Jordan Township

Jordan Township

This is a trading point started in 1904 by the building of a steam flouring mill. The main promoter being George W. Jordan, of Drakeville, Iowa, who was assisted by George T. Pulliam and W. P. Clifford, of Appanoose County, Iowa. Mr. Jordan came here in 1904 and he with his associates in Iowa, formed a joint stock company with $5,000 or 50 shares of $100 each. The members of the joint stock company who subscribed and lived in the neighborhood of the projected mill were: James C. Stark, Thomas L. Stark, Alfred Stark, James M. Stark, Obediah Driskill, Thomas Driskill, Marion Driskill, Clement S. Ashley, Henry Ashley, Charles Ashley, William Owsley, Elijah Owsley, David M. Gates, Charles Astrom, Claus Nelson, Ole Oleson, John Johnson, Thomas S. Hall, and Fritz Muller. It is situate near Stark creek near the Southeast corner of Section 20, and the Southwest corner of Section 21, Township 38, Range 20, about five miles directly East of Cross Timbers. At this time the mill is owned and operated by James M. Stark and George W. Huffman, and they manufacture flour, meal and chops, buy corn and wheat, cattle, hogs and horses and are doing a prosperous business.

There are two General stores, one kept by J. J. Bradbury and the other by WiUiam H. Ashley, and both are doing a nice and profitable business.

This is a trading point and Post Office, seven miles Southeast of Hermitage on the Hermitage and Buffalo road, at the crossing of the Warsaw and BoUvar raod. A good district school house was built near the cross roads in 1888, and a good roomy church building was built by the Baptist people in 1892. A blacksmith shop was built there several years ago, but we have been unable to get the date. The first store was run by Thomas Bridges in 1896. He sold goods for quite a while and sold out to Charles Parker, who in turn sold to James A. Bush. Mr. Bush gave place to Allen M. Huckaby, the present County Treasurer, and was followed by J. W. Hooper and G. M. Dryer. Mr. Dryer sold his interest to Mr. Hooper, and last year Mr. Hooper sold to John T. Ferguson, a former County Treasurer of this county who is now in business.

This place was no doubt named Pittsburg because a number of the Pitts family settled near it before the county was organized. It is situated on the corners of four forty acre tracts of land, to-wit: Southeast corner of Southeast fourth of the Southeast quarter of Section 25, and Northeast corner Northeast fourth of the Northeast quarter Section 36, Town- ship 36, Range 22, and on the Southwest corner of the South half Lot 2, of Southwest quarter of Section 30, (S. W. 1-4 S. W. qr.) and on the Northwest corner of the North half of Lot 2, Northwest quarter of Section 31, (N. W. 1-4 N. W. qr.) Township 36, Range 21.

The first man who sold goods there was Charles F. Friend, and he kept his store in a small log house that he built near where the East end of the Creed hotel now stands. He was there until after 1846, for he was appointed Justice of the Peace of that Township in 1846. A more substantial store building was built by John L. Hall a short distance North of where Friend's building stood, probably as early as 1844. John L. Hall was afterwards elected Judge of the County Court of this county and was later a wholesale merchant in Sedalia, Mo. Andrew J. Pitts came to the cieighborhood in 1845, with the family of his father, Burrell Pitts, from the state of Mississippi, near Vicksburg. Dillard Pitts and Young Mims Pitts, sons of Jack Pitts had been there four or five years. Lewis Edwards then lived on the high hill South of Pittsburg and Charles lived in the log house mentioned and sold goods in one room of it. William M. Dorman had made settlement and lived near a spring on what is now the Joseph Davis farm a little Northwest of town. A man by the name of Beavers lived about a quarter of a mile West of where the business part of the town now is. The first school house in the neighborhood was South of the road at the John Jump old place about a mile South of where the town now is. Isaac Goodson was there in business in the 40's. Jonas Brown lived about two miles North of where the town is and had at that time the following children: William Brown, Preston Brown, James Milton Brown, Josiah Brown, Columbus (Muns) Brown, Sarrah Ann Brown, who married a man named Foster, and went to Wet Glaize in Camden County, Mo., and Jane Brown, who was the first wife of Michael W. Dorman. Williamson E. Dorman had a small log building there in which he kept what was then called a "Grocery," the principal goods kept being sugar, coffee, spice and pepper, and white whiskey. When the excitement arose about the county seat going to be located at Hermitage in 1846, Mr. Dorman hauled his house, store and all to Hermitage, and after clearing away the post oak brush where the residence of Mrs. Nannie F. Blair now stands in Hermitage, rebuilt his house and run his Grocery store. The store building built by Mr. Hall was repaired and added to and used perhaps as late as 1880. Ben L. Mallonee, now the leading merchant of the town, and his brother, Leonard G. Mallonee, now of St. Louis, Mo., sold goods in the Hall old building, in 1867-68, Ben L. Mallonee continued this business later. Edward J. Kendall was in business in the house at that place in the early 70's. John T. Ferguson, now a merchant at Nemo, was there in business in 1878. William H. Houser did business there later. Judge Ben L. Mallonee erected a new store building North and West of where the Hall building stood about 1889, and again went into the mercantile business; has since built a new and better building and is still in business.

