Editing Excelsior Springs, Missouri (section)

== History ==
{{More citations needed|date=May 2007}}
[[File:1886.0714.ESMODowntown.jpg|thumb|Excelsior Springs, Missouri on July 14, 1886]]
This location had a major incident during the historic march of [[Zion's Camp]] in 1834 when a contingent of about 200 [[Mormons|Mormon]] believers, marching to rescue their brethren in [[Jackson County, Missouri|Jackson County]], faced an angry mob of more than 300.<ref name=":2">{{Cite web |last=Wadley |first=Carma |date=1997-04-27 |title=Missouri: Mormon history sites |url=https://www.deseret.com/1997/4/27/19309026/missouri-mormon-history-sites |access-date=2023-09-19 |website=Deseret News |language=en |archive-date=June 20, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220620043242/https://www.deseret.com/1997/4/27/19309026/missouri-mormon-history-sites |url-status=live }}</ref> Near two forks of [[Fishing River]], a terrible fight was about to start when a severe thunderstorm rolled in suddenly and put the mob to flight.<ref name=":2" /> Zion's Camp was able to move forward unharmed.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://history.churchofjesuschrist.org/article/historic-sites/missouri/zions-camp-at-the-fishing-river-daviess-county?lang=eng|title=Zion's Camp at the Fishing River|website=churchofjesuschrist.org|access-date=23 May 2019|archive-date=October 30, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201030130956/https://history.churchofjesuschrist.org/article/historic-sites/missouri/zions-camp-at-the-fishing-river-daviess-county?lang=eng|url-status=live}}</ref> Historical markers to the incident are located nearby.

=== 1880s to 1910s ===
The town was founded because of the natural [[spring water]] that gushed from the depths of the earth.<ref>{{cite book | url=https://archive.org/details/bub_gb_9V1IAAAAMAAJ | title=The Origin of Certain Place Names in the United States | publisher=Govt. Print. Off. | author=Gannett, Henry | year=1905 | pages=[https://archive.org/details/bub_gb_9V1IAAAAMAAJ/page/n121 122]}}</ref> The spring was accidentally discovered in 1880 by a Black farmer, Travis Mellion, when his daughter Opal fell ill with [[Mycobacterial cervical lymphadenitis|scrofula]], a form of cervical [[tuberculosis]].<ref>{{Cite web |last=Johnson |first=Liz |date=2023-02-03 |title=Black movers, shakers of early Excelsior history |url=https://www.excelsiorspringsstandard.com/lifestyle/black-movers-shakers-early-excelsior-history |access-date=2023-09-19 |website=Excelsior Springs Standard}}</ref><ref name=":0">{{Cite journal |date=1936-02-04 |title=Excelsior Springs Will Develop Spa |url=https://jstor.org/stable/community.35091196 |journal=The Reflector |language=English |volume=38 |issue=67 |pages=3}}</ref> He asked for advice from nearby campers, and they suggested the spring that oozed from the bank of the [[Fishing River]]. Water was brought to his daughter and in a few weeks, her health improved noticeably, and she eventually recovered. A log-cabin farmer, Frederick Kugler, also begin to treat his [[rheumatism|rheumatic]] knees and a recurring sore from a [[American Civil War|Civil War]] wound, and he soon recovered.<ref name=":1">{{Cite book |last=Wolfenbarger |first=Deon |title=Excelsior Springs, Missouri Historic Mineral Water Resources Survey Report |date=June 17, 2012 |language=en}}</ref>

Rev. John Van Buren Flack traveled there in 1880 after hearing about the medicinal values of the spring water.<ref name=":3">{{Cite book |last=Woodson |first=W.H. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=PNIyAQAAMAAJ |title=History of Clay County, Missouri |publisher=Historical Publishing Company |year=1920 |location=Topeka, Kansas |pages=173–188 |language=en |access-date=September 19, 2023 |archive-date=August 4, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240804042344/https://books.google.com/books?id=PNIyAQAAMAAJ |url-status=live }}</ref> The spring belonged to land owner Anthony W. Wyman. After Flack investigated the water sources, he advised Wyman to have the land [[plat]]ted, water analyzed, and to begin advertising the cures the water held. Flack built a home on a {{convert|40|acre|m2|adj=on}} tract that Wyman had platted and opened the town's first dry goods store and the first church. The spring was named Excelsior after a popular [[Henry Wadsworth Longfellow|Longfellow]] poem, which later changed to [[Siloam]].<ref name=":1" />

