USA > Missouri > A History of Northeast Missouri, Volume I > Part 55
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Bucklin, in east Linn, is at the junction of the "Burlington" and the "Santa Fe" railroads. The town was laid out by James H. and Mary Jane Watson and the plat filed and recorded January 1, 1855. Of late years it has been enjoying a steady, substantial growth, has two banks, good mercantile establishments, and has a population of more than eight hundred.
The town of Enterprise was laid out by A. D. Christy and wife. The plat was filed for record May 4, 1859. Situated about fourteen miles northeast of Linneus in a fine farming country, it once had several stores and a population of about one hundred and fifty. With the ad- vent of rural free delivery, the post office was discontinued, the stores have been removed or closed and the business has been transferred to other towns located on railroads.
Grantsville was laid out by E. C. Hutchinson and wife and Wm. M. Moore and the plat filed February 12, 1866. It once boasted of four or five stores and shops and about one hundred inhabitants. The trav- eller now beholds only a small residence to mark the place where once was a thriving village.
Fountain Grove was laid out by F. R. Green and wife and Thomas McMullin and wife. Plat filed and recorded March 20, 1871. This village is located in the extreme southwestern part of the county on the
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Wabash Railroad. It now has one store, a stock of general merchandise and is a convenient trading point for that locality.
Laclede was laid out by Jacob E. Worlow and wife. The plat was filed and recorded August 20, 1853. It is the junction of the old Hannibal & St. Joseph Railroad and the Burlington & Southwestern, both lines now a part of the Chicago, Burlington & Quincy Railroad. It has often been remarked that the site of Laclede was the most beauti- ful in Linn county for a town. The town is lighted with electricity transmitted from Brookfield. The population is 750.
Meadville was laid out by the Hannibal & St. Joseph Railroad Com- pany and John Botts. The plat was filed and recorded February 27, 1860. It is seven miles west of Laclede and was formerly known as Bottsville in honor of one of its founders. It is in the midst of a fine farming community and has always enjoyed a good trade. The popu- lation is 600.
St. Catharine was laid out by W. H. Elliott and wife and Caleb S. Farmer and wife April 28, 1856. In its younger days it had large flouring and woolen mills and these industries drew patronage from a large scope of country. With the loss of its mills which were not re- placed and by reason of the rapid growth of Brookfield, its near neigh- bor on the west, St. Catharine ceased to enjoy the extensive trade it once had when it was a prospective railroad division. The population is 200.
Purdin was laid out by Peter Bond and Charles B. Purdin and wife May 28, 1873. Its first merchant was W. G. Beckett, still the moving spirit in the large establishment known as the Purdin Mercantile Com- pany. It is six miles north of Linneus, located on the railroad, and enjoys an extensive trade. Two banks are located in Purdin. The popu- iation is 400.
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The town of Boomer in the south part of the county, Eversonville on the western limits, North Salem in northeast Linn, New Boston on the eastern side and Shelby, sixteen miles northeast of Linneus, are all thriving inland villages that enjoy good local patronage.
LINNEUS
Linneus was laid out by Linn county, December 2, 1839, as the county seat. There seems to have been some irregularity in the location of the permanent seat of justice for the county. In the act organizing the county of Linn, John Riley, Ransom Price and Levi Blankenship, all of Chariton county, were named as "commissioners to select a seat of justice for said county." It does not appear that these commissioners ever undertook the duties of their appointment. On the 5th of Febru- ary, 1838, the county court appointed David Duncanson and Doctor Thompson of Livingston county and James Stater of Chariton county such commissioners. They seem to have made a report at the April term, 1839, of the circuit court, which report was disapproved by Judge Burch. Later, however, Duncanson and Thompson selected the present site of Linneus and at the August term of court following Judge Burch approved the selection. On August 25, 1839, John Holland and wife conveyed fifty acres of land, the present location of the county seat, to Linn county, "for a permanent seat of justice."
The original name of the county seat was Linnville, but for some reason was changed to Linneus. John U. Parsons, a man of liberal edu- cation and a good lawyer, always insisted that it was the intention to name the town in honor of the great botanist, commonly called Linnaeus, but that the clerk had inadvertently written it Linneus. Another
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account has it that Judge James A. Clark wrote to Senator Linn that the county and its capital had been named in his honor and asked his endorsement. Senator Linn is said to have replied that while he did not wish to dictate in a matter of that character, yet he preferred the name of Linneus. In an act of the legislature approved November 23, 1857, the name of the town is spelled Lingus. There had been some irregularity in the acts of the commissioners appointed to locate the seat of justice and accordingly in December, 1840, the legislature passed an act legalizing the location of the county capital, and also providing "that all acts and proceedings wherein either Linneville or Linnaeus is used or occurs as the name of the seat of justice of said county shall be as binding and effectual as if the name so used or occur- ring had at all times been the regular name of the seat of justice of said county." Linneus was incorporated as a town March 2, 1856, and as a city March 7, 1863.
