USA > Missouri > Encyclopedia of the history of Missouri, a compendium of history and biography for ready reference, Vol. II > Part 11
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MARTHA S. KAYSER.
Colonization Society .- The idea of restoring Africans in America to their native land was suggested as early as 1773 by Rev. Samuel Hopkins and Rev. Ezra Stiles, of Rhode Island, who issued a circular in which they invited subscriptions to a fund to be used for founding a colony of free negroes on
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COLONY FOR FEEBLE-MINDED AND EPILEPTIC.
the western shore of Africa. A contribution was made by ladies of Newport in February, 1774, and aid was received about the same time from Massachusetts and Connecticut. After the Revolutionary War, Dr. Hopkins continued his efforts to rid this country of negro slaves, and, among other endeavors, sought to make arrangements by which free blacks from America might join the English colony at Sierra Leone, which had been established in 1787 and which was designed to constitute "a home for destitute Africans from different parts of the world, and for promoting African civilization." Failing to make this arrangement, he proposed in 1793 a plan of colonization which was to be put into operation by the general government and States of the American Union. The subject continued to be agitated, and in 181I steps were taken for the organization of a colonization society. An organization was finally effected in 1816, and the first officers of the "American Colonization Society" were chosen January 1, 1817. The society as organized made no reference to emancipa- tion, present or future, and Henry Clay, John Randolph, Bushrod Washington and other slave-holders took a leading part in its forma- tion. Samuel J. Mills and Ebenezer Burgess were sent to Africa in 1817 to select a site for the colony, and Cape Mesurada was finally chosen. Two years later Congress appro- priated $100,000 to be used in sending back to Africa such slaves as should be surrepti- tiously imported. The first emigrants were sent out in 1820, and the government of the colony was assumed by the society. The colony was named Liberia, and its civil gov- ernment was established first in 1824. Until 1847 certain governmental powers were vested in the Colonization Society, but in that year it was declared a free and independent State, and the United States, Great Britain and France acknowledged its independence. The American Colonization Society may therefore be said to have founded Liberia, and to have sustained the colony until it be- came self-supporting. The first movement looking to the formation of an auxiliary to the American Colonization Society in St. Louis was made in 1825. In March of that year a public meeting was held for that pur- pose in the Methodist Episcopal Church, over which Rev. Salmon Giddings presided as chairman, and in which William Carr Lane,
A. Monroe, Colonel John O'Fallon, James H. Peck, Theodore Hunt, Edward Bates; Edward Charless, Charles S. Hempstead, H. L. Hoffman and other well known citizens of that day, took a prominent part. The re- sult of this meeting was the organization of the St. Louis Colonization Society, which co-operated actively for several years with the American Colonization Society. About 1831 this organization appears to have lost its vitality and practically ceased to exist. In 1839 a new society was organized, which was called the "Missouri State Colonization Society," and which continued in existence several years, having in view the same objects as the first society. Beverly. Allen, Rev. A. Bullard, Rev. William M. Daily, Rev. W. S. Potts, Edward Bates and a number of promi- nent men outside of St. Louis were the mov- ing spirits in the organization and in the conduct and management of this society. "The Young Men's Colonization Society" was organized in 1848, with Rev. William G. Eliot, H. S. Woods, J. R. Barret, Rev. Mr. Finley, Josiah Dent, Barton Bates, R. F. Barret, John Henderson, William Warder and C. Carroll as officers and managers. All these societies contributed to a considerable extent to the advancement of the movement which resulted in the building up of the negro republic known as Liberia, which now has a population of something more than a million people, but which has never realized the full expectation of its founders and promoters.
Colony for Feeble-minded and Epileptic .- The Fortieth General Assem- bly of Missouri appropriated $40,000 for the founding of a colony for the Feeble-minded and Epileptic, hitherto cared for in the State Lunatic Asylums. A board to locate the colony was constituted, the members being John O'Day, of Springfield, president ; Dean D. Duggins, of Marshall; George Robert- son, of Mexico; Mrs. Dora Lee Hall, of St. Joseph ; and Miss Pearl Mitchell, secretary, of Rocheport. Propositions including gifts of land or cash were made by the citizens of Lexington, Springfield, Mexico, Glasgow, Monroe City, Hannibal and Marshall. The institution was located at the last named city upon a tract of 280 acres, presented to the State by the people of Saline County. One cottage, already built, will accommodate sixty patients. Plans for future building
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COLORED INSTITUTE FUND-COLUMBIA.
contemplate the erection of fourteen cot- tages, affording accommodations for one thousand inmates, an administration building, a chapel and a schoolhouse. The General Assembly of 1901 was expected to make the necessary appropriations for the work, to enable its completion in that year.
