Editing Neosho, Missouri (section)

===Realignment: 1846−1861===
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In 1846, a strip {{convert|2|mi|km|spell=in}} wide was detached from northern Newton and attached to southern Jasper County. A [[Surveying|survey]] of the community was undertaken in 1846 by F. M. Duncan, who laid out the [[Town square#USA|courthouse square]] and surrounding [[City block|blocks]]. According to the survey, the town covered an area of about {{Convert|40|acre|ha}} and was laid off beginning at the "west edge of the large spring and ... northeast of a large white oak", which included land originally belonging to John McCord.

Part of McCord's relinquished land was returned to him. He [[Subdivision (land)|subdivided]] it to take advantage of development related to nearby Neosho. This subdivision, later incorporated into the [[City limits#United States|city limits]], is still called "McCord's Addition to Neosho". On August 20, 1847, Neosho was legally incorporated with [[W. Claude Jones|William C. Jones]], Jackson C. McKay, Samuel Rice, William B. Holmes, and William B. Mooney as trustees.

The first [[Baptist]] congregation was organized at Neosho in 1847, with the Rev. W.H. Farmer as pastor. He served until 1859.

In 1849, McDonald County was created by an act of the state legislature from the southern portion of Newton County, reducing it to its present dimensions. The same act named John Williams of [[Taney County, Missouri|Taney County]], James Williams of Barry County, and Chesley Cannifex of [[Greene County, Missouri|Greene County]] as commissioners to locate the seat of justice within {{convert|5|mi|km|spell=in}} of the new geographical center of the county. They designated the temporary seat at the home of John Reed, one and one-half miles east of the present site of downtown Neosho. Later the same year, a log jail was built.

The design of the [[Town square#USA|courthouse square]] followed that of the [[Shelbyville Square Plan]], which has lots arranged to face a central courthouse block. A brick courthouse built in 1850 at a cost of $3,000 replaced the earlier log structure. During the next decade, numerous [[Residential area|residential]] and commercial buildings were constructed in and around the courthouse square. The first newspaper printed in the county was the ''Neosho Chief'', founded in 1854 by J. Webb Graves. It was renamed as the ''Neosho Herald'' and was removed in 1861 to [[Arkansas]] after the outbreak of the American Civil War. Its records were captured by the [[Union Army]].

By special act passed on August 3, 1854, Congress laid out a monthly [[Pony Express]] mail route from Neosho to [[Albuquerque, New Mexico]], authorizing an annual budget of $17,000. After the [[Mexican–American War]] and the acquisition by the US of the southwest territory, this region became of great commercial and military importance. But the Pony Express route was not a commercial success. In March of the following year, the route was changed to run from [[Independence, Missouri|Independence]] to [[Stockton, California]], via Albuquerque.