On August 17, 1880, Flack and Wyman partnered together to form the community of Excelsior. The post office at the time denied that town name, as there was already one in southern Missouri, so it was named Vigniti. The city kept the name until 1882, when it was renamed Excelsior Springs.<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Pierce |first1=Daniel |last2=Farace |first2=Anthony P. |date=2021-01-01 |title=America's Haven of Health: Hydrotherapy and tourism at Excelsior Springs, Missouri, USA |url=https://www.academia.edu/46940484 |journal=History and Anthropology}}</ref>

Within one year, nearly two hundred households were built in the valley and the nearby hillsides. The springs proved successful and brought many new people to the area, who camped out in tents or in covered wagons. On February 7, 1881, the town received the designation of [[Village (United States)|village]]. On July 12, 1881, the community was incorporated as a fourth class city, bringing several hotels, boarding houses, churches, schools, an opera house, livery stables, and stores.<ref name=":3" />

In 1881, a second mineral spring was found by Captain J.L. Farris, first called Empire Spring but renamed Regent Spring.<ref name=":1" /> A third, Relief Spring, was discovered at the basin in the Fishing River. Many springs were soon discovered in the area, the most prominent being the Relief, Superior, and Saratoga springs. A pump was installed at the Siloam Spring, and steps from Broadway Street and the city's first hotel, the Excelsior, were constructed. Soon a small wooden bridge was built over the Fishing River to an undeveloped peninsula used for visitors to relax while exploring the spring. No city in Missouri had boomed as much as Excelsior Springs had in its first year.<ref name=":3" />
[[File:1890s.FirstElmsHotel.jpg|thumb|The original Elms Hotel]]
The city's first hotel, the Excelsior, was built with a foundation of {{convert|30|by|70|ft|m}}, and locals wondered if a hotel that size would ever be filled to capacity. The Excelsior opened on March 1, 1881, and quickly filled with many visitors seeking the medicinal waters, including from [[St. Louis]], [[Saint Joseph, Missouri|St. Joseph]], [[Kansas City, Missouri|Kansas City]], and [[Leavenworth, Kansas|Leavenworth]].{{cn|date=August 2024}} The hotel led until the first [[Elms Hotel (Excelsior Springs, Missouri)|Elms Hotel]] was built and opened in 1888.<ref name="kcs">{{cite news |last1=Mason |first1=Randy |last2=Davis |first2=Monty |title=The healing waters of Excelsior Springs didn’t stop this hotel from burning down—twice|url=https://www.kansascity.com/news/local/article288333295.html |access-date=4 August 2024 |publisher=Kansas City Star |date=15 May 2024}}</ref>

[[File:Iowa, Chicago & Eastern - City Of Excelsior Springs.jpg|thumb|Iowa, Chicago & Eastern Railroad's locomotive #6414 (engine labeled "City Of Excelsior Springs")]] 
In 1887, the [[Chicago, Milwaukee, St. Paul and Pacific Railroad|Chicago, Milwaukee and St. Paul railroad]] extended its line from [[Chicago]] to Kansas City via Excelsior Springs. This brought a larger influx of visitors to the growing city. By this time, the Relief Springs and Land Company had been formed primarily to advertise and pique the interest of outsiders. The company acquired {{convert|1000|acre|sqkm}} of land surrounding the city and the Fishing River. The historic Elms Hotel's foundation was soon poured. The Music Hall, a state-of-the-art theater for the time, was built nearby with a [[seating capacity]] of 1,320 people. An amusement pavilion was erected but was soon changed into a bottling works facility. A larger pavilion with benches and hooks for cups was placed at Siloam Spring where visitors could partake in the water; soon these mugs became stained by the high [[iron]] content of the water. Partnered with the Milwaukee Railroad, the city began to advertise their resort status nationwide. In 1897, the city received its first telephone service.{{cn|date=August 2024}}

[[File:Siloam Spring Pavilion, Excelsior Springs - Missouri's National Resort (NYPL b12647398-79438).tiff|thumb|Siloam Spring Pavilion, early 20th century postcard]]
Discovery of new waters continued around the area. W.P. Mason of the [[Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute]] analyzed them. His finding reported the Siloam and Regent spring waters to have [[bicarbonate]]s of iron and [[manganese]], a rare combination that had only been found in four springs in the entire continent of Europe, and Excelsior Springs held the only two known in the United States. The rarity of having 20 separate mineral springs within the area gave Excelsior Springs the reputation of having the world's greatest collection of mineral waters.{{cn|date=August 2024}}

