County of city: Barton County
location of city: US-160 & I-49/US-71 intersection.
Elevation: 961'
Population: 4,508 (2013)
The Person:
"LAMAR, MIRABEAU BUONAPARTE (1798–1859). Mirabeau Buonaparte Lamar, son of John and Rebecca (Lamar) Lamar, president of the Republic of Texas, was born near Louisville, Georgia, on August 16, 1798. He grew up at Fairfield, his father's plantation near Milledgeville. He attended academies at Milledgeville and Eatonton and was an omnivorous reader. As a boy he became an expert horseman and an accomplished fencer, began writing verse, and painted in oils. In 1819 he had a brief partnership in a general store at Cahawba, Alabama; in 1821 he was joint publisher of the Cahawba Press for a few months. When George M. Troup was elected governor of Georgia in 1823, Lamar returned to Georgia to become Troup's secretary and a member of his household. He married Tabitha Jordan of Twiggs County, Georgia, on January 1, 1826, and soon resigned his secretaryship to nurse his bride, who was ill with tuberculosis. In 1828 he moved his wife and daughter, Rebecca Ann, to the new town of Columbus, Georgia, and established the Columbus Enquirer as an organ for the Troup political faction. Lamar was elected state senator in 1829 and was a candidate for reelection when his wife died on August 20, 1830. He withdrew from the race and traveled until he was sufficiently recovered. During this time he composed two of his best known poems, "At Evening on the Banks of the Chattahoochee" and "Thou Idol of My Soul." He ran unsuccessfully for Congress in 1832, helped organize a new party, and was again defeated for Congress in 1834 on a nullification platform. He then sold his interest in the Enquirer and in 1835 followed James W. Fannin, Jr., to Texas to collect historical data. By the time he reached Texas, Lamar's health and spirits began to mend and he decided to settle in the Mexican province. Characteristically, he immediately declared for Texas independence, helped build a fort at Velasco, contributed three poems to the Brazoria Texas Republican, and hurried back to Georgia to settle his affairs.
"At the news of the battle of the Alamo and the Goliad Massacre Lamar rushed back to Velasco and inquired the way to the scene of battle. He joined the revolutionary army at Groce's Point as a private. When the Mexican and Texan forces faced each other at San Jacinto on April 20, 1836, Thomas Jefferson Rusk and Walter Paye Lane were surrounded by the enemy. Lamar's quick action the next day saved their lives and brought him a salute from the Mexican lines. As the battle of San Jacinto was about to start, he was verbally commissioned a colonel and assigned to command the cavalry. Ten days after the battle, having become secretary of war in David G. Burnet's cabinet, he demanded that Antonio López de Santa Anna be executed as a murderer. A month later Lamar was major general and commander in chief of the Texas army, but the unruly Texas troops refused to accept him and he retired to civilian life." ~ Texas State Historical Association
The City:
"Lamar, county seat of Barton County, was laid out in 1856 by Allen Petty on property given to the county by Elisha Peters. The exceptional size of the square, 400 feet, has been attributed to the influence of George E. Ward, a leader in establishing the pioneer village of Lamar. The idea for the unusually large square size was believed to have come from Ward's earlier experiences on the frontiers of Spanish settlements. The town of Lamar reportedly was named after Ward's school friend Mirabeau Lamar, a military hero in Texas.
"An election in 1882 gave voters the option for a new courthouse, but it was not until November 1887 that a proposal passed. W.R. Parsons and Son, Topeka, Kansas, provided the plans; Morrison Brothers of Lamar agreed to construct the building for $32,500. Building materials for the 80-by-120-foot courthouse were Barton County stone and St. Louis red brick. The abundant use of native stone and white trim contrasted sharply with the red brick. This contrast along with the small prickly patterns around the tower and roof line animated the building's appearance. The architect varied the window grouping and canopy design on adjacent sides of the building. The Lamar Democrat printed all the specifications June 7, 1888." ~ University of Missouri Extension
"Lamar is distinguished as the birthplace of Harry S. Truman, the 33rd President of the United States. The son of John Anderson Truman and Martha Ellen (Young) Truman, he was born May 8, 1884. The family moved to Harrisonville in Cass County, 1886, and from there to Grandview and Independence in Jackson County. Here in Lamar is the birthplace, and the Truman Library and the home are in Independence.
"Lamar was laid out, 1856-57, as the seat of Barton County. Named for Republic of Texas Pres. Mirabeau B. Lamar, the town was founded by George Ward on land he gave the county. Organized, 1855, the county is named for Missouri's U.S. Sen. David Barton.
"Here on the horseshoe bend of the north fork of Spring River, in the Prairie Region of southwest Missouri, 980 feet above sea level, Lamar serves as the seat of a leading coal mining and grain and livestock farming county. Osage Indians gave up claims to the area in their 1808 and 1825 land cessions.
"In the Missouri-Kansas Border War, 1854-59, lawless bands ranged the county and in the Civil War terror and disorder characterized the region. Quantrill and his guerrilla band raided and burned Lamar, occupied by Union troops, November 5 and 11, 1862. The town was again burned by raiders, May 28, 1864.
"Almost depopulated at war's close, Lamar and Barton County slowly recovered. In 1880 the Kansas City, Ft. Scott, and Gulf Railroad (Frisco) reached here, and the Mo.Pac., 1881. Lamar College, closed in early 1900's opened, 1889. Arthur Aull (1872-1948) widely known for his unusual news policies, became editor of the "Lamar Democrat," 1900. Northwest is Liberal. Founded in 1880 by G. H. Walser, it was once a community of free-thinkers. To the southwest in Mindenmines, a shipping point for coal, founded in 1883." ~ State Historical Society of Missouri, 1957