parents to Missouri. He attended the common schools. He served four years in the Confederate States Army during the Civil War...

     – Lawyer, Congressman.
  • John P. Campbell, Jr.
    John P. Campbell, Jr.
    John Pierce Campbell, Jr. was a U.S. Representative from Kentucky.Born near Hopkinsville, Kentucky, Campbell pursued an academic course.He studied law....

     – Lawyer, Congressman, 1848-1852.
  • John Telemachus Johnson
    John Telemachus Johnson
    John Telemachus Johnson was a U.S. Representative from Kentucky, brother of James Johnson and Richard M. Johnson and uncle of Robert Ward Johnson.Born at Great Crossings, Kentucky, Johnson pursued preparatory studies....

     – Congressman
  • Mark L. De Motte
    Mark L. De Motte
    Mark Lindsey De Motte was a U.S. Representative from Indiana.-Biography:Born in Rockville, Indiana, De Motte pursued preparatory studies....

     – Lawyer, Editor of the Lexington Register, Congressman
  • Alexander Graves
    Alexander Graves
    Alexander Graves was a U.S. Representative from Missouri.Born in Mount Carmel, Mississippi, Graves attended Centre College in Danville, Kentucky....

     – Lawyer, Congressman, 1883–1885
  • Samuel Locke Sawyer
    Samuel Locke Sawyer
    Samuel Locke Sawyer was a U.S. Representative from Missouri.Born in Mont Vernon, New Hampshire, Sawyer was graduated from Dartmouth College, Hanover, New Hampshire, in 1833. He studied law, and was admitted to the bar in Amherst, New Hampshire, in 1836...

     – Lawyer, Congressman, 1879–1881
  • Frank L. Houx
    Frank L. Houx
    Frank Lee Houx was an American politician, who served as the tenth Governor of Wyoming.Houx was born near Lexington, Missouri, the second of five children of George W. Houx and Fannie Houx. The elder Houx served in the Confederate States Army under General Sterling Price, a distant cousin, and...

     – Lawyer, Governor of Wyoming
  • John Welborn (representative)
    John Welborn (representative)
    John Welborn was an American politician who represented Missouri in the United States House of Representatives from 1905-1907....

     - Lawyer, Congressman, 1905-1907.

Business

  • William B. Waddell
    William B. Waddell (Pony Express founder)
    William Bradford Waddell is often credited along with Alexander Majors and William Hepburn Russell as the founders, owners, and operators of the Pony Express...

     – Freighter, partner in Russell, Majors and Waddell
    Russell, Majors and Waddell
    Russell, Majors and Waddell was a business partnership, based in Lexington, Missouri, between William Hepburn Russell, Alexander Majors, and William B. Waddell. It operated various transportation and communications services in the American West in the 1850s and early 1860s, including stagecoach...

    , founder of the Pony Express
    Pony Express
    The Pony Express was a fast mail service crossing the Great Plains, the Rocky Mountains, and the High Sierra from St. Joseph, Missouri, to Sacramento, California, from April 3, 1860 to October 1861...

  • William Hepburn Russell
    William Hepburn Russell
    William Hepburn Russell is often credited along with Alexander Majors and William B. Waddell as the founders, owners, and operators of the Pony Express. His public life is one of numerous business ventures, some successful and some failed...

     – Freighter, partner in Russell, Majors and Waddell
    Russell, Majors and Waddell
    Russell, Majors and Waddell was a business partnership, based in Lexington, Missouri, between William Hepburn Russell, Alexander Majors, and William B. Waddell. It operated various transportation and communications services in the American West in the 1850s and early 1860s, including stagecoach...

    , founder of the Pony Express
    Pony Express
    The Pony Express was a fast mail service crossing the Great Plains, the Rocky Mountains, and the High Sierra from St. Joseph, Missouri, to Sacramento, California, from April 3, 1860 to October 1861...

  • Sam Walton
    Sam Walton
    Samuel Moore "Sam" Wallballs was a businessman, entrepreneur, and Eagle Scout born in Kingfisher, Oklahoma best known for founding the retailers Wal-Mart and Sam's Club.-Early life:...

