USA > Missouri > Dade County > History of Dade County and her people : from the date of the earliest settlements to the present time > Part 22
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North Township .- Hickory Grove-Lester McGuire, Kathryn Twaddell, Edna Everett, Arcola. Dead Elm- Lena Wilkins, Ima Burnett, Arcola. Lake School-Ecla Jordan, Areola. Arcola School-Bertha Higgins, Agnes Holman, Russell Charles, Mabel Thomas, Walker Under- wood, Theodore Achord, Alice Whitley, Gladys Hoffman, Arcola, Fontella Stamps, Jerico Springs, Mo.
Pilgrim Township .- Pilgrim School-Lloyd Jones, Leo Jones, Durward Stanley, Elmer Brown, May Horton, Georgia Trimble, Pearl Smith, Hugh Poindexter, Everton, R5. Lotus School-Willie Ward, Tressa Huston, Clarence Litle, Everton, Mo.
Polk Township .- Hampton School-Walter Bowman, Blanche Bowman, Corda Hoover, Everton. Pleasant Hill School-Dean Rowden, Alvin Haggerman, George Zong- ker, Everton, R3.
Rock Prairie .- Ray Spring School-Velma Tipton, Clema Dilday, Everton, R4.
Sac Township .- White Oak-Susie Shaw, Lucy Mont- gomery, Seybert. Shaw School-Ruth Duncan, Greenfield.
South Township .- Meek School-Ray Poindexter, Flossie Norris, Alma Jones, Gladys Irby, Everton, R5. Bryant School-Jesse Scott, Nina Terrell, South Green- field, R1. Mound School-Lucy Bishop, Erma Fortner, Jesse Newkirk, Ruby Poindexter, South Greenfield, R1. Pickett School-Gilbert Manka, Lelah Friar, Nannie Friar, Everton, R5.
Smith Township .- Kings Point School-Wilfred H. Allison, Lockwood. Mt. Zion School-Corda Morris, Vernia Modrall, South Greenfield, R2.
Washington Township .- Honey Creek School-Bert Sexton, South Greenfield, R1.
E. H. CARENDER,
County Superintendent of Schools, Dade County, Greenfield, Missouri.
0-
RATE OF TAXATION, DADE COUNTY, 1913-1914.
The following table shows the rate of taxation on each $100 of assessed valuation. Property is assessed,
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HISTORY OF DADE COUNTY AND HER PEOPLE
generally, from one-half to one-fifth of its actual worth, depending upon the extent of the returns made; the char- acter of the property; its location and whether the hold- ing is bringing in an income, and the amount of the same:
County levy $0.40 Total amt. of county
Good roads. .25
indebtedness
County school. .69 Municipal or twp. in-
School tax in largest debtedness .... $47,000.00
city
1.50 *None reported.
Municipal tax
$1.00
ASSESSED VALUATION OF DADE COUNTY, 1913.
Real Estate.
No.
Land, acres
310,758
Assessed $2,609,217 399,944
217.24
Total assessed valuation
of real estate.
3,009,161
Personal Property.
Horses
7,148
228,963
32.03
Mules
2,790
103,856
37.22
Asses and jennets
145
6,899
47.58
Cattle
12,349
139,111
10.42
Sheep
6,017
6,570
1.09
Hogs
20,890
47,515
2.23
All other live stock.
1,933
7,374
3.81
Money, notes, bonds, etc.
261,866
Bank Stock.
78,983
All other personal prop'ty
168,507
Total personal property
$1,049,664
Total taxable wealthı ..
$4,058,825
Average $ 8.39
Town lots.
1,841
Chapter 16 A DADE COUNTY AUTUMN.
by
Aaron D. States.
All nature seems to vie in common consent, to make one month of the year the most lovely and beautiful in all the Dade county territory-it is the month of October. All other months have their charm yet it remains for the tenth month of the year to assemble these charms and present them in one lovely panarama.
The choicest colorings are found in every nature pic- ture. They can be found by every roadside, in every woodland and on every hill top and hill slope. The sumac and the maple trees give the most charming color while vine and tangled wildwood afford beauty that cannot be portrayed either by tongue or pen. Then, there are many of the wild flowers that continue to bloom throughout the autumn months, flowers as rich and pleasing as the flow- ers of spring and they are used by many in the fall decora- tions, of fraternal, home and church functions. These flowers when assembled with clumps of painted leaves, painted by the unseen artists, form a decoration fitted for the nuptial of kings, or the entertainment of potentate.
