Jay Holcomb Neff (July 6, 1854 – August 14, 1915) was a newspaper publisher and
Mayor of Kansas City, Missouri from 1904 to 1906.
Biography
Neff was born in
Hartford, Indiana
Hartford City is a city in the U.S. state of Indiana, and the county seat of Blackford County. Located in the northeast central portion of the state, the small farming community underwent a dramatic 15-year economic boom beginning in the late 18 ...
. He sold books to pay his way through
Asbury College. He studied law and practiced in
Peru, Indiana. He moved to Kansas City in 1881 where he started working the ''Kansas City Daily Price Current'' and eventually owned the publication which he renamed the ''Daily Drovers Telegram''.
He bought similar publications in
Omaha, Nebraska and
St. Louis, Missouri
St. Louis () is the second-largest city in Missouri, United States. It sits near the confluence of the Mississippi River, Mississippi and the Missouri Rivers. In 2020, the city proper had a population of 301,578, while the Greater St. Louis, ...
.
In 1901 an editorial in the ''Kansas City Drovers Telegram'' entitled "Call It The American Royal" was to end up causing the Kansas City Livestock Show to change its name to the
American Royal.
After his death his son Ward Andrew Neff bought the ''Chicago Daily Drovers Journal'' and all the publications were merged into the Kansas City Drovers. His son also donated money from the estate to move the
University of Missouri School of Journalism from Switzler Hall to a new building which was named Neff Hall in honor of Jay Holcomb. At the time it was the biggest donation in University of Missouri history.
His residences were 1319 Washington Street, 520 Gladstone Boulevard and 1008 Valentine Road.
He died in
Cody, Wyoming on August 14, 1915, and is buried in
Forest Hill Calvary Cemetery
Forest Hill Calvary Cemetery is a cemetery in Kansas City, Missouri.
History
The Forest Hill Calvary Cemetery was established in 1888. George Kessler served as the landscape architect when the cemetery was established.
The cemetery is approxi ...
in Kansas City.
References
External links
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Neff, Jay H.
1854 births
1915 deaths
Mayors of Kansas City, Missouri
Newspaper people from Omaha, Nebraska
People from Hartford City, Indiana
DePauw University alumni
People from Peru, Indiana
19th-century American politicians
Missouri Republicans