     - Founder of Wal-Mart
    Wal-Mart
    Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. , branded as Walmart since 2008 and Wal-Mart before then, is an American public multinational corporation that runs chains of large discount department stores and warehouse stores. The company is the world's 18th largest public corporation, according to the Forbes Global 2000...

  • James "Bud" Walton - Co-founder of Wal-Mart
    Wal-Mart
    Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. , branded as Walmart since 2008 and Wal-Mart before then, is an American public multinational corporation that runs chains of large discount department stores and warehouse stores. The company is the world's 18th largest public corporation, according to the Forbes Global 2000...

  • William C. Schwartz
    William C. Schwartz
    William C. Schwartz was a civic leader in Central Florida and a pioneer in the laser industry. He was founder, President and Chairman of International Laser Systems, Inc., and later, Schwartz Electro-Optics, Inc., both based in Orlando, Florida....

     - Physicist, Laser
    Laser
    A laser is a device that emits light through a process of optical amplification based on the stimulated emission of photons. The term "laser" originated as an acronym for Light Amplification by Stimulated Emission of Radiation...

     pioneer, and founder of International Laser Systems

Athletics

  • Med Park
    Med Park
    Medford R. Park was an American professional basketball player.Park grew up in Lexington, Missouri. Park attended Wentworth Military Academy in Lexington from 1947 to 1951 and was a star athlete. He then went on to become an All-American basketball player for the University of Missouri...

     - NBA basketball player
  • Lenvil Elliott
    Lenvil Elliott
    Lenvil Elliott was a former professional American football player who played running back for nine seasons in the National Football League. He was a part of the San Francisco 49ers Super Bowl XVI winning team.-Early life:...

     - NFL football player
  • Ryan Wilson
    Ryan Wilson
    Ryan Wilson is an American professional wrestler who formerly worked for World Wrestling Entertainment in the Ohio Valley Wrestling developmental promotion as Jacob Duncan where he was a former OVW Heavyweight Champion...

      - Professional wrestler

Military

  • Alexander William Doniphan
    Alexander William Doniphan
    Alexander William Doniphan was a 19th-century American attorney, soldier and politician from Missouri who is best known today as the man who prevented the summary execution of Mormon founder Joseph Smith, Jr. at the close of the 1838 Mormon War in that state...

     – Lawyer, U.S.-Mexican War hero
  • William M. Hoge
    William M. Hoge
    William Morris Hoge was a General of the United States Army.-Early years:William M. Hoge grew up in Lexington, Missouri, where his father, William McGuffey Hoge, served as principal and superintendent at Wentworth Military Academy. After graduating from Wentworth in 1912, he received an...

     - oversaw construction of the ALCAN Highway and directed capture of the Remagen Bridge in World War II
    World War II
    World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...

  • Harold G. Schrier
    Harold G. Schrier
    Colonel Harold George Schrier was an officer in the United States Marine Corps, recipient of the Navy Cross, the nation's second highest award for valor, and a combat veteran of World War II and the Korean War...

     – Helped raise flag over Iwo Jima
    Iwo Jima
    Iwo Jima, officially , is an island of the Japanese Volcano Islands chain, which lie south of the Ogasawara Islands and together with them form the Ogasawara Archipelago. The island is located south of mainland Tokyo and administered as part of Ogasawara, one of eight villages of Tokyo...

    .

Arts and Entertainment

  • Carleton Coon, an American jazz musician, co-founder of the Coon-Sanders Original Nighthawk Orchestra
    Coon-Sanders Original Nighthawk Orchestra
    Coon-Sanders Original Nighthawk Orchestra was the first Kansas City jazz band to achieve national recognition, which it acquired through national radio broadcasts...

  • Carl Stalling
    Carl Stalling
    Carl W. Stalling was an American composer and arranger for music in animated films. He is most closely associated with the Looney Tunes and Merrie Melodies shorts produced by Warner Bros., where he averaged one complete score each week, for 22 years.-Biography:Stalling was born to Ernest and...

