CEDAR COUNTY HISTORY AND PLACES

 

     Stockton is the County Seat and is near the center of the county. El Dorado Springs is the largest city in Cedar County and is located in the extreme northwest corner of the county. Jerico Springs is the third town in size and is located about 16 miles southwest of Stockton. Once several other small prosperous villages flourished in Cedar County as well; Arnica (Fincastle), Bear Creek, Cane Hill, Caplinger Mills, Cedar Springs, Clintonville, Filley, Hartley, Lebeck, Ivy, (Akard) Owen's Mill, Virgil City, Wagoner, White Hare (Omer). Country stores were scattered through out Cedar County. Some of the better known ones were, Graceland, Umber, Masters, Mola, Centerville, Meadow, Pleasant View, Sexton, Sandridge, Olympia and Williamsburg.

     Townships are: Benton, Box, Cedar, Lynn, Madison, Jefferson and Washington.

 

     Among those who had entered land by 1839 in the territory surrounding Stockton were: Thomas English, Reddin Crisp, John W. Sheppard, James Miller, Jacob Miller, Erwin Wilson, Solomon G. Crank, Matthias Williams, Leonard Wintermole, Lindsey Bowman, Abraham Berger, Hezekiah Harryman, Henry L. Davis, David Welch,William Welch, James Hornbeck, Mason Crabtree, Nathan Parker, William Ainsworth, Obadiah Smith, Anderson Morton, William L. Gordon, Mitchell E. Gash, Daniel Dale, James Gordon, Robert Williams, John G. Williams, James MacDowell, Andrew MacDowell, Ezra Hamor, William G. Powell, Campbell English, Christopher J. Lamberton, Oliver P. Gash, Reuben J. Gash, Alexander McWilliams, William Denson, John P. Campbell, Charles A. Haden, John Bullard, Eli Roberts, Andrew J. Snodgrass, Stephen May, Thomas Eslinger, and Stephen Hodgin.  (This is not a complete list of inhabitants but of those who had entered land.)

 

Reprinted here with the permission of the "Cedar County Republican Newspaper"  Use Ctrl+F to search this page

Cedar County places we've never been...and a few we have

by Aaron Sims

Cedar County is rich in history dating back hundreds, even thousands of years. First the Native Americans roamed the area, doing little to change the land around them except taking what was needed to survive and utilizing the natural springs in the area for medicinal purposes. Europeans ‹ in particular Spaniards ‹ began exploring the area in the 1500s and settling here by the 1700s. The Spanish even set up a remote outpost, somewhere around the Vernon County area where they mined lead and established a fort for a few years.

By the early 1800s, when the area came under the control of the young United States, settlements began. Only a few brave souls at first, but after statehood in 1820, more and more people came to the area. By the 1830s, a number of settlements had popped up in what would be Cedar County. Cedar County, named for Cedar Creek, was formally created Feb. 14, 1845, from portions of Dade and St. Clair counties.

Missouri counties were established by size, normally as far as a horse and wagon could travel in a day would constitute the distance east and west or north and south. Settlements grew ‹ usually around waterways where trading posts and water-powered grist mills were constructed. Natural resources ‹ such as springs thought to house medicinal properties ‹drew other settlers who founded communities to utilize the natural properties available to them. By the late 1800s more than 50 hamlets, villages and towns were spread across Cedar County. Some were well organized ‹ such as Stockton or El Dorado Springs. Others were little more than a store and post office or school. Some thrived while others existed. By the
mid 1890s and the beginning of Rural Free Delivery with the postal service, some communities began to fade.

More communities disappeared as Americans and Cedar countians became more mobile, with the automobile becoming quite common by the 1930s and paved highways across the county by the 1950s. State-endorsed school consolidation in the 1950s and early ¹60s resulted in more communities fading from
existence and one-room schools closing. By the 1970s and ¹80s, only a few of the old schools remained.

Today, most of the villages that once were the important community and trade centers across Cedar County are just faint memories, no longer found on any map.

Before the memories and locations of many of the communities were lost forever, Arthur Paul Moser traveled across Cedar County and Missouri, poring over records and maps, visiting with residents and finding out about the towns and villages of the area and recording their locations and origins.
Over a period of about 20 years, beginning in the 1960s, Moser covered the state to compile his work. Moser knowingly omitted some communities from his work as little or no information could be located, but many are included. Our thanks is expressed to the late Arthur Paul Moser who researched and compiled the majority of this information in his "Directory of Towns, Villages and Hamlets of Missouri."

The communities will be divided into four groups, three of at least 20 Cedar County communities and one week with brief histories of Stockton, Jerico Springs and El Dorado Springs.

A map will show the location of many of these communities, and again some will be omitted. In the first of the series, we begin an alphabetical look at the first 20 places.

Akard was a trading post near the mouth of Bear Creek, named for Judge J.M. Akard. It was established near the close of the Civil War. The location was 3-1/2 miles east of Stockton.

Earlier settlements in the area were Hubbard Mill, Tatum Mill, Crow's Mill and Owen's Mill. In 1847, a saw mill and dam were built and later sold to Philip Crow, the Owens family bought an interest. Many of the original buildings were destroyed during the Civil War and were rebuilt after the war¹s end. A fire destroyed the mill in 1867 or 1868 and the mill was never replaced, but the dam was rebuilt. The dam and mill foundations are still present and can be accessed on County Road 1801.

