Johnson County, Missouri - Chapter 3: - Trails and Roads, 1918

ORIGIN OP TRAILS AND ROADS - INDIAN TRAILS - THE OLD INDIAN TRAIL - KARLY ROADS - FIRST PUBLIC ROADS - STAGE COACHES - ROAD DEVELOPMENTROADS TODAY - ROAD CONDITIONS IN GENERAI. - ROAD IMPROVEMENTSCOUNTY GRADES - INTER-COUNTYSEAT HIGHWAYS - CONCRETE CULVERTSSTEEL BRIDGES - INTEREST IN ROAD WORK.

Origin of Trails and Roads. - Man follows the beaten track. As these words tell the story of much of our lives, they also tell the story of our early roads. Very early there were recognized lines of travel by the Indians between distant points. Their particular location is due to the interesting but not widely known fact, viz.: A man can travel from two to live miles on smooth, le\el ground easier than one mile on rough or steep ground. This is also true of most animals. And beyond doubt many of the Indian trails followed paths made by the buffalo and other wild animals, and for the reason given these usually followed the level ridges, crossed streams at the most accessible fords, passed from low land to high land by gradual grades and generally avoided difficult places of all kinds. And as the Indian f(illowed in the track of wild animals so the white man followed the path of the Indian where there was one. Where there was none, he located his early roads on the same principle - the easiest way. It is interesting to note that later this principle was changed and modified for other reasons in the case of our dirt roads, but never in the case of the railroads, and the mighty engines and long trains still follow substantially the tracks of the buffalo and Indian.

Indian Trails. - There appears to be reliable proof of two Indian trails in Johnson county. Mrs. Ben W. Grover. who moved to Warrensburg in 1844 and lived here till her death many years after the Civil War, remembered an Indian trail that passed close to their house, which stood within a few feet of the present Grover residence. Mr. W. E. Crissey was much interested in these trails and from Mrs. Grover and others secured much valuable information. The following interesting account is from Mr. Crissey direct.

Probably very few know that an old Indian trail once traversed Johnson county. It ran from south to north in a northwesterly course, entering the county southeast of the city of Warrensburg, and passing through the city at Gay street near the Grover dwelling just east of Miller street, thence north toward Lexington on the Missouri river. This trail was from the Osage river at or near where the city of Warsaw now is, and following the line of least resistance avoiding difficult hills, marshy spots and bad fording places, made its way to Lexington, a bare trail with room for but one at a time. * * * When in the dim and misty past the selection of this trail was made will remain a mystery locked in prehistoric silence.

When the white man came he desired a roadway from Warsaw to Lexington. At that time Lafayette county extended south from the Missouri river to the Osage river, in shape a long ribbon. Part of it had been surveyed, but not all of it; there were no farm lines, no fencerows to interfere and the old trail seeming to be well adapted for ease of travel, the state highway was located on the trail.

A small part of this old road is at the west end of the farm owned by W. L. and P. A. Jones, about a mile southeast of \\"arrensburg. Other stretches of the road ran angling across tracts of land now enclosed and in cultivation.

Two other well identified parts of this road and frequently traveled by Mr. Crissey many years ago are: First, the present public road from the southeast corner of section 18, township 46, range 25 north, east to the north line of the section and about one-fourth mile west of the northeast corner, and second, the present public road as it climbs around and up the hill by the old James M. Shepherd (now owned by T. J. Trapp) place, about one-fourth mile north of Warrensburg on the Lexington road, and we who now whirl over these bits of road are today following the path of the red man for no telling how many centuries before us.

Another Indian trail was the Sliawnee Indian trail in tbe southwest part of the county, and is described in the Johnson county history of 1881. Shawnee mound in Henry county was one of the favorite Indian resting places. From this mound the trail passed by the old residence of

Wilson D. Carpenter in Chilhowee township and thence northwest through Rose Hill township to Center Knob near Kingsville. The old Clinton and Independence road followed this trail, and for many years those who traveled it shared the hospitality of Wilson D. Carpenter.

Early Roads. - Before there was any permanent settlement within the present borders of Johnson county, there was a recognized line of travel across the county from east to west although there was very little regular travel over this road as the line of main travel was farther north, along the river. (This north road extended from Old Franklin to Santa Fe, New Mexico, and was known as the Santa Fe trail, and is well marked out today.) J_333JLJ25

The first main-traveled roads connected the frontier settlements of Johnson county with the nearest trading points, grist mills and other places where the settlers made infrequent but necessary trips. At that time, of course, the section lines were not laid out and these roads were trails directly across the country following the straightest and easiest lines.

