Boonville is a small city in Cooper County, Missouri, founded in 1817 and with more than 7,900 residents as of the 2020 census. Here, you'll find all sorts of old buildings and historic places, but one in particular regularly catches the eyes of urban explorers: the old Kemper Military School. Despite its state of disrepair, the school is still standing, and if its halls could talk, they would certainly have stories to tell.
Welcome to Kemper Military School, a long-shuttered place where talking halls would undoubtedly provide some truly intriguing tales. Founded in 1844, it took until 2002 for this imposing spectacle of a property to shut down for good. Over and over, folks tried breathing new life into the complex, but it was always in vain.
Kemper Military School is one of many - more than 400 - historical places in Boonville. It's protected by law, and exploring it is not encouraged. I strongly recommend readers simply admire the photographs and don't go looking to take their own without explicit written permission from the folks who own the property.
In 1844, the place opened as Boonville Boarding School, which would last for quite some time in some iteration or another. In 1856, the original owner (Frederick Kemper) closed up shop to take up another job elsewhere. He couldn't stay away for long, though - in 1861, he reopened the campus as the Kemper and Taylor Institute. It would remain open through the entire Civil War.
By the mid-1880s, things had changed. The school was rapidly transitioning into a military school, a change that would take hold by 1899 when it was formally rebranded as the Kemper Military School. It prided itself in being "the West Point of the West," and for many years, operations went on fairly normally and without much ado about anything. Notable students included Will Rogers, Donald Tyson of Tyson Foods, James Adkisson, and many more.
Over the decades, things would ebb and flow. The school would grow, grow some more, shrink a bit, and then grow a bit more. Students and faculty came and went. In 1956, the school became a non-profit. After this, though, things took a turn. This is where the struggles began. No superintendent would stick around for very long, and the title bounced from person to person until the 2000s.
In 2000, the junior college closed its doors. Despite having produced some truly notable figures in football history, like Jamal Williams and Torrance Marshall. By 2002, enrollment was way down, and finally, more than 150 years after first opening, the school closed up for good.
Interestingly, there have been numerous movie scenes filmed here, like Child's Play 3, and to this day, the property still responds to requests for use of the property. I find it to be one of Missouri's most interesting places! If you're planning to visit Missouri - for urbex or otherwise - check out all the awesome places in and around Boonville from our friends at VRBO.
Do you have a favorite abandoned place in Missouri? Tell me all about it in the comments.
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