Vintage early 20th-century open-top automobile with several children posing beside it in a yard near a house.
Mother Pearl Waggoner and her children with their family auto, c. 1915. She’s holding Pearl. Bruce is on the running board, and W.W. is behind the wheel.

From the 3rd floor
of the Webb City Public Library

Old News

W.W. Waggoner was a traditional, longtime downtown businessman

Webb City Area Genealogical Society

Man in a suit and fedora holding a baby, smiling outdoors with a young boy in front; vintage car and houses in the background.
W.W. Waggoner holds his new baby daughter, Nancy Louise (WCHS 1968) in late 1950. His son William (WCHS 1962) smiles in front of his father. Standing in the far background is nephew Bruce “Buddy” Waggoner. Bruce says the cowboy holster and toy gun were part of his daily childhood attire. The picture was taken in the backyard of Bruce Waggoner (brother of W.W.) home at 116 N. Roane St., with Bruce’s 1949 Ford behind W.W. The two-story home had belonged to Dr. William Winston Waggoner, father to W.W., Bruce and their sister, Virginia.

William W. “W.W.” Waggoner, a well-known former Webb City businessman, owned and operated the Waggoner Insurance Agency in Webb City at 118 N. Webb Street from 1948 until 1974.

He was born in Lakeside in 1909 and was a lifetime resident of the Webb City area. He was active in the Webb City Masonic Lodge and Webb City Rotary Club and was a member of the First Presbyterian Church.

W.W. and Mary Louise Birch were married in 1940 in Carterville and were blessed with children William and Nancy Louise.

The Webb City Area Genealogical Society located an interesting auto insurance policy produced by the Hirons and Harris Agency in Webb City for W.W. Waggoner’s 1934 Chevrolet Sedan, total premium being $12.35. What an astonishing comparison to today’s premium dollar. We felt it was an interesting bit of information from 1930s Webb City.

The accompanying photos provide happy memories of one of our well-known businessmen of downtown Webb City, his family, and his example of maintaining a long-lasting business.

Daughter Nancy tells how, as a small child, she would pick up the home phone and ask the operator to let her speak to “her daddy.” W.W. passed way at age 75 in 1984.

Old ad urging readers to consult The Waggoner Insurance Agency at 118 N. Webb St (Phone 6).
This advertisement ran for years in the Webb City Sentinel.
Old automobile insurance policy page showing policyholder W. W. Waggoner, expire date June 10, 1934, with coverage lines and a bold Hirons & Harris insurance ad at the bottom.
The easy-to-understand auto insurance policy W.W. Waggoner purchased in 1934 for his Chevrolet sedan.

Webb City Area Genealogical Society

WCAGS members staff the Genealogy Room on the third floor of the Webb City Public Library. Current hours are noon to 4 p.m. weekdays and 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturdays. Meetings are held at 6 p.m. on the first Tuesday of each month in the Genealogy Room.

Everything you want to know about Jasper County Missouri Schools is available at a site compiled by Webb City Area Genealogical Society member Kathy Sidenstricker.

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