First Public Roads. - The first public road established by law in the county was that running northwest "from Warrensburg to the Independence road." To us who are familiar with the square turns and the description of our roads by sectional lines, the order of court establishing this early road presents an interesting contrast. This is the order verbatim :

Jester Cocke, Joseph Cockrell, viewers appointed to lay out a road from Warrensburg in a Direction to Independence. The aforesaid viewers having been appointed at the October term of this court and having failed to make report at the last term of the court now comes at this day and makes the following report, to-wit : Beginning at Warrensburg, running down the ridge with the same road that now runs down. Crossing Post Oak at the upper crossing thence through the bottom running up a Point between a little lake and Post Oak, thence crossing Devil branch at same bottom woods, thence through the Perrari leaving the high point of Perrari East of Jack Houxes to the left thence Crossing Black Water below Wade's mill, thence the direct road to Jester Cocke, thence the direct road leading to Thomas Windsor's so far as to the divide leading by the right hand corner of McMin's field, thence

Joseph Cockrell, Jester Cocke, Viewers, which report being seen and examined by the court and approved of. Therefore, it is ordered that the said view as marked and laid out be opened twenty feet wide, cleaned of limbs and trees and be bridged as the law directs and from thenceforth be a public highway." (Book A, page 15.)

At the same time two other roads were located, one from Honey Creek to Independence and the other from W'arrensburg to Blackwater town (about a mile south of Columbus). (See book A, December 13, 1836.)

The following are other early roads in the county: In 1836 there were three recognized highways leading from Warrensburg, one ran north to Lexington (following the Indian trail): another one south to Clinton, the county seat of Henry county, and the third to Jonesboro by way of Gallaher's mill.

An early public road running east and west was established from Warrensburg to BlufT Spring in Kingsville township. Henry Colbern. the saddler, father of George Colbern, the early banker, traveled this road to Benjamin Longacre's tanyard. This road was discontinued in 1856.

An old road, located about 1852. ran from Knob Noster to Independence through Grover and Simpson townships crossing Blackwater at the old Davis, or Kirkpatrick mill near what is now Valley City.

Stage Coaches. - One of the principal highways that became what was known as stage routes in the early days when the mail was carried by that means was the Georgetown-Lexington road. A mail route was established on this road in 1857. It ran through the northeastern corner of the county and served Bee Branch postoffice or what was later known as Dunksburg. The Jefferson City-Independence road was another recognized stage line. Stage lines also ran from Warrensburg to Lexington and from Warrensburg to Clinton. The regular schedule trips of the stage coach over these lines varied from daily to weekly. As the country through which these lines passed became more thickly settled the frequency of the regular mail delivery was increased.

Johnson county depended altogether upon the stage coach for its mail delivery prior to the Civil War. .'Knd. even after the Pacific Railroad was built in 1865. many parts of the county continued to re- ceive their mail through the medium of the old stage coach. But with the building of other railroads, after the completion of the Pacific, and the introduction of the rural delivery, the stage coach as a star route performer made its final bow and disappeared.

Road Development. - Systematic improvement of the public roads of tlie county began some time after the Civil War. These improvements were of five distinct classes: First, leveling and widening; second, straightening and squaring: third, steel bridges: fourth, concrete culverts : and fifth, "county" grades.

1. The cutting down of the hills and filling of the hollows was the first step in regular road impro\-ements. It has been going on steadily all the time, and today more than ever. Hills that the writer knew as famous long, steep pulls are today merely gentle inclines.

2. As the land became more cultivated the owners natttrally did not care to have their fields cut up by roads streaking across them. This has resulted in the roads gradually being put on the lines of the sections or subdivisions, and has put them in straight lines. It has also resulted, however, in making them considerably longer. And the loss entailed on a whole communit_\- traveling around these corners, instead of in a diagonal road, has imdoubtedly been a great deal, and will increase as travel increases. Toda}-. of the old roads that ran the nearest and best way. there is only one of any length left in the county. This is the road from the old Masonic hall in Chilhowee township northeast to Warrensburg. for a distance of about five to six miles. It follows the watershed betw'een the two main branches of Post Oak creek and has good natural advantages of shortness and grade. A shorter road of the same character runs south from Montserrat along Bristle ridge.