COUNTY REPRESENTATIVES
The representatives of Linn county in the state legislature from 1838 until the present were as follows:
1838. James A. Clark, Democrat.
1840. Irvin Ogan, Democrat.
1842. David Jenkins, Whig.
1844.
E. C. Morelock, Democrat.
1846. Jeremiah Phillips, Democrat.
1848. C. W. Guinn, Democrat.
1850. Jacob Smith, Whig.
1852. Wesley Halliburton, Democrat.
1854. John Botts, Democrat.
1856. Beverly Neece, Democrat.
1858. John F. Gooch, Whig.
1860. E. H. Richardson, Democrat.
1862. A. W. Mullins, Republican.
1864. Dr. John F. Powers, Republican. Died in 1865. R. W.
Holland, Republican, unexpired term.
1866. T. J. Stauber, Republican.
1868. A. W. Mullins, Republican.
1870. Abram W. Myers, Democrat.
1872.
S. P. Houston, Republican.
1874. Abner Moyer, Democrat.
1876. George W. Easley, Democrat.
1878. W. H. Patterson, Democrat.
1880. E. D. Harvey, Democrat.
1882. Harry Lander, Democrat.
1884. Hiram Black, Republican.
1886. James A. Arbuthnot, Republican.
1890.
1888. Charles W. Trumbo, Democrat. Thomas D. Evans, Democrat.
1892. Abra C. Pettijohn, Republican.
1894. Abra C. Pettijohn, Republican.
1896. J. H. Perrin, Populist.
1898. Abra C. Pettijohn, Republican.
1900. Clarence M. Kendrick, Democrat.
1902. Edward Barton, Democrat.
1904. Abra C. Pettijohn, Republican.
1906. George W. Martin, Republican.
1908. Benjamin L. White, Democrat.
1910. Walter Brownlee, Democrat.
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STATE SENATORS.
The state senators from the districts of which Linn county has been a part, from the year 1840, are as follows:
1840. Thomas C. Burch, Macon county, Democrat.
1842. Dr. John Wolfscale, Livingston county, Democrat.
1846. Augustus W. Flournoy, Linn county, Democrat.
1850. Augustus W. Flournoy, Linn county, Democrat.
1854. Frederic .Rowland, Macon county, Democrat.
1858. Wesley Halliburton, Sullivan county, Democrat.
1862. John McCullogh, Sullivan county, Radical; died in 1863.
1863. I. V. Pratt, unexpired term, Linn county, Radical.
1866. I. V. Pratt, Linn county, Radical.
1870. William A. Shelton, Putnam county, Radical.
1874. Dr. E. F. Perkins, Linn county Democrat.
1878. Andrew J. Mackey, Chariton county, Democrat.
1882. Wesley Halliburton, Sullivan county, Democrat.
1886. Andrew J. Mackey, Chariton county, Democrat.
1890. Edward R. Stephens, Linn county, Democrat.
1894. Alfred N. Seaber, Adair county, Republican.
1898. Emmett B. Fields, Linn county, Democrat.
1902. Emmett B. Fields, Linn county, Democrat.
1906. Emmett B. Fields, Linn county, Democrat.
1910: Benjamin L. White, Linn county, Democrat.
OTHER COUNTY OFFICERS
The judges of the circuit court of Linn county in the order of their service are Thomas Reynolds, Macon county; James A. Clark, Linn county ; Jacob Smith, Linn county ; Rezin A. DeBolt, Grundy county ; Gavon D. Burgess, Linn county ; William W. Rucker, Chariton county ; John P. Butler, Sullivan county, and Fred Lamb, Chariton county, pres- ent incumbent.
The circuit clerks in the order of their service are E. T. Dennison, John J. Flood, Wharton R. Barton, Jeremiah Phillips, George W. Thomp- son, Frederick W. Powers, Arthur L. Pratt, Joseph A. Neal, James M. Black, John N. Wilson and James D. McLeod, present incumbent.
