Photos of Belton's Past History

The old photos and images below are from Belton's Past History and provided by Joe Coward of Belton Printing and former publisher of The Belton News. We are grateful to Joe for making these photos available. We hope that the community and visitors to this site will enjoy and cherish these images from the past.

Additional information and corrections about some of the photos listed has been made available by Belton historian Alison Ashley Darby. Photos with changes have been designated with the words "Info Update" & the date it was updated. Additional old photos have been provided by Alison and will soon be published to this web site. For details of how to purchase Alison's recently published book Images of America: Belton which includes hundreds of old photos and information about Belton, click on the book's title.

Some of the photos are not dated. We will continue to look for additional information about these photos and add new ones when located.

	Downtown Corner of Belton (Info Update 7/7/04) This photo shows the South East Corner Square with the Standpipe (water tank) in the background. The Standpipe (completed January 2, 1909) can be seen from miles away, and for many years it had the slogan on top "Watch Belton."
	Central Graded School in Belton (Info Update 7/7/04) The Central Graded School was built in 1905 on the site of the previous building. It served grades 1 - 10 until 1922 when the high school was built on Myrtle Avenue (then a dusty road). The building was renovated and occupied by City Hall in 1976.
	"CONAKKA" in Belton (Info Update 7/7/04) "Conakka" was built ca. 1903 by John B. Adger, a Charleston fellow who came to Belton to assist with the Belton Power Company. The home was once surrounded by a formal garden. It is said that photos of this home were once featured on post cards of this period. Although not verified, it is said that some of the bricks produced from one of two Belton brick mills were used in its construction. The Lewis Blake Family also lived in this home until it was purchased by Allen and Molly Cheshire.
	Woodman Hall Community House and School This building was located at Belton Mills in Belton. Community meetings were often held in this building.
	Seewee Manufacturing Company in Belton (Info Update 7/7/04) Group photos of company and business employees of this era were common. Seewee Manufacturing Company made cloth diapers.
	Tornado Hits Belton The photo shows the results of a tornado that hit Belton on May 5, 1933. This photo was taken in the area of Blair Mills. The tornado left 12 persons dead, 111 homes destroyed and about $500,000 in property damage in Belton where people were still trying to recover from the Great Depression.

Anyone wishing to provide additional information or photos from the past should e-mail Web Manager.