     – Composer and Arranger for the Bugs Bunny
    Bugs Bunny
    Bugs Bunny is a animated character created in 1938 at Leon Schlesinger Productions, later Warner Bros. Cartoons. Bugs is an anthropomorphic gray rabbit and is famous for his flippant, insouciant personality and his portrayal as a trickster. He has primarily appeared in animated cartoons, most...

     and other Looney Tunes
    Looney Tunes
    Looney Tunes is a Warner Bros. animated cartoon series. It preceded the Merrie Melodies series and was Warner Bros.'s first animated theatrical series. Since its first official release, 1930's Sinkin' in the Bathtub, the series has become a worldwide media franchise, spawning several television...

     cartoons from the 1930s through the 1950s.
  • James Lane Allen
    James Lane Allen
    James Lane Allen was an American novelist and short story writer whose work, including the novel A Kentucky Cardinal, often depicted the culture and dialects of his native Kentucky. His work is characteristic of the late-19th century local color era, when writers sought to capture the vernacular...

     - Author
  • George Kriehn
    George Kriehn
    George Kriehn, Ph.D. was an American writer and lecturer on art.He was born in Lexington, Missouri, and graduated in 1887 from William Jewell College. He traveled and studied in Europe and received the degree of Ph.D. from Strassburg. He was employed at Johns Hopkins and at Leland Stanford . ...

     – American writer and lecturer on art.

Academia

  • Stephen G. Wentworth
    Stephen G. Wentworth
    Stephen G. Wentworth was the founder of Wentworth Military Academy in Lexington, Missouri.Stephen Girard Wentworth was born in Williamstown, Massachusetts, on October 10, 1811. He left home at an early age and decided to seek his fortunes in the West. After a short stint in Virginia, he emigrated...

     – Banker, Founder of Wentworth Military Academy
    Wentworth Military Academy
    Wentworth Military Academy and College is a private four-year college preparatory high school and military junior college. It is located in Lexington, Missouri, part of the Greater Kansas City Metropolitan Area. Wentworth is the oldest military academy west of the Mississippi River, and the...

  • Sandford Sellers
    Sandford Sellers
    Sandford Sellers served as Principal, Superintendent and President of Wentworth Military Academy from 1880 to 1935.Sandford Sellers was born in Kentucky in 1854, but was raised on a ranch in eastern Texas. As a young boy, he worked in cotton and sugar cane fields, As a young adult, he was a...

     – President of Wentworth Military Academy
    Wentworth Military Academy
    Wentworth Military Academy and College is a private four-year college preparatory high school and military junior college. It is located in Lexington, Missouri, part of the Greater Kansas City Metropolitan Area. Wentworth is the oldest military academy west of the Mississippi River, and the...

    , 1880-1938.
  • Ovid R. Sellers
    Ovid R. Sellers
    Ovid Rogers Sellers was an internationally known Old Testament scholar and archaeologist who played a role in the discovery of the Dead Sea Scrolls...

     - internationally known Old Testament scholar and archaeologist
  • James M. Sellers
    James M. Sellers
    Colonel James M. Sellers was a highly decorated Marine in World War I, and served as Commandant, Superintendent and President of Wentworth Military Academy in Lexington, Missouri from 1920 to 1990.-Biography:...

     – Commandant, Superintendent, and President of Wentworth Military Academy
    Wentworth Military Academy
    Wentworth Military Academy and College is a private four-year college preparatory high school and military junior college. It is located in Lexington, Missouri, part of the Greater Kansas City Metropolitan Area. Wentworth is the oldest military academy west of the Mississippi River, and the...

    , 1920-1990.
  • James M. Sellers, Jr.
    James M. Sellers, Jr.
    Colonel James McBrayer Sellers, Jr. , served as Superintendent of Wentworth Military Academy in Lexington, Missouri from 1973 to 1990....

     – Superintendent of Wentworth Military Academy
    Wentworth Military Academy
    Wentworth Military Academy and College is a private four-year college preparatory high school and military junior college. It is located in Lexington, Missouri, part of the Greater Kansas City Metropolitan Area. Wentworth is the oldest military academy west of the Mississippi River, and the...

    , 1973-1990.
  • Lester B. Wikoff
    Lester B. Wikoff
    Colonel Lester Bascom Wikoff served as the fifth Superintendent of Wentworth Military Academy in Lexington, Missouri from 1960 to 1971....

