Doolittle — Just a small town of 500 people located half way between St. Louis and Springfield, Missouri on Interstate 44.

A little history of our town, Doolittle, named for the famous Lt. General Jimmy Doolittle of World War II, who endeared himself to the American people by his B-25 bombing raid on Tokyo early in the war. Before being named Doolittle, a local man, Monroe Ramsey, had called it Centertown, because it was half way between Rolla and Newburg.

During the years that followed, this name caught on. Then, in early spring of 1941, construction began on Ft. Leonard Wood, 20 miles away. The whole area became a boom town, as thousands of workers poured in. They slept anywhere they could — in some places, the beds never got cold as workers coming off each shift shared occupancy.

The straight two mile stretch grew and buildings were built and thrived during the building boom. When the workers moved out and the soldiers moved into Ft. Loenard Wood, Doolittle and Newburg had the answer to the housing problem for the families of the men training at Ft. Leonard Wood.Lou Hargis had it in his mind, “This strip of land would make a good city.” So, he got other active residents working with him and a meeting was called. The idea was recieved well and they said, “Let’s call it Doolittle and get the General himself to come here after the war and dedicate the town.”

Hargis, Hines, W.O. Durham (Principal of Newburg High School), Bob Crain (an employee of Missouri Bureau of Mines at Rolla), and Ike Towell (who operated a filling station and grocery store) were named trustees of the new town. They would serve until April 1944 when a general election would be held and a mayor and other city officials would be elected. It was the five men who presented themselves at the courthouse to announce the birth of a town and to give it a hero’s name.

In 1946, Lt. General Jimmy Doolittle spoke at the dedication ceremonies in which the town was formally christened in his honor. He flew his own B-25 into nearby Vichy Airport, fulfilling a promise he made more than two years before, to be present at the dedication of the town of Doolittle, Missouri.