March 24, 1882

Being a reader of your valuable paper, I see a great many letters from various parts of the county, and some of them on the subject of the first settlers of, Callaway county, I have concluded to write what has been my experience relative to the first settling of Missouri, and if it meets with your approval you can give It a place in your columns, if not, drop it into your waste basket. "So here goes," as Crockett's boy said when he ran by himself.

My father moved to this county in the fall of 1818, (it then being a territory and but thinly settled) being the fall of the land sale of this county, and like all, or nearly all, of the first imigrants, aimed for Boon's Lick in Howard county. We reached that place on the 27th day of October, 1818, twelve miles above Old Franklin, and in a short time the lands were offered to the highest bidder in quarter sections. No lands were dropped below two dol­lars per acre, and were auctioned off by Mr. Burkhardt, and I think there are but few men at this time who could have excelled him as a cryer. My father did not get his land at auction, but bought the place where he settled in this county secondhanded, from a man by the name of Robert Heth, (who by the way, was a brother of John,A. Heth, one of the commissioners that were chosen to select a site for a suitable place for the seat of government) and in the latter part of the winter, part ol the family, consisting of my father one sister, three brothers and myself, started for this county. The second night on our way we camped at, or rather in what was then called, Hickory Grove, near the place where General John Ellis now lives. There was not a house in that region. My father and brothers left me and flay sister next morning to keep camp, while they hunted a road from that point to Cedar Creek for there was no road from where we were camped to the section of country where New Bloomfield now stands. We crossed Cedar Creek near where Wm. Duley now lives My father's wagon was the first that ever crossed the creek at that place. We found a little cabin built in the bottom by a man by the name of Ramsey (more familiarly known as "granddad" Ramsey) for a camping ground while out hunting. How familiar that name sounds to me, and I look back with fond recollections to these days, as being my happiest. My sister and myself counted eleven Indian guns that day while my father and brothers were in search of that road. The next day after camping in the cabin, we reached what was to be our future home. There was not a mark of civilization, except the section lines which were" then fresh, and were the marks by which each knew his home boundary. This survey was made by Major Langum. There was but one house where Fulton now stands. Perhaps the Editor knows to whom it belonged. If he does not, his father does. It was his playground and there was not a house in Columbia, Boone county, neither was there one in Jefferson City. Bear, deer, turkeys, wolves, wild cats, foxes, oppossums, coons, skunks and panthers were plentiful. We lived part of the year, or gathered food for the table, from the forests and found it excellent. People were glad to see each other, and often went from eight to ten miles to house raisings and log rollings. I remember the first death that occurred in our neighborhood, and that death was a Mr. Hall, a highly esteemed citizen and a good neighbor. It cast a gloom over the entire neighborhood. His grandchildren are now in our midst.

Imigration set in, and in a "short time settlements were made in various parts of the county.

Now and Then

March 31, 1882

At the close of my first communication I spoke of the great number of immigrants who flocked into Callaway, or I should say Montgomery, for at the time of which I write this county was to laid off. Permit me here to mention those families we found here on our arrival. Enoch Murray and family, also James Henderson and family; these two were settled ijear where New Bloomfield now stands. When I speak of Enoch Murray, I place him amongst the most prominent citizens in early days, as a kind, good neighbor, and a high toned gentleman. His children and myself were schoolmates. Three of them have gone to that "bourne from which no traveler e'er returns." His son, Ben, is on the old homestead, and when I meet him, I feel like I have met with a friend indeed. His house feels like home ltd me when I call there.

The land speculators came anc traced the section lines till there was a path almost everywhere let be seen. The grass and wild pea vines grew very thick and you could gallop a horse on the trail of almost any horse or cow that is, in the spring and summer time. There was a quantity of land relinquished in this country and fell back to the United States, and afterwards was entered at one dollar and twenty-five tents per acre. These speculators stopped with us over night, from three to five at a time, and finally became a burden to us. In my first communication, I mentioned the death of Mr. Hall. He was a man of energy, and did not forget to bring a quantity of fruit seeds with him, and near where New Bloomfield now stands he planted them, and gave my father his first apple trees, (which by the way was a great favor.)

I forget to tell you in my first communication that in the spring of 1818 the first steam boat that ever passed up the Missouri river, landed at Arrow Rock ferry in Howard County. My father went with the children to see the great wonder, or it,was quite a wonder to everybody, it being the first that was ever seen in this country. I have forgotten the name of the boat and the name of the captain yet I remember it was a high pressure single enigine and was quite a,clumsy old hulk in comparison with the present steamers, but to return to my narrative.

