Joplin, MO news and local guide

Lead was found in the Joplin Creek Valley before the Civil War, but major development came only afterward. By 1871 mining camps had sprung up in the valley, and John C. Cox filed a plan for a town on its east side, which he called Joplin City after the nearby spring and creek, named for the Rev. Harris G. Joplin, who had settled on its banks around 1840. Patrick Murphy of Carthage laid out a rival town, Murphysburg, across the valley. With the nearest sheriff in Carthage, lawlessness was common in a period remembered as the Reign of Terror. The towns merged as Union City, separated when the merger was found illegal and, at Murphy's suggestion, merged permanently as the City of Joplin on March 23, 1873.

More about Joplin

Though founded for lead, Joplin's most important mineral was zinc, known locally as "jack." As railroads linked it to major markets, the city grew rapidly, and by 1900 it was becoming a regional metropolis, with construction centered on Main Street and its bars, hotels and fine homes. Its most famous saloon was the three-story House of Lords, with a restaurant, gambling and a brothel on separate floors. Trolley and rail lines made Joplin the hub of southwest Missouri and the center of the Tri-State lead and zinc mining district. Sources Wikipedia: Joplin, Missouri