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“Bushwhackers, gangsters, health nuts and newly elected presidents all got what they were looking for in Excelsior Springs,” so says Kathy Duncan, Director of the Downtown Museum.
Excelsior Springs, Missouri’s, claim to fame is there are more groupings of mineral water springs and wells around this city than any other place on Earth. For centuries “the Springs,” has attracted all sorts of people drawn to their special waters.
During the 1860s bands of bushwhackers and Union troops who were chasing them, found the natural springs a perfect place to rejuvenate themselves and their weary horses.
On one such occasion in August of 1864 it was known that Bloody Bill Anderson and his gang of thugs were on their way to the Springs and then Centralia. The local militia leader Captain Colley put out a call for volunteers to help track down Anderson and destroy his marauding group of cutthroats.
Phillip Siegel was a German immigrant who along with 40 other civilians answered the call...bad idea. These men were poorly trained and equipped farmers, going up against ruthless battle-hardened bushwhackers who were good at what they did.
Quickly the militia was outflanked and ambushed by Anderson. Realizing his unfortunate predicament. Captain Colley ordered all troops to scatter, yelling, “every man for himself.” Siegel panicked; riding off in a fury, he was thrown from his horse in a creek bed and soon captured. Bloody Bill wasn’t known for taking prisoners, but liked to leave intimidating messages.
The horse made it back to Siegel’s farm without a rider. Phillip’s pregnant wife and brother knew he was in trouble. Searching the area, they came across Siegel’s body in a creek bed. He had been shot in the head and killed but lying next to him on a flat rock was his heart, cut out of his chest sending a very clear, don’t mess with us message.
The Siegels were in shock, not only had they lost their husband and brother, but they were now a marked family. Understanding the warning, they changed their last name to Siel and hid, living out the rest of the war in fear.
In a month to come Anderson and his fellow raiders would commit one of their best known acts of terrorism, executing Union soldiers in Centralia and murdering fleeing troops at the Battle of Centralia. Bloody Bill finally got his though when weeks after Centralia, at the Battle of Albany, Anderson and a few comrades were ambushed, his trademark tactic against others, and killed.
The healing factors from the City’s natural springs are legendary. The combination of bicarbonates of iron and manganese, “cured” tuberculosis, arthritis and helped mend long ailing wounds of Civil War soldiers. News of these curative waters, no doubt embellished, traveled far and wide..Hypochondriacs and those in real agony came to Excelsior Springs in droves. Many slept out or in wagons and tents. Sufferers in continuous pain are desperate, even today. They go to great lengths for promised questionable relief. As the word spread, the town grew to accommodate the seekers of the miracle waters. Train service connected the City to rail centers around the country adding to the now constant stream of believers.
Gangsters, mostly from Chicago, liked to get out of town and head south to the spas of Excelsior Springs. They brought their money and lifestyle with them. Al Capone, Bugsy Moran and others drank, gambled and ran the city hard when in town. “They didn’t bother us much, so we didn’t bother them,” Cathy remembers old police chief Bill Payne saying.
And then there’s the story of President Harry S. Truman’s famous night at Excelsior Spring’s premiere hotel the Elms. The Elms is a fabled hotel which deserves a column all to itself.
It was Election Day in 1948, where Truman was running against Thomas Dewey, Governor of New York. Things did not look good. Kansas City’s downtown Muehlebach Hotel was Truman’s campaign headquarters; it was ruckus. The President thinking he was losing wanted to escape and guzzle away his sorrows. Off to his favorite hide-a-way, the Elms Hotel where he was known and protected.
Dorothy Lawrence had always been a character and one of my mother’s best friends. She, that election night, happened to be the Elms’ switchboard operator on duty. I have heard her tell the story. “When Truman walked in with the secret service and a few staff members he was loaded.” Her words not mine!
Harry was known for liking his bourbon and that night he wanted a little self-medication no doubt, having endured a stressful day and a long campaign. Dorothy’s instructions were that the President was not to be disturbed.
Around 2 a.m. the phone started ringing off the hook. It looked like Truman just might win the election that hours before he had given up on. Dorothy connected with the secret service who at 4 a.m. woke up the slumbering President-elect. “When he came down early that morning, he looked a little rough,” Dorothy said with a grin.
Even some morning editions printed that Dewey won, with the Chicago Daily Tribune running their famous headline “Dewey Defeats Truman!”
Excelsior Springs, Missouri, is worth a trip. It’s unique. Take a walk, drop by the Elms, Hall of Waters, the Atlas Saloon and the Museum. It’s one of those delightful small towns that feeds off its history and prides itself in doing so.
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You can find more of Bob’s work on his website at bobfordshistory.com and on YouTube. Bob can be reached at robertmford@aol.com.
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