Alice was the name of a store and community eight miles northwest of Stockton, most likely along what is now Missouri Highway 32. The store was founded about 1870 and likely named for a woman in the neighborhood. The community also was known as Horse Creek and Mule Creek.

Arnica was named for a spring local people thought contained the medicinal principals of Arnica. The town was laid out in 1882 and also was known by the names of Fincastle and Fincastle Springs. A small group of houses remains in the area of Arnica, located on County Road 950.

Baker's Store was a community with a country store. The store began operations about 1915 and closed some time in the 1960s. Moser was unable to obtain a location for the store, but found mention of it in various records.

Balm was a local name given to the community of Cedar Springs, having been derived from the believed medicinal nature of the water in the area. A town was laid out by Thomas Eslinger in 1884 and thrived for a number of years. A few buildings remain in the area of the original town, located along U.S.
Highway 54 in the northern area of Cedar County.

Bear Creek, also known as Payntersville, began as a trading point in the 1850s and was so named because it is near Bear Creek. Charles W. Paynter and Jefferson Jackson opened a store shortly after the
Civil War and soon people began calling the community Payntersville, but the official name remained Bear Creek. Bear Creek was a bustling community for a number of years, with two or more stores, hotel, blacksmith shop, churches and later a consolidated school that remained in operation until the late 1960s.
By the mid-1970s, a few houses, one church and a service station remained. Today a group of houses remains in Bear Creek, and the Lindley Prairie Cemetery and church are a little over a mile away.

Bell's Mill was built on Bear Creek in the 1840s and was named for the builder and operator. The nearby location of other mills and communities allowed others to grow while Bell's Mill remained a small operation.

Blakeley's Mill was built on the Sac River, likely in the area now flooded by Stockton Lake, by a Mr. Blakely. An exact location is unknown as the endeavor was short-lived.

Bugtussell was the name jokingly applied to a store and community established around 1915 about 3-1/2 miles east of Arnica, near the intersection of Highway AA and County Road 2101. The name, while humorous, stuck as long as the store remained open, until sometime in the 1930s.

Cane Hill was a trading post in the southern part of Cedar County, first established in 1868 by Tom Dale, his son Bill Dale and son-in-law John W. Rountree, who named the community Cane Hill because of the abundance of cane produced in the area. The town was laid out in 1869 and within a few years had four stores and other industries. The community was served by a post office until it closed in 1919, due to a lack of patrons and Rural Free Delivery. By the 1970s, Cane Hill had one general store, supplying residents with a variety of needs. Most recently, the community had a lumber and feed store, a few homes and nearby Flint Hill Church and Fullington Cemetery.

Caplinger or Caplinger's Mill has been known by several names including Sackville, Sacville and Williams Mill and is located on the west bank of the Sac River, about seven miles north of Stockton.
The area was settled in the 1840s by Samuel Caplinger who bought the mills from a man by the name of Williams. The mill was destroyed and the dam washed away during the Civil War. In 1866 the property changed hands and the mills were rebuilt by Andrew Master who operated the mill for some years. The town was known for a while as Sacville, named so because of the river. At various times the name was incorrectly listed on official publications as Sackville. A town was laid out in 1869 and had a population of about 40 by the mid-1870s and continued to grow. A modern mill owned by Whinery brothers was destroyed by fire on March 20, 1947, and rebuilt beginning new operations in April 1948. The new mill was again destroyed by fire in June 1953 and never rebuilt.

Cedar Mill was an early settlement on Cedar Creek built by John G. Williams who moved to Cedar County in 1837 and built a mill. The name was taken from Cedar Creek. The mill was later destroyed, and the exact location is unknown.

Centerville was a trading location 18 miles northwest of Stockton in the early days of Cedar County. Records indicate a town was laid out in 1857, but the community was destroyed during the Civil War and was never rebuilt. A reason for the name is unknown.

Claud was a community built around a store named for the nephew of Charles E. Eliston who built the store near a crossroads, near where highways J and N intersect.

Clear Spring was an early name for Lebeck and was also known as Clair Spring. The community took its name from Clear Creek, which was so named by pioneers for the clear waters of the creek. The community is located on Highway DD near the Cedar and St. Clair County line.

Clintonville was established in 1857 by G.B. Adcock who named the community for the nearby town of Clinton. With growth, El Dorado Springs has enveloped what was Clintonville and all that remains today is the cemetery by the same name on the south edge of town.

Coal Hill was a community about three miles west of Cedar Springs. At one time, there was a Coal Hill School and 4-H Club and today a church remains.

Cook's Mill was located about a mile below the mouth of Horse Creek on a small branch a few hundred yards from Cedar Creek. The mill was named for the building and owner, a Mr. Cook, but later was destroyed and not rebuilt.

Cracker Box was the name of a store that opened around 1910 and was in operation for about 10 years. The store was very small, and the name Cracker Box was suggested by a local joker. The exact location is unknown, but Moser found reference to the location in several records.

Dixon's Store was the name of a country store named for its owner. The business was started around 1900 and also was called Red Hill for the badly washed red clay hill nearby. The business closed after several years of operation and the exact location today is unknown.