About this time the slavery question was disturbing the quiet of the county. The question was should this be a free or a slave state? This gave rise to the Missouri Coimpromise. The vote was finally cast in favor of it being a slave state. Slaveholders commenced dropping in from the slave states. But before proceeding further, I will give you a description of the houses we built in old Callaway. We cut trees from the forest and sometimes squared the ends of them, scored them and hewed off the chips, which was all the hewing that was done sometimes a log was left projecting just out far enough and proved to be n convenient place to hang a deer to skin. I have seen the ends of those cabins nearly covered with coon skins in the winter and spring season. We then split', or rather rived boards four feet long to cover our houses. We put ribs on in place of rafters and placing them about three feet apart, building up the gable ends with logs, which would give it pitch steep enough to let the water off. We put on each end a log for eave bearers, projecting out about two feet, we would then splii a straight log, turning the split side in for the purpose of a rest for the lower ends of the boards, or rather to butt against this the first course of boards was put on breaking the joints. Then a pole of sufficient size was laid on top to keep the boards in place; a heart from th board timber was placed below weight pole to keep it in place, and so on, till the roof was completed. We cu|t logs large enough to split then we hewed them as best we could getting the edges as straight as possible, having first laid three sleeders for a foundation for a floor we then laid down our slabs, completing the floor. Next we chinked and daubed with dirt mortar, thec building a chimney of cat and clay making a board door, lapping them weather board fashion, putting a latch on to fasten the door, leaving the string outside to pull and walk in. If anyone knocked, the little children in would call out "pull the string!" Says one, "Why did you not nail on the boards?" I can answer you without any trouble, it was almost impossible to get nails at any price, and again, "Why did you not lay your floors with plank?" that also is easily answered: we could not get the plank. If the present generation was to see how the first plank was made, it would surprise them. It was sawed, with a whip-saw by two men, on the following plan: they hewed a log of suitable size to make two planks six inches broad, then struck a line in the center, putting the log on a scaffold six or seven feet high, one man standing on the top of the log, the other man on the ground. The saw had but one handle and the top man had that, and the man below had a plan below by which he could fasten on a kind of handle to pull by, each man keeping an eye on the line, and after running through the log, the man below would take off his handle, the top man pulling out the saw turning the log down striking a line on each side as far apart as to make the plank to the thickness required. Two hundred feet was a good day's work for them.

Now and Then

April 07, 1882

In my last communication I tried to tell you how we built our cabins. The question might be asked, "did you have any school houses?" I answer yes, built in the same way we built the houses we lived in. Our seats were split logs, the split side up with hoies bored in the rounding side and wooden legs put in, and some of them so high that our feet did not reach the floor by six inches. We read aloud, which kept a loud noise all day long. Our schools were not district schools; they were gotten up by subscription. Some of the pedagogues we have at this time would have, come up missing like "Luck's calf," especially the youthful part of them. Says one, "Did you get any education?" not much ; the school law was not in vogue at that time. By the way, that reminds me of the old woman who said, "edication, edication, they were making a great fuss about edication now-a-days; she never had any in her life and was jist as healthy as anybody." Some of the youths of the present day would have come up blank. A goodly number of them are like a man I heard of. He did not love to work, neither had time to play, so he would split the difference and go to bed. Splitting rails is rough work, so they will try to get in as teacher. (Boys keep your shirts on, fer I don't wish to fight.)

Did you have any churches? I answer no. Did you have any preaching? Yes; the preachers rode the circuit and preached at private houses once in every two weeks and I believe were as eloquent as preachers are at this time. Many of them have gone to give an account of their stewardship. I think many of them were good men. Says one, "What kind of clothes did you wear?" l answer various kinds, but all of home manufacture, such as jeans, linsey, linen, cotton and sometimes buckskin. The skins we dressed ourselves. My dear old mother and sisters carded by hand all the wool, flax and cotton, and wove it at home, for such a thing as a bunch of spun cotton or a bolt 0 factory was never known here at that time.

The first church that was built was in the neighborhood of Guthrie Station and was built by subscriptions. I hauled the first log that went into that house. The house is forty-eight feet long and twenty-four feet wide, and was built by the Cumberland Presbyterians, yet the Methodists and other denominations helped build the house, and the way I feel and think, at this time people enjoyed as much heart-felt religion as they do now. Perhaps you are ready to ask who lived here? I will name a few of them: Samuel T. Guthrie settled where the station now is. I sometimes call to see the old lady, for I am always glad to meet with her as she is one among the many of the best woman. Abner Holt and family, James Brooks, Charles Powell, John Nevins, Robert Criswell, Thomas Brooks, then a bachelor, the Humphreys family, all kind and good men. Many of their children were my schoolmates. I sometimes meet them and it always is a pleasure. A great many have passed away.