In 1866 and later Abel Benson run a blacksmith shop on the East side of the road North of the business part of the town about where the public road now crosses a little branch and bridge. He lived in that neighborhood as early as 1852. The largest and most convenient building to strike in 1870, and for several years thereafter, when a man was hungry, was a three or four room building, one story, situated about where the building stood where Charles Friend kept the first store near where the Creed hotel now stands.

The zinc mining business in the town and around it which sprung up in 1894 gave the town a boom, but owing to the (fistance that mineral must be hauled over rough roads with no bridges between there and the nearest point on the railroad work has almost been entirely abandoned. A hotel building was built a number of years ago, but was destroyed by fire in 1901. A new hotel was built by John Lightfoot in 1900, and is now kept by Herschel Creed. A steam flouring mill was built in 1894 by J. M. Gourley and William H. Houser and has been repaired and improved and is now owned and operated by John Hobson. The public school house is near a quarter of a mile away to the Northwest of town and was built about 1881. In 1894 several of the good citizens of the town and vicinity formed a stock company and built a nice, large, two story frame building in the East part of the town to be used for religious and other meetings, and society meetings. The first story now belongs to the M. E. church. South and the second story to the M. W. of A.

Pittsburg Camp M. W. of A. No. 4635, was organized June 7, 1898, with 18 charter members and officers as follows: Joseph W. Jones, V. C, William A. Lightfoot, W. A., Len G. Mallonee, E. B., Darius S. Coon, Clerk, Wesley Q. Freman, Escort, Judge F.

J. E. Harvey'S Business Building Len G. Mallonee

Samples, Watchman, William A. Ellison, Sentry, Dr. B. F. Cox, Physician. The present officers are: E. D. Simmons, V. C, R. F. Condley, W. A.. S. K. King, E. B., J. L. Bastion, Clerk, Lonnie J. King. Escort, Len G. Mallonee, C. F., J. M. Martin, Watchman, James Floyd Sentry.

Some of the resident Physicians have been: B. F. Barnes, William C. Gentry, Jasper MiUikan, George W. Pack, B. F. Cox, S. W. Igou, and Thomas D. Wrinkle.