These autumn flowers possess as rich colorings as do the flowers of June and they retain their comliness until freezing weather. The golden rod seems to have selected Dade County for its permanent home, the same as the wild rose has taken up its habitation for the month of June. Many of the cultivated flowers of the garden first bloomed in the byways and valleys. The streams seem to enter the classic circle during the month of October. They seem to sing sweeter and they talk louder when ex- cellent beauty meets them at every curve. The willow twigs seem to quaver with more grace in their bosom, in October than they do in June. This may be on account of October being the harvest month, the month of gather-
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HISTORY OF DADE COUNTY AND HER PEOPLE
ing, storing, getting ready for the hibernal months when there will be snows, sleets and rains. Yes, October is a rich month and its annual return cheers the husbandmen of Dade County as much now as it did the primitive fath- ers. This is doubly true to the husbandman who seeks to understand nature and can read from its pages at least a portion of the great truths they possess.
Lewis Renfro states that when he was a boy out on Pennsylvania prairie, there were but few trees in all that country consisting of several oak trees scattered over the prairie. After the prairie fires were abandoned the acorns were given a chance to grow and it was but a few years until the country along the streams and a part of the up- lands were dotted with young timber.
Mr. Renfro relates that in an early day his father used to shoot deer from the veranda roof and that he would get on his horse and go after the deer and bring him to the home.
Mason Talbutt also says that when he was a boy the most of the timber land around Greenfield was then prairie. There were several oak trees here and there that soon planted the acorn and when the prairie fires were aban- doned it did not take many years for the young timber to get a start. This seems almost incredible yet there is no question as to the truth of the statement.
FROM AN OLD TIMER.
In answer to Brother States' request three weeks ago, to hear from the older born citizens of Dade county, and seeing no reply as yet, thinking that one was waiting for another to give their history, I thought I would start the pleasing task. I am nearly as old as Dade county. The county was organized in 1841, and I was born out on the Pennsylvania Prairie, March 16th, 1843-making me 72 years old next month.
I have lived continually in Dade county all these years, save the four years I was in the Civil war. I cast my lot with the South and during the four years I lived in a tent home on the fields of battle my heart was still
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with my old home. In fact, Dade county had been my home all the days of my life. When the war was over I came back and was indeed glad to find my old home waiting for me. It is my intention to live here and enjoy the companionship of my life long friends until I am called hence. I have travelled over many states, but I can sincerely say there is no country that appeals to me as does the county in which I live, and in my opinion there is no better country.
I received my education at Honey Creek schoolhouse, near where the new schoolhouse now stands; but it was quite a differently constructed schoolhouse. I believe it will be interesting to many to give a description of that building: It was built in 1837 or 1838 of round logs with the bark on them; was 18 feet square and the walls were 7 feet high. In place of rafters it was ribbed over with the same kind of material the walls were made of and the ribs were far enough apart to suit the clab boards that were used to cover it. These clab boards were three feet long and were manufactured out of large timbers. The roof was weighed down with poles; there were no nails. The end rib, the one the roof was started on, was a little longer and a hole was bored in it to hold the first rib and a pole was laid lengthwise to hold the first course of boards and the pole that weighed down the first course answered for the second course and so on until the top was reached, and there were two poles lashed together that answered for the saddle boards. The sleepers were round logs straight- ened on the top and puncheons with the top made smooth, made the floor. The seats were made of the same material with legs made of small sapplings, and I remember some of the seats were very twisting and uncomfortable. There was a log cut out on either side about 10 feet and these places answered for the windows. When it was cold a strip of cloth was placed over these primitive windows to keep out the cold and to emit a little light. The fire- place covered the most of the north end. The writing desks were made by boring holes up in the walls the de- sired distance, with pegs in the holes, and a clab board
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HISTORY OF DADE COUNTY AND HER PEOPLE
placed on them for the desk. I do not think there was a nail in the entire building.
There were pieces of timber split wedge fashion and drove between the cracks in the logs and then plastered over with mud. There was neither joist or loft in the building, and when it snowed, the snow was about as deep on the inside of the building as it was out of doors. Not- withstanding the rude structure, it turned out some teach- ers-both men and women-and, by the way some preach- ers, and at some future time I may have something to say about the teachers and students that congregated in this rude structure. The text books and the method of teaching will make miglity interesting reading to many of the present day youngsters. Then many can see what progress has been made along educational lines and all other lines during the years of the mighty past. In con- clusion I will say I would be pleased to hear from others on the same subject.
