Horse-drawn vehicles

In Joplin's early days, four-legged creatures carried people and goods wherever they needed to go. Mules worked hard underground in the mines--some never even saw the light of day. They also pulled heavy wagons laden with lead and zinc ores. Horse-drawn vehicles delivered laundry, manufactured goods, and food; they put out fires and functioned as ambulances and hearses. They transported people to work, church, and play; every dwelling and every public building sported the ubiquitous hitching post out front.

One of the most profitable enterprises in town, the livery stable, provided a place to board horses while their owners
conducted business downtown or stayed overnight in hotels. Visitors who arrived by train and needed transportation during their stay could always hire a horse and carriage at numerous livery establishments. In the 1909, near the end of the horse-and-buggy era, the Joplin City Directory listed 18 livery stables.