Colored Institute Fund .- This is a State fund composed of tuition fees of colored teachers' institutes, collected by county treasurers and paid into the State treasury. The moneys are used to pay con- ductors and instructors in colored institutes. The receipts into the fund in 1897 were $1,046, and in 1898, $771 ; and the disburse- ments to conductors and instructors were, in 1897, $1,033 and in 1898, $661 ; balance Jan- uary 1, 1899, $147.
Colored Orphans' Home .- This or- phanage is conducted under the auspices of the Harper Woman's Christian Temperance Union, colored. This union was organized in 1886, and in the following year voted to make charity one of the leading features of its work, proceeding then to take the first steps in the founding of a home for colored orphans and destitute children of St. Louis. A board of fifteen directors for the manage- ment of the projected home was elected in October, 1887, of whom the following were officers : President, Mrs. S. D. Brown ; vice president, Mrs. S. W. Newton; recording secretary, Mrs. F. M. Oliver ; corresponding secretary, Mrs. N. E. Cheney ; treasurer, Mrs. E. Napier. After great efforts in the over- coming of many obstacles, the home was opened in October, 1889, at its present loca- tion, 1427 North Twelfth Street, and was in- ·corporated in 1889. The building which it occupies, the property of the Western Sani- tary Commission, had been used years ago for the same purpose, but as, after its estab- lishment, the home had not been supported by the colored people, the commission, hav- ing exhausted the fund for its support, had closed it and used the building for other charitable purposes. Mrs. James E. Yeat- man, becoming interested in the efforts being made by the board of directors, offered them the use of the building, rent free, under certain conditions, and there for ten years the home has been maintained. During this time it has housed and cared for over two hundred
orphans and destitute children. Thirty- seven of these are present inmates, one hun- dred and twenty-five have been returned to parents and friends, and twenty-five have been provided with homes. In 1895 the home succeeded in getting the care of the "city waifs," which is a source of income to the institution.
Columbia .- The county seat of Boone County, and the seat of the State University. It was founded by the Smithton Land Com- pany, which consisted of thirty-five stock- holders, among whom were Lilburn W. Boggs, elected Governor of Missouri in 1836; David Todd, first judge of the Circuit Court of Boone County; Taylor Berry, killed in a duel in 1824 by Abiel Leonard; and Nicholas S. Burckhartt, first sheriff of Howard County. This corporation first laid out the town of Smithton, which it designed to make the county seat of Boone County, and which was located on the beautiful elevated plateau northwest of the site of Columbia, and now part of the estate of the late Jefferson Garth. The town was named in honor of General Thomas A. Smith, then receiver of the land office at Franklin, Howard County. Smith- ton never had more than twenty inhabitants, for, in May, 1821, it was removed to the pres- ent site of Columbia and called by that name. Nevertheless, until this removal, by an act of the Legislature, it was the temporary capital of Boone County, and the first terms of the county and circuit courts were held there. The first county court began its sessions Feb- ruary 23, 1821, in Smithton. Judges Ander- son Woods and Lazarus Wilcox were present. After appointing Warren Woodson clerk pro tem., and Michael Woods county assessor, it adjourned. At its next meeting, held in Columbia, May 21, 1821, Peter Wright, the third judge, appeared and took his seat. The first session of the circuit court in Boone County was held at Smithton, April 2, 1821, with David Todd as judge; Roger N. Todd, clerk ; Hamilton R. Gamble, circuit attorney, and Overton Harris, sheriff. Peter Bass was foreman of the grand jury, which indicted William Ramsey and Hiram Bryant for assault and battery. The court held its sessions under an arbor constructed for the purpose, there being no suitable building for its accommodation. At the end of two days the court adjourned. The first
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COLUMBIA.