Sincerely, LEWIS RENFRO.
HISTORICAL.
In my article of two weeks ago I promised to have something about the teachers, the pupils and the text books used in the old Honey Creek school house, also tlie method of teaching. I will now attempt to redeem that promise. In those days there were no silent schools, everyone studied aloud and some would get very loud and the teacher would have to call them down. We spelled every evening for head marks and when the teacher would announce the spelling lesson, which he always did a few minutes before time to spell, you could hardly hear it thunder for everyone would try to make louder noise than the other. We would spell for head marks and the one that was head at the close of the spelling contest would go to the foot the next day and at the close of the term the one that got the most head marks would be remembered with a prize, generally a book of some kind that would not amount to very much now but was much appreciated then,
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HISTORY OF DADE COUNTY AND HER PEOPLE
books, magazines and newspapers were scarce then, they came so crowded at times that some of the larger scholars were allowed to go out-of-doors to study in order to give room for the smaller ones.
The length of the term was generally three months and they were all subscription schools. There was not an organized school district in the county-Greenfield prob- ably excepted. There was none such in all the county. There were only three school houses in what was then known as South township which covered a great deal more territory then than now for it has been sub-divided many times. The youngsters would come from several miles around to attend school and all went afoot for it was considered a small job to walk four and five miles to attend school or church. I will try and give you the text books that were used. First we had Webster's elementary spelling book, I have one in my possession now, it com- mences with A. B. C. and generally becomes a little harder as the scholar advances, and, to my mind they have never made any improvements of the spellers from that day to this. The next highest study was McGuffey's readers, then came United States history. I cannot call to mind the history used. Old Dad Kirkham furnished the grammar. Our first arithmetic was Pike's but later we used Ray and we thought it an excellent improvement. No higher math- ematics was used in the school. I never heard of algebra during my school days. These books, along with Webster's unabridged dictionary, constituted the text books of those good old days.
I will now give the names of the patrons of this school up to the war: The Snadons, the Scotts, Rutledges, Bowles, Hopkins, two families of Millers, two families of Sallings, Bogart, Edington, Bicknell, Clouts, Oldham, Sater, Ren- fro, Rooks, Chappel, Rutledge, McGuire and Holder. There are many others I have forgotten. We used quill pens and we made our own ink out of oak bark and coperas and sometimes log wood and polk berries. We had no lead pencils and we made our slate pencils out of slate. I can still make a pen out of a goose quill and can
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HISTORY OF DADE COUNTY AND HER PEOPLE
still write with it. I believe I could give the names of the scholars who attended this school but space forbids. When I get to writing along this line there are so many things that crowd my mind I hardly know when to stop, but I will try and give a more completed account in my next letter which will be the last. We had some rude scholars at that school as well as now and I have known teachers to make board paddles with a handle at the bot- tom and paste A. B. C. on them and make those boys learn their letters from their paddles. Of course they were all boys and girls in those days, like the girls of today, they were not very rude. They raised large fam- ilies then, all the way from six to twelve children. I be- lieve my parents had the largest family, it consisted of eight boys and four girls. The children of these families were all educated at this school. My father boarded the teachers of this school gratis though he received enough of benefit to more than compensate him for his trouble, for we often studied until a late hour and I often thought we received more instruction at night than we did during the day. Tuition was from one dollar to $1.25 a month and when board was charged it was about that much per week. In my next article I will have something to say about the teachers and students of this school.
Sincerely, 0
LEWIS RENFRO.
As I promised in my article to have something to say about the teachers and pupils of this school I will now pro- ceed to do so. I cannot call to mind in rotation as they taught but can remember very well all the teachers I went to school to. So I will proceed to name them. About the first was Miss Amanda Scott now Mrs. Amanda Payne whom all the people know, she is now in her eighty-sixth year. No wonder her children were all teachers for they inherited it from their mother who was one of the most successful teachers in the county. The next teacher was George Foster who was killed accidently in the time of the war. He was an uncle to Mrs. Belle Mitchell of
RESIDENCES OF F. G. VAN OSDELL AND EDWIN HARRISON.