There are many more villages and communities to explore in Cedar County. There are more we are unaware of that existed that would fit in the alphabetical listing we've begun here. Our thanks is expressed to the late Arthur Paul Moser who researched and compiled the majority of this information in his "Directory of Towns, Villages and Hamlets of Missouri."

 

Cedar County places we've never been...and a few we have

by Aaron Sims

 

Cedar County, like much of rural America, has seen a decline in small towns and communities. Progress has taken away the identity of the communities and distance between places seems much less. Driving 20, 30 or 50 miles to shop is not uncommon today. However, little more than 40 years ago, walking to the general store was a common task. Stores and communities were scattered throughout the countryside, allowing access to local residents. Often, not far from the local store was a one-room school or church, all forming a center for a local community. As times changed, the importance of the local store decreased as both parents worked away from the farm and home. Buying groceries and supplies at the grocery store in the larger towns became more common, and the smaller stores closed.

School consolidation closed the one-room schools, and the small communities faded. Some remain as clusters of homes, others just as memories. Other settlements died long before when natural disasters, such as floods, destroyed the life blood of the community ‹ the local mill. Many Cedar County communities were destroyed by armies during the Civil War, when villages were burned and not rebuilt. Some were bypassed when highways were built and traffic no longer traveled through their location. No matter what the reason, these communities disappeared or grew smaller. Here are more of the places of Cedar County. Again, our thanks to the late Arthur Paul Moser for his work ³A Directory of Towns, Villages and Hamlets of Missouri,² the source of much of our information.

Dunnegan's Mill was a location on the Sac River where Francis Dunnegan, an uncle to T.H.B. Dunnegan, a founder of Bolivar, settled in 1856 and built a mill, located just above what now is the Highway 32 bridge. The mill was in operation until about 1880, when it was believed to have been destroyed in a flood.

Eaton was a community built about 20 miles northwest of Stockton in Box Township. The community was named after a pioneer family who settled in the area. A post office was established in the 1840s along the mail route from Osceola to Clintonville. The community was destroyed during the Civil War and never fully rebuilt. A store and blacksmith shop were reopened, but the community did not flourish.

Edsall was established around 1840 when John Edsall operated a store about a quarter-mile west of Cedar Creek on the main road between Stockton and Filley. The community was named for John Edsall, store owner and postmaster. A post office was in operation at Edsall from 1901 through 1904, and the store remained in operation well into the 1900s. By the late 1960s, only remnants of the buildings remained.

Filley is located about 12 miles southeast of El Dorado Springs on Highway 32 between Stockton and El Dorado Springs. The community also was known by the names Alice, Horse Creek and Mule Creek.
Once a thriving town, Filley had at least two stores, a school, churches, a number of houses and a blacksmith shop. By the mid-1970s, a few houses, empty stores, the Christian Church and a community building remained. Today, the community building still is in use for 4-H meetings, the Christian Church still is prospering, and a few houses remain.

Forest Grove was a post office location and store 8-1/4 miles southwest of El Dorado Springs. The origin of the name is not known.

Graceland was located in section 35, township 36, range 26 in Washington Township ‹ near the Arnica area ‹ and for a time had a store, school and post office. The community took its name from the beautiful country around it. Rural free delivery closed the post office by about 1905, and the school closed with school consolidation in the 1950s.

Gum Springs is the name of a former Cumberland Presbyterian campground four miles southwest of Stockton, along Highway 39. The location was named for a group of local landowners. At one time, the community had a store, church and school, but no village.

Hamlet was the name of a small trading post in the eastern part of Cedar County, named for Charles Hamlet who owned the store. The location was known earlier as Sexson, after Mort Sexson who built the first store. An exact location is unknown.

Hartley was the name of a store in southeastern Cedar County, established by Dick Hartley. The community also was known by the name of Needmore and was so named by a local joker as a criticism of the small amount of goods in stock. A small group of houses remain in the vicinity, which is near the eastern shore of Stockton Lake. The former road from Stockton to Needmore remains, but is covered in locations by the lake.

Hyattsville, now known as Olympia, was founded by a man named Hyatt around 1895, who submitted names to the postal department and asked for a post office. From his list of names, Olympia was selected. The post office closed in the early 1900s, but a few homes remain in the area.

Ivy, located about 5-1/2 miles southwest of Caplinger Mills, was named because of the quantity of ivy growing on the swamp land in the vicinity. The community was founded in the early 1890s when T.J. Phipps and his son W.E. Phipps bought property on the courthouse steps. W.E. Phipps later built his home on the property, and later the store, blacksmith shop and post office were located in the vicinity.
By 1900, the community had about 40 residents, but after the post office and store closed around 1906, the community faded.

Jaketown was the name of the trading post near the Mollie post office and was named for Jake Dixon who owned the store.

Jerusalem is the name given by residents to a part of Jerico Springs that is cut off from the main village by Jordan Creek. Jerusalem had no legal standing, but was known by the people of the region who took amusement from the imaginary biblical trips from one town to the other. The creek was jokingly named for the river in Palestine, as it was near Jericho.

