Independence, St. Joseph, Lexington and Sedalia all grew along routes west. Here is what each one’s pages print.Built from the same official and visitor-bureau pages as each town guide, read October 30, 2026. We rank nothing: there is no official ranking to cite.
- 4Towns
- 28Places Listed
- Oct 30, 2026Checked
- Official OnlyPrices
Side by Side
| Fact | Independence | St. Joseph | Lexington | Sedalia |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Known for | Nicknamed the Queen City of the Trails: starting point of the Santa Fe, California and Oregon Trails. (visitindependence.com) Home of the Harry S. Truman Presidential Library and Museum, the final resting place of the 33rd president. (visitindependence.com) | The CVB page says the Pony Express was born here; the Patee House was its headquarters and a stable housed its horses and riders. (stjomo.com) The outlaw Jesse James lived and died in the city; his preserved last home is a museum. (stjomo.com) | The city says its 1847 Greek Revival courthouse is the oldest courthouse in continuous use west of the Mississippi. (lexingtonmo.gov) A cannonball hole from the 1861 Battle of Lexington is still visible in a courthouse column, per Visit MO. (visitmo.com) | Calls itself the Queen City of the Prairies. (visitsedaliamo.com) Host of the Missouri State Fair every mid-August at the fairgrounds. (visitsedaliamo.com) |
| Places on its visitor pages | Harry S. Truman Presidential Library & Museum Truman Home National Frontier Trails Museum 1859 Jail Museum Missouri Model Railroad Museum | Remington Nature Center Albrecht-Kemper Museum of Art Glore Psychiatric Museum Jesse James Home Pony Express Stable (Pike's Peak Stable) | Battle of Lexington State Historic Site and Anderson House Lafayette County Courthouse Lexington Historical Museum Wentworth Military Museum Madonna of the Trail | Daum Museum of Contemporary Art Sedalia Katy Depot Missouri State Fairgrounds Katy Trail State Park Downtown Sedalia Historic District |
| Annual events named | SantaCaliGon Days (every Labor Day weekend (as printed; dates to…) Third Fridays Art Walk (each month) 1859 Jail Museum Jail Haunts (October) | Mystic Street Fair on Edmond (listed for Sunday Oct 25, 10 a.m.-8 p.m. on the…) Holiday Park light display at Krug Park (holiday season (as printed)) South Pole light display at Hyde Park (holiday season (as printed)) | Second Sundays downtown (Monthly, 11 AM to 4 PM on 10th Street between…) | Missouri State Fair (mid-August each year) Scott Joplin International Ragtime Festival (June 3-6, 2027 (next printed)) |
| Getting there | Interstate 70, Interstate 435 and U.S. 24 lead in; the city is just east of downtown Kansas City; Kansas City International Airport is a short drive… (visitindependence.com) | The CVB says the city sits at the crossroads of Interstate 29 and Highway 36 and is about 30 minutes from North Kansas City. (stjomo.com) | About 15 minutes from I-70 and about 1 hour 15 minutes from Kansas City International Airport; Missouri Highways 13 and 24 serve the city; rail… (lexingtonmo.gov) | Amtrak Missouri River Runner stops on Main St; Sedalia Regional Airport is at 1900 East Boonville; OATS transit and rental cars are listed. (visitsedaliamo.com) |
| Visitor information | visitindependence.com | stjomo.com | historiclexington.com | visitsedaliamo.com |
| Our place pages | Town guide | Town guide | Town guide | Town guide |
How to Choose
- Independence: Nicknamed the Queen City of the Trails: starting point of the Santa Fe, California and Oregon Trails.
- St. Joseph: The CVB page says the Pony Express was born here; the Patee House was its headquarters and a stable housed its horses and riders.
- Lexington: The city says its 1847 Greek Revival courthouse is the oldest courthouse in continuous use west of the Mississippi.
- Sedalia: Calls itself the Queen City of the Prairies.
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What We Could Not Verify
Not confirmed
- Population (Census 403)
- Population (Census QuickFacts 403)
- visitlexingtonmo.com redirects to an unrelated brewery domain; skipped (the city links visitlexingtonmo.org, whose content pages load via script and showed no listings)
- Population (Census 403)
Questions People Ask
How did you compare these?
We listed what each town’s own official and visitor-bureau pages print and left blanks where a page said nothing. Nothing here is a ranking.
Are the hours current?
Hours and prices change. Each town guide gives the page and date they were read.
Sources
- visitindependence.com, read October 30, 2026
- visitindependence.com, read October 30, 2026
- visitindependence.com, read October 30, 2026
- visitindependence.com, read October 30, 2026
- visitindependence.com, read October 30, 2026
- visitindependence.com, read October 30, 2026
- stjomo.com, read October 30, 2026
- stjomo.com, read October 30, 2026
- stjomo.com, read October 30, 2026
- stjosephmo.gov, read October 30, 2026
- stjosephmo.gov, read October 30, 2026
- stjosephmuseum.org, read October 30, 2026
- lexingtonmo.gov, read October 30, 2026
- lexingtonmo.gov, read October 30, 2026
- visitmo.com, read October 30, 2026
- mostateparks.com, read October 30, 2026
- mostateparks.com, read October 30, 2026
- historiclexington.com, read October 30, 2026
- visitsedaliamo.com, read October 30, 2026
- visitsedaliamo.com, read October 30, 2026
- visitsedaliamo.com, read October 30, 2026
- visitsedaliamo.com, read October 30, 2026
- visitsedaliamo.com, read October 30, 2026
- visitsedaliamo.com, read October 30, 2026
Checked October 30, 2026 by It’s Missouri. Cite this page: Westward Trail Towns Compared, itsmissouri.com (https://itsmissouri.com/destinations/westward-trail-towns-compared/), checked 2026-10-30. Free to quote with a link.