John Calvin McCoy (1811-1889) Collection (KC296)

Native Sons Archives (NSA)

John McCoy was born in Vincennes, Indiana, to Baptist missionaries Isaac and Christiana (Polk) McCoy. John studied at Transylvania College in Lexington, Kentucky, during 1826-1827, and his family moved to the Kansas City area in 1830. McCoy worked for several years as a surveyor throughout the Midwest. He and his first wife, Virginia Chick (died 1849), had four children. He married the widow Elizabeth Woodson Lee in 1850, and they had four more children in addition to two by her first husband. John C. McCoy was a community builder and leader, serving as an original trustee on the Kansas Town Company and many other civic organizations.

The collection consists of a scrapbook of clippings which are chiefly McCoy's own writings for the Kansas City Journal and other newspapers. Most were written for two series called "Tales of an Old Timer" and "Our history -- written by one who has helped to make it -- the recollections of forty years in Missouri." These clippings are from 1871-1888, although the events they describe date back to 1830, when McCoy came to the area. The scrapbook also contains clippings with biographical information, obituaries, and memorials published after McCoy's death in 1889. At the beginning of the scrapbook is an extensive paginal and alphabetical index compiled by the Native Sons. 1871-1950

1 volume (MICROFORM)

See also A "Virtual Scrapbook" of Kansas City regional history.

© WHMC-KC, University of Missouri

updated: Tuesday, December 06, 2005
Western Historical Manuscript Collection-Kansas City
(816) 235-1543 WHMCKC@umkc.edu