The town survey of this town is situated on the Southeast fourth of the Northeast quarter of Section 22, and the Southwest fourth of the Northwest quarter of Section 23, Township 37, Range 21, it is about 18 feet over five miles and one eighth of a mile East of Hermitage, the South line being with the North line of the town of Hermitage. The main street in the town running North is on the line between Section 22 and 23. The east side was entered by Richard I. Robertson, February 20, 1855, and on the West side of the street by Joshua Owen, December 7, 1849, but Silas C. Howard was the owner in 1857. On the 8th of December 1857, Silas C. Howard and Richard I. Robertson caused the town to be surveyed and platted by Daniel E. Davis, Deputy County Surveyor, under Benjamin H. Massey. It was laid out into eight blocks, block eight being designated church lot, and block 7, was not divided into lots. Blocks 7 and 8 are 211 1-3 feet square. The deed to the public for streets etc., was made January 21, 1858, and was acknowledged before Amasa Curtis J. P. Silas C. Howard was the first man to put in a store, and he and Richard I. Robertson were in business there before the town was surveyed and afterwards up to the Civil War. Robertson & Staten did business together and Trentham also did business there. In 1860 William R. Rains who was afterwards Second Lieut, in Co., "B" 8th Mo. S. M., had a wood shop there. By 1861, the town had grown to be an important business point, but at the commencement of the Civil War nearly all of its inhabitants sympathized with the Confederacy and went South, so that the town was almost deserted in 1862. Early in 1861, the people of the town and that section of the county became greatly excited about the issues of the Civil War. John Mabary, an Ex- Sheriff and Collector, and a highly respected citizen, with the assistance of others, enlisted a Company of State Guards, at the instance of Claiborne F. Jackson, then. Governor of the State, and in a very short time Union men became so stirred up that Lycurgus Lindsey, Thomas S. Morgan, Aaron Darby, William H. Liggett, then a young school teacher, and others raised Company "D" Osage Regiment Missouri Home Guards, under an order of General Nathaniel Lyon, who was then in command of the Federal troops in the state, and, who was killed in the battle of Wilson Creek, August 10, 186L Lycurgus Lindsey was Captain of Company "D" and Aaron Darby was a Lieutenant. After serving six months most of these men v/ent into the service of the United States for three years. Captain Mabary died in 1863. Some of his men went South and were in General Sterling Price's army; some of them quit the service after a short time, and came home, or went elsewhere; some, even, went into the Federal army later. Richard I. Robertson lived North of town about where Wash F. Reser's residence now stands. His residence and all the business houses and other buildings in town were burned during the war, except a little frame building that stood near where Thomas W. Stewart's residence now stands; a small log building on Block 7, and the double log buildings that were burned a few years ago where Alfred Lindsey's hotel now stands. In 1865, Benjamin A. Reeder, who had been Captain of Company "I" 8th M. S. M.. sold goods in the double log buildings, and in 1866, Alfred Lindsey and his brother, Anthony W. Lindsey, brought their store there from Buffalo, and continued in business in these log buildings until Anthony W. Lindsey bought the farm where Theodore Lindsey now lives East and Northeast of the Fisher cemetery and moved to it, and Alfred Lindsey built the present Post Office building and continued in business until about 1896. Since that time Joseph Edde, Wash F. Reser, Samuel P. Inks, William J. Edde, Sr., A. H. Crouch, T. H. Camp, Edde & Lewis, George W. Inks, Hulett Shumate, William J. Edde, Jr., James R. Marsh, S. P. Gregory, and others have done business there. The leading business men of the town are: George W. Inks, Winer D. Reser, Thomas Reser, Anthony W. Bowcher, and A. E. Tiderman, blacksmith shop, woo'd work shop and flouring mill. The blacksmiths have been: Newberry Hobbs, Joel Hobbs, Martin Hobbs, Theodore C. Piper, John B. Cross, Thomas Humphrey, Calvin Cook, George G. Cook, D. W. Hartnett, and A. E. Tiderman. In 1866-67, an old hewn log school house stood about 200 yards above the mill, but was probably never used after 1866. A frame school house was erected on the present school house ground, probably about 1877. The bond given by T. C. Piper for deed for the lot to the school district was dated in 1876, but no title to the lot was had until it was decreed by the Circuit court in 1883. The old school house was removed and the present school house built, probably in 1895. The church on Block 8, was built in 1873, for a Union church, but those of the Baptist persuasion, perhaps, took more interest in the building of it than any other denomination. Members of the Masonic order built the second story, but the order never got title to the property. The Methodist Protestant church, East of town, was built in 1899, for the use of the Methodist Protestant church by members of that church; many others not members of that church contributed liberally. That division of Methodism has a large following in the town and neighborhood.

The steam flouring mill, about 80 rods South of the town, was built by James A. Blakebill about 1891, and, although it has changed hands several times it has always done a good tusiness. It now belongs to A. E. Tiderman, who hammered out enough money to buy it in his blacksmith shop in town, and the chief miller is James A. Brakebill, a son of Judge James A. Brakebill, who built the mill.

In 1881, Preston Lodge No. 432, A. F. & A. M. was organized in the hall in the second story of the old church, with the following officers: T. C. Piