Coal Township

Coal Township

Coal township comprises all of congressional township No. 35, range 33, and its western boundary line is a portion of that of the state and county.

The Marmaton cuts the northwestern and northeastern cor¬ ners of the township; Moore's Branch flows from west to east along the southern tier of sections and empties into Big Drywood, which runs from south to north through the eastern portion, leaving it a little more than two miles from the northern line. Sprague's branch and numerous other small streams furnish an abundant running water supply.

By far the greater portion of the township is prairie. The only timbered tracts are those which fringe the larger streams. Away from the bottoms the soil is generally loamy and very fertile. There are a few elevated ridges or truncated mounds in the western parts, where there is some stone. On the northwest quarter of section 14 is an excellent quality of potter's clay, largely used by the Deerfield pottery.

Coal

The township takes its name from the great abundance of this mineral within its boundaries. It underlies every section and can be obtained almost everywhere by light stripping. So far as it has been developed most extensively it exists north and south of Clayton; on section 17, on section 20, where the vein is from eighteen to twenty inches; on sections 18 and 19, along the Kansas line, where it is from twelve to sixteen inches; and in the vicinity of those localities. At every point the coal is found at but a trifling depth from the surface.

First Settlements

The first American settlements in Coal township were made in the southern part along Moore's branch. Smith Profitt was the first settler. In the spring of 1838 he came to the country with Kinchin Gammons and built a cabin on the south side of Moore's branch, on the southeast quarter of section 34. A year or two later his brother, Judge William Profitt, and William Horner, a son-in-law of the .judge, came to Moore's branch, to the westward a mile or so. Judge Profitt located on the north side of the branch, on the south side of section 28 and the north side of section 33. Horner was on the west side of 34. The Profitts and Horner w*ere all from Tennessee.

Judge William Profitt was a prominent citizen in early days. He owned slaves, farmed extensively and was elected one of the first county judges of Bates county in 1841 ; Col. George Douglass and George Manship were the two others. He died on his farm about 1850. William Horner sold out to J. B. Logan, in 1856, and went to California.

A man named Reed settled on section 32, a mile or more west of Judge Profitt 's, in and about 1844. In a year or two he sold to John Linn. John Linn was a native of North Carolina, but came from Barren county, Kentucky, to Vernon county, locating at first on Chouteau's place, near Deerfield.

The prairie portions of the township were not occupied until after the close of the Civil War. The general objection to that character of soil was coupled with the scarcity of timber on its surface, but the latter difficulty was in great part overcome by the discovery of coal in such large quantities so near the surface. The building of the railroad was of great advantage to the thor¬ ough settlement of Coal township.

The first settlers cultivated the borders of the prairies next the timber and did not clear off much timber. They raised good crops, too, without much difficulty. The greatest trouble encoun¬ tered was the prairie fires. Every farmer surrounded his fields with a belt of plowed ground in the fall of the year, but often . the fire was so large and fierce that men, women and children all turned out to fight it and to burn against it.

It was in the northeast corner of this township, on the Marmaton, where the storehouse of Edward and Charley Chouteau was located in early days. Old Henry Heriforcl, too, had a store in the western part of this township, near the line, in pioneer times, and was a well-known citizen of the county for many years.

Although the first settlements in this township were made along Moore's branch, it is impossible to state how that stream derived its name. Presumably, in the long ago a man named Moore settled on its banks, but doubtless not in Missouri ; no settler of that name is remembered as having ever lived in this quarter. The stream was called Moore's branch when the first settlers came, and, perhaps, he for whom it was named lived on its head waters over in Kansas.

A tragedy of early days in this quarter was the assassination of Samuel Lambert, who lived on Dry wood, near the ford that yet bears his name. Mr. Lambert was returning to his house and was shot as he was entering the dooryard. The ball struck him in the back, at the crossing of his suspenders, and was evi¬ dently fired by an expert marksman in ambush. So mysterious was the affair that one of his sons was at last thought by some to be the guilty party, but nothing could be proven against him, and he was doubtless unjustly accused. The real perpetrator was never discovered. The assassination occurred about the year 1850.

ship had a memorable experience. The battle of Drywood or Hogan's Crossing was concluded on section 13 in this township, and from that time until peace was made the prairies were hoofbeaten by the continued trampling of Federal and Confederate raiders.

October 27, 1864, the day when General Price's defeated legions retreated through this county, hundreds of the Confed¬ erates passed through the eastern portion of the township in the greatest distress and demoralization. Hungry and fatigued and half delirious from loss of sleep and expecting every mo¬ ment that the Federals would fall upon them, the poor fugitives were scarcely conscious of what they did. The prairie for two miles west of the Drywood was strewn with guns, pistols, broken down wagons, sore-backed and wornout horses and mules, and other debris of the wrecked and shattered army.