Prior to 1871, the circuit clerk was ex-officio recorder of deeds. After the office was divided the recorders of deeds in order of service are Thomas Kille, W. W. Peery, John H. Craig, Thomas H. Flood, Robert W. Flood, John S. Reger, Robert W. Flood, John L. Bowyer and William B. McGregor, the present incumbent. Thomas H. Flood died during the last year of his term and his son, Robert W. Flood, was appointed to serve the remainder of the term.
The county clerks in the order of their service are E. Kemper, T. T. Woodruff, William McClanahan, George W. Martin, B. A. Jones, George W. Adams, John H. Craig, George W. Adams, Ben B. Edwards, Harvey S. Johnson and Peter F. Walsh, the present incumbent. After serving a little more than three years, Mr. Edwards died and Mr. Johnson was appointed by Governor Folk to fill the vacancy. While filling such ap- pointment, Mr. Johnson was made the candidate of his party and was elected to succeed himself.
J. W. Minnis was the first sheriff of Linn county. The other sheriffs, in the order of their service, were Jeremiah Phillips, Wharton R. Barton. John G. Flournoy, Beverly Neece, Peter Ford, Thomas M. Rooker, Joel H. Wilkerson, James A. Neal, Marion Cave, E. C. Brott, Elias Chesround, John P. Phillips, Francis M. Boles, W. W. Wade, George K.
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Denbo, Edward Barton, E. B. Allen, Edward Barton, R. J. Dail, David J. Buckley and George W. Anderson, the present incumbent.
Thomas Barbee was the first county treasurer. The other treasurers in order of service were Jeremiah Phillips, David Prewitt, Edward Hoyle, John G. Flournoy, Thomas H. Flood, Geo. William Sandusky, Wm. H. Brownlee, Edward Hoyle, A. W. Mullins, Marion Cave, A. W. Mullins, H. C. Clarkson, Milton Goldman, John C. Phillips, Thomas H. Flood, J. M. Cash, James T. Hamilton, Henry C. Prewitt, Robert R. Smith, C. Edward Kelley, James B. Fleming, James E. Hartzler, James B. Fleming, John E. Hayes and Mrs. Ruth Hayes, the present incum- bent. Mr. Hayes died in October, 1910, and Mrs. Hayes was appointed by Governor Hadley to fill the vacancy. At the ensuing November elec- tion she was elected, without opposition, her own successor. She is now the candidate of the Democratic party for a full term of four years.
HISTORY OF THE COURTS
The probate court of Linn county was established by special act of the legislature in 1853. The first judge of probate was Jacob Smith. At the August term, 1853, of the Linn county court and on the 8th day of August, 1853, the following order was made and entered of record : "It is ordered by the court here that the clerk of this court deliver to the probate judge of Linn county all the original papers now on file in his office relative to all estates of deceased persons, minors, idiots and per- sons of unsound mind and all papers relative to any subject or matter over which the said judge of probate has jurisdiction by the act estab- lishing said probate court."
The county court at that time was composed of Henry Wilkerson, presiding judge, and Joseph C. Moore and Daniel Beals, associate judges. The clerk of the county court was T. T. Woodruff. The first probate court of Linn county was convened on the 5th day of September, 1853, but adjourned without transacting any business until the following day, when a considerable amount of business was disposed of. Judge Smith served for four years and was succeeded by Judge Thornton T. Easley, who served four years. The next judge of probate was Judge William H. Brownlee, who served until about the close of 1864, when he resigned. Colonel George W. Stephens, who still resides in Linneus at the ripe age of eighty-six years, was designated by the county court as probate judge and served about three months, when James F. Jones was appointed by Governor Fletcher. Judge Jones served until January 1, 1871, and was followed by Judge Eli Torrance, now of Minneapolis, Minn., who served four years. He was succeeded by Judge J. D. Shifflett. who held the office one term. The next judge of probate was John B. Wilcox, who served from January 1, 1879, to the date of his death, which occurred in February, 1887. His brother, Edward Wharton Wilcox. was ap- pointed by the governor to fill the vacancy. Judge E. W. Wilcox was elected at the. next general election and again in 1890. He was suc- ceeded by Robert M. Tunnell, who held the office for eight years. The present judge of probate is Arthur L. Pratt, who is serving his third term.
The court of common pleas was established in 1867, and at the end of four years its jurisdiction was enlarged, giving it "exclusive and original jurisdiction of all misdemeanors arising under the laws of this state, committed in Linn county." The salary of the judge of the court was $600 per year. This court was abolished January 1, 1881.
By act of the general assembly approved April 5, 1887, it was pro- vided that two terms of the circuit court should be held at Brookfield.
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This court has the same jurisdiction in all matters as the court at the county seat.
