History of Henry County, Missouri, Part 5

Author: Lamkin, Uel W
Publication date: 1919
Publisher: [s. l.] : Historical Publishing Company
Number of Pages: 1018

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In the year 1840, on the third day of May, Preston Wise presented to the County Court a petition for dramshop license, which he secured by paying a tax of $15.00 to the State and $22.50 to the county, together with an ad valorem tax. This was the first establishment of this kind in the county. More than seventy-five years was to elapse before the last saloon passed out of existence. The license above named, granted to Preston Wise, was for a saloon in Clinton. At the same time Mathew Arbuckle and Sabine Jones received licenses for dramshops in Henry County. The one which was granted to Mathew Arbuckle was for an establishment in Calhoun. No restrictions were placed upon Sabine Jones as to where he should open up his establishment. From time to time, applications were received by the County Court and were granted to all those who applied for them.

The first assessed valuation in Henry County was placed on record in 1842. The total was $197,000.00. Five hundred and five polls were

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HENRY COUNTY HISTORY

also listed. In 1845 the valuation had nearly doubled, it having reached the sum of $351,000.00. In 1842 the first school township was organized in the county. Of this Mr. William Akens was the school commissioner. This organization was in congressional township 43, range 26. In the election of 1841 there were two candidates for the office of sheriff and collector which was then a combined office. William R. Owen and P. J. Buster were the candidates. Buster received the certificate of clection and Owen immediately filed a contest which was decided in his favor; the costs of the suit amounting to $161.43, were paid by Owen, who im- mediately filed a bill against the county for its payment. This the County Court refused to allow. Owen immediately proceeded to mandamus the court. The suit was decided in his favor and the costs of the first con- test for office ever instituted in Henry County was therefore paid by the county.

It is interesting to know the price of land in the town of Clinton at about this time. The price of lots which had hitherto been as low as $5.00 each, had now raised to $9.00 apiece, while A. C. Marvin paid $15.00 for ten acres of land in the southwest part of town.

On July 4, 1916, there was unveiled in Calhoun a monument to Will- iam Bayliss, the Revolutionary soldier who died in this county on the eighteenth of June, 1843. William Bayliss was from Kentucky and had been a lieutenant in the Revolutionary Army in 1776. He was after- wards a soldier in the war of 1812.

The first bridge of any size built in Henry County was started in the fall of 1845 and completed in May, 1846. Fifteen hundred dollars had been appropriated for its building, but the total cost was $1,470- one of the few instances where public buildings have come within the original appropriations. This bridge was on the road between Clinton and Harmony Mission in Bates County, over Grand River, at a place called Big Ripple.

For the fiscal year ending May, 1847, the record of the receipts and disbursements show that the county had fallen in debt $47.56.

CHAPTER XI.

FIRST THINGS AND EVENTS IN HENRY COUNTY

First white child born, Susan I. Avery, October 36, 1832. First male child born, R. P. Blevins, October 20, 1833.

First child born, Julia Anne Sherman, a negro, whose mother belonged to Robert Mean, Sr. This child was born July 14, 1832.

First resident minister, Henry Avery, who came in July, 1831.

First school, 1833. An Irishman named Johnson taught school in several places in Fields Creek township. Rev. Colby S. Stevenson taught in the fall of 1833 a few miles south of Windsor.

First resident physician, Richard Wade, who came to Tebo township in 1833.

First horse-mill put up by Dr. Wade in 1833.

First County Court held at Henry Avery's May 4 and 5, 1835.

First Circuit Court at William Goff's, September 21, 1835.

First postoffice, 1835, William Goff, postmaster.

First water-mill put up by Littleberry Kimsey, on Honey Creek, 1837.

First marriage performed by Henry Avery, parties unknown.

First recorded marriage certificate, November 12, 1835, Abraham Mellice performed the ceremony for Thomas A. Knox and Miss Nancy Allen.

First will of record was that of Phillip Cecil, dated July 23, 1836.

First deed of record is one to secure a store debt and was signed by John Anderson, who owed Hall and Ketcham $51.62 and who put up as security in the hands of George P. Woodson three yoke of oxen.

First ferry was started by Edward Mulholland, who was granted a license to keep a ferry across Grand River on section 9, township 40, range 25, he paying to the state $2.00 for the privilege. His right was to be six cents for a man, twelve cents for a man and horse, twenty-five cents for a one-horse wagon, thirty-one cents for a two-horse wagon,

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fifty cents for a four-horse wagon, hogs, cattle and sheep four cents each.

First sale of slaves on record belonged to the estate of B. Cox and took place in February, 1838.

First coroner's inquest was on the body of Peggy Givens, the total expense, including everything except coffin, amounted to $6.80.

First pauper under care of County Court, George Manship.

CHAPTER XII.

THE ORIGIN OF NAMES IN HENRY COUNTY

RIVES-CHANGED TO HENRY-CLINTON-BLAIRSTOWN-CALHOUN-DEEPWATER -LEWIS STATION-MONTROSE-URICH-WINDSOR.

Henry County organized as Rives County on December 13, 1834, first named in honor of William Cabell Rives, United States Senator from Virginia, who was born in 1795 and who died in 1864. Senator Rives was educated at Hampden Sydney and William and Mary and studied law under Thomas Jefferson. He served in the militia in 1814 in the second war with Great Britain. He was elected to Congress in 1822, was later appointed minister to France by President Jackson. In 1832 he became United States Senator, but resigned in 1834 because he was un- willing to vote to censure President Jackson for the removal of the United States bank deposits, of which Rives personally approved, but to which the Legislature of Virginia was opposed. In 1835 he was elected to the United States Senate as a Whig and was again appointed minister to France in 1849, under Zachary Taylor. Mr. Rives was not in sympathy with the secession of Virginia. His daughter is the celebrated author, Amelia Rives.

On account of the change of politics of Mr. Rives, the Legislature of Missouri, in the year 1841, changed the name of Rives County to Henry County, in honor of Patrick Henry, another Virginian who ren- dered so much service to the cause of America at the time of the Revo- lutionary War. The following is a copy of the Act of Legislature of Missouri changing the name:

"An Act to Change the Name of Rives County.

Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the State of Missouri, as follows :

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HENRY COUNTY HISTORY

Section 1. That all that portion of country bounded as follows, to-wit: Beginning at the southwest corner of section 30, township 44, of range 28; thence south, to the line between townships 39 and 40; thence east, to the line between ranges 23 and 24; thence north to the southeast corner of Johnson County ; thence west to the beginning, shall compose the County of Henry.

Section 2. All laws in force relating to the county of Rives be construed to apply, in all respects, to the county of Henry, and all acts and things done and performed, and contracts made, or which may be done or made, before the first day of September next, in the name of the county of Rives, shall be as valid and binding in that county and all others, as if made or done in the name of the county of Henry; and all matters and business which is commenced, or which shall before the said first day of September, be commenced in the name of the county of Rives, shall be continued in the name of the county of Henry, and all officers, civil or military, appointed, or to be appointed for the county of Rives, shall be deemed and taken to be appointed for the county of Henry, and are hereby authorized to act as such.

Section 3. All courts, heretofore established and directed by law to be held in the county of Rives, shall in all respects apply to the county of Henry.

Approved February 15, 1841."

At the same time that the name of Henry County was changed from Rives to Henry, the name of Van Buren County was changed to Cass County because of the so-called treachery of former President Martin Van Buren to Senator Lewis Cass, nominee of the Democratic party. The origin of other names, as given by David W. Eaton in the Missouri His- torical Review, are as follow:

Clinton, county seat of Henry County, selected by commissioners, Henderson Young and Daniel McDowell, of Lafayette; and Daniel M. Boone, of Jackson. They fixed upon the present site of Clinton and signed a patent to the site to the county, dated May 1, 1843. Named for DeWitt Clinton, Governor of New York, one of the prime movers in constructing the Erie Canal.

Blairstown, laid out by a railroad company, and named in honor of John I. Blair, a noted capitalist.

Calhoun, laid off in 1837, by James Nash and named for the states- man, John C. Calhoun, of South Carolina.

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HENRY COUNTY HISTORY

Deepwater, founded by Keith and Perry Coal Company, of Kansas City, and takes its name from the stream of deep water nearby.

Lewis Station, named for Howell Lewis, an early settler. Lewis was a chairman in many of the government surveys in Benton and Henry Counties.

Montrose, platted in 1870, by Brad Robinson, for the railroad company.

Urich, platted in 1871, by H. C. McDonald, and named for the French General "Uhrich," who so heroically defended Strasburg against the Prus- sians in 1870. The first "h" was dropped to simplify the name.

Windsor, founded by R. F. Taylor, and laid off in 1855 and for a time was called Belmont. Robert D. Means is responsible for the present name by calling it Windsor Castle, after the residence of Queen Victoria in England. Name was changed from Belmont to Windsor by Act of Legislature, December 9, 1859.

CHAPTER XIII.

TOPOGRAPHY AND GEOLOGY

THE PRAIRIE REGION-ALTITUDE-FORESTS-CLIMATE-SOIL TYPES - SUMMIT SILT LOAM-OSAGE SILT LOAM-BATES SANDY LOAM-OSWEGO SILT LOAM- STATISTICS.

While it is not the purpose of the author to give any detailed state- ment as to the geology or topography of Henry County, yet it may be well to record herein some facts gathered from the bulletin on "The Soils of Missouri," published in 1918 by Doctors Miller and Krusekopf of the College of Agriculture of the University of Missouri and from the latest figures given by the Missouri Department of Labor, concerning the sur- plus products of Henry County. Henry County is located in the south- west Missouri prairie region, of which the above authors speak as follows:

"This region represents the smoothest portion of the State and is characterized by level to gently rolling topography. These features are due to the character of the underlying rocks which consist largely of shales, limestones and sandstones, and which dip to the northwest at a very low angle. From such a structure is derived a succession of flat plains and rolling escarpments. Where the clay shale beds prevail, the country is flat; where sandstones or limestones prevail, the hills are gen- erally low and rounded. Where the rocks of the upper carboniferous occur, as in Jackson and parts of Cass and Lafayette Counties, there are very frequent alternations of limestones with shale, and the resultant surface is more rolling or undulating. In the remainder of the prairie region, wide, gently sloped valleys and streams with gentle grades, broad flood plains and broad rounded divides are characteristic. In short, it is a mature topography-a smoothness of long continued erosion."

This prairie region is the eastern edge of the great plains region

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which extends to the Rocky Mountains. This part of Missouri is under- lain by carboniferous rocks; the lower beds of these consist chiefly of shales and sandstones and the soils that form are varied in texture. In the region of the upper coal measures there is a greater alternation of shales with limestones. In general, the various horizons of the carboni- ferous rocks occur in irregular belts extending from northeast to south- west.

The altitude of Henry County is about 900 feet, which is about 100 feet lower than Morgan County and some 200 feet lower than the south- ern part of Jackson.

At the time of settlement, a large portion of Missouri was forested. In the prairie regions of which Henry was a part, belts of timber varying from a few rods to ten miles or more could be found all along the larger streams. In the extreme eastern and southeast part of Henry County was an area of scrub-oak timber approaching the definition of a forest.

In climate, Henry County is at about an average with other parts of Missouri. The annual mean temperature of the State is about fifty- four degrees. The mean temperature in January is about thirty degrees in the central counties, while in July the temperature ranges from seventy- seven degrees in northwest Missouri to eighty degrees in the extreme southeast. Periods of extreme cold are of short duration.

The mean annual rainfall, taking the figures for the last twenty- one years, is from thirty-five to forty inches, the forty-inch line running along the southern boundary of Henry County.

Several soil types are found in Henry County. Those described in the bulletin above referred to are the Summit silt loam in the northern part of the county, practically covering Bogard, Shawnee and half of Big Creek townships; the Osage silt loam, which varies in width from one- half mile to three miles in the Big Creek and Grand River bottoms, while the rest of the county is about equally divided between the Bates fine sandy loam and the Oswego silt loam. The bulletin above referred to describes these soils as follows :

The Summit silt loam, frequently known as black limestone land, includes the greater part of Jackson, Cass, Bates and Johnson Counties, and portions of Vernon, Henry, Pettis and Lafayette Counties. It is pre- vailingly a heavy silt loam with a rather heavy, plastic silty clay sub- soil. Typically, the surface soil is a black, dark brown or very dark gray silt loam, ten to eighteen inches in depth, and containing a good supply of

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organic matter. The subsoil is a dark drab to dark gray clap loam, chang- ing at about twenty-four inches to a yellowish gray, granular, silty clay, mottled yellow and gray. The gradation from soil to subsoil is gradual, and is not marked by a sudden change in color or texture. Usually the true subsoil is not reached at less than eighteen inches, where the soil material becomes compact and waxy and the content of organic matter quickly decreases. Lime concretions and calcareous streaks are found at various depths in the subsoil. The Summit silt loam as a whole is rather uniform, such variations as occur being of minor importance, and needing only brief consideration.

