USA > Missouri > Dunklin County > History of Dunklin County, Mo., 1845-1895 Embracing an historical account of the towns and post-villages of Clarkton, Cotton Plant, Cardwell, Caruth [etc.] Including a department devoted to the description of the early appearance, settlement, development, resources With an album of its people and homes, profusely illustrated > Part 14
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The Shelton firm has always done an extensive bus- iness in Kennett, but the fall of 1895 has been the busiest season for many years. W. F. Shelton, Jr. & Co., buy all kinds of produce and usually ship from 800 to 3,000 bales of cotton each season; this is, however, only a liberal portion of Dunklin County crop, which runs from 6,000 to 20,000 bales per season. Mr. Shelton has since reaching manhood been prom- inently connected with the financial, political and pub- lic affairs of the county. He held the office of Treasurer of Dunklin County for a period of eight years.
He is a self-made man, started in business with a small capital and a limited education and with no better opportunities to make a fortune than other early settlers of this county, but being an energetic business man and a shrewd financier he has been exceptionally successful. His orphan nephews, W. Frank and Lee Shelton, whom he has reared and educated, are pre- sumably the other members of the firm. They are young men of promise and business ability.
Mr. Shelton has never married and he has for years had Mr. and Mrs. Witham and amiable daughters, Miss Mary and Laura, as managers of his home. He is a Democrat and leader in political affairs and is the
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chairman of the Democratic Central Committee of Dunklin County.
JAMES F. SMYTH, Treasurer of Dunklin County, was born March 22, 1864, in Dunklin County, Mo. The parents, James A. Smyth and L. Minerva Jones, were married in Dunklin County in 1856, but were both
JAMES F. SMYTH.
born and reared in Tennessee. The father came to Dunklin County when quite a young man entered land and farmed in summer and hunted during the winter months.
He hunted about twenty-seven winters and often made as high as $700 or $800 in one season. In 1876, Mr. Smyth moved to Piedmont, Wayne County, Mo., to educate his children, and there died May 6, 1877. The family remained there until January 12, 1878, when they returned to Dunklin County where the mother died August 10, 1887. James F. Smyth
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grew to manhood in this county and received a good education in the common schools and in the Piedmont High School. He remained with his mother on the farm near Cotton Plant until he reached his majority, when he took a position in the store of Judge Langdon at Cotton Plant. In 1886, he and his brother-in-law, W. J. Davis, formed a partnership under the firm name of Davis & Smyth and did a general mercantile business at Hornersville for a few years. He subse- quently sold out his interest to his partner and later opened a general store at Nesbit, this county, and in 1895 removed this to Caruthersville, Mo., where W. J. Davis is now manager of same.
At the general election in 1894 Mr. Smyth was elected to the office of Treasurer of Dunklin County; he soon afterwards removed to Kennett, where he now resides.
In September, 1887, he was married to Miss Kate Argo, a native of Tennessee, but a resident of Texas from 1880 until 1886, when she removed to Dunklin County.
To this union have been born four children: Eddie Argo, Maud, Roger Q. and Ruth. Mrs. Smyth is a member of the Baptist Church and Mr. Smyth is a Democrat in politics and a member of the I. O. O. F.
C. B. SCHULTZ, an early merchant of Hornersville, was born in 1827, in Weekly County, Tennessee, and was the son of David Weekly and Mary McClane- Schultz, natives of the above-mentioned State. C. B. Schultz, the subject of this sketch, came to Dunklin
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County about 1835, and located with his father's family near Hornersville.
In 1852 he married Miss Mary Duneway, of French descent, and a native of New Madrid County, Missouri. She bore him four children, Margaret, John Linamood, Mary, and one infant, all deceased, and Mrs. Schultz also died in 1861. In 1862, Mr. Schultz took for a
C. B. SCHULTZ.
second companion, Mrs. Amanda E. Duneway-Horner, a sister of the first wife, and a native of same county and State. The children of C. B. and Amanda Schultz are, Joe Shelby ( deceased ), Sidney A. (Mrs. Clem Edmonston ), Bedford F. (deceased), Hettie (deceased ), Mary E. (deceased ), Emma Ida (Mrs. James Wilford), and Ella (Mrs. Jordan of Kennett). Mrs. Schultz reared one child by her first marriage,' Elmira Horner (Mrs. Benn Vardell), who, by the expressed wish of Mr. Schultz, shares equally in his estate with his own children.
