Spadra 2 Township

Spadra 2 Township

Early in the present century a new Spadra sprang up. The Johnson County Coal Company, The Scranton Coal Company, the Eureka and the Clark-McWilliams mines were shafts that were sunk almost simultaneously during the first three or four years of this century. Naturally each or all of theni drew from other coal fields a prorata of workers.

Three classes of persons wre soon on the ground: That class which is seeking a livlihood and is desirable; the typical dissatisfied type, and the transient miner.

The two earlier mines of the 70's shared with Coal Hill a brief period of frontier life, but neither of them entertained in such numbers the dissatisfied class. Whether it was because there were only two miues and therefore less attractive or whether that element was a later product, is not clear. But whatever the reason, the fact remains that wlien the major development of the Spadra field began, a new immigration appeared. True, many of them were desirable citizens, but also many were not. Drunken brawls and murders were not uncommon. Men mj'steriously disaj)peared, criminals were difficult to find, and more difficult to convict. Some of tliL^ most desperate and notorious characters in the United States have been there. The sojourn of some of theni was of brief duration while it pleased others to tarry awhile. And a few of tliLin met their death while there. In a brawl one night five men shot each other and no one was left to tell the tale.

These mines have served their time with turmoil, strikes, lent colonies and law suits. But the inevitable swing of the pendulum will reach its point of limit and start back again. On the rebound, covering several years, comparitive quiet has reigned. Ikit the Spadra of old and the Spadra of new are metiphors in comparison.

Spadra is but a series of coal camps almost without break from Spadra Creek six wiles west to Montana, a station created some fifteen years ago. Nor do the camps end there, for beyond

On the east of Spadra (j'eek, in the Jameslovvii camp, there are two mines of considerable toniiat!;e, and also, farther in the county, nearer Cabin Creek, are some smaller breakers.

Harmony - is up Horsehead creek, in the settlement where Abraham Laster and twelve other families located in "X\. It is on the bank of the creek on a rocky incline. There are several little stores, a cotton i>in and a beautiful stone church. The descendants of those first settlers still tlominale in numbers. Harmony is a proi*ressive inland town.

Hagarville - is another of the old villai^es. It was formerly called Salem and is up Piney creek near IIk' cliffs along the stream called "The Narrows." This little inland town is the honie of one of the Raplist Mountain Academies.

Piney - located on the bank of Piney creek and the river, two miles from the east boinulary where the Missouri Pacific railroad enters the county, is this little town, which serves as a trading post cUid outlet for the people who live uj) stream on the tasl side of tlie creek.

Piney Creek is now crossed by ferry boat at Piney, the couiily bridge having been twice destroyed by cyclone, the latter time on the night of Aj)ril IcS, 1920, when a tornado swejit Johnson, Franklin, Yell, Logan and Boone counties, destroying many homes, killing eighteen people and injuring many more. "

*This tornado entered the county from a southwesterly direction and continued this course for about a mile when it passed over Piney mountain. The first residence to suffei' was that of Tom Whorton. whose house and barn were wre.-.v-d The family escaped injury but some of the li\«' slock was crippled. After i)assing: over Piney mountain the storm tui-ned due north, sweeping- down the public i-oad striking- next in its course the home of (Miaiiey Parker, completely destroying- the home and all out buildings, injuring- both Mr. Parker and his wife. Next in its course it swept the homes of John Moore. George Kilej-. Paul P^iley and .lim Whorton. destroying- their homes, barns and all out buildings. Init the families in these homes escaped serious injur.v. At Bud Parker's the home was wrecked and the entire family, more or less seriously injured. At this point the tornado again changed its course to a little east of north, sweeping- everything- in its path. The honies of .lim Huron and W. B. Drummond were destroyed completely. Mrs. Diummond and f)ne child were injured.

The home of A. G. Blackard was the next toll taken by the storm where everything- was completely wrecked, and IVIr. Blackard. his wife and grown son

Tom Adams lost his home and his aged mother was seriously hurt. From this point the tornado passed over a bluff and across a twenty acre field where it, in its fury, seemed to gather and concentrate its entire force against the home of Charley Zachery, literally lifting the house in which were the father, mother and four children, from its foundation and hurling it against the trees in the yard and on the edge of the little hill, tearing it into thousands of pieces, finally landing the wreckage in a ravine about a hundred yards from its former foundation. The mother and two children were instantly killed, while the father and other two children were seriously injured, one of the children dying some eight or ten hours afterward.

The tornado was about a quarter of a mile in width, and in its main path swept everything before it, leaving nothing unmoved. After passing- Mr. Zachery's place it continued about a mile when it struck another mountain. Here it seems to have lost its force, for no other damage was done.