Back in the 1960's the Federal Government wanted to improve the conditions of those who lived in sub par housing in their opinion. Local communities wanting to cash in on the "free" money applied and housing was built in areas that qualified, and what those exact qualification were I am not sure, but Sedalia received a grant to build apartment type dwelling on the north side of town. For many years the area was just referred to as the "Projects." I think it might have had a different name but it never took hold if it did.
I was asked to become a member of the board of directors. I accepted and one or two nights a month I would attend a meeting and voted on matters that the head administrator brought to our attention. Everyone took their position very seriously and thought long and hard about the decisions they were asked to make. After all we were dealing with people's lives.
The Director of the board's name has long escaped me as all the other member's names. I do remember the administrator because his son was a student of mine and he was a minister in a local church. All of this is much ado about nothing because the real point of the muse is making fun of how a group of people, no matter how well intended can make fools out of themselves.
The Director honestly did not like the community always referring to the projects as the projects and thought if we would give the streets a name in and around the buildings that it would help lesson the stigma of living there, which was always the case where poor people gathered, especially if 99% of them were black. He was very sincere.
We thought on the issue and since it was the time Scott Joplin was becoming identified with Sedalia more and more some of the streets were named after him and names associated with the era and Jazz. The trouble came in when it was suggested that the reamaining streets be named after the board members.
I thought it was a terrible idea but so as not to hurt every ones feeling I went along, perphaps secretly wanting my name to go down in history some where. The Sedalia Democrat the next evening had a front page story which headline read "Board Honors Themselves."
The next time you are in the area and see McAnally Ct, that is my street and you can tell everyone you know a guy who claims that street is named after him, and so it was sort of, I guess I named it after myself though.
http://www.amazon.com/Tales-Homer-Conley-Stone-McAnally/dp/0615779808/ref
Interesting since I was in segregated Smith-Cotton. I remember Bonnie McFerrin as one of the first black students.I didn't realize there was so much poverty in Sedalia in 1954 through 1960. Some people were angry over segregation. I thought it was the right thing to do. There wasn't much trouble the year it occurred as I was right there. A couple crazy boys made a fuss but that didn't last long. Where exactly was the housing and what year did it occur? I think I saw that street the last time I was home for Memorial Day and heading out to Crown Hill. Is that the area it is in?
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