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HISTORY OF DUNKLIN COUNTY, MO.
Mr. Schultz was in some things a very remarkable man, being reared in this county when schools and educational advantages were very meager indeed, and when he reached young manhood he could neither read nor write and did not know one letter from an- other. Nothing daunted, however, he formed a part- nership with W. M. Harkey under the firm name of Harkey & Schultz, which was in a few years one of the leading and wealthiest firms in the county.
By close application he soon learned to write his name and to look after the financial affairs of the firm, and while Mr. Harkey was the salesman Mr. Schultz was the financial manager. After the dissolution of this firm Mr. Schultz ran a business in his own name and alone, which continued to gain in finance and popu- larity until his death in 1883. His estate was at that time worth something over $100,000. He was a man who always stood by a friend and openly opposed an enemy and while he was not a member of any church he was a good man in his own way and a staunch Dem- ocrat in politics.
Mrs. Schultz was a member of the M. E. C. S. and her death occurred in Kennett, in the year 1894.
JAMES F. TATUM, of the firm of Tatum Bros., Kennett, Mo., was born January 5, 1850, in Howard County, Missouri, and is the son of A. C. and Susan Franklin-Tatum, natives of Virginia and Kentucky, but early settlers of Howard County, Mo. James F. Tatum was reared on a farm and educated in the common schools of Howard County, where he lived
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until after he had attained his majority. He soon after- wards came to Dunklin County and the present firm of which he is the senior member was established in 1883.
The way this firm has grown in its business and its immense sales this past fall and winter of 1895-96, is sufficient evidence of the ability and integrity of
JAMES F. TATUM.
its members, having sold more goods in the past six months than ever before in a like period of time. This firm keeps on hand a fresh well-selected line of general merchandise, including the newest styles of fancy and staple dry goods, clothing, boots, shoes, hats, caps, groceries, farm implements and in fact almost everything wanted by either the farmer or townsman. Their store is as nice as any to be
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HISTORY OF DUNKLIN COUNTY, MO.
found outside of a city, in fact the Tatum Block would. be an honor to any town of 10,000 inhabitants.
James F. Tatum was united in marriage to Miss Lillie Braggs, June 27, 1877. She is a daughter of Capt. William G. Braggs (deceased), who was an early settler of this county. Mrs. Tatum is one of the early leaders in the society of Kennett and a worker in the Ladies Christian Aid and other societies. Mr. and Mrs. Tatum have six children : Richard, Frank, Ira, John, Susie and Burnie, and one of the nicest homes in Kennett. Mr. Tatum is a member of the I. O. O. F. and Masonic fraternities and Mrs. Tatum is a member of the Christian Church. In politics Mr. Tatum is a Democrat and wields considerable influence for his political favorites. He is undoubtedly one of the shrewdest business men in Dunklin County.
L. P. TATUM, of the firm of Tatum Bros., Kennett, Mo., was born January 3, 1863, in Howard County, Mo. He is the son of A. C. and Susan Franklin- Tatum, natives of Virginia and Kentucky respectively. The father grew to manhood in his native State, but emigrated to Missouri when a young man, where he found and wedded the lady of his choice, who had preceded him several years, her parents being early settlers of Howard County. Mr. and Mrs. Tatum purchased land and located near Fayette, where they reared their family.
L. P. Tatum came to Dunklin County when scarcely more than a lad and for a short time did business on his own account, but in 1883 the present firm of
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HISTORY OF DUNKLIN COUNTY, MO:
Tatum Bros., general merchants, was established, since which time their business has steadily grown with the town and county until they now own one of the best business houses and run one of the largest and finest general stores in Dunklin County.