Says one, why did you not settle on the prairies? that is easily answered!: The green-headed flies would in the summer time cover a horse and if kept there for any length of time would suck the life blood from them. Did we have any snakes here at the time of which you are writing? I guess we had a few rattlesnakes and copperheads, which were very poisonous, to say nothing of other kinds. I have killed many of them. Some few got bitten occasionally. I remember old uncle Thomas Brooks had a black man bitten by a big rattlesnake, and a brother of mine who was living there at the time was about to start one of the other negroes fof whisky. The one that was bitten wanted a quart. He was like the Indian; when he sent to the Indian agent and asked for a quart. Said the agent, "won't a pint be enough? no, said, the Indian, big snake, heep big.

The indians came around every fall to hunt, and sometimes made a bad shot and killed a fat hog in place of a bear or deer. Old uncle Abner Holt kept a blacksmith shop andthe Indians came to him often to havc their guns repaired."

We had but few mills in this county, and they were horsemills. We sometimes went to Hubbard's mill west of the Two-mile Prairie in Boone county, if it was not in fly time, and if it was we went to Joshua Ferguson's mill in the river bottom three miles above Cote Sans Dessein which was all the town we had at that time. About this time Jefferson City, Fulton and Columbia were laid off and began to settle, but quite slow. The first store that I recollect in Fulton was Sam L. Dyer's. If I am wrong, tell uncle Felix, your father, to correct me. Then John Yates and J.S. Henderson, then Broadwell put up a store. If I remember correctly, I.O. Hockaday was a clerk both of circuit and county court, and if my memory serves me aright, a Mr. Warner was the first sheriff. I think I would know I. 0. Hockaday's handwriting at this time if I was to see it. He was the father of J. A. Hockaday.

Railroads and telegraph wires were not heard of in this country. I remember the first Governor was Alexander McNear, a large man of a familiar disposition. He staid all night at my father's, en route to St. Louis to take his seat, that being the place. When the Legislature met at that time, not for the purpose of making dog laws, if a man had attempted to announce himself in favor of taxing the dog, he would have had the liberty to stay at home, for there were from three to five dogs on nearly every farm. They were quite useful to keep off the wild varmints. It was a treat to me, for I caught a great many wild animals with them.

Now and Then.

April 21, 1882

I send up the fourth communication, and in doing so I wish to say to your many readers I have no other object in view more than to give some of you a brief outline of the first settlements of this county which are facts as they recur to memory.

I will state that the first road or public highway that was cut through this county, began at Cedar creek near where Wm. Duley lives, the review following my father's wagon trail to where he lived. The first settlers were a good many of them like the old man when he was asked to sign a petition for a certain road, said, "I don't care where it runs if you will bring it by my house." Kind reader, if the road in question had passed by the house of every settler, it most assuredly would have been a crooked road, for the settlers were like a boy's mustache: extensively laid off, but thinly inhabited. Enoch Murray was appointed overseer.

The first night from Cedar creek a number of men stopped with us, and in that company was Thos. Brooks, then a bachelor. The next mornng being cool, Brooks came in to one of the cabins and said to Joseph Nevins, "Joe, your horse is loose;" Joe was seated in a corner by the fire. He at once jumped up and ran out. Brooks at once dropped in the chair and when Joe returned, he saw the joke. It was quite a joke on him.

The road was cleared out to Cote Sans Dessein. The people of Boone county opened the road from the lowjer end of Two Mile Prairie to Cedar creek, connecting with our road, thence to Columbia. It was called the Columbia and Cote San Dessein road. What gave rise to the name of Two Mile Prairie was from the fact of its being two miles across it where the St. Charles road then crossed it.

