Liberal, MO

Liberal is a city in Barton County, Missouri, United States. The 2020 census counted 629 residents. Liberal was founded as an atheist utopia in 1880 by George Wasler, who named it after the Liberal League in nearby Lamar. The city had restrictions on both religious buildings and saloons, instead offering intellectual pursuits. Liberal has a public library, a branch of the Barton County Library. That mix gives Liberal a clear local shape within Missouri, with older layers still visible in current places. The local scoop is a place whose streets, landmarks, and institutions keep its earlier story close to the present. Liberal was founded in 1880 by George Walser, an anti-religionist, agnostic lawyer and former state legislator who wished to create an atheist, " freethinker " utopia. Liberal was named after the Liberal League in Lamar, Missouri, which Walser was a member of at the time. Liberal includes the Free Thought University.