L. P. TATUM AND WIFE.
L. P. Tatum was married in September, 1893, to Miss Sallie M. Baldwin, daughter of Judge T. E. and Mary E. Pankey-Baldwin, of Kennett, Mo. Mrs. Tatum was born, reared and educated in Dunklin County, with the exception of the finishing course from the Synodical Female College, Fulton, Mo. As Miss Sallie Baldwin she was a leading belle of Kennett, and she has lost none of her attractions as Mrs. Tatum.
J. P. TRIBBLE, attorney at law, Kennett, Mo., was born in Oregon County, Missouri, on February 1, 1863. Educated in common schools and Alton
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HISTORY OF DUNKLIN COUNTY, MO.
Academy. Was admitted to the bar February 28, 1884, in his native county and removed to Dunklin County in 1887, where he has since been engaged in the practice of law. He has never held nor asked for any office but has for several years been Clerk of the Probate Court. Real estate law is his specialty. He is a member of Pioneer Lodge No. 165, I. O. O. F., and a charter member of the Dunklin Encampment at Kennett. Married February 16, 1888, to Miss Annie Blackwell of Mill Springs, Mo. They now have two children. Mrs. Tribble is a member of Helena Lodge No. 37, Daughters of Rebekah, I. O. O. F., and of the Missionary Baptist Church.
JOHN TURNER, pioneer blacksmith of this county, was born September 1, 1835, in Perry County, Ten- nessee. He is the son of Samuel and Jerricia Champ- Turner. He came to this county in 1850, and was married June 28, 1855, to Adaline S. Jones, daughter of Joseph and Phoebe Sanders-Jones, natives of Virginia and Tennessee, but pioneers of Dunklin County, coming here and locating on Grand Prairie, in 1854. Adaline S. Jones-Turner is a native of Tennessee, born July 14, 1836.
After their marriage Mr. and Mrs. Turner lived on Horse Island for a few years, when they purchased and settled on their present home near Nesbit post-office. " Uncle John Turner," as he is familiarly called, is the oldest blacksmith of pioneer days living in the county.
During a residence of forty-five years in Dunklin County he has been almost constantly in his smithy
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HISTORY OF DUNKLIN COUNTY, MO.
near his residence, and although he is sixty years of age he may be seen almost every day, still hard at work. While he is past the necessity of such labor he yet continues it, and Aunt Adaline is equally vigilant in her labors. They have presented each of their children with eighty acres of good land and re-
JOHN TURNER AND WIFE.
tained a home for themselves. Seven children have been born to them, Mary E., deceased, William T., Martha A., Mrs. Burns, Louisa S., Mrs. Ridge, Fran- ces L., Mrs. Barham, Sarah D., Mrs. Joe Hutchins, and Minnie B., deceased. They have eighteen grand- children living and have lost eight by death.
Besides his work in the shop Mr. Turner has done much work on the farm in the regular sowing and
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HISTORY OF DUNKLIN COUNTY, MO.
harvesting of crops and also in clearing his farms of heavy timber. Their home is one of the finest around Nesbit, Mrs. Turner's yard and orchard are noted for lovely flowers and luscious fruits, of which she is espe- cially fond. She is an old-fashioned house and home- keeper and can weave anything, from a pair of sus- penders to a bed blanket or " Rising Sun " coverlet, but has not made any cloth for a number of years.
Mr. Turner is a Democrat in politics and Mrs. Tur- ner is of the Baptist faith.