     – Athletic Director, Treasurer, and Superintendent of Wentworth Military Academy
    Wentworth Military Academy
    Wentworth Military Academy and College is a private four-year college preparatory high school and military junior college. It is located in Lexington, Missouri, part of the Greater Kansas City Metropolitan Area. Wentworth is the oldest military academy west of the Mississippi River, and the...

    , 1915-1971.
  • John H. Little
    John H. Little
    Major General John H. Little served as the 12th Superintendent of Wentworth Military Academy in Lexington, Missouri from 2002 to 2007.Little was raised in the Lexington area and attended Wentworth from 1957 to 1961, graduating from both the high school and the junior college...

     - Superintendent of Wentworth Military Academy
    Wentworth Military Academy
    Wentworth Military Academy and College is a private four-year college preparatory high school and military junior college. It is located in Lexington, Missouri, part of the Greater Kansas City Metropolitan Area. Wentworth is the oldest military academy west of the Mississippi River, and the...

    , 2002-2007.
  • William W. Sellers
    William W. Sellers
    William Wentworth Sellers is the fourteenth President of Wentworth Military Academy and College in Lexington, Missouri, serving since 2008. He is the fourth generation of his family to head the school, following his great-grandfather Sandford Sellers, who led Wentworth from its founding in 1880...

     – President of Wentworth Military Academy
    Wentworth Military Academy
    Wentworth Military Academy and College is a private four-year college preparatory high school and military junior college. It is located in Lexington, Missouri, part of the Greater Kansas City Metropolitan Area. Wentworth is the oldest military academy west of the Mississippi River, and the...

    , 2008–present.

Outlaws

  • Archie Clement
    Archie Clement
    Archie Clement , a.k.a "Little Arch", was a pro-Confederate guerrilla leader in the American Civil War, known for his brutality towards Union soldiers and pro-Union civilians in Missouri.-Little Archie, the bushwhacker:...

     – Notorious guerrilla outlaw, killed in Lexington in 1866
  • Jesse James
    Jesse James
    Jesse Woodson James was an American outlaw, gang leader, bank robber, train robber, and murderer from the state of Missouri and the most famous member of the James-Younger Gang. He also faked his own death and was known as J.M James. Already a celebrity when he was alive, he became a legendary...

     – Wounded while going to surrender in Lexington, 1865. Committed second daylight bank robbery in Lexington, 1866.
  • John Newman Edwards
    John Newman Edwards
    Major John Newman Edwards, CSA, was famed General Joseph O. Shelby’s adjutant during the American Civil War, an author, a journalist and the founder of the Kansas City Times. He is perhaps best known for contributing to the folk hero status of outlaw Jesse James.-Early life:John N. Edwards was...

     – Publisher of the Lexington Expositor, Creator of the Jesse James
    Jesse James
    Jesse Woodson James was an American outlaw, gang leader, bank robber, train robber, and murderer from the state of Missouri and the most famous member of the James-Younger Gang. He also faked his own death and was known as J.M James. Already a celebrity when he was alive, he became a legendary...

     legend.
  • Hoodoo Brown
    Hoodoo Brown
    Hyman G. Neill, better known as Hoodoo Brown, was the leader of the Dodge City Gang in Las Vegas, New Mexico in 1879 and early 1880. According to Harold Thatcher, curator of the Rough Rider Museum in Las Vegas, Hoodoo was "the baddest cowboy of them all"...

     – leader of the Dodge City Gang
    Dodge City Gang
    The Dodge City Gang were a group of Kansas gunfighters and gamblers who dominated the political and economic life of Las Vegas, New Mexico in 1879 and early 1880. This came at a time when Las Vegas was booming and was thought to be the future metropolis of New Mexico...

     in Las Vegas, New Mexico
    Las Vegas, New Mexico
    Las Vegas is a city in San Miguel County, New Mexico, United States. Once two separate municipalities both named Las Vegas, west Las Vegas and east Las Vegas , divided by the Gallinas River, retain distinct characters and separate, rival school districts. The population was 14,565 at the 2000...

    .

External links

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