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A Brief History of Branson, MO

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Branson, Missouri, otherwise known as the “live music capital of the world” has its origin dating back to the early 1800’s, though it wasn’t known as Branson until 1882, when Rueben Branson opened a general store there which included a post office. Thus the area came to be known as Branson, Missouri. Free land was the draw for many settlers to move to the Ozark region, and though they came with farming backgrounds, life in the Ozark Mountains was hard for them.

When the game and agriculture life was deemed too difficult, other industries were attempted. Among these were lead mining and mussel shell collection, timber harvesting, tomato and strawberry planting, and moonshine production. All of these things saw a brief period of success and then a fade out as the settlers continued to carve out lives for themselves in the Ozarks.

In 1907, Harold Bell Wright wrote a book called, The Shepherd of the Hills, all about life in the Ozarks. When published, it became a best seller and people from all over the country drove out to see the land spoken of in the book, thus the birth of Branson tourism.

Branson became an incorporated city on April 1, 1912 and by then had 1,200 residents. Other industries began to take shape in Branson by this time too, in the form of The Winch Spoke Company and The American Pencil Company of New York. Branson’s first vacation cabins were built around this time as well.

After World War II, Branson became an ideal place for artists, craftsmen, and retirees to settle and sell their wares. Soon after this, a group of local carpenters crafted an enormous lighted Adoration Scene, which became another tourist draw. As this was attracting visitors anyway, the Chamber of Commerce made the decision to add to it an Adoration Parade.

The first show, The Baldknobbers Hillbilly Jamboree Show, opened in 1959, and the Shepherd of the Hills began its outdoor theatrical production in 1960. This was also the year Silver Dollar City, a turn-of-the-century theme park, opened. More shows began opening their doors, including The Presley Family, The Plummer Family Music Show, and the Foggy River Boys, the latter making its debut in 1974.

Tourism remained steady, but in 1983 the show scene simply exploded and continued to do so through the rest of the eighties. In 1991 Branson became big national news with write-ups in Time Magazine, People, The Wall Street Journal, and a news spot on 60 Minutes. What was already a booming tourist industry became even more popular and more shows were developed, as were dinner theaters, outdoor theaters, and riverboat cruises.

Next Page: What Branson has to offer today

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