In their bewilderment some of the men, in trying to find the Lambert ford over Drywood, went two or three miles south of Moore's branch, then turned and coming north, by painful and harassing marches, made up the distance they had lost. In pass¬ ing where the Logan selioolhouse stands, these men abandoned much plunder. Passing the house of Mrs. Mary Logan, as that lady related, the famished soldiers begged from her almost the last morsel of food she possessed.

One old soldier, from Benton county, Arkansas, sank down in Mrs. Logan's dooryard, sick, starving and exhausted. In a few hours he died on her doorstep. His body was buried, uncoffined, by two old men and a few women of the neighborhood in the old Profitt graveyard. Months afterward the skeleton of a young man, with a rusty pistol belted about the waist, and clad in gray, was found in the Drywood timber. The fleshless fingers of one hand were still grasping a dry and withered bunch of wild grapes. It was not certain, but it was believed that this man, too, died of fatigue and starvation.

The Village Of Eve

The village of Eve, formerly Clayton station, at the junction of the M., K. & T. R. R. and the Kansas Southern railroad, has a population of about 100, some shipping and merchandising, and is a thrifty and progressive community.

The Christian Church. The organization of this church was effected February 28, 1877, with the following among the original members : M. E. Cox, J. N. Bridges, Maggie Bridges, S. S. Dunn, Lerrilda Dunn, J. P. Hale, Mary Hale, Amos Huddleton, A. J. Emerson, S. P. Simms and Mrs. M. E. Simms. A church build¬ ing, a frame structure, was erected in 1884 at a cost of about $1,501.29. The first officers were J. P. Hale, John Nanson, H. J. Emerson and J. Bridges. The church enjoys a fair degree of prosperity.

Bethel M. E. Church. In 1876 a church edifice was erected on section 20 at a cost of $2,200, and dedicated the Bethel M. E. church. Through the kindness and active help of some of its members the actual cost was greatly reduced. Among the origi¬ nal members of this organization may be mentioned B. Bradley and wife, John C. Bradley and wife, Theophilus Rimbey and wife, H. T. Woods and wife, Frank Couch and wife, Philip Hud¬ son and wife, J. G. Witt and wife, Susan Mosher, - Thompson,

The coal in Dover township is abundant in the southern part. At Bellamy the mining, in times past, has been extensive. The want of a railroad running through prevents the development of the coal fields of this township.

The First Settlers

The first settlers of this township came in about 1842, in which year a man named Britton settled on the northeast quarter of section 7, north of the branch. He was from Greene county directly. On his death here, which occurred about 1844, his farm was sold to Charles Massey. About the same time Stephen "Wilson located on Clear creek, near the Collins bridge (lot 9, northwest quarter section 2), and a little east of him Andy Sharp came soon after. Wilson was a one-armed man, and a school teacher. He had a wife, but no children, and the couple died many years ago.

John Prior and John Branson came from Gasconade county to this township in 1843. Prior settled first on the northeast quarter section 19, but in a short time located at the spring near Warwick P. 0., section 20. Branson lived on the southeast quar¬ ter section 19, across Little Clear creek, on the south side, from Prior's first location. Branson set out the old orchard from slips brought from the Harmony mission.

In 1844 Peter Welch took a claim in the northeastern part of the township on lot 2 or 3, northwest quarter section 2 - and removed from Cass county. Isaac Lemmons settled on the site of Warwick postoffice, but in a few years sold his claim and moved over on Little Drywood, in the northeastern part of Moundville township. The same year Nathan Jarrell came from Pulaski county and settled in the northwestern part of the town¬ ship, on lot 6, northeast quarter section 5.

On the 7th of April the families of Thomas Capeheart, Daniel Prior, and Mrs. Tabitha Frazier landed at the spring near War¬ wick, where John Prior was then living, and soon after found

The same spring - 1845 - Nathan Creek came to lots 1, 2, 3 and 4, northeast quarter section 2, and bought a claim of his brother-in-law, Peter Welch, who had come the previous year. He was a Kentuckian, but came to Vernon directly from Cass county. He stated that AVelch did not make the first improve¬ ment on his claim, but that there was a deserted cabin standing there in 1844, when he (Welch) came. . Who built this cabin cannot now even be conjectured. Mr. Creek was a stonemason, and did nearly all the stone work in this neighborhood in early days. He was employed at Fort Scott when the Mexican war broke out.

In 1844 Samuel Dunnagin settled in Dunnagin's Grove (sec¬ tion 25), in the southeastern part of the township. His house stood in the northeastern part of the section, within 200 yards of where the church building now stands. Here he died in the

Daniel Prior was on section 16, about a mile west of Riley, and had been there long enough to have a bearing orchard. South of Prior, on the same section, was John Woodward. Jesse Mattox lived in the center of section 22, having come in the previous fall from Monroe county. Calvin Goss, a son-in-law of Morris Baker, had recently came to the site of Warwick postoffice.

