Business View Magazine | March 2020

291 BUSINESS VIEW MAGAZINE MARCH 2020 Ballwin, Missouri Celebrating uniqueness T he City of Ballwin, Missouri is defined by its uniqueness in a myriad of ways. Most notably, at first glance, is its name. Not a typo – in fact, it is the only city in the U.S. spelled BALLWIN, not BALDWIN. The story is a fascinating one. Named for its founder, John Ball, the community’s roots go back to 1826, when Missouri moved its capital to Jefferson City and the need for an overland mail route between St. Louis and the new capital became obvious. As luck would have it, this new road was established along a route that passed by John Ball’s property and Ball decided to capitalize on the accessibility it provided for his land by laying out a town. The name was originally recorded as “Ballshow”, but two days later, on February 9, 1837, Ball amended the recorded plat to Ballwin. No one knows for sure why the name was changed, but one of Ball’s great-grandsons says it was the result of a rivalry with neighboring Manchester. Ball saw great things ahead for his new town and was confident that it would “win out” in reputation and growth over its older, more prominent neighbor, two miles to the east. Hence the “win” was incorporated into the name. Ballwin has indeed been on a winning path, growing from a small village of 750 people when it was incorporated on December 29, 1950 to a thriving city of 32,000, today. Located in the