Kader was a country store located some eight miles southwest of Stockton about the time of the Civil War. Julian Osborne owned the store and named the location after a friend named Kader who later became postmaster. The community faded after the post office was closed. A cemetery is located nearby.

Kinneytown or Kenney Town, was the name of a store on the highway between Stockton and Fair Play, established about 1905 and named for Mitch Kenney who owned the store. The store closed in the 1930s.

Lamberton's Store was a trading post named for Christopher Lamberton who began operating the store in 1838. The exact location of the settlement is unknown, but Moser found several references of the store and community, believed to have been in the area of Cedar Creek east of Filley. The store is believed to have been the earliest mercantile business in what now is Cedar County.

Leila or Lelia was a store established about 1895 in section 20, township 36, range 27 in Cedar Township, about 3-1/2 miles southeast of Balm. According to tradition, the store was named for a woman in the neighborhood by store founder John Schmidt who operated the store and post office until his death in 1922. Schmidt¹s wife Laura then operated the business until 1943.

Malt's Point was a community in Washington Township. At one time the settlement likely had a store and post office, but the location is unknown.

Masters was the location of a store 3-1/2 miles southeast of Hartley and six miles southwest of Fair Play. About 1895, Colonel James Masters, a prominent lawyer from Springfield, made a speech there during a political campaign and the residents named the location for him. The community was founded when James Hartley and his 11 children moved to the area in 1837. The Hartley School at Masters was at first a one-room school, but records show that by 1902-03, 106 children attended the school and in 1909 a second room was added. The Hartley School closed in 1950. The community at one time included the school, a horse-powered sorghum mill, a hardware store and telephone switchboard. The store closed by the 1980s after the construction of Stockton Lake moved the main roads away from the community.

Meadow was a small store site in the western part of Washington Township, named for the meadow at the side of the store. The store closed by the 1930s.
 

Cedar County places we've never been...and a few we have

by Aaron Sims

 

While rural areas of southwest Missouri are experiencing a growth in population as city residents flee the hustle and bustle of urban life, small communities are not. Rural residents work and trade in nearby towns and communities.

A few independent businesses dot the countryside, but fewer country stores exist today than at any time since the region began to be settled in the mid-1800s. Where stores and trading posts were established, communities began and usually other businesses sprang up near by. Blacksmith shops were common in local communities, later replaced by mechanics¹ garages, and one-room schools were scattered across the county.

As our society became more mobile, small communities began to fade. General stores could not compete with larger stores in nearby towns as they could not carry the wide variety of merchandise or buy in bulk to lower prices. Cars became more sophisticated and "shade tree" mechanics could no longer repair autos as easily without high-tech equipment. School and post office consolidation also helped in sounding the death-knell for many communities.

When the schools and post office closed, the community almost ceased to be. In this, the third of a series, we look back to remember 22 communities and country stores of Cedar County, winding down our alphabetical journey. We thank the late Arthur Paul Moser for his work "A Directory of Towns,
Villages and Hamlets of Missouri," the source of much of our information.

Mollie was a name submitted to the U.S. Postal Department by Jake Dixon to rename his store and post office, located about 5-1/2 miles west of Dunnegan, in northeastern Cedar County. The community also was known as Jaketown. The name Mollie was chosen to honor a woman in Dixon's family.

Mount Enterprise was located 10 miles southwest of Stockton, near the site of White Hare. The community at one time consisted of a school, church and several homes, but all were destroyed during the Civil War. The community was never rebuilt.

Mount Langdon was a trading post about a half mile southwest of Pleasant View, near a mill on Cedar Creek. The origin of the name is unknown.

Omer or White Hair (or White Hare) was founded in the 1830s. At the time of settlement, the area was in Barton County and was the first post office in what would become Cedar County. David Hunter was the first postmaster and is credited with being the person chosen to lay out the community of Lancaster
‹ which would later become Fremont and later Stockton. During its heyday, White Hair (the origin of the name White Hair is unknown) included a lodge hall, church, schoolhouse and several homes. The name was changed to Omer in 1883 when postmaster Clem Jordan submitted three names for the post office
and the postal department chose the name of Omer. The name most likely was taken from someone in the community, as Omer was a common Christian name in the late 1800s. The last postmaster was James E. Crutcher. The post office was discontinued April 30, 1907, and the mail was diverted to the post office at Jerico Springs. Remnants of the community still can be seen near the end of Highway Y, where
the former store building, a cemetery and a few homes remain.

Osiris was founded in 1900 by J.M. Biddy, who submitted names for a post office to be located in his store, 4.3 miles northwest of Jerico Springs. Saying he wanted a name that was uncommon, he chose Osiris from Egyptian mythology. Osiris was the god of light, health and agriculture. The post office closed in 1906. A store has been in operation in the area for more than 100 years, with several families operating the mercantile throughout the decades. The store still is open today, owned and operated by sisters Elaine Reynolds and Ruth Green, and is the only store of its kind remaining in Cedar County. The
sisters began running the store in 1977, taking over for their parents who had purchased the business in 1940.

Pacetown, Pepperville or Sandridge, was named for Ike Pace, a minister at Pleasant Ridge. A store operated in the community, located a mile west of Filley, from 1904 through 1955. Pace tried to name the community Pepperville because he said it wanted it to be a "hot place," but area residents insisted upon calling the community Pacetown. The name Sandridge was given to the area before a name was decided upon by Pace, and was so named because it was on a sandy ridge.