Fourth of July celebration in the county was held in Smithton, in the shade of the trees, in 1820, John Williams acting as president, and Overton Harris as secretary. A serious difficulty in obtaining water by digging wells in Smithton was the cause of the removal of the town. For many years after removal a dry well ninety feet deep existed on the site of Smithton, and in Mr. Garth's pasture. Columbia was laid out in 1821, and the first sale of lots took place May 20th of that year. The first house erected there was a log cabin built by Thomas Duly, in 1820, on the south- east corner of Broadway and Fifth Street. The first merchant of Columbia was Abra- ham J. Williams, who, in 1825, was president of the Missouri State Senate, and after the death of Governor Frederick Bates was act- ing Governor up to the time of the election to that office, in September of 1825, of John Miller. Mr. Williams died December 30, 1839, and is buried in the Columbia Ceme- tery, where the monument over his grave can now be seen. He erected a two-story frame store room on the southeast corner of Broadway and Fifth Street, which occupied the site until some years since, when it was torn down and a brick dwelling erected in its place. Colonel Richard Gentry opened the first tavern in Columbia, in 1821. It was a log building, and stood on the site of the present operahouse. Colonel Gentry became a very prominent citizen. He was post- master after the death of Charles Hardin in 1830, served as colonel of a regiment of vol- unteers in the Florida war, and was killed at the battle of Okeechobee, December 25, 1837. Gentry County was named in honor of him.
The first brick house was built in 1821 by Charles Hardin, who was Columbia's first postmaster, and the father of Governor Charles H. Hardin. The house is still occu- pied as a residence, although it is now nearly eighty years old. December 7, 1821, the first session of the first circuit court was held in Columbia, David Todd sitting as judge. This court was held in a log cabin, near the site of the present county jail. The first session of the county court held in Columbia began February 18, 1822. The first tavern license was granted to Wilfred Stephens, August 20, 1821, and the first license to retail merchan- dise was granted to Peter Bass, June 1, 1821. At this time the town consisted of a few cab-
ins on "Flat Branch." In 1822 a spirited rivalry sprang up between Dr. William Jew- ell and Colonel Richard Gentry, as to whether the central part of the town should be where it now is, or at the intersection of Broadway and Water, or Fifth Street. Gen- try triumphed, and during the year 1822 sev- eral houses were built on what is now Eighth or Courthouse Street. The primary design of the founders of Columbia was that the lot on which now stands the courthouse and jail should be a public square, and the survey was so made. At the end of the year 1822 the nucleus of a town had been fully established, and dry goods stores were kept by Peter Bass, Abraham J. Williams and Robert Snell ; groceries by Thomas Duly and John Graham, and taverns by Richard Gen- try, Wilfred Stephens and Samuel Wall. In 1823 the population of Columbia was only 130, but in 1830 it had grown to 600; and in 1840, when the corner stone of the State University was laid, to about 1,000. The first church in Columbia was founded by the Baptist denomination, November 23, 1823, with eleven members, at the residence of Charles Hardin. The Presbyterians organ- ized the second church, with seven members, September 14, 1828, the organization being effected at the residence of James Richard- son, a one-story log building, on the north- east corner of Tenth and Walnut Streets. This building stood until 1899, when it was torn down. The first courthouse erected in Columbia, in 1824, was called, in the adver- tisement for bids, "the hull of a courthouse"; and those who aided in the administration of justice within its walls, either as judges, jurors or other officers, or as citizens or spectators, listened with rapture to the forensic eloquence of early lawyers, will agree that it was a "hull," in fact, as well as in name. It was a brick structure, erected by Minor Neal, and stood, until supplanted in 1848 by the present courthouse, where the Baptist Church once stood. It was of plain, old-style architecture, hip roof, two stories high, with a court room on the ground floor, the floor of brick, and grand and petit jury rooms above stairs, the building being fifty feet long by forty feet wide. The rooms were lighted with candles. Courts were held in this building until the completion of the present courthouse. The first jail was built by George Sexton in 1822, and the first jailer
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COLUMBIAN CLUB.
was John M. Kelly, who died in Columbia in 1874.
The first newspaper published in Colum- bia was the "Missouri Intelligencer," with Nathaniel Patten as editor and publisher. He removed the paper from Fayette to Co- lumbia, and issued the first number May 4, 1830. It was discontinued in 1835, and was succeeded by "The Patriot," Frederick A. Hamilton, publisher, and James S. Rollins, editor. In January, 1843, "The Patriot" was discontinued, and William F. Switzler started "The Statesman," which he owned and ed- ited until 1885, covering a period of forty- two years. At the end of that time he went to Washington to assume the duties of chief of the Bureau of Statistics, in the Treasury Department.
The first theatrical performance was given in Columbia, home talent alone participating, on Christmas night, 1832, the play being "Pizzaro; or the Death of Rolla," concluding with the farce, "My Uncle." On the 21st of October, 1833, a semi-weekly line of mail coaches was established between St. Louis and Fayette, by way of St. Charles, Fulton and Columbia.