ASSEMBLIES
An annual event in Linn county looked forward to with pleasant anticipations is the two days' reunion and picnic held at Linneus under the auspices of the Old Settlers' Association. The first reunion, a one- day affair, was held September 26, 1901. The first president was Dr. E. F. Perkins and the first secretary was Fred W. Powers. Since 1903, two days have been devoted to this reunion. There is always a large at- tendance of the "old timers" and the most prominent speakers of the state have delivered addresses. At the twelfth annual reunion, Jesse Turner was elected president and J. W. Phillips, secretary.
The Meadville Chautauqua Assembly is a matter of pride to Linn county and a monument to the enterprise of that city. This Chautauqua was organized in 1905, and is held annually in a magnificent grove im- mediately north of Meadville. During the assembly, the grove is a city of tents, people from all over Linn, and even adjacent counties, availing themselves of ten days' recreation and instruction. The entertainment is of a high order and from year to year the most noted platform speakers of the nation have graced the Chautauqua platform of Meadville.
A NEW COURT HOUSE
Linn county has long been in need of a new court house, 'the old structure now located in the public square on the site of "Jack" Hol- land's cabin merely sufficing for office room for the various officers while the sessions of the circuit court have been held in the opera house across the street. On the 1st day of August, 1911, a special election was held, at which time it was voted to erect a new court house to cost $60,000 and provided for payment of the same by special levies for three years. Plans have been submitted and approved and work was begun on the structure, March 1, 1913.
MEN AND EVENTS
Among the memorable events of Linn county was the day that Benton spoke in Linneus. This occurred in 1856 and he addressed the "citizens" from the south door of the court house. The stone step on which he stood is now a part of the present structure. Some of the older citizens are devising plans to preserve the step and have it suitably inscribed.
A brilliant meteor passed over Linn county the night of December 21, 1876. It burst forth from the southwest and was vividly clear to the people all over the county for nearly one-half minute. It occurred early in the evening and the first impression was that the building was on fire and that the fire had gained such headway that the roof was in imminent danger of falling in.
September 5, 1876, is remembered as the date of a cyclone in Linn county that destroyed much property and at least the loss of one life. The storm broke in awful fury near the western border of the county shortly after four o'clock in the afternoon. The residences of William Harvey, John H. Botts, Nathaniel P. Hopson, Dr. Milton Jones and others were razed. William Harvey was killed outright and several others injured.
What is regarded as the severest straight wind that ever visited the county occurred a while after noon on July 13, 1883. It was of wide scope. North of Linneus a passenger coach was overturned and several
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passengers injured. Mrs. Peery, mother of Squire T. J. Peery, was a passenger and lost her life.
Professor Rover, who came from Howard county, taught the first school in Linn county, in 1837, on 24-58-21. He had from eighteen to twenty pupils, among whom were James and Elizabeth Beckett, James and Robert Tisdale, James, Kenneth and Martha Newton, James M. Prailie, Rebecca Pendleton and the children of David Mullins. R. W. Foster conducted a school one winter northwest of Professor Rover's school. Mr. Foster afterward became county surveyor and county agent for Linn county. Allen Gillespie taught the first school in Linneus.
The Rev. Mr. Wilhite was one of the early preachers. The Rev. John Baker was another of the early preachers of the county. Both were Baptists. The Revs. Jesse Goins and A. F. Martin were early ministers in the county. They were Baptists, but were soon followed by the Methodist circuit riders.
The first recorded wedding was that of Henry Cherry, son of John Cherry, and Miss Susan Kemper, daughter of Enoch Kemper, who was the first county clerk. The wedding occurred in 1838.
The first white male child born within what is now the present limits of Linn county was Thomas Benton Bowyer, who still resides in Linneus, He was born on Christmas day, 1833.
The circuit clerks of Linn county who have held that office since the first Monday in January, 1871, are all living and all reside in Linn county. This represents a continuous succession of more than forty years and it is believed that this record is not surpassed by any office in any county in the state.
Prominent among the citizenry of Linn county, who afterward be- came prominent in the affairs of the state, is Gavon D. Burgess. He was born in Mason county, Kentucky, November 5, 1833. He moved to Linneus in 1865, and in 1874 was elected judge of the circuit court. He served as circuit judge for eighteen years. In 1892 he was elected judge of the Supreme Court and re-elected in 1902. He died December 17, 1910, having had nearly a continuous judicial career of thirty-six years. It is said of him that "He never made a partisan ruling, wrote a partisan opinion, or rendered a partisan decision." He is buried at Linneus beside his wife, Cordelia Trimble Burgess, who died in 1908.