Hon. JAMES PETER WALKER was born in Lauder- dale County, Tennessee, on March 14th, 1851. His death occurred at 2 o'clock, Saturday, July 19, 1890, at his home in Dexter, Missouri. May 12th, 1875, he married Miss Eva M. Bragg, daughter of Captain W. G. Bragg of Kennett, Missouri. She is a native of Missouri and practically a Dunklin County lady, for she came here when a small child and was reared prin- cipally, educated and married, in this county. She survives her late husband, has returned to her old childhood home in Kennett, Mo., and is certainly a most estimable lady. She is, as was also her husband, a member of the M. E. C. S. Mr. Walker was a Democrat in politics. It will be noticed that Hon. James P. Walker was neither a native of this county nor a resident of it at the time of his death, and yet it is highly fitting that a mention of him should be made in this attempt of a history of Dunklin County.
He came to this county when but sixteen years of age and worked manfully and laboriously for the
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HISTORY OF DUNKLIN COUNTY, MO.
support of his mother and young sister. Before he was eighteen years of age he had established himself in the general mercantile business at Kennett. He resided here several years, married a Dunklin County girl and at the time of his death was a mem- ber of the House of Representatives from this, the Fourteenth Congressional District of Missouri. Dun-
HON. JAMES P. WALKER AND WIFE.
klin County claimed him as her own. This is not a wonder, for any county might be and would be proud to claim a man like James P. Walker.
His almost tragic death was a sad blow to the people of Dunklin County, for on the very day and almost at the very hour on which the Democratic convention of this county met and instructed its delegates to go to the Congressional Convention at Poplar Bluff, Missouri, and vote for James P. Walker as Dunklin County's choice for the nomination preceding the election, and to do all in their power to re-elect Mr. Walker to the
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HISTORY OF DUNKLIN COUNTY, MO.
position which he then held ; at a time when the masses of the people of this county were ready to go into roar- ing applause at the slightest mention of their favorite, a dispatch benumbed them like a current of electri- city, by announcing the death of the man who was the best loved by Dunklin County of any man who ever represented it in the House of Representatives.
The many sincere and beautiful eulogies passed upon Mr. Walker by Hon. J. J. Russell at the Poplar Bluff convention just after his death, and by his for- mer colleagues in the second session of the Fifty-first Congress in Washington, D. C., simply voice the sentiments of the people of this county, and in fact all who knew him.
I give here a few extracts from the memorial address on Mr. Walker's life and character delivered in the House of Representatives, January 10, 1891.
Mr. Whitelaw, of Missouri, said :-
" It may properly be said of him that, by his own indomitable pluck and energy he transformed him- self from a poor plowboy in the cornfield, from a hewer of wood and a drawer of water, to the highest political position within the gift of his people.
" At the age of fourteen he secured a position in a country store in Tennessee, where by hard labor and rigid economy he earned a living for himself and assisted in supporting a widowed mother and young sisters. In 1867 he moved to Missouri, taking his mother and family with him and settled near Kennett, in Dunklin County. He cleared land and worked in the fields the first year after moving to Missouri ; but seeing a good opening for a general store at Kennett, and having the assistance of his former employer in
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HISTORY OF DUNKLIN COUNTY, MO.
Tennessee he established himself in business at that place.
" From this small beginning, Mr. Walker in the course of a few years gradually advanced in his business until he became a large dealer in grain, in which he was interested at the time of his death.
" In 1880 he was elected a delegate to the Cincinnati convention. In 1888 he was elected a member of the State Democratic Committee. In 1884 Mr. Walker became a candidate for Congress, and was defeated for the nomination by Hon. William Dawson after two conventions had been held and hundreds of ballots taken.
" In 1886 he again became a candidate, received the nomination, and was elected at the polls by an overwhelming majority.
" In 1888 he was honored by the people of his district by being renominated without opposition and re- elected by an increased majority.
" No better eulogy could be passed upon him than the resolutions of respect adopted by the citizens of his own city, Dexter, Mo., in which it was said :
" The life of James P. Walker is a fit commentary on our Government and its possibilities in developing men ; and in the purity of his character, in determi- nation of purpose, in his fidelity to every duty, every trust, every friend, his example is commended to the youths of our land. Without the allurements of wealth, or the training of college, without friends in high places to lift him up, he rose by the strength in his own manhood, the energy of his own purpose, in the moral rectitude of his own life to the highest political honors.
