Missouri Has Been Called the ‘Show-Me State’ Since 1899 – Why?

I have lived in the Midwest for over 30 years and just found out why Missouri is known as the 'Show-Me State.'

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To be honest, when I moved to Missouri I didn't even know the state existed, but I went to junior high, high school, and college in Missouri and I was this old when I found out that Missouri has been known as the 'Show- Me State' since 1899 and it all came from one speech. However this is one of many stories as to why Missouri is called the 'Show-Me State,' yup there's more than one reason.

The nickname came from U.S. Representative Willard Duncan Vandiver who gave a speech about being from Missouri.

“I come from a state that raises corn and cotton and cockleburs and Democrats, and frothy eloquence neither convinces nor satisfies me. I am from Missouri. You have got to show me.”

According to nomadsunveiled.com,

Vandiver was referring to the then-common saying, “I’m from Missouri” which meant that the person was not easily convinced. Since then, the phrase has become a part of Missouri’s identity and has been used to describe the state’s practical, no-nonsense approach to life.

So in a simple speech raving about what Missouri has to offer the phrase 'Show-Me State' was born and it stuck. Well, that's one story anyway. Another version suggests that the phrase came in 1897 from railway passengers. Visit Mo says,

hundreds of free railroad passes were issued to people connected with the Missouri legislature. The conductor, when told that passengers on the train had passes, would insist, “You've got to show me.”

So no matter where it came from Missouri will also be known as the 'Show-Me State.'