Thanks to a generous donation from Dan and Connie Burkhardt, Katy Trail State Park has received a new welcome center.
The new center will be housed in the Treloar Mercantile, which is located near the Treloar trailhead (mile marker 84.7) and across from the Treloar elevator, which is also owned by Missouri State Parks.
The historic Treloar Mercantile was built in 1896 for the arrival of the KATY Railroad and retains many of its original fixtures. The Burkhardts purchased the Treloar Mercantile in 2018, and it was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 2022.
They purchased the building to preserve it and for community events on the trail. The Burkhardts spent their careers at Edward Jones and later created Magnificent Missouri, a not-forprofit that works with Missouri State Parks to advocate for and improve Katy Trail State Park.
In 1985, Ted Jones, then managing partner of Edward Jones, and his wife, Pat, donated $2.2 million to purchase the trail corridor and develop the trail’s pilot sections. Their generosity laid the foundation for completion of the 240-mile Katy Trail, the longest developed rail trail in the nation.
To cement the ongoing legacy of the Joneses’ contributions, the Burkhardts have requested that the new welcome center be named the “Ted and Pat Jones Welcome Center at the Treloar Mercantile.”
The public is invited to join the Missouri State Parks team from 4 to 7 p.m. June 13 to participate in a community meeting that will help guide the welcome center’s development.
Photo: Welcome sign for Katy Trail State Park. The park is the nation’s longest rails-to-trails project, stretching from the Machens to Clinton. (iStock – marekuliasz)