The next road was what was called the St. Louis and Jefferson City road. I, by this time was old enough to take hold and help clear it out. New Bloomfield was not there at the time of clearing out the road. Shortly after it was opened, a Mr. Bruer opened out a lot of goods in the south room of Enoch Murray's and sold goods to the early settlers. Then Bloomfield was laid off in lots. Bruer built a log house, which was the first house in Bloomfield. Being then a mere boy and anxious to get a dollar, I hauled the first load of lumber for that building from Holt's mill, on Cedar creek. John Fry lived about a quarter of a mile east of the little town and was post master for that section of country. The letters were not stamped at that time nor prepaid, and if I happened to pass and there was a letter for any of us I always got it, money or ho money. The postage was twenty-five cents for a letter. The mail was carried on horseback for a time, then mail coaches started. There was no train robbers in those days and seldom a theft or a murder committed. Rings and cliques nor salary grabbers were not in vogue. My father was a Democrat from his youth and was a revolutionary soldier. I imbibed the same principles quite early in my youth and had the pleasure of voting for Old Hickory for the Presidency of the United States the last time he was elected, and never have regretted it to this day, and as long as I am allowed a vote I expect to vote that ticket.

About the time I am writing, Abner Holt built a horse mill in about a mile from us and was a great addition to our neighborhood, He was a wide awake citizen, and a splendid neighbor. He died at an early day and his place in our community was deeply felt, especially by my father, for they always were on the best of terms. Some of his children are here yet, and When I meet them they feel quite near to me, being my school mates; and James Powell, when I stop at his house, or at James Brooks, I feel at home with them.

Kind readers of the GAZETTE, I hope you will not take any exceptions at my naming those men, for they have battled with the snakes and wild animals and seed-ticks with me. We share our joys and sorrows together with each other from the fact that you were not here at the time of which I am writing or at least the most of you were not and cannot feel and think as we feel toward each other. I will not fail to speak of old Dr. Conger, a man of extensive practice and a man of untold worth, a noble physician. If I were in good health, had he told me if I was not looking well, I would have felt uneasy. He had my explicit confidence. His charges were quite low.

I recollect when I was a boy that; Allen Ramsey, his brother, Erastus Prince and others started on a bear hunt with dogs, and when within a half mile of my father's they, with their dogs, scared up a panther. The dogs soon ran him up a tree within fifty yards of where my old friend Horace Sheley built his brick house. They shot the panther, then skinned it, bringing the skin with them the next morning. They had a dog with a short tail. They took the hide and tied it nicely on the dog and for the amusement of us children, set on the other dogs. What sport it was to see how the dogs would play aronnd. At last one of them caught the skin by the tail, pulling it off, which stopped the sport. It measured seven feet three inches.

Now AND THEN.

April 28, 1882

Permit me to give the many readers of your valuable paper a description of the farming implements that the first settlers cultivated the soil with. The plows we then had were not Scoria or Moline patents, nor were any kind of farming; implements shipped here at the time I speak of, yet we had the old Bar-shear plow, (duck bill as it was'called) made in the following manner: The bar was of a straight bar or piece of iron about two feet long, and the shear, as it was called; was about eight or twelve inches broad, and was welded to the bar, leaving a point or snout extending in front, hence the name duck bill. The stock was similar to the plows now in use, except the mould board, which was a piece of wood about eight inches high, hewed in a kind of twist, to throw the dirt. A man now living, that ever plowed with one of those plows, will ever remember the kicks they gave him when striking a root or stump. A boy would begin to dodge when he came in, reach of a stump or grub. The question might fee asked, did you raise any corn? Yes, kind reader, plenty of it, and plenty of wheat and oats, but not a great quantity of hay. Our stock, in the spring, summer and fall, lived an out range. You could hear various kinds of bells in the woods. We kept dogs to guard our sheep. If this meets the eye of friend D. P. Bailey, I wish to say to him, dogs were not taxed in those days, and we raised sheep then like we do at the present time. We had plenty of venison to feed them, (the dogs) on, for it was not uncommon for my brother to kill two deer before breakfast in the morning. They were plentiful here at that time. The little fawns were great pets with the children. They were spotted, the spots running in straight. lines from head to tail about as big as an English pea and were whlte. The fawns were red except the spots. I can look back to those days with fond recollections to those days and see thelittle spotted fawns skipping and gamboling over ths yard, and it is a great pleasure to me. The deer, coon, fawn, wild cat, panther and bear skins were a part or our pocket money in those days. I met a man in New Bloomfield, perhaps twenty years ago, and in conversation with him, he remarked, "I saw three deer in the wild woods th}s morning as I came here." I asked him where the wild woods were to which he alluded. Why said he, "between here and the village." Sir, said I, if you had been here as early as I was, you then could say wild woods. He remarked he was here as early, perhaps, as I Was, and I asked him in what year he was born ; he gave me the year of his birth. I then told him I was here twenty years before he was borm He looked at me as if to say, that can't be so. Yet it was true.

