Poplar Bluff, Missouri is a scenic retirement community located in Eastern Missouri.

Poplar Bluff MO History

Poplar Bluff was founded on an uninhabited bluff on Black River. It was named for the beautiful poplar trees that grew profusely on that bluff. By the end of 1850, the town had been started and some ten families lived there.

Starting in the mid 1800’s, great trees were cut and floated down river to Poplar Bluff to be milled and shipped on by steamboats which navigated the river. The steamboats also brought supplies and people to the area. Logging and related industries boomed in the 1880s and '90s. Poplar Bluff became a railroad and timber center, a combination that earned the city a reputation as a tough town.

By 1916, the lumber business had passed its zenith, and the railroads had taken over most of the function of transportation. Nevertheless, a pivot bridge was built across Black River in 1917 tying together the existing roads running east to west. Virtually every imaginable type of wood product was produced in Poplar Bluff, including wood for the oil industry, fancy veneers, tool handles, spokes for Model T Fords, flooring, and specialty lumber of all kinds. But the virgin forest had vanished by the end of the 1920’s and Poplar Bluff's tall timber days were gone.

Poplar Bluff Missouri – Retirement & Vacation Area

Today, Poplar Bluff Missouri serves as a regional hub for education, health care, business and light industry. The city is also a popular retirement community and senior vacation area.