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HISTORY OF DADE COUNTY AND HER PEOPLE
Greenfield. The next as I remember was a Mrs. Perry, don't know what became of her. Then comes a man by the name of Davis and one by the name of Spillman, one by the name Gregg. I had two brothers who were teach- ers, T. F. Renfro and J. C. B. Renfro. Martha Bozart, Bridge Bozart, Alexander Rutledge, Jesse Guinn, this was an old crusty bachelor and the puncheon floor made so much racket that he had them and the sleepers taken out and the trash removed. The ground was packed down with a maul. I was informed by Mrs. David Higgins who went there to school after the war that the sleepers and the floor were never put back. Her father, Newell Cates, moved out there just after the war and she went one term at this school honse to Leander MeLemore.
There was one other who taught here, his name was Dollbier. He taught elocution, or pretended to. He would rave and bellow at the top of his voice and then he would lower his voice until you could hardly hear him. He came here from the east, I think Massachusetts. He thought that he was a stemwinder, and we thought so too for wo had never been taught anything along this line. In those days they generally inflicted the punishment with switches. I remember a circumstance which occurred when I was quite small. One of our teachers, Mr. Gregg had a very weak way of inflicting punishment. He would have one to carry the other around on his back and every round ho would lash the one who was being carried and would tell each how many lashes he was going to inflict. I had a brother, J. C. B. Renfro, who was very mischievous and he and Andrew Ragsdale, an unele of Hon. Howard Rags- dale, of Ash Grove. They had done something that they needed punishment for and my brother was to carry Andy first and just before he got around where the teacher was he pretended to catch his toe under a puncheon and foll and it created a terrible laugh. The same thing occurred the second time, the teacher seeing that it was done on purpose let them have it right and left there on the floor until his switch gave ont. I don't remember that they ever tried it again.
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HISTORY OF DADE COUNTY AND HER PEOPLE
There are only two teachers living who taught at this school, Aunt Amanda Payne, who is eighty-six and my brother, Thomas who lives in Downey, California, who was eighty-one the fifth of the present month. This school turned out four preachers-J. C. B. Renfro, S. H. Renfro, J. K. Speer and G. W. Oldham. J. C. B. Renfro died sev- eral years ago in Houston, Texas. S. H. Renfro is a dis- trict evangelist in northeast Texas. J. K. Speer belongs to the Springfield conference. The first three were south- ern Methodists, the latter, G. W. Oldham, was a missionary Baptist and is chaplain of the house of representatives of Oklahoma, so I am informed by his daughter, Mrs. William Greer. This is the second time he has filled this position which speaks well for one who was educated way back sixty years ago in a little log school house and, by the way, he was one of my schoolmates. There is but one other I know of who is living and that is J. N. Bowles of San Antonio, Texas. I will name the teachers who were edu- cated at this school-W. R. Snadon, John Moore, Mary Moore, Martha Bozart, T. F. Renfro, J. C. B. Renfro. Amanda Scott, now Amanda Payne, Bridge Bozart, Julia Willis, Rufus Hudspeth and afterwards he taught at this school house. We had a writing school just prior to the war by N. R. Berry. This old historic school house was destroyed by fire in 1867 by some unknown cause. It was a rendezvous for campers and tramps and I think it caught fire in that way. It may be that some one wanted a more modern house. I am sure there are others that could do the subject justice better than I can.
Sincerely,
LEWIS RENFRO.
OF INTEREST TO STOCKMEN AND BREEDERS ONLY.
One of the most remarkable pioneers who ever lived in Dade County, and by reason of his wide experience, one of the most intelligent is W. J. Davis of Lockwood, whose personal sketch appears in another part of this history. When Mr. Davis sold his "Evergreen Stock Farm" and
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HISTORY OF DADE COUNTY AND HER PEOPLE
moved to Lockwood he purchased eight acres of raw prairie land adjoining the city. He moved cedar and pine trees to this place from the farm and in six months from the time he bought this tract he had it photographed and the ent is given herein. He had the same place again photographed two years later and that cut is also given.
Mr. Davis not only experimented with shrubs, plants and flowers, but also with livestock. Having read the 30th chapter of Genesis and of Jacob's remarkable suc- cess in breeding ringstraked, speckled and spotted goats, he tried the experiment in breeding mules and found to his wonder and surprise that he was able to produce large, black, mealy nosed, big-boned mules from little gray jacks and maltese jennets. He also claims to have produced a spotted colt in like manner by the use of a spotted blanket as an object of attention to the dam.