Peggy's Store was located about six miles southeast of El Dorado Springs just off Highway 32 on what is now Highway U. The store operated for many years and was named Peggy's Store because the proprietor, Mr. Reeves, had a peg leg.

Pleasant View was the name of a trading post near the site of Zinn's Mill on Cedar Creek. The town was given the name for its location and view of the surrounding countryside. The community was located about two miles south of Hackleman Bridge on what now is Highway 39 and was founded in 1846 when Adam Eslinger owned the land. Around 1860, a dam was constructed on the creek and a mill erected. The mill and log dam burned around 1885 and was rebuilt. A post office was established in 1889, operating until discontinued in 1937, despite being nearly wiped away by flood waters in 1927.

Rookins was a store located on what is now Highway J, about a mile north of the intersection of J and N highways, or just south of the St. Clair County line. Frank Hillerman first opened the store and a mill operated nearby for some time. The store remained open, with a number of operators, until the
1970s, long after most others had closed.

Roundtop or Williams Store was a store located about a mile east of the intersection of J and N highways, about five miles east of Caplinger Mills. The store was built by Jasper Williams, and a mill was located across the road from the store. The mill was powered by a two-cylinder tractor and ground corn only. A larger mill was built later that also ground corn, wheat and other grain.

Rowland was located about seven miles south of Stockton and was named for R.P. Rowland, who established a post office in 1908. The post office was short-lived, being discontinued a few years later. A store operated in the community for several years, but by the early 1970s the store, school and
post office buildings were gone.

Silvercreek was a trading post in the 1800s in Washington Township. The exact location is unknown.

Taylor's Store or Williamsburg was a trading post named after the proprietor, Mr. Taylor. The location previously was named Williamsburg after Jasper Williams who lived near the store before it was bought by Mr. Taylor. The location was about five miles east of Stockton on what now is the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers-maintained road leading to the Friendship Hills/Crabtree Cove public use area of Stockton Lake.

Tingley was the location of a store established in 1897 northeast of Jerico Springs and named after a long-time area resident and preacher, Henry Tingley. The store closed by the mid-1930s.

Tom Town was the location of a typical country store about four miles east of Stockton. The store was operated by Tom Engleman from the late 1920s to the 1940s.

Umber was a postal community and store near Cane Hill established about 1897 when a room was added to the home of Harrison Higgins to house the post office. The store was started a short time later by Tom Hugh, and the community began to thrive, eventually hosting at least two stores, a church, a blacksmith shop and a school. The community prospered for about 45 years, but now is under water, covered by Stockton Lake. New housing developments and the village of Umber View Heights are near the
original community location.

Virgil City is located at the extreme western edge of Cedar County on the Cedar and Vernon county line; part of the community actually is in Vernon County. The community was laid out in 1869 by James Henderson and Bartlett R. Conyers and once had a population of about 300 residents. The town, in its
heyday, boasted two hotels ‹ both with bars ‹ a wagon maker¹s shop, a blacksmith shop, a drug store, churches, a cider mill, an apple dryer, a harness shop, a school and several other stores. Speculators sold land in and around Virgil City on the prospects of the railroad extending east from Nevada to the town. The announcement of El Dorado Springs receiving the railroad began the decline for Virgil City, which had been as large as Stockton. Within a few years, only a few businesses and homes remained.

Wagoner, located southwest of Stockton at the end of what is now Z Highway, was first settled in the mid-1800s and was a thriving community. Postal service began in the 1860s and continued until mail delivery was moved to Stockton and Jerico Springs in 1916. A store operated in the community under various owners from the community's beginnings until the last store closed in 1971. Beginning in the late 1920s or early 1930s, area residents gathered at the store to listen to radio broadcasts. In 1952, store owners Frank Whalen and his wife purchased a television and Saturday night gatherings to watch TV and visit were common. School consolidation closed Cedar Bluff School District No. 63, and bussed
children to Stockton, but a strong 4-H program continued in the former school building which was purchased by the community. Today all that remains of Wagoner is the Wagoner Cemetery and a few homes in the area.

West El Dorado Springs or Nine Wonders was a point of interest around a cluster of springs about a mile southwest of the original El Dorado Springs. In 1882, H.A. Blake and N.C. Mitchell devised a scheme to build a city to rival El Dorado Springs and purchased 700 acres of land surrounding the springs of Nine Wonders. The men laid out a town site and park, and built an amphitheater and several businesses and homes. Blake and Mitchell hoped to capitalize on the railroad that was planned for the area. However, it was soon discovered that pipes for the nine springs all came from the same spring and the tourist trade was never realized. The men later declared bankruptcy and the property was purchased by N.H. Cruce
and a number of years later was annexed into El Dorado Springs.

Willowville was a store established in the early 1900s by Mose Gash on what is now Highway U about five miles southeast of El Dorado Springs. The name most likely was taken from the willow trees that grew along the nearby stream. The store, and later a mill, operated until the early 1930s when both were
closed during the Depression. The store was later reopened and operated until the late 1940s.

Worthington's Store was operated in one room of the home of Charlotte Worthington, who also operated a telephone exchange. The store was located about six miles east of the junction of U and 32 highways, southeast of El Dorado Springs.