We plowed with shuck collars and rope traces, boring holes in the hames to fasten them, in drilling them to the single tree, with back-band of cloth to match them. Think of it kind "reader, a boy plowing with a duck bill, bar-shear plow, shuck collar, rope traces, cloth backhand, making corn in new ground thick with both stumps and roots, the flies thick on his horse and gnats thick on the boy, "could thejy make corn? yes, they did, and good corn at that. The boys were nearly all Democratic.in those days, and that principle will result in much good if strictly adhered to.

The boys did not have anything to do with the star route and were contented with their hog and hominy, catching coons, foxes, wild cats and rabbits. They did not expect to get as much for their fox skins as the indian boy did. He sent one to town by his brother and,told him to get a saddle and a pair of spurs and that he could have the balance that was due on the skin. They were onlr worth two bits, and you see he was minus a saddle and spurs.

Wheat drills, riding plows, corn planters and threshing machines were not here at that time, neither were there any wheat fans in vogue. We cleaned our wheat with homemade riddles, fanning out the chaff with a common linen sheet, a man at each end forcing the wind with curent enough to carry off the chaff. Neither the cinch bug nor potato bug were here at that time. We were under Democratic rule at th it time, perhaps that may have had something to do with it.

Now AND THEN.

May 05, 1882

I send you my sixth communication in order to give an accurate description of the implements of farming in the first settlement in this county. In a former communication I described (tie bar shear plow; thej next was the Carey plow, which was a great improvement in farming. It had what might be called a half iron mole-board; the balance was wood extending back of the right-hand handle. This was a very good plow. The next plow was the diamond. The mole-board was all of iron or steel. The plow in use at this time is )ut a slight improvement. We ba.rv sited our wheat and oats with a sidle or reap hook; then a cradle was next in vogue and at first was a clumsy looking instrument to handle. Old Uncle Horace Sheley moved into our neigborhood and was a man of usefulness, making wagons, stocking plows and cradles-a useful and good neighbor-his wagons were the wooden spindles and stiff tongue kind. In a short time farming implements were shipped here. The first wagon was the Quincy, from Illinois, with fall tongue and breast-yoke, thimble skein, a great improvement. If you saw a harrow, it was one with about sixteen teeth. Oxen were worked to a considerable extent. Mules were scarce here in those days and I feel like I would be glad to get once more one of our old fashioned scrub milk cows. Then I would be sure of plenty milk and butter.

I was in Texas once and was at a Mr. Clatterbuck's. In the, morning I went to look after my horse and passed through his cow yard there his negroes were milking eleven head. I told his wife when I returned that when I left home my wife was milking one cow- which yielded more milk and butter than all of hers. She seemed to doubt it, yet it was strictly true and a better article, by far. The old wind-splitter hog was in this country, yet my father, when he left Fleming county, Ky., had two sow pigs which were pets. He let the children drive them after the wagons the first day or two and after that we had no more trouble with them clear through to Howard county, this State, and when he moved from hog was in this country, yet .my father, when he left Fleming county, Ky., had two sow pigs vrhicti were pets. He let the children 3rive them after the wagons the firs; day or two and after that we had no more, trouble' with them clear through to Howard county, this State, and when he moved from there to this county the next spring he brought them with him, and from those two pigs we soon had as good hogs as we have at this time. I remember in an early day his selling old uncle Daniel Henderson on the Grand Prairie, twenty-seven head at $1.75 per hundred and or that same stock. Hogs lived well on the range in those days. I have seen a great many killed without eating any corn and were quite fat, yet the meat did not make as firm bacon as corn-fed hogs. It was rather soft, yet answered the purpose very well. We had bear bacon sometimes. I wish I had some at this time. It was excellent and a healthy diet and if I could get a fat piece of venison I would enjoy it greatly.

And now a word to the readers of the GAZETTE. Since I began to write I have tried to remember who are left of the first settlers. I can find but two remaining. The first is Felix Nichols, and when I meet those old settlers and shake hands with them, I have a warm place in my heart for all of them. I think he will vouch for every word relative to the first settling of Callaway county. The next are John, and Thomas Nevins, and if ever either of the three mentioned and myself felt cool towards each other I cannot now remember it. I always feel glad to meet them.

Kind reader, I at the present time will close my communications with my best wishes for your welfare and long life to you and a happy death.

May the GAZETTE wave its banner all over the land. In the meantime I bid you all a pleasant good bye.

Now AND THEN.