Webb Elementary is named after James Warren Webb.  J. W.  Webb was a prominent business owner of the Hill & Webb Grain Mill Company in McKinney

In 1913, he was an active member of the MISD Board of Trustees.  Out of this group came the names of three of McKinney’s elementary schools:  J. W. Webb, J. L. Greer (now ACT Academy), and Fanny Finch.  Mr. Webb donated three acres of the land on which the school is built on today, another six acres were donated by the Confederate Union.

His generosity and interest in bringing McKinney into the future are clear through his act of donating land for the school itself.  His service on the school board speaks of a man who felt that education was a priority and deserved a large amount of his time and effort.  The grain mills he owned were sold in the 1940′s, leaving the dormant grain elevators as ghosts of McKinney’s history.

Webb Elementary was originally known as East Ward.  In 1945, Mr. E.T Eddins was the part time principal.  He would walk from Finch Elementary, to Southward, and then to East Ward to act as principal two or three times a week.  The school building was a tall, two story red building.  There was no cafeteria and the students would walk home for lunch.  Finally, around 1946 or 47, a cafeteria was built and lunches were $.75 a week.  East Ward had the first African American teacher in McKinney, Mr. Calloway, that taught Science.

Mr. Jerry Moorehead is currently the crossing gaurd for Webb.  He provided most of the information above and is pictured in the class picture above.  He attended East Ward and has many fond memories.  He recounted a story passed down by George Webb that at the turn of the century, Mr. J.W. Webb owned a feed store.  After the San Fransisco Earthquake, Mr. Webb hired Mr. Gibson Caldwell to take a load of chickens to feed the people after the disaster. There are many more stories of kindness and giving that reflect the rich history that Mr. J.W. Webb established so many years ago.

https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/28126965/james-warren-webb

More information can be found about the different McKinney schools.