Joseph Wayne Mercer was a U.S. politician from Missouri

Missouri

Missouri is a US state located in the Midwestern United States, bordered by Iowa, Illinois, Kentucky, Tennessee, Arkansas, Oklahoma, Kansas and Nebraska. With a 2010 population of 5,988,927, Missouri is the 18th most populous state in the nation and the fifth most populous in the Midwest. It...

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Biography

Joseph Wayne Mercer was born in Platte City, Missouri

Platte City, Missouri

Platte City is a city in Platte County, Missouri, along the Little Platte River. The population was 3,866 at the 2000 census. It is the county seat of Platte County.-Geography:Platte City is located at...

. He attended Chapel Hill College in Lafayette County, Missouri. During the American Civil War

American Civil War

The American Civil War was a civil war fought in the United States of America. In response to the election of Abraham Lincoln as President of the United States, 11 southern slave states declared their secession from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America ; the other 25...

, he served in Confederate Army, and was wounded at the battles of Lexington, Pea Ridge, Pine Bluff, losing his right arm in the latter. Following the war, he moved to Independence, Missouri

Independence, Missouri

Independence is the fourth largest city in the U.S. state of Missouri, and is contained within the counties of Jackson and Clay. It is part of the Kansas City Metropolitan Area...

, where he was a schoolteacher. Entering politics, he was elected to the Independence City Council, and later served as Treasurer of Jackson County, Missouri

Jackson County, Missouri

Jackson County is a county located in the U.S. state of Missouri. With a population of 674,158 in the 2010 census, Jackson County is the second most populous of Missouri's counties, after St. Louis County. Kansas City, the state's most populous city and focus city of the Kansas City Metropolitan...

. From 1875 to 1877, he served as State Treasurer of Missouri

State Treasurer of Missouri

The State Treasurer of Missouri is a statewide elected official responsible for serving as Missouri's chief financial officer. The current State Treasurer is Clint Zweifel.-Duties of the State Treasurer:...

. Following his term as State Treasurer, he returned to Independence, where he workeed in the banking and grocery industries In 1892, he was elected to one term as Mayor of Independence. Ten years later, he became County Judge for the Eastern District of Jackson County.