3. Steel bridges have been gradually put in over the larger streams ever since the reconstruction period following the war. Today these, wherever feasible, have concrete floors. Today there are 583 steel bridges in the county. (See report of County Engineer McGuire following for full details.)

4. The history of the concrete culverts and "county road grades" in Johnson county is given in the following extracts from the report of February 1, 1917. of David Mohler. on his retirement from eight years ser\-ice as county engineer:

"W. A. Stephens was presiding judge of the cotmty court, and R. H. Wood and ^^^ B. Pemberton. associate judges, and J. R. Grinstead, county clerk. These men began to look around to see if the road and bridge conditions could not be improved. * * * The question of building concrete culverts was introduced by Judge Stephens and was soon put into effect by ordering the engineer to build four-foot concrete culverts in order to ascertain their cost in a practical way. Finding the price was reasonable and the culverts good they let a contract for sixty four-foot culverts to be built in the year 1908. In the next eight years they built 896 concrete culverts equally distributed throughout the county.

"In 1911, the question of building what were named county grades was taken up by the court. The members were Presiding Judge Tracy, B. F. Summers and D. L. Day, associate judges, with J. R. Grinstead as county clerk. A plan was formulated to build sixty miles per year for five years, and to distribute the work over the main roads of the county. This part of the agreement is now finished and we have three hundred miles of county grades.

"Five years ago the county court did for this county what the state is now taking up, under the Hawes bill (a system of roads for the state). No project can be successfully carried out without a definite system, and I attribute our marked success to having a definite system and impartially following it up."

Roads Today. - The best description of road conditions today is found in the following specific and complete report made by County Engineer Joseph F. McGuire, at the end of 1917.

Road Conditions in General. - Road work in a general way has progressed nicely. The greater portion of our mileage has been graded, culverts kept in repair and in certain localities, bad stretches have been thoroughly worked that had not been worked for years.

Road Improvements. - There were forty-five road improvements in 1917. where citizens of a neighborhood deposited with the county treasurer $50 or more and the court added $50 to improve a mile or more of road.

County Grades. - There \\ere built within the year forty-five miles of county grade, which gives us 345 miles of this class of road, and one more year's work will finish up the total number of miles outlined some five years ago by our county court. When completed, no farmer or taxpayer need live farther than three miles from one of these special grades.

roads in the county, as has been located by the Inter-countyseat Road Board. These roads have been kept well dragged under their management by funds appropriated by the state.

Concrete Culverts. - There were built in 1917, 112 concrete culverts, eighty-two of which are three or four-foot openings and twenty feet long, five-foot wing walls and concrete floors, arch top ; twenty-four are from twelve to sixteen feet, flat top, with fourteen-foot roadway, five-foot wing walls; six are two-foot openings, twenty feet long, with flat top and wing walls. We also built eleven retaining walls and repair jobs. W'e now have 997 concrete culverts equally distributed throughout the county.

Steel Bridges. - In the year 1917 there were built sixteen steel bridges; all have concrete abutments and concrete floors, with fourteenfoot roadways. There are now 583 steel bridges in the county, of which 281 have wood floors and wood backing; 122 have concrete abutments, with wood floors; 123 have concrete abutments and concrete floors; thirty-three are on tubes and twenty-four on stone abutments.

County Bridges Refloored. - There were in the year 1917 fourteen bridges (spans ranging in length from eighteen feet up to fifty feet) refloored with wooden floors; also one thirty-six-foot span (wooden floor) replaced with concrete floor.

Johnson county's general road system is undoubtedly one of the best in the state. It has not yet decided the next step it shall take. Rock, oiled and other roads are being considered. Whatever is selected will probably be carried on in the same systematic way as heretofore.

The forty road overseers have 1,494 miles of roads to take care of and do their work with forty-nine graders, thirty-eight plows, ninetythree scrapers, seven wheelers, twenty-five spades and shovels, thirtynine picks and mattocks, thirteen crow bars, eleven axes, thirty chains and many other tools that are furnished by the overseers and their people. In many of the rural districts the amount of donated work equaled or surpassed the amount set aside by the court for the dift'erent districts.