All of those miners needed a place to stay

Webb City’s founder, John C. Webb, established the Webb City Hotel at 9 S. Webb St. in 1875 to fill the demand for housing that had been created by the discovery of lead in the area.

The Webb City Hotel became notorious for the change of proprietors over the next 10 years.

In June 1881, Mrs. W. C. Campbell leased the Webb City Hotel and ran numerous advertisements touting new improvements such as new furniture, beds and bedding. Mrs. Campbell also had to deal with a fire that burned the roof off the rear part of the hotel. She was still running advertisements as late at August 1881.

In September 1881, it was reported that Mrs. J.J. Greenwade, wife of the proprietor of the Webb City Hotel, was seriously ill. By March 1882, H. A. Scott of Independence, Kan., was now the proprietor.

Mr. Scott overhauled and beautified the hotel, adding telephone service to the list of amenities. At the same time, it was reported that J.J. Greenwade, owner of the Webb City Hotel, had returned from a three month tour of Missouri and Kentucky. It is possible that Greenwade and Scott were working as partners.

In July 1882, the hotel changed hands again, with a Mrs. Hatcher taking charge. A newspaper report from December 1882 stated that Mr. Peck, from Indian Springs, took control of the hotel.

In March 1883, Major E.A. Baker took charge. Baker had previously kept a hotel in Winfield, Kan. By July 1883, Alex Cann rented the hotel and ran it with his wife and daughters. It was noted that they had made it a pleasant home for the sojourners and travelers. The tables and other accommodations were well provided and by September they were doing good business. They ran the hotel until December 1883, when E. Jackson, former proprietor of the North Springfield house, leased the Webb City Hotel for two years. Jackson started on renovations on the inside and outside of the building. A culvert was added opposite the hotel and gravel was added to the lot on all sides of the building. Apparently J. J. Greenwade was still involved at this time as Jackson purchased his entire interest in the hotel.

In 1884, Jackson offered the Webb City Hotel furniture and fixtures for sale as well as a two-year lease at low rent. He was compelled to leave the city due to a financial engagement with a railroad contractor and his mining interests near Springfield. Someone must have taken the lease because the 1885 the Sanborn Fire Insurance map shows the hotel listed under the name “Western Hotel.”

In 1888, C. E. “Ed” Baldwin, of Lamar, became the new proprietor. Baldwin would own and operate the Buffalo for several years, adding a new addition in June 1889. The addition contained eight rooms, one for a bathroom with a cistern connection, one for a laundry and the remaining rooms for bedrooms.

In March 1890, it was reported in the Joplin Weekly Herald that the Buffalo House had burned down and that Mr. Baldwin would soon commence the erection of a new hotel on the site. A fire had started in a nearby livery and spread to the hotel, but with the assistance of house guests and citizens, Mr. Baldwin was able to save all of his furniture and fixtures. His estimated loss was $2,000. The Buffalo House was repaired, enlarged and refinished by October 1890, with reasonable rates for all advertised.

In July 1891, a fire broke out in the kitchen from an overheated flue and gutted four rooms before it was extinguished. The loss was about $600. In April 1894, the Paragon Theatre company was quartered at the Buffalo House. The hotel was being managed by Louis Baldwin and housed a large number of permanent boarders.

In September 1894, Mr. Baldwin retired and sold the hotel to Mr. Henry Clear, former manager of W. S. Corl’s Dry Goods house. The hotel continued to operate for a few more years with Henry Clear reporting that business was increasing in 1895. Dr. Miller was living at the Buffalo House in 1897, and two deaths were reported at the hotel in 1899. W.C. Irvin was listed as proprietor at this time.

The Buffalo Hotel does not appear on the 1900 Sanborn Fire Insurance map. The lot at 9 S. Webb Street sat empty for many years until the O’Neill building was constructed on the site.