" Twice called to represent his people in the Halls of Congress, he was still one of the people, loved and honored by them, and ever faithful to the trust reposed in him.' "
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HISTORY OF DUNKLIN COUNTY, MO.
Mr. Vest, of Missouri, said :-
" In public life he followed great principles, and was not an importunate mendicant for popular applause. He fell like a stricken soldier on the field, his banner full high advanced and his face to the foe."
JUDGE JAMES M. WALTRIP was born December 28, 1837, in Daviess County, Kentucky, and is the son of James and Martha ( Biven ) Waltrip, natives of the above mentioned State. The father was a farmer and also held the office of justice of the peace in Daviess County, Ky., for sixteen consecutive years ; his death occurred in 1871. When a lad of nineteen years James M. Waltrip came to Dunklin County with his Uncle, Stephen P. Waltrip, landing where the town of Clarkton now stands, November 13, 1856. For three years he worked with his uncle, and helped make some of the first brick ever made in this county. In 1859 he accepted a position as clerk in the general store of John H. Stokes. The store stood on the present site of Clarkton, but it appears that the little post-office was first known as Bach, then Beech Grove, and after the pole road was built was given the name of Clarkton. ( See photo, p. 282. )
On the breaking out of the Civil War all the stores were necessarily closed, thus ending his clerkship. Judge Waltrip has been three times married. First on August 5, 1860, to Miss Lucy K. White, daughter of the late E. C. White, of this county ; Mrs. Waltrip was a native of Obine County, Tenn. ; she died in 1865, leaving three daughters : Mollie ( Mrs. Penny ), Augusta
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HISTORY OF DUNKLIN COUNTY, MO.
( Mrs. C. P. Hawkins ). March 26, 1866, Judge Wal- trip took for a second companion Priscilla A. Kirk- patrick, daughter of John D. Kirkpatrick ( deceased ). She was also a native of Tennessee, and became the mother of the following children : John, William, Vara, Henrietta, Adelia, Ray and Mamie (see pictures of Vara and Henrietta on another page). Miss Vara is one of Dunklin County's promising young teachers and this year holds a position in the Malden School.
After the death of his second wife Judge Waltrip was married to Mrs. Amelia Whitson, daughter of the late Sylvester Young, December 11, 1892. Mrs. Waltrip is one of the leaders in the society of Clarkton and a most estimable lady. Judge Waltrip has quite an extensive official career in this ,county. Shortly after the Civil War he was appointed Constable of Freebourn Township, and Deputy Sheriff of Dun- klin County. These positions he held until 1871, when he was elected to the office of Assessor, serving in this capacity two years. He also about this time engaged in the mercantile business at Clarkton, but sold out in 1880 and moved to Arkansas, and in October of the same year returned to Dunklin County.
In April, 1885, he again decided to leave the county and this time took his family to Northwest Texas. He soon became dissatisfied, however, and in July of the same year returned to his old home in this county and again engaged in the mercantile business, in which business he is now engaged at Clarkton. He keeps a full and complete line of general merchandise and has a substantial and thriving business. Judge
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HISTORY OF DUNKLIN COUNTY, MO.
Waltrip has been twice elected District Judge, and once Presiding Judge of the County Court. He is well posted on the official matters of the county and is well and favorably known both as an official and a business man. He is a Democrat in politics, a member of the Masonic fraternity, and the family are of the Missionary Baptist faith.
JUDGE THOMAS WALTRIP.
THOMAS WALTRIP, present Judge of the First District of Dunklin County, was born March 8, 1844, in Davis County, Kentucky. He is the son of John and Eliza- beth Downs-Waltrip, natives of the above mentioned State. Judge Waltrip came to this county August, 1873, he having previously married Jane E. Harrison of Kentucky, on October 25, 1866. The children of this marriage now living are Dollie, Mrs. Engelhardt, John T., Callie, Nannie B., and Nellie V., and they lost four children by death.