From the small and unpretentious begin- nings, indicated above, with wide expanses of unsubdued forests and wild prairie about it, Columbia has grown to be recognized as one of the most beautiful, cultivated and wealthy little cities of the State, and the busi- ness, social and educational center of an agri- cultural district of unsurpassed fertility, enterprise and intelligence. Its streets are broad and shady, and many of them well paved, with more miles of granitoid, brick and plank sidewalks than any town of its population in Missouri. Many of its busi- ness blocks, and its three banks, are attrac- tive in architecture and models of conven- ience, and its suburban homes, and a large proportion of those in the central portion of the city, are unsurpassed in size and beauty of their adjacent grounds. The streets of the city are lighted by electricity, and its waterworks furnish an abundant supply of the best water. The religious denominations represented in Columbia are Baptist, Pres- byterian, Christian, Episcopalian, Methodist and Catholic. The four first named have large, beautiful and costly church buildings, the Presbyterian, Christian and Episcopalian edifices being of stone. Education is the
dominant interest of Columbia, and it well deserves the name "Athens of Missouri." The State University and Agricultural Col- lege buildings, located in a quadrangle, in a beautiful campus; Christian and Stephens' College, for the education of young women ; three public school buildings for white chil- dren, and one for colored, all in the midst of shady groves, are the pride and boast of the people.
"The Herald" and "The Statesman" are its newspapers, issued weekly, together with several monthly college and fraternity mag- azines, all printed and illustrated in the best style of "the art preservative." The Herald Publishing House is one of the largest and best appointed in the State, and prints and binds the Supreme Court decisions of Mis- souri and other States, and also other books.
Columbia is connected by branch railroads with two of the great systems of the West and South, the Wabash, at Centralia, twenty miles north, and the Missouri, Kansas & Texas, at McBaine, nine miles south. The population of Columbia in 1900 was 5,651.
WILLIAM F. SWITZLER.
Columbian Club .- Among the many pretty clubhouses of St. Louis the Columbian is one of the most imposing. Situated on Lindell Boulevard, at the northwest corner of Vandeventer Avenue, its location is admir- able. It is a massive, square, yellow brick structure, with white stone trimmings, the front facade being a worthy tribute to the ar- chitect's art. In fact, the Columbian Club is the finest Jewish institution of its kind in the West. The internal appointments are rich in elegant simplicity, there being nothing lack- ing for the comfort and convenience of the members, and on evenings of entertainment the ball room is one of the sights of the city. The first meeting for the organization of the club was held May 15, 1892, there being present at this meeting Messrs. Marcus Bernheimer, Nicholas Scharff, J. D. Gold- man, Jonathan Rice, Jacob Meyer, Elias Michael, Louis Glaser, Benjamin J. Strauss, Moses Fraley, Adolph Baer, Joel Swope and William Kohn. At this meeting it was de- cided that, besides the twelve gentlemen present, the following should be admitted as charter members of the club: Messrs. Isaac Schwab, William Stix, Ben Eiseman, David Eiseman, Isaac Meyer, Jacob Furth, Meyer
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COLUMBIAN EXPOSITION.
Bauman, Louis M. Hellman, A. S. Aloe, Gustav Roseberg, Simon Strauss, Morris Glaser, J. J. Wertheimer, Philip Constam, Meyer Swope, M. Schwab, Sam Schroeder, George W. Milius, Adolph Scharff, Lazarus Scharff, Adolph Samish, Simon Seasongood, Joseph Wolfort, A. J. Weil and Charles Stix. The first officers were, Jacob Meyer, presi- dent; Jonathan Rice, first vice president ; Gus Roseberg, second vice president ; L. M. Hellman, treasurer, and Benjamin J. Strauss, secretary. The meetings before the formal opening of the clubhouse, in September of 1894, were held at the vestry rooms of Tem- ple Israel.
Columbian Exposition .- One of the most interesting and instructive events in the history of the city of St. Louis was the effort made to secure the holding of the Columbian Exposition, which it was then proposed should be held in 1892, in that city. The ef- fort was the work of all classes of citizens, from the capitalist to the laborer; from the wealthy manufacturer and merchant to the smaller tradespeople. The first meeting to consider the matter was convened at the office of the mayor of the city of St. Louis, in the old City Hall, corner of Eleventh and Chestnut Streets, on a joint call issued by the then Governor of Missouri, Honorable David R. Francis, and the then mayor of St. Louis, Honorable E. A. Noonan, August 3, 1889. Invitations were sent to forty leading citizens, who assembled on said date, and Mr. Charles Green, then president of the St. Louis Agricultural and Mechanical Fair As- sociation, was called to the chair. Colonel C. H. Jones, then editor of the "Republic," of- fered a series of resolutions expressive of the sentiment of the meeting, "That the World's Fair be held in the city of St. Louis," and for the appointment of a committee of twelve, who should take in hand all matters connected with the securing of the fair, which resolutions were adopted, and the committee, consisting of the following gentlemen, was appointed : David R. Francis, E. A. Noonan, C. C. Rainwater, C. H. Jones, Charles Green, John A. Dillon, Samuel M. Kennard, D. M. Houser, Leverett Bell, Emil Preetorius, Charles A. Cox, John O'Day. Congressman Nathan Frank offered the following resolu- tion, which was adopted:
"Resolved, that the committee of twelve
appointed by the meeting have and be clothed with plenary power to appoint a committee of one hundred or more, and that they ask the co-operation of other munici- palities of the State, and of the State at large, for the selection of auxiliary committees."
