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“Bite-Size Bits of Local, National, and Global History”
Rolla in Phelps County, Missouri — The American Midwest (Upper Plains)
 

Historic Site

 
 
Historic Site Marker image. Click for full size.
Photographed by Cosmos Mariner, August 18, 2021
1. Historic Site Marker
Inscription.
Site of hand-hewn log structure built in 1855
as contractors office for southwest branch
of Pacific Railroad

Later served as home of
Edmund Ward Bishop — Founder of Rolla

During Civil War was used as officers quarters

As the Eagle Hotel it was stage coach stop
before railroad extended westward

Placed by
Phelps County Historical Society
1964

 
Erected 1964 by Phelps County Historical Society.
 
Topics. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Railroads & StreetcarsRoads & VehiclesSettlements & SettlersWar, US Civil. A significant historical year for this entry is 1855.
 
Location. 37° 56.992′ N, 91° 46.466′ W. Marker is in Rolla, Missouri, in Phelps County. It is on West 8th Street just west of Park Street, on the right when traveling east. Marker is located beside the sidewalk near the Rolla Post Office entrance. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 501 West 8th Street, Rolla MO 65401, United States of America. Touch for directions.

Regionally, this marker is in South-Central Missouri. It is also in the American Ozarks, in the Lewis & Clark Corridor, and in the Corn Belt. Globally, it is in North America, the Western Hemisphere, the Western World, and the Anglosphere. Historically, it finds itself in what was once the territory of the Mississippian Culture, the Louisiana Purchase, and the Antebellum South.

Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this marker: Central Elementary (about 600 feet away, measured in a direct line); "White" USO (about 700 feet away); Hotel Edwin Long (approx. 0.2 miles away); Scott's Drugs
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(approx. 0.2 miles away); Campbell Building (approx. 0.2 miles away); Grant Hotel (approx. 0.2 miles away); Rollamo Theater (approx. 0.2 miles away); "Whiskey Row" (approx. 0.2 miles away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Rolla.
 
Also see . . .  Rolla, Missouri – The Middle of Everywhere.
When the railroad began to be built, a small settlement started to form in 1855 when the railroad erected an office and several warehouses. Anticipating the coming of the railroad, nearly 600 people moved to the area within six months. In 1857, Rolla was made the county seat of Phelps County and the next year, the city was officially laid out. The town was named when one of the original settlers, formerly of North Carolina, favored the name “Raleigh” after his home town. Other settlers agreed on the name on the condition that it wasn’t spelled that “funny” way and they settled on “Rolla.”
(Submitted on November 18, 2021, by Cosmos Mariner of Cape Canaveral, Florida.) 
 
Historic Site Marker image. Click for full size.
Photographed by Cosmos Mariner, August 18, 2021
2. Historic Site Marker
(Rolla Post Office in background)
 
 
Credits. This page was last revised on November 18, 2021. It was originally submitted on November 18, 2021, by Cosmos Mariner of Cape Canaveral, Florida. This page has been viewed 330 times since then and 12 times this year. Photos:   1, 2. submitted on November 18, 2021, by Cosmos Mariner of Cape Canaveral, Florida.
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Jun. 24, 2026