Long before Route 66, the Ozark Motor Tour stops in Webb City

Here is a new photo of the Ozark Motor Tour for our archives. It is a copy of a postcard dated 1919. We could not find a mention of this tour in a 1919 newspaper, but we did find one in a 1920 issue of the Carthage Press.

As you can see, the photo was taken looking toward the northwest corner of Webb and Joplin (Broadway) Streets, which would later become a sharp turn on Route 66. The Wagner Building is visible in the background, as well as the Telephone Building, both of which are still standing. The Police Department’s administrative offices are now located in the Telephone Building.

Above one of the cars you can see a Sentinel sign on the building.

Signs on the back of the cars read “Ozark Motor Tour,” and apparently listed the names of several Springfield sponsors.

The Carthage Press of June 28, 1920 reported on the Springfield Republicans’ automobile tour of the Ozarks. They reported that 125 Springfield supporters participated in the tour.

The 30-car delegation arrived in Carthage from Joplin, where the drivers had spent the night. The Carthage Entertainment Committee met the visitors in Webb City and escorted them to Carthage.