Soon after a meeting of the committee was hield at the Mercantile Club. Mr. John T. Davis was elected a member and chairman of the committee. It was then resolved that a committee be appointed, to be called a "Committee of Two Hundred for the Pro- motion of the World's Fair of 1892 in St. Louis." The committee was subsequently appointed, and met on the 7th day of Sep- tember, 1889. John T. Davis having declined the chairmanship of the committee, Honor- able David R. Francis was elected. An ex- ecutive committee was carved out of this committee, with C. H. Jones as chairman, and Frank Gaiennie, secretary. A finance committee, with Honorable E. O. Stan- ard as chairman; a committee on con- gressional action, with Honorable E. S. Rowse as chairman, and a committee on the local site, with Colonel George E. Leighton as chairman, were created. The committee engaged headquarters at the Mermod-Jaccard Building, corner of Broad- way and Locust Streets, and Mr. D. H. Mac- Adam was placed in charge as chief of the bureau of information. A well prepared ad- dress to the people was issued. It was de- termined that a "guarantee fund" of $5,000,- 000 should be raised, and subcommittees were constituted for this purpose. October 4, 1889, at a meeting of the general commit- tee, it was reported that the $5,000,000 guar- antee fund was completely subscribed, and on the IIth day of November, 1889, a dele- gation of twenty-five, in addition to the vice presidents of the committee of two hundred, was selected, called the "Washington Dele- gation," for service, when called on, to pro- ceed to Washington to aid in securing congressional support for the location of the fair at St. Louis. November 12th Governor David R. Francis and Colonel C. H. Jones left for Washington, and opened a St. Louis bureau at Willard's Hotel, placing in charge thereof General John B. Clark, ex-clerk of the House of Representatives at Washing- ton; ex-Governor Thomas B. Fletcher, and Samuel Hayes. Auxiliary committees of the residents of St. Louis, natives of other States
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COLUMBIAN EXPOSITION.
than Missouri, were constituted to exert their influence on the Congressmen from the States whence they came, and literature and docu- ments of all kinds were prepared and dis- tributed for the purpose. The active work was then transferred to Washington.
Four cities competed for the prize: New York City, Washington, D. C., Chicago and St. Louis. . Each city had headquarters in Washington, and the contest was most ex- citing and spirited. The congressional delc-
The committee offered seven distinct avail- able sites within the limits of the city of St. gation from St. Louis consisted of Honor-, . Louis, which were displayed by photographic able F. G. Niedringhaus, representing the Eighth Congressional District; Honorable Nathan Frank, representing the Ninth Con- gressional District, and Honorable William M. Kinsey, representing the Tenth Congres- sional District. views to the committee. They were the fol- lowing : Site No. I, two gentle slopes of ground south of Tower Grove Park and west of Grand Avenue; Site No. 2, was an area bounded by Shaw Avenue on the south, Tower Grove Avenue on the west, Grand The Senate World's Fair Committee met on January 8, 1890, to hear arguments as to where the World's Fair should be located, and time was allotted for presentation of the claims of the various cities. Avenue on the east, Manchester Road and Chouteau Avenue on the north; Site No. 3, a strip from Grand Avenue to Forest Park, and from the Wabash Railroad track to La- clede Avenue; Site No. 4, the ground be- tween Union Avenue on the east, Jacob Ave- nue on the west, Forest Park on the south and Delmar Avenue on the north ; Site No. 5, a level plain running from the St. Charles Rock Road to the fair grounds, bounded by Prairie Avenue on the east; Site No. 6, beginning on Penrose Street, north to Belle- fontaine, with Warne Avenue and Bircher Road as its eastern and western boundaries. The city of St. Louis also tendered Forest Park, containing 1,300 acres of ground, for use of the World's Fair, which was the sev- enth site proposed.
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