Alexander Monroe Dockery, Governor of Missouri from 1901 to 1905, was long a resident of Linn county. It was from Linneus that he went to attend medical lectures, and after taking his course in medi- cine he returned to Linn, first locating for the practice of medicine at the village of North Salem in northeast Linn. He was made a Master Mason in Locust Creek lodge at Linneus.
Eli Torrance, now a prominent lawyer of Minneapolis, was judge of probate of Linn county from 1871 to 1875. He has since been National Commander-in-Chief of the G. A. R., and a few years since was promi- nently mentioned as a candidate for the vice-presidency.
John J. Pershing, now brigadier-general in the United States arıny, was born in Linn county about the year 1859. He received his appoint- ment to West Point at the hands of Congressman Burrows in 1880. It will be recalled that the negro troops under his command saved the day at San Juan Hill in the Spanish-American war.
Albert Dexter Nortoni, judge of the St. Louis court of appeals, and now the Progressive candidate for governor, while not a native of Linn county, was long a resident, he having read law in Linneus and was admitted to the bar by Judge Burgess and began the practice in Brook- field, later removing to New Cambria, in Macon county, the place of his birth.
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The population of Linn county is now more than twenty-five thou- sand. In the last quarter of a century the increase in population has been in the towns and villages rather than in the rural districts. The glowing appeals from the west and southwest have lured the restless thousands who have passed through the gates of our county and sought cheaper lands farther on. But our course has been onward and upward. The hills of the county are dotted with churches and schools, the leading periodicals and daily papers are found in practically all the homes in even remote parts of the county, they feel the pulse beats of the nation and keep step in the march of progress. There are no "dark spots" in Linn county and it is boasted that the average intelligence is not sur- passed by any county in any state.
CHAPTER XX MACON COUNTY By Ben Eli Guthrie, Macon PHYSICAL FEATURES
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Macon county comprises twenty-three congressional townships. These lie between townships 61 and 55, north, and between ranges 12 and 18. However, there is a half township cut out of the northeast corner of the county and attached to Knox county, and a township and a half cut out of the southwest corner of the square and attached to Chariton county.
The Muscle fork of the Chariton river runs through range 17. The Grand Chariton river runs through range 16 the whole length. There is much bottom land in this range, averaging about three miles wide, with bluffs on either hand. Range 15 is washed by Middle fork of the Grand Chariton. The extreme eastern part of this range, as well as range 14, is drained through the whole county by the East fork of the Chariton.
The Grand Divide between the Missouri and Mississippi rivers lies in range 14, running a little west of north. From the Divide east the county is drained by the Middle fork of Salt river. The bottoms on these streams are large and the watersheds have many large plateaus. The general lay of the land is sightly, abounding in beautiful landscapes.
Many of the streams were skirted to a great extent by timber which extended well up into the hills. On the divides and plateaus were large expanses of prairie. The timber land has a lively soil. The prairie has less sand and the soil is apparently tougher and somewhat stiff. The timber soil produces tobacco, and, as a matter of course, corn, wheat and oats, and, when cleared and properly pastured, runs into blue grass. The prairie soils produce large crops of native grass, and, when culti- vated, yield large harvests of tame grasses. There is sufficient clay in the soil to hold all fertilizers, and, as a consequence, the soil repays care and nursing as few soils do.
The timber of the county was of various characters of oak, hick- ory, walnut, cottonwood, linn, hackberry and sugar tree. The tim- ber was ample for the early settlers, who built their homes, fenced their farms and kept themselves warm therewith.
There are some springs in Macon county. The clay retains the water and cisterns are therefore easily built. Living water is usually found in large parts of the county from fifteen to twenty-five feet.
The topography of the county would render road building somewhat difficult. But the drainage of the roads is good, and, when once built, they can be maintained with reasonable outlay.
There are a few historic trails across the county, the most ancient of which is the Bee Trace, which, coming from the south, struck the county about the center of range 14 on the Grand Divide and extended
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up that watershed, passing through what was then called the Narrows, near the present site of Macon City, then through what was called Moc- casinville and on north to Blanket Grove, which was in Adair county, just north of LaPlata.
Another historic road was the Hannibal and St. Joseph stage road, that struck the county on the east and passed through township 58, passing by old Ten Mile post office, then on to Bloomington, the old county seat, thence on to Winchester and across the Chariton river on to Linneus in Linn county. This was the great highway of traffic east and west, until the building of the Hannibal & St. Joseph Railroad, some six miles to the south, in 1857-58.
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