Editing Lee's Summit, Missouri (section)

=== Incorporation ===

Upon the end of the [[American Civil War]] in 1865, [[William Bullitt Howard]] returned to his home in Jackson County. He reached a deal with the [[Missouri Pacific Railroad Company]] to plat a town of {{convert|70|acre|km2}} along the path of the tracks south of Kansas City and on the way to [[St. Louis]]. Lots in the center of the town would be reserved for a [[train depot]]. The town was founded as "Strother", named after Howard's wife's family name, in October 1865.<ref name=":1" /><ref>Schwenk, p. 11</ref><ref>''The History of Jackson County'', p. 952</ref>[[Image:LS Platt 1877.JPG|thumb|right|250px|A map plat of Lee's Summit c. 1877, showing the [[Missouri Pacific Railroad]] depot and William Bullitt Howard's land]]
In 1868, the town was officially renamed "Lee's Summit". A flier from 1865 refers to the town as "Strother, formerly known as Lee's Summit", indicating that the town was colloquially known as Lee's Summit prior to its founding by [[William Bullitt Howard|Howard]].{{Efn|1=Also see a petition from the Missouri Pacific Railroad Company filed in St. Louis County and published in the [https://shsmo.newspapers.com/image/571042004/?match=1&terms=%22Lee%27s%20Summit%22 December 24, 1864 edition] of ''The Daily Missouri Democrat'' which refers to "Lee's Summit".}} It is very likely that Lee's Summit was named in honor of Dr. Pleasant John Graves Lea, who was killed nearby in 1862. Workers for the [[Missouri Pacific Railroad]] may have painted "Lees Summit" on the side of a boxcar to serve as a temporary [[Train depot|depot]] in the city.<ref name=":3">Schwenk, pp. 11-12</ref> That they wrote "Lee" instead of "Lea" is assumed to be a spelling error, while "Summit" comes from the fact that the city contains the highest point along the railroad between Kansas City and [[St. Louis]].<ref name = "hist1"/><ref name=":1" /><ref name=":0" /> Contrary to this account, in 1969 Howard's grandson claimed that the town was named in honor of [[Confederate General]] [[Robert E. Lee]] and that [[William Bullitt Howard|Howard]] used the story about Dr. Lea as a cover. Local historians, however, have dismissed this claim.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Winkler |first=Elijah |date=June 3, 2023 |title=Where did the city of Lee's Summit get its name? The history and legacy is complicated |url=https://www.kansascity.com/news/your-kcq/article276058136.html |access-date=May 7, 2025 |work=[[The Kansas City Star]]}}</ref>

In 1877, Lee's Summit was incorporated as a fourth-class city, and by then it was the "commercial center for the surrounding agricultural community".<ref>Schwenk, pp. 14-15</ref> The primary occupation in Lee's Summit was farming—in particular, raising hogs, growing corn, and fruit orchards.<ref>Schwenk, pp. 19, 22</ref> In 1885, a fire destroyed much of downtown Lee's Summit.<ref name="hist1" /><ref name=":1" />