Mr. Davis made specialty of surgical operations and while his theories were directly opposed by most surgeons, his common sense methods were eminently successful. In cases of rupture his plan was to bring the broken tissues together so that they might heal rather than to spread them apart with a truss. This plan, Mr. Davis says, will work a permanent cure on both man and beast, for the reason that he speaks from experience in both instances, and knows whereof he speaks. It is to be regretted that lack of space forbids lengthy mention of all of Mr. Davis' interesting experiments, but they are varied and remark- able to say the least.
THE GREENFIELD CEMETERY.
The nucleus around which the Greenfield Cemetery was formed was deeded in 1850 by Ezekiel M. Campbell, to James Allison, D. C. Gill and G. W. Oldham as Trustees of the United Baptist church of Jesus Christ of Greenfield. There was one acre in the tract shown on the map as the unplatted portion of the cemetery. The deed was made to the Trustees for a burial ground or whatever use said church may think proper. It is certain however that there were graves on the tract at the time the deed was made.
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Eighteen years later it became apparent that this one acre tract would be inadequate and R. S. Jacobs, Arch M. Long and Wm. G. McDowell purchased two acres adjoining the original tract on the south and east for the use of the in- habitants of the town of Greenfield for a grave yard. These men to hold the title in trust until proper officers should be elected. In 1880 the town of Greenfield was in- corporated as a city of the 4th class and the trustees con- veyed the land to the city. Later the city, by its board of Aldermen purchased all the land between the then east line of the cemetery and the North and South Quarter Sec- tion Line of section 19. It was found that a large part of this was unsuitable on account of the shallow depth at which the solid limestone was encountered and all of this tract lying East of the present east line of the cemetery was sold. The first added tract comprises blocks one to thirty-six and the portion used of the second comprises blocks thirty-seven to sixty-three. In 1899 practically all of this ground was sold and there seemed to be no direc- tion in which there could be expansion. The city bought 20 acres lying south of the city and began the improve- ment of it as Greenfield Cemetery. The ground was very unsatisfactory, was little used and in 1907 was sold. A tract of more than five acres having been bought adjoining the old cemetery on the north in 1906. This squared out the cemetery to its present size of more than ten acres. The last tract bought was platted as Association Addition to the Greenfield Cemetery. It comprises blocks 64 to 172. Recently when the whole cemetery was to be replatted some ground was discovered unplatted and unsold. This has been platted and appears on the map as tracts lettered with "A" and running to "U."
The first movement looking toward beautifying the cemetery was made in 1881. It then covered but 3 acres and was a veritable jungle. The Ladies Aid Societies (this was before the day of the Woman's Club) asked the men of the city to volunteer on a certain day to assist in the work of cleaning up the cemetery and announced that the workers would be provided with a picnic dinner. The
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male population of the city of every age, color and con- dition turned out with axes, hoes and scythes and cleared and cleaned up the cemetery in fairly good shape. Disul- tory attempts to keep it in condition were made along till 1903 when the work of beautifying the cemetery was begun in earnest by the Ladies Magazine Club and the Century Club which clubs took up the burden of raising money and improving the cemetery in a business like way. This movement crystalized into the Greenfield Cemetery Asso- ciation which was incorporated in 1913. This Association has a growing list of members and enjoys a present endow- ment fund of $3,500. No part of this can be used till the fund reaches $4,500, at which time the income will be de- voted to the care and maintenance of the cemetery. The Association now has 300 members who pay an annual dues of $1.00 and are pledged for five years. It is to the ladies of these clubs and to their treasurer under whose direc- tion their funds have been expended that we owe it that the Greenfield Cemetery is one of the beauty spots of west Missouri.
The present trustees are:
Ben M. Neale, R. H. Merrill, S. A. Payne, F. C. Eastin, P. D. Stringfield, F. S. Van Osdell and P. S. Griffith. Ben M. Neale, president; F. G. Van Osdell, treasurer and man- ager.
WASHINGTON LODGE NO. 87, A. F. & A. M.
Nestor of Southwest Missouri Lodges and Mother of Free Masonry in this section, was organized under charter October 12th, 1847 after working under dispensation for more than a year previous. James S. Clarkson was the Master under dispensation but before the organization under charter, he enlisted in the U. S. army and went to the front in the Mexican War, becoming Master of a Military Lodge A. F. & A. M. conducted for the benefit of the soldiers.
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