Zach and David Williamson were on Little Clear creek, on section 19. Joe Frazier and Tom Massey were on the east side of Clear creek, below the forks, on section 4, and a little farther down was Abram Woodall. A. J. Phillips was on the west side of Clear creek, in the northeastern part of the township.

Wm. McCoy lived south of Riley; he was killed during the war by Joe Phillips, who accused him of wrongful interference in his domestic affairs. Joe and George Abbott lived on Clear creek, on the west side of section 28 or the east side of section 29, south of where the Baptist church now stands. William Curry lived north of the Abbotts.

Tragedies Of The Civil War

The killing- of the seven bushwhackers at the Gabbert place, in this township, in May, 1863, is detailed elsewhere. The Gab¬ bert house was burned at the same time.

There were a number of other tragedies and burnings in this township during the war. In every instance reported the Con¬ federates and their friends were the victims. Probably this was because there were no Union men of the unconditional stripe in the township to kill or burn out. The Mayfield family, including Brice and Crawford, lived in section 14 of this township.

Among those tragedies may be mentioned the killing of Shelby Jarboe, who lived on Little Clear creek, a mile north of Warwick. Jarboe was of Confederate sympathies, but had never taken up arms. He was husking corn in his field early one morning, when some Kansas troops came riding by, on a scout through the country. On their approach Jarboe, fearing they might harm him, ran and concealed himself in a shock of corn. The soldiers saw him, thought he was a bushwhacker, called to him to come out, and when he did not do so fired into the corn shock at a venture and shot him through. They declared afterward that they would not have harmed him if he had not acted so sus¬ piciously.

George and Lafayette Prior were killed at their home on Clear creek, in section 16, by a detachment of Federals under Lieutenant Pond, of the Third V isconsin. Both were young men. George had been for a time in the Confederate army, but harmless, although the Federals said they were bushwhackers. Lieutenant Pond rode over to Elias Riley's and ordered him to bury the Prior boys, which he did.

In March, 1861, the Kansas troops burned Jo Frazier's house on Clear creek on the lower part of section 4; he moved his family into another house near Warwick, and in July, 1863, the Kansans came back and burned it also. Not only were the corn fields and smoke-houses of the "rebels" levied upon by the Federal troops, but even the professed Union men were visited by the foraging parties. On one occasion Capt. L. J. Shaw, of the Third Wisconsin, stationed at the Lambert ford on Drywood, came and took 1,000 pounds of bacon for his men and seven tons of hay for their horses from Elias Riley, who at other times was fed on and plundered by the bushwhackers.

Often the Federals and rebel scouting parties came together in this township. The Clear creek timbers abounded in coverts and' lairs for the bushwhackers, and often the "Feds." ran on them. In June, 1863, Joe Frazier and half a dozen other rebel partisans were encamped on Little Clear creek, a mile or more northwest of Warwick. They were washing in the creek, when a scouting band of Kansas troops crept up and leaped upon them, scatter¬ ing them in all directions. Philip Brown was killed.

South of Joe Frazier's, on Clear creek, Will Kelly, another bushwhacker, died fighting. He and Tom Moore had started to Ft. Scott on a matter of business. Half a mile out on the prairie they met ten Federals and turned and fled. The soldiers chased them into the brush and an overhanging limb knocked Kelly from his saddle. The Federals said he disdained to surrender. Emptying his revolvers he threw them at his pursuers and died like a Spartan. "We hated to kill him, he died so game," said the leader of the Federals.

Bellamy City

The town of Bellamy City was laid out by Thomas Bellamy, in September, 1882. It stands on the northeast quarter of section 23, Dover township, on a high prairie, in a most beautiful loca*

Dover Cemetery. On section 21, was regularly laid out in 1866, by an association of citizens. The site is to be used "for¬ ever'' as a cemeter}''. It is an old burial ground; interments were made here as early as in 1850.

M. M. Me Grew and wife, F. M. McGrew and wife, E. D. Owen and wife, Henry Owen and wife, C. Collins and wife, and two daughters, John Owen, Jennie Owen, J. James and wife, J. De Villiers and wife, Fannie Wilson, D. Job and wife, Mrs. R. Doyle and daughter, and Jeptha Rauthbun and wife.

Olive Branch Baptist Church. Was organized soon after the war with C. D. Smith and wife, H. L. Williams and wife and G. Drummond and wife among other constituent members. Wor¬ ship was conducted in a school house until 1884, when a neat frame building, costing about $700, was erected.

Dunnagin's Grove Christian Church. To Elder Wallace, well known in this community, is due much of the credit for the suc¬ cess of the organization of this church, which was started June 3, 1877. The first members were, as far as remembered, C. D. Lindsey, E. Riley and wife, J. W. Keithly and wife, H. C. Wallace, who was also the first elder ; E. W. Smith and L. Batts and wife.