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HISTORY OF DUNKLIN COUNTY, MO.
Mrs. Waltrip died March 24, 1891. April 11, 1893, Judge Waltrip took for a second companion Mrs. Luella Jones. Their only child, little Artie, recently died, age 11 months.
He owns 160 acres of good land and has given most of his time to farming interests. He was elected to his present official position in November, 1894, and is filling same with general satisfaction. He is Demo- cratic in politics, and his present wife, as was also his first wife, is a consistent member of the Cumber- land Presbyterian Church.
W. J. WARD, of the Ward, Shelton & Co. Steam Corn Shelling Company, Kennett, Mo., was born May 30, 1860 ; is a native of Tennessee, and the son of Daniel and Dilla A. Cates-Ward, of Valley Ridge, Dunklin County. The parents came to Dunklin County in 1874, and located near Cotton Plant, but removed to the " Ridge " about 1880, where they now reside.
W. J. Ward remained with his father until he reached his majority, when he began working for William Herrmann, of Nesbit, this county. December 2, 1883, he married Mollie L., a daughter of Mr. Herrmann, and a native of Dunklin County, Mo. He then located on Horse Island, near where the Ward School is now situated. He purchased land and opened up and improved one of the best and largest farms in that part of the county, residing here until January, 1892, when he removed to Kennett, Mo. On removing to Kennett he engaged in the
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HISTORY OF DUNKLIN COUNTY, MO.
lumber business. He is a wholesale and retail dealer in all kinds of rough and dressed lumber, lime, hair, cement and building material. He is also manager of the Ward, Shelton & Co.'s Corn Sheller. Their machinery has a capacity of 30,000 bushels per day. Mr. Moore is the silent partner in the company.
W. J. WARD.
The amount of corn bought, shelled and shipped from Kennett by this company is something immense, and yet there are several other busy corn companies in Kennett.
Mr. Ward is a very busy man, for in addition to the above mentioned enterprises he deals largely in live stock, pasturing and feeding on his farm east of Kennett. Mr. and Mrs. Ward are the parents of five little girls : Myrtle, Terah, Willie, Hattie, Nona, and Ruth. Myrtle, the eldest, is quite a little pianist for her age and a child of whom any parent might be
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HISTORY OF DUNKLIN COUNTY, MO.
proud. In politics Mr. Ward is a Democrat and he has held the position of Mayor since coming to Kennett, but owing to other business he resigned. He is a member of the Masonic fraternity and both he and wife are members of the M. E. C. S.
MRS. WARD AND HER HUSBAND, ISAAC HENRY.
I. H. WARD, assistant postmaster of Kennett, Mo., is a native of Mississippi, but removed with his parents, three sisters and one brother, to Tennessee in 1879. In 1880 he was married to Miss Laura Webb, who is a native of Kentucky, but who came to Tennessee with her parents when quite young, where she grew to womanhood and received her education,
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HISTORY OF DUNKLIN COUNTY, MO.
taking music as a special study. Mr. and Mrs. Ward came to Dunklin County, Missouri, about 1887, first locating in the north end of the county, but a little later they removed to Kennett, where they have since resided. Mr. Ward has been assistant postmaster at Kennett under both the late Harrison and Cleveland administrations, and has presumably discharged his duties to the satisfaction of all, though he is a Democrat in politics, and he and wife are members of the Chris- tian Church. Mrs. Ward has been teaching music most of the time since she was eighteen years of age, and has taught almost constantly for the past eight years in Dunklin County. She has been quite suc- cessful in both a financial and intellectual way, for although there have been many other music teachers who have come and gone, Mrs. Ward is recognized as the " old reliable " pianoforte music teacher of Ken- nett, and is nearly always called upon to take the leading parts in musical entertainments, etc., in her town. This fact and the fact that she keeps and adds to her class of pupils is a sufficient guarantee of her ability as a pianist. Mr. and Mrs. Ward have two children, Willie, aged 15, and Lottie, aged 13 years.
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