John Polk Campbell and Louisa Cheairs Campbell

Louisa Cheairs Campbell

There is no known photo of John Polk Campbell.

The Campbell family is important in Springfield history. In fact, John Polk Campbell started the city. He was from Tennessee. In 1829, he and his brother, Madison, traveled to the Ozarks. They were looking for a new place for their families to live.

The Campbell brothers wanted to get a lot of land to start a farm. On March 4, 1830, they camped near a spring or natural well. John P. Campbell wanted the land around the spring for his farm. So, he took out his knife and carved his name on a nearby ash tree. The land around the spring and the tree was now his.

This spot is near Founder's Park. This is how the city would get its name. A field was near a spring. The words spring and field were put together. The town was called Springfield.

The Campbell brothers went back to Tennessee to get their families. They brought them to Springfield. John brought his wife, Louisa Cheairs Campbell, and their infant daughter, Talitha. Their next child, Mary Frances Campbell, was the first white girl born in Greene County.

Mary Frances Campbell

In 1831, John built the family’s new log home. John and Louisa also helped a lot of other families in the Ozarks. During 1832, the Campbells built thirteen cabins so that more families could live in this area. By the next year, the area had enough people to be a county. So, the area became known as Greene County in 1833.

The land near John’s farm soon became the city of Springfield. He helped the new city grow a lot. He talked the county officials into making Springfield the county’s capital. He also helped the city make money. This money was needed to build roads and a courthouse. The city did not have enough citizens to tax to make this money. So, John Campbell gave fifty acres to the city. The city divided up this land and sold it to families and businesses. This money was used to build a courthouse and other buildings. John Campbell then planned where Springfield’s streets would go. He also helped start a lot of schools and churches.

John Campbell was a good leader. Many people said that he was very kind and giving. He had a lot of energy and always wanted to help people. In 1842, John Campbell ran as a Democrat for Congress. He finished sixth in the election, but only four people were needed to represent Missouri in Washington, D.C. John stayed in Springfield and continued farming for the rest of his life.

John and Louisa Campbell, and the other Campbell family members, are important in Springfield’s history. They all helped the city grow into the “Queen of the Ozarks” that it is today.

Author: Grant Miller
Source: R. I. Holcombe, History of Greene County, Missouri, 1883, and Jonathan Fairbanks and Clyde Edwin Tuck, Past and Present of Greene County, Missouri, 1915
Images, portraits of Louisa and Mary Frances Campbell, Courtesy of The History Museum for Springfield-Greene County
(For use in conjunction with the SMSU Campus Compact/WorldCom grant project. You must request permission from the History Museum for Springfield-Greene County to print, copy, or download this image for any other use.)