Youngtown or Jungtown was a short-lived store operated by Frank and Erma Young about two miles east of Caplinger Mills on a dirt road off what now is Highway N. The store was in operation for only a few years.

 

Cedar County places we've never been...and a few we have

by Aaron Sims

 

Communities and towns of all sizes have periods of prosperity and adversity. As we have seen, many small communities across Cedar County faded as times changed. The three largest communities in Cedar County ‹ El Dorado Springs, Jerico Springs and Stockton ‹ have seen boom and bust. For our look at these
three Cedar County towns, we rely on information from the late Arthur Paul Moser and ³Cedar County, Missouri History and Families² published in 1998 by the Cedar County Historical Society.

The town of Lancaster, later to become Fremont and finally Stockton, was founded in 1846 as a permanent seat of justice for the newly created Cedar County. The court had been meeting under a buckeye tree on property owned by Elisha Hunter, near Crowe¹s Mill. The court continued to meet at the temporary location until the town of Lancaster officially was laid out Feb. 11, 1846. The town site was chosen because of its location near the center of the county and the spring that flowed from the center of the bluff.

Lancaster most likely was named after one of several other towns named Lancaster across the nation. In 1847 the name was changed to Fremont, in honor of U.S. General John C. Fremont. The town was officially incorporated May 19, 1851.

The name Fremont remained until Feb. 8, 1859, when the name was changed to Stockton by an act of the Missouri Legislature. According to historians, the change was a political move made by enemies of General Fremont. The name change was made without consulting the residents of Cedar County and the
town of Fremont.

The town continued to grow and by 1870 boasted nearly 500 residents. An excerpt from the Stockton Journal dated Wednesday, Jan. 5, 1870, tells of the community¹s prosperity: ³The County Seat is situated near the center of the county, two miles west from Sac River, and on the line of the proposed LaClede & Ft. Scott R.R., has a population of 500 and contains three hotels, six stores engaged in general merchandising, two drug stores, one hardware and tin shop, one book store, one saddle and harness shop, two shoemaker shops, one woolcarding machine, one tailoring establishment, two newspapers, Masonic, Odd Fellows and Good Templars¹ Lodges, and an excellent high school, saw and flouring mills are located within two miles of town.² The railroad through Stockton did not come to fruition, and the city grew little within the next 100 years.

Like many communities, Stockton did not escape the ravages of the War Between the States. Skirmishes were quite common throughout the region, and raiders and bushwhackers were notorious for their activities.

The Battle of Stockton, an unorganized attempted attack on the town by Confederate forces, occurred July 11, 1863. A candidate for the state Legislature, Orville Welch, was making a speech at the courthouse when a group of Confederate raiders came charging up South Street and began to circle the courthouse. A small group of local militia were on hand and began firing on the attackers after taking cover inside the courthouse, which stood at the center of the square.

The Confederate commander was shot from his horse, and the attacking forces retreated south. Lieutenant McMillan, the militia commander, was gravely wounded, but later recovered and returned to battle.
The Battle of Stockton was a Union success, but skirmishes plagued the countryside until the war¹s end.

Other settlements across Cedar County were destroyed by attacking forces, never to be rebuilt. While Stockton¹s designation as the county seat and economic center for the vicinity ensured its continuance.
The square in Stockton was at one time the location of a pump, drawing water from the underground cave and spring. The pump was used to water horses and travelers passing through the town. An official courthouse later was built at the center of the square, only to be destroyed by fire. A second structure was erected in 1867, serving as the seat for county government until it was replaced in 1940 with the current courthouse on South Street.

After the old courthouse was demolished, a flagpole was installed at the center of the square, and traffic flowed around the flagpole. Today, a four-way stop marks the center of Stockton. Stockton continued to grow, as the county seat and as a crossroads of two main thoroughfares. Industry came to the town in the 1930s with the beginnings of a cheese plant in the late 1930s. The operation grew until a new plant was built in 1947, eventually rising in production capacity from 15,000 pounds to more than 150,000 pounds of milk processed each day. The milk used for production was purchased from area dairy farmers, adding income to farmers and providing production jobs at the plant.

In 1946, grocer Ralph Hammons began capitalization of a local resource and began a new company, Hammons Products Co., which would become the largest producer of black walnuts in the world.

In 1945, Hammons was a buyer of black walnuts for a company in Virginia, and in 1946 purchased equipment to begin his own shelling operation. Today the company purchases millions of pounds of walnuts in the shell, adding to the local economy with money from the purchase of walnuts and by hiring
full-time and seasonal employees for the operation.

The countryside around Stockton and Cedar County took a dramatic change in the late 1960s and early 1970s, when the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers began a flood-control project on the Sac River.

Proposed plans for damming the river had been discussed since the 1940s, but work officially began in 1958 when land was purchased, surveys were made and decisions were made on where to locate the dam. Funding for the dam project was approved in 1964 when President Lyndon Johnson made $2.6 million
available for the work. Work began not only on the dam itself, but on purchasing property; relocating homes, villages, churches and cemeteries; and dealing with the influx of people into the area.