Other minerals found in the springs were Saline-[[Sulphur]], [[sodium bicarbonate|Soda-Bicarbonate]], and [[calcium bicarbonate|Calcic-Bicarbonate]] (also known as [[Lithia water|Lithia]]).<ref name=":1" /><ref name=":3" /> Mineral water resorts of the time rarely held such variety, most only mineral water baths, but Excelsior Springs held four distinct types of treatment within the region of tonic, alternative, and eliminative treatments, along with the mineral water baths. The city received international attention in 1893 at the [[World's Columbian Exposition|Chicago's World Fair]] when medals were awarded for the [[iron]]-[[manganese]] water from the Regent Spring and Soterian [[ginger ale]].{{cn|date=August 2024}}

In October 1893, more train service was installed with the opening of the Sulpho-Saline route connecting to the [[Wabash Railroad]]. Fires destroyed the Excelsior Hotel and the Elms Hotel, leaving only boarding houses to take in visitors. Plans were soon drawn for the rebuilding of the Elms Hotel. The "Second" Elms Hotel was finished in 1908, but was soon destroyed again by fire. The third and present-day Elms Hotel was constructed in 1912. Also built were the Wholf's Tavern (later renamed Royal Hotel) and Snapp Hotel (later renamed Oaks Hotel). By 1909, the growing city had 14 modern hotels and about 200 boarding and rooming houses.{{cn|date=August 2024}}

The development of a park system was approved, costing {{US$|200,000|1909|about=yes|round=-3}}. This brought the Excelsior Springs [[Golf Course]] and the construction of many structures including the [[Freemasonry|Masonic Hall]], auditorium, [[Independent Order of Odd Fellows|Odd Fellows]] Building, and Morse buildings. Hourly transportation on the Kansas City interurban railroad began in January 1912. The expansion of public utilities and a system of highways connecting Excelsior Springs and Kansas City helped the city thrive.{{cn|date=August 2024}}

=== 1930s to present day ===
The [[Great Depression]] did not have the impact on Excelsior Springs as it had on several other communities, surviving mostly due to its health resort status. Between 1930 and 1940, the town gained 370 citizens, reporting 4,800 total at the end of the decade, when populations in most other small towns were declining.

In November 1931, an intense gun battle happened at the historic Elms Hotel. Four robbers attempted to hold up the hotel, fled by automobile, and were followed by local law enforcement. Gunshots were exchanged in the hotel lobby and veranda. The four criminals fled to nearby Kansas City, but were later apprehended.

In 1932, [[American Mafia|Mafia]] gangster Lonnie Affronti shot Azalea Ross and her husband in an ambush shoot-out on [[Missouri Route 10|Route 10]]. Ross was the chief witness in a [[narcotic]]s trial against Affronti. The gangland aided in hiding Affronti for five years before he was captured in [[Brooklyn, New York]], in 1937. One of his accomplices during the shootout, Charley Harvey, was apprehended and killed himself in the city jail a short time later.

[[File:Hall of Waters Missouri.jpg|thumb|City Hall, or [[Hall of Waters]]]]
The present [[city hall]], the [[Hall of Waters]], was constructed between 1936 and 1938 by architects Keene & Simpson above the Siloam and Sulpho-Saline Springs.<ref name=":0" /> Citizens gathered on May 27, 1936, among national attention when the cornerstone of the Hall of Waters was lowered in place. [[CBS]] transmitted the event to 62 stations across the country. The local newspaper recorded many well-known names of the present time, including [[Hollywood (film industry)|Hollywood]] [[B movie|B-movie]] actress [[Evalyn Knapp]], artist [[Thomas Hart Benton (painter)|Thomas Hart Benton]], and author [[Homer Croy]].{{cn|date=August 2024}}

In 1937 the structure was partially complete, and the water bar in the lower level opened, providing mineral waters to health-seekers and visitors alike. In the following months the mineral water pool was opened, along with male and female [[hydrotherapy]] departments. A two-story hall had also been erected where the minerals were made available at fountains. The first floor contained the women's bath department, [[sunroom]], covered porch, grand [[foyer]], management office for the springs, and the [[chamber of commerce]].{{cn|date=August 2024}}

