Missouri - The 24th State (The Development)

Missouri remained loyal to the Union during the Civil War, but over 35,000 Missourians fought for the Confederate States of America.  More than 1,000 minor battles took place in the state.

Missouri suffered economically after the Civil War.  Gradually, railroads expanded across the state, making it easier to carry Missouri’s farm goods and manufactured items to other states.  St. Louis was the nation’s fourth-larges city by 1900.  It became a major beer producer and home to the first modern skyscraper, the Wainwright Building designed by Louis Sullivan in 1890.

In 1904, about 20 million people visited St. Louis for the Olympic Games as well as the Louisiana Purchase Exposition – where iced tea and ice cream cones were introduced in the United States.  The city also gained fame as the home of aviator Charles Lindbergh, who made the first nonstop flight across the Atlantic Ocean in 1927 in his airplane named Spirit of St. Louis. 

Missouri native Harry S. Truman became President in 1945 and led America through the end of World War II.  The state’s economy was robust after the war, spurred by manufacturing in St. Louise and Kansas City.  St. Louis was a center for the aircraft and defense industries.  Farming also remained important as the state made a dramatic recovery from an economic slump in the 1970’s and 1980’s.

Missouri encouraged tourism at the end of the 20^th century.  Popular destinations included Branson, known as “The Live Music Show Capital of the World,” the Pony Express Museum in St. Joseph, the Gateway Arch in St. Louis, and the Mark Twain Boyhood Home and Museum in Hannibal.