Jobs created by the project saw increases in housing, school enrollment and wages. Inflation was rampant as the wages paid to government workers far exceeded the average pay prior to the dam project.

Work on the dam project continued, with the gates on the dam closed in December 1969 and official dedication of the lake and dam June 24, 1972. The new 24,000 surface-acre lake today attracts visitors from around the region and nation adding to the local economy by creating a variety of opportunities for Stockton and the area.

Today, Stockton is in a period of regrowth following the May 4, 2003 tornado that destroyed the town¹s business district, destroyed or damaged a large number of homes and killed three people.

Businesses are being rebuilt and public sentiment encourages a better Stockton than ever.

Jerico Springs
The town of Jerico Springs was officially incorporated in 1883, but settlement in the area began much earlier. Joseph B. Carrico homesteaded the land that would become the town in 1857. Local history says Carrico was an Indian, or was married to an Indian, which brought him to the area. The spring, now located in Jerico Springs¹ city park, was believed to hold medicinal properties. Native Americans had visited the site for a very long time believing in the healing power of the spring. By 1857, nearly 100 white settlers were in the area, and a Dr. Bass of St. Louis visited the area after hearing of the healing nature of the waters. He returned to St. Louis to raise money to build a resort and hospital, but before he could return, the Civil War erupted, ending his efforts. After the war, an Illinois man ‹ D.G. Stratton ‹ came to the area to test the waters, and after his nameless affliction was cured, he purchased the land from Carrico and laid out the town of Jerico Springs. The name was derived from the biblical city of Jericho and the former property owner Joseph Carrico. The first home was established in the newly formed town June 9, 1882, when a house was moved from a nearby farm to a location in town. That date set the establishment of the annual Jerico Springs Picnic, which has been held each year since 1882, when workers were fed lunch while moving the home. Bath houses and hotels were built in the town to capitalize on the springs, and growth surrounded the efforts. Jerico Springs was a boom town in the late 1800s, with an official population of 486 in the 1890 census. However, as new roads and railroads were built, all bypassed Jerico Springs resulting in a decline. By 1900, census records show a population of 443.

A list of businesses in Jerico Springs in 1900 showed four drygood and grocery stores, two drugstores, three hardware and undertaking businesses, two hotels, two barbershops, a roller mill, three restaurants, a butcher shop, three banks, a bakery, a sorghum mill, two attorneys, three livery stables, three doctors, a dentist, three real estate offices, a newspaper, a milliner, a jewelry store, a confectioner, a photographer, a candy and movie house, four churches, a college or normal school and one boot and leather repair business ‹ a larger number and variety of businesses than any other town in Cedar County at the time.

Not being located on a major highway and the lack of railroad service led to the decline of Jerico Springs. Today, few businesses remain and the largest activity is the annual Jerico Springs Picnic held on the weekend closest to June 9, to celebrate the founding of the community.

El Dorado Springs
Cedar County¹s largest town was the last to be incorporated. El Dorado Springs was founded July 20, 1881, on land owned by N.H. and W.P. Cruce. The two young men lived on a farm several miles northeast of a spring, which for a time was believed to hold curative powers. Osage Indians had long believed in the powers of the spring, but on June 28, 1881, a mover¹s wagon and party of two men and a woman were led to the spring by a farmer who lived nearby. The party of Joshua Hightower, his wife Carmelia, and Joshua Hightower¹s brother, camped near the spring on their way to Eureka Springs, Ark., where they were headed to tend to the woman¹s deteriorating health. Planning only to stay for a few days to let the woman regain her strength, the days turned into weeks because of remarkable improvement in Carmelia Hightower¹s health. In early July, they broke camp and returned to their home in Vernon County to spread the word of the spring. The news spread quickly, and within a few weeks, several hundred campers surrounded the spring. When the Cruce brothers, who owned the property, arrived, they decided to lay out a town. The town was designed in a manner that the spring and about 10 acres of land surrounding it was to be designated as a public park. The property was surveyed and divided into lots, which were sold for $10 to $600 each, according to size and location.

The spring and the waters it produced were the benefactor to a growing community. El Dorado Springs, so named after one of the 14 other El Dorados across the United States, saw the need to be able to easily attract visitors and by the 1890s began efforts to attract a railroad. El Dorado Springs and Virgil City each lobbied railroad interests to their town, and after acquiring construction capital to aid the project, El Dorado Springs was the chosen location for an extension of the MK&T line east from Rich Hill on the Kansas City and Nevada route. The city agreed to build and furnish a depot, arrangements were made, and in early July 1899, the first Kansas City, Nevada and El Dorado train pulled into the depot. Passenger service brought visitors to the springs and bathhouses until passenger service was discontinued in 1940. Freight service ended Jan. 5, 1971.

The mineral springs gave life to the town of El Dorado Springs and also prompted one of the first industries in the town. The El Dorado Springs Mineral Water Co. began in 1893 or 1894, bottling spring water and manufacturing soda, ginger ale and other summer drinks. Business grew rapidly as word of the healing nature of the water spread. Shipments spread into every state in the Mississippi valley and continued for a number of years.

A devastating fire destroyed a portion of El Dorado Springs in October 1912, including the city¹s opera house. City founder, N.H. Cruce rebuilt the opera house in 1914, and the structure hosted plays, musicals, high school graduations, and was used as a movie theater until 1971. The opera house was a mainstay in downtown El Dorado Springs for many generations.