The swimming pool was large enough by standards for championship meets. In the south wing were the special hydrotherapy departments devoted to research for the waters' medicinal values. The bottling department was located on the east side of the north wing, which shipped five varieties of bottled mineral water to locations all over the world.{{cn|date=August 2024}}

On Election Day 1948, [[Harry S. Truman]] spent the night at the Elms Hotel when it appeared that he was losing his re-election bid to Republican [[Thomas E. Dewey]]. However, in the early morning, he was awakened by his aides informing him that he had, in fact, won the election. He was whisked away to Kansas City. He later was photographed at Union Station in St. Louis holding a copy of the ''Chicago Tribune'' that famously mistakenly proclaimed "[[Dewey Defeats Truman]]".

[[Flood]]ing issues in 1955 prompted construction of a [[levee|dike]], which resulted in the elimination of the stone terraces and walkways at Siloam Park, to protect the Hall of Waters from further flood damage by the nearby Fishing River. There were subsequent floods in the late 1960s, 1993,<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.excelsiorspringsstandard.com/news/local/readers-remember-flood-of/article_76b60fc3-097f-59a3-b2cb-450c79593fde.html|title=Readers remember Flood of '93|newspaper=Excelsior Springs Standard|access-date=23 May 2019|archive-date=May 23, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190523222554/https://www.excelsiorspringsstandard.com/news/local/readers-remember-flood-of/article_76b60fc3-097f-59a3-b2cb-450c79593fde.html|url-status=dead}}</ref> and 2015.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://fox4kc.com/2015/06/03/residents-of-excelsior-springs-say-flooding-is-the-worst-theyve-seen-in-20-years/|title=Residents of Excelsior Springs say flooding is the worst they've seen in 20 years|date=3 June 2015|website=Fox4kc.com|access-date=23 May 2019|archive-date=May 23, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190523222553/https://fox4kc.com/2015/06/03/residents-of-excelsior-springs-say-flooding-is-the-worst-theyve-seen-in-20-years/|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Historic Hall of Waters Assessment and Feasibility Study |url=https://www.cityofesmo.com/FinishedReport/Volume1/3_BuildingHistory.pdf |access-date=2023-09-19 |archive-date=June 29, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230629033832/https://cityofesmo.com/FinishedReport/Volume1/3_BuildingHistory.pdf |url-status=live }}</ref>

The late 1950s and early 1960s were difficult for the city due to the severe decline in popularity of the resort spa town. By 1967, the bottling operations had lost $25,000, and the city decided it was time to put its mineral water history behind and move forward. {{As of|2008}}, however, Excelsior Springs has licensed the rights to the mineral water to Excelsior Springs Bottling Company to allow for commercial bottling and distribution of the historic water.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.excelsiorspringsstandard.com/archives/10-31-08.html | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101028231208/http://www.excelsiorspringsstandard.com/archives/10-31-08.html | archive-date=October 28, 2010 | newspaper=Excelsior Springs Standard | title=Bowens plan to spread ES water to world | first=Eric | last=Copeland |date=2008-10-31 |access-date=April 13, 2022}}</ref>

The [[National Register of Historic Places]] includes the Elms Hotel, Hall of Waters, the [[Colonial Hotel (Excelsior Springs, Missouri)|Colonial Hotel]], [[The Elms Historic District]], [[Excelsior Springs Hall of Waters Commercial East Historic District]], [[Excelsior Springs Hall of Waters Commercial West Historic District]], [[First Methodist Church (Excelsior Springs, Missouri)|First Methodist Church]], [[Ligon Apartments]], [[Watkins Woolen Mill State Park and State Historic Site|Watkins Mill]], and [[Wyman School]].<ref name="nris">{{NRISref|version=2010a}}</ref><ref name="nps">{{cite web|url=http://www.cr.nps.gov/nr/listings/20140411.htm|title=National Register of Historic Places Listings|date=2011-05-06|work=Weekly List of Actions Taken on Properties: 3/31/14 through 4/05/14|publisher=National Park Service}}{{Dead link|date=November 2023 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Individual Landmarks – City of Excelsior Springs, MO |url=https://cityofesmo.com/preservation/index.php/historic-registers/individual-landmarks/ |access-date=2023-09-19 |language=en-US}}</ref>