


What they found was horrifying: “the headless body of a baby on the outside, and on peering inside they discovered the dead bodies of two more children, a man and a woman.” After alerting authorities, a large crowd gathered around the tent, where further investigation showed that the man, James Moss, had bludgeoned his wife and two of his children to death before beheading a third child. They followed the smell to a tent 8×12 in size. Five persons were found dead and their bodies are in a horrible state of decomposition.”Īccording the news account, two young boys, Mack Hutchinson and Walter Towsley, were in the area when they noticed swarms of flies and a strong stench in the air. In the spring of 1899, the Joplin Daily News trumpeted, “The most startling discovery in crime ever known in the annals of Joplin was made about noon today at a tent in the Kansas City Bottom near the mouth of St. Since Joplin first began as a rough mining town on the edge of the Ozarks, it has seen its share of violence, though many of the crimes have long since been forgotten.

If you still have not read our five part history of the depot, you can find it at the following links: Part I, Part II, Part III, Part IV, and Part V.Īlso, watch for more photographs associated with the construction of the Union Depot, which while not of the depot itself, are still quite fascinating and depict a previously discussed post on our site!įormer location of part of the Kansas City Bottoms, after its leveling for the construction of the Union Depot. Regretfully, we know little about the photographer, other than he may have worked for a railroad and lived in Oklahoma. In the background, you can spot Eugene Field School (since demolished) sitting as the massive building on a hill.
Ed rust kansas city fire marshal windows#
Of particular note is that the exterior finishes on the building are incomplete, such as the architectural touches on the south end of the building, the lack of glass windows and the white exterior is in the process of being added. The photograph was taken from Main Street or just off of Main Street. Click on image to view larger sizes.īy the appearance and state of completion of the depot and the background trees, we estimate that this photograph was taken sometime in early 1911, quite possibly after the one we posted previously. The Joplin Union Depot under construction sometime in the early months of 1911.
