Below is an article submitted by President and Sister Clayton about 2002

Mission History

By President and Sister Clayton

At the 1855 LDS General Conference in Salt Lake City, 5 Elders were called to serve as missionaries to the Indian Territory Mission. Their service began among the Cherokee and Creek Indians in the Shawnee area of Kansas. Three of the missionaries served there for 4 years and were eventually expelled from the Indian Territory by Indian agents who were unhappy about unrelated trouble with Johnson’s Army. The last two missionaries from that group returned home in 1877 . . . 22 years later.

An iron railing led up the steps of the first LDS chapel in the mission which was located in St. Johns, Kansas. The Mission Home was actually a hotel rented by the church in the same city. Apostle George Teasdale was the first President of the Indian Territory Mission, which was formally organized in April 1883. President Teasdale served until September of that year and was followed by Elder Andrew Kimball, who served for 12 years (June 1885-April 1897). In April of 1897 Elder William T. Jack was called as Mission President until May 1900. During his presidency, in March of 1898, the mission name was changed to Southwestern States Mission and on December 26, 1900, the Mission Office was moved to Kansas City, Missouri

Seven years later the mission headquarters moved from Kansas City to Independence, Missouri where a hall was rented in the Examiner Building, (located unknown) for worship services. In 1906 the mission name was again changed to become the Central States Mission. Another name change occurred in 1969 and the mission was called the South Central States Mission and shortly thereafter became the Kansas Missouri Mission (1970). In 1974, the mission name was once again changed to become the Missouri Independence Mission.

This mission history was provided by President and Sister Clayton.