Named for the Liberal League in Lamar, Missouri, to which the town’s founder belongs, the city of Liberal is in Barton County, Missouri. The community was started as an atheist utopia in 1880 by George Walser, an anti-religious lawyer who had purchased two thousand acres of land, advertising for atheists to come and help found a town without a church, and where Christians were not allowed. Atheists came but Christians came also, determined to convert the town, buying land surrounding Liberal, prompting Walser to construct a barbed wire fence in order to keep Christians out of Liberal. So many Christians came that they created a new town adjacent to Liberal which they named Pedro, attracting movement of some houses and businesses from Liberal to Pedro. Walser himself later became a Spiritualist and, by some accounts, a Christian, authoring a book entitled, The Life and Teachings of Jesus. Pedro later became part of Liberal and, of course, the ban on Christianity was ended. Liberal is northeast of Prairie State Park, southwest of Verdella, south of Hannon, and east of the Kansas border.
 
 
Recommended Resources
Published by the Sikeston Herald on December 1, 1938, the founding and early history of the city of Liberal is offered, with links to additional resources.
http://spirithistory.iapsop.com/liberal_missouri.html
History of the Strange Town of LIberal, Missouri
Written by Stever Everly, and published in 2001, the brief history of the founding and early history of the city is put forward.
http://www.angelfire.com/home/wliberalmissionoutre/historyofliberal.html
Serving the K-12 population of Liberal, Missouri, the public school system operates elementary, middle, and high school campuses, which are highlighted here, along with a directory of administrative personnel, faculty and staff, a district calendar, menus and public notices.
http://www.liberal.k12.mo.us/
Established in 1976, the family owned and operated country grain elevator in Liberal, Missouri offers a wide variety of services, including fertilizer, seed, feed, grain marketing, and other products and services. A market snapshot, radar and weather forecasts, agricultural commentary, and its hours of operation are presented.
http://www.seedandfarm.com/