Other activities and businesses have come and gone in El Dorado Springs, but one continuing tradition is the annual picnic commemorating the founding of the town. The picnic began in the 1880s with an annual gathering that later grew into a fair-like event with musicians, rides and attractions lasting for a number
of days. By the 1950s, the picnic date was set for the Thursday, Friday and Saturday closest to July 20, rather than the actual date of July 20. Thousands attend the event each year.

El Dorado Springs continues to prosper with industry, commercial businesses and a travel center for western Missouri. Located on major thoroughfares of highways 97 and 54, the town continues to thrive.

 

Cedar County places we've never been...and a few we have

by Aaron Sims

 

In our efforts to recall places around Cedar County, some were inadvertently omitted. Others were given with misinformation. We say "thank-you" to our readers who pointed out our errors and provided information on additional places around the county.

We also thank the late Arthur Paul Moser for his work "A Director of Towns, Villages and Hamlets Past and Present of Cedar County, Missouri" and the Cedar County Historical Society for its 1998 publication "Cedar County, Missouri History and Families" which were used to gather information for the series. In June, the first installment of the series was published and included the Cracker Box store. Several readers passed along information on the location of the former business, most notably Kathy Bridges. Bridges said the store was operated for a number of years by her great-grandparents, George and Pearl Burchett, near the intersection of what now are N and J highways, northeast of Stockton. The former store building now is used as a shed, with additions later built on for more space.

Bridges said her great-grandparents and other family members also operated the Claud store east of "Moon Hill Road."

George Landers and Ruby Dean Fidler provided information on the location of Dixon's Store. The two said the store was located about 1-1/2 miles east of Needmore or about 2 miles northwest of Masters. They said nothing remains at the location today.

Locations that were omitted - some of which were mentioned by our readers - included Lamer Corner, Lauraville, the Jot 'Em Down Store, Engleman's Store, Root Store, Hanby Store, Cline Hill, Burton and Connaway Island.

Burton was a trading post located near Arnica by the Burton family in the 1800s. An exact location or dates of operation at the business are unknown.

Cline Hill was located off of what now is Highway 39, south of Cedar Springs. Charlie and Viola Schmidt, who was a brother to John Schmidt who ran a store at Leila, operated the store in the early 1900s. The trading post was a gathering place for area farmers who traded produce and farm products for items they could not produce at home. The store closed in the 1930s.

Connaway Island was a piece of property owned by the Connaway family around 1900. The property was called Connaway Island because it nearly was surrounded by the Sac River, north of Stockton. The property often was cut off from neighboring areas when the area flooded.

Engleman's Store was built and operated by Walter Engleman around 1910 and remained in operation until the mid-1920s. The store was located about a half a mile south of the Crabtree Cove area on what now is Stockton Lake, or about one-quarter mile west of the Friendship Hills subdivision.

Hanby Store was a store mentioned by a reader who called our offices and left a message about the business. The caller, whose name was not recorded, said he remembered the store from his childhood, but did not tell where the store was located.

The Jot 'Em Down Store was located on what now is Highway 54, about a mile east of Cedar Springs. The building originally was built for a home and later was used as a store. The store closed in the 1950s and a portion of the building remains along the highway. The store was named for the business on the popular radio program "Lum and Abner."

Lamer Corner or Fitzgerald Store was a business about one-quarter mile east of Cedar Springs on Highway 54. The store was typical of others in the area as it served as a trading place for farmers to sell their produce and purchase the things they could not grow. Ed Atkins built the store in the early 1930s, with the business changing owners several times before closing.

Lauraville was a small community in the northeastern part of the county, northeast of Claud, or seven miles east of Caplinger Mills. Dates of operation for the store were unknown.

Root Store was another business operated in the Arnica area for a number of years in the late 1800s and early 1900s by the family of Theron Root. Exact location of the business is unknown.

One of the places we heard the most about was Rookins. No one disputed where we had Rookins located on the map or in print, but we heard from several who told us the photo we had was not right at all.

Diana Crain e-mailed to let us know the photo was neither the store, which her grandparents Essie and Roy Burton ran for many years, nor of their home. The photo we had was of the home of Myrtle Anderson, which was south of the Rookins store.

Rookins was north of Stockton on Highway J, about a mile past the junction of J and N highways.

Anna Lee Lower phoned to tell us we had placed Jaketown too far north on the map. The trading post near the Mollie post office actually was located nearer Highway A than Highway N, on what now is 1300 Road.

Bill Moomaw let us know Pleasant View was not on Highway 54, but north of Highway 39 and then west along the creek, near Hackleman Cemetery.

A couple of calls came in about Graceland and Silvercreek. They were familiar with the name Graceland, which was in Washington Township, but not with Silvercreek, which also was supposed to have been in Washington Township. We still don't know either.

Maxine Williams protested our having put the remnants of Umber into the waters of Stockton Lake. The village actually was across what now is a stretch of the lake and was located in what now is Stockton State Park, near Gordon Cemetery, which still exists.

There most likely are other stores and places in Cedar County that have been omitted. Thank you for joining us on our journey to Cedar County places we've never been, and some we have.