Hinton H. Noland, Roy B. Orth, Winifred Payne,

King Powell, Noble L. Prentis,

Charles Purvis

Hinton H. Noland
Hinton was a deputy marshal under Cornelius Murphy. It was Hinton himself that delivered outlaw Frank James to the circuit court in Independence, MO during the fall of 1882 after Frank had surrendered himself to Gov. Thomas Crittenden to stand trial on the train robbery charge at Gallatin, MO. Noland Road in Independence is named after his family and the Noland School that was constructed in 1885 at Liberty Street and Pacific Street in Independence was named directly after Hinton.

Roy B. Orth
An entertainer of nearly 30 years, Roy’s career spanned the vaudevillian stage and musical performances! He traveled with and appeared in some of the most notable vaudeville circuits of all time, including the Pantages Time, Vaudeville, Columbia and Mutual circuits! It was during his vaudeville time that he performed with two rising comedians named Bud Abbott and Lou Costello! At one point in his career, he donned the makeup and costume to become “Snitz the Clown.” His costume design for “Snitz” was later copied by another clown that would gain fame as “Whizzo the Clown!” The “Snitz” costume was later copied for it’s design, but Whizzo had given it different colors. Roy and his wife, Ophelia had a band in the later years and gave performances at different clubs around the Kansas City area. Their marriage took place on the stage of Kansas City’s Folly Theatre.

Winifred Payne
“The pet of the company” “The prettiest of all” described actress Winifred Green of the “Honeymoon Girls Company”. This five foot high little actress was of a cheerful and happy mood as she performed her hit number “The Skeleton Rag” on Feb. 24, 1912 at the Gayety Theatre. Her appearance rather ghostly, dancing and galloping back and forth across the stage in a flowing costume gown with her voice and smile enveloping the crowd. As she left the stage and merrily went to her dressing room, with the crowd still applauding and cheering, she removed a bottle of carbolic acid from her trunk and drank it all. This note she left to her husband with no real explanation of what it meant: “Bert, if you go to heaven, I trust I may go to hell…W.G.” Winifred was found on her dressing room floor by Jane Le Beau, the leading actress of the group. She would die just a half hour later. Her fellow actresses and actors gathered after the performance and talked of Winifred and their sorrow. Later, the company boarded a train that night very sad and very down. Her funeral was attended by artists from many of the Kansas City theatres. Winifred Payne was only 21 years old.

King Powell
A member of the twelve man jury during the trial of Jesse James Jr. for train robbery. He made the cut from well over 100 potential jurors. The twelve men finally selected, including Powell, were chosen because of their character and good names within the community. James was found "not guilty" by unanimous verdict.

Noble L. Prentis
Noble was another Elmwood resident on General Sherman's "March to the Sea". He was a beloved man and respected by all who knew him. His talents of writing books on Kansas and his travels are well documented. 

Charles Purvis
Called a “famous character of Kansas City”, Charles gained notoriety with the great celebrities of stage and theatre as well as the grateful citizens of Kansas City! Inheriting the saloon business from his stepfather, “Charlie” had a great love of the stage and theatre. He couldn’t memorize a line to save himself and didn’t know one musical note from another, but his saloon, located across from Kansas City’s original Orpheum Theatre, was one of the best known places in the entire theatrical world! All of the great entertainers that booked into Kansas City made sure they stopped by and visited Charles and his famous Ninth Street saloon. All four walls, from floor to ceiling, were covered with pictures from famous stars. Each and every one was a personal gift from the star. Oscar Wilde, Lillie Langtry, Joseph Jefferson, P.T. Barnum, Will Rogers and Eddie Foy were just a few of the many personalities that frequented his establishment. Purvis could sit for hours and recall many stories and anecdotes to his patrons regarding the celebrities that were on his walls. Charles’ other love was for his fellow citizens. Over a ten year span, Charles took every single city newsboy he could find out to dinner for Christmas and paid for almost all of their expenses for a short time. And for fifteen years, he distributed what was known as “Purvis’ Loaf.” Wagonloads of loaves of bread would be sent out and distributed so that no family would go without at least a loaf of bread on Christmas morning. “There was never a time in fifteen years that a man, woman or child in Kansas City went without a loaf of bread on Christmas morning.” (Kansas City Journal May 17, 1901).