· Poorly drained areas, usually at the head of shallow draws, are black in color in both soil and subsoil, and in texture are almost a clay loam. Such areas are frequently known as gumbo. Another variation is the so-called mulatto land, the surface soil of which is a dark brown mellow silt loam, grading at about fifteen inches into a yellowish brown or reddish brown crumbly, silty clay loam. The subsoil averages lighter in color and texture than the corresponding layer in the Summit silt loam. The soil material is derived chiefly from limestone and shale, the former probably entering into the formation more largely than the latter. The mulatto land occurs along streams, and averages more rolling in topog- raphy and has more limestone outcrops than the typical soil. In its agri- cultural value it is equal or superior to the latter, and is especially prized for alfalfa. It is extensively developed in Jackson, Cass and Johnson Counties.

Included in the Summit silt loam are small areas of Summit stony clay loam. These occupy the isolated hillocks, the sides of ridges and escarpments and stony slopes near streams. In these areas thin bedded limestone outcrops and fragments of the stone are scattered over the surface, making cultivation difficult. The soil material is dark gray to yellowish brown plastic clay. Most of the land of this character is in pasture and orchard to which it is well suited. The larger part of the Summit soil in Clay, Ray and Carroll Counties belongs to this phase.

Throughout its entire extent, the Summit silt loam has a level to gently rolling surface, admirably adapted to an extensive type of farm- ing. The undulating topography is everywhere sufficient to insure good drainage. The streams and draws flow through shallow valleys, and the level of the plain is rarely more than twenty to fifty feet above the valley bottoms. In general, the areas north of the Missouri River average more

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HENRY COUNTY HISTORY

rolling than the main body of the type south of the river. The depth of the soil mantle is deep, frequently fifty to sixty feet, and the underlying rocks are rarely exposed. Limestone has entered more largely into the composition of the soil in the northern part of the area than in the south- ern part. The original vegetation consisted of prairie grass, with narrow belts of elm, oak, hickory and walnut timber along the streams.

The Summit silt loam is one of the best soils in the state, and com- pares favorably with the better glacial and loessial soils of North Mis- souri. All of the type is highly improved, and is used for general farm crops, such as corn, wheat, grass, and oats. Corn yields from thirty-five to seventy-five bushels, wheat twelve to twenty-five bushels, oats twenty to fifty bushels, hay one to two tons per acre. On the better farms the higher figures are approached more frequently than the lower. Grass and small grain do especially well. Clover and alfalfa thrive on most of the type.

In general the farm practices prevailing on the Summit silt loam are the same as those on the better prairie lands in the northern part of the State. Large numbers of live stock are marketed annually. Spe- cial crops, such as sorghum, millet, soy beans and cowpeas are grown to a small extent. In former years flax was an important crop but it is no longer grown.

Land values range from $65 to $150 an acre, depending up location and improvements. Most sales are made at $80 to $100 an acre. In a few areas values reach $200 per acre. The farms are uniformly large and are well developed.

The composition of this soil is shown in the following table:

Composition of Summit Silt Loam.

(Average of 11 analyses.)

Lime re-

Nitrogen Phosphorus Potassium quirement

lbs.

In 2,000,000 pounds of soil 3290

1645

30390

3235

In 2,000,000 pounds of sub-soil 1900

1705

27030

1500

It will be seen that this soil is among the better upland types from the standpoint of reserve food supply. While the lime requirement is rather high in many instances, in other cases the soil is not acid. The

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HENRY COUNTY HISTORY

average requirement is approximately one and a half tons but the re- sulting injury is partly offset by the fertile condition of the soil. The nitrogen supply is not exceptionally high so that good systems of rota- tion and the saving of farm manures are necessary for continued pro- ductivity. Phosphates can be expected to give returns on the more worn areas, when properly used.

The Osage silt loam a represents the alluvial soils within the re- sidual prairie region. The type as mapped has a wide range in texture, but the class name has been used to indicate the predominating char- acter. Aside from the difference in origin, the Osage soils are lighter in color than the Wabash soils of the glacial region, but are darker than the Huntington soils of the Ozark region. In general, the Osage soils vary from black to light gray in color, although dominantly they are dark brown or dark gray. Texturally, they range from fine sandy loam to heavy clay, with a preponderance of the finer grades.

The Osage silt loam is by far the most extensive type, and almost completely occupies the valley bottoms along all the larger streams, except where interrupted by the Osage clay. It consists of a black, dark gray or gray, mellow silt loam, with a drab or gray silty clay subsoil. Fre- quently there is little change in color or texture throughout the soil sec- tion, but in general the subsoil contains more clay and is lighter in color than the surface soil. That portion of the type in the region of the Summit and Oswego soils is much darker in color and the surface soil deeper than in the southern areas. In the region of the Cherokee and Bates soils-notably in Vernon, Barton and Henry Counties-the surface soil is prevailingly a light color, ashy material carrying many iron concretions, underlain at about twenty-four inches by a gray silty clay. This light colored phase is poorly drained and is not productive. The greater part of it is timbered with willow, oak, ash, elm and hickory.

The Osage silt loam, particularly the dark colored phase, is easily cultivated and where well drained is very productive. The greater part of it is used for corn and yields of forty to seventy-five bushels are obtained. Areas not subject to overflow and having good internal drain- age are well suited to alfalfa. The greatest need of the soil is good drainage.

In the region of the Bates fine sandy loam the alluvial soil is usually of a loam texture. The surface soil to a depth of ten to fifteen

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HENRY COUNTY HISTORY

inches is a dark brown or grayish brown loam or fine sandy loam with a yellowish brown subsoil. The most extensive areas of this phase occur along Horse and Clear creeks in Benton and Vernon counties. It is highly prized as corn, clover, alfalfa and truck soil.

The areas of heavy clay soil within the Osage silt loam are locally known as gumbo. The soil consists of a black silty clay, eight to twelve inches in depth, underlain by bluish black or drab, waxy, tenacious clay. The latter, when dry, cracks and becomes hard and intractable. The surface soil, although it contains a large amount of organic matter, is difficult to work, except under the most favorable moisture conditions. The most extensive areas of Osage clay are found along the Osage River and its large tributaries, in Bates, Cass, Henry and Vernon counties. All of the type is subject to prolonged overflows, and therefore little of it is under cultivation. It produces coarse hay, averaging one to four tons per acre. When moisture conditions are favorable corn and grass do well. Large areas have been reclaimed by ditching and tiling.

Where properly drained the high agricultural value of the Osage soil is well known. Land values vary mainly with the character of the drain- age, but also with the grade of the soil. They range from $25 to $100 per acre.

The Bates fine sandy loam has a wide distribution in the southwestern part of the State, and is one of the most variable types mapped. The prevailing texture is that of a coarse loam, but ranges from silt loam to coarse sandy loam. The subsoils are somewhat heavier but friable. The surface soils range in color from dark brown to yellowish gray, the darker shades predominating on the smoother areas, especially in the northern areas of the type. The subsoils are some shade of brown and show mot- tlings of red, brown and yellow. Sandstone fragments are scattered through the soil, and frequently bed rock is encountered on the steeper slopes.

The silty areas included in the Bates fine sandy loam consist of a dark brown to grayish brown silt loam, grading at about eight to twelve inches into light-brown friable silt loam, which is underlain at about eighteen to twenty inches by crumbly silty clay or fine sandy clay, highly mottled red, brown and yellow. This silty phase occupies the almost level areas of the type and is typical prairie land. The Bates loam and Bates fine sandy loam have brown or grayish brown surface soils with yellowish brown subsoils, usually of a somewhat heavier texture than the surface material, although sometimes the subsoil is coarser

GUY P. GRAY, THE FIRST SOLDIER FROM HENRY COUNTY TO GIVE UP HIS LIFE IN THE WORLD WAR

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HENRY COUNTY HISTORY

than the soil. The latter condition obtains when the sand rock is within three or four feet of the surface. The sand content ranges from very fine to medium, but the finer grades are usually greatly in excess. Asso- ciated with the more rolling areas is a large amount of shale and sand- stone fragments disseminated through the soil and subsoil. Sandstone outcrops are common and steep slopes of stony loam are found.

The most persistent characteristic of Bates soils is the bright red mottlings of the subsoil, frequently so intense as to give the lower sub- soil a red color. The soil material is derived from sandstone and shale. The former is only a few feet in thickness, so that the resultant soil is varied and rather silty where the shales predominate.

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History of Henry County, Missouri, Part 5

Author: Lamkin, Uel W Publication date: 1919 Publisher: [s. l.] : Historical Publishing Company Number of Pages: 1018

Author: Lamkin, Uel W
Publication date: 1919
Publisher: [s. l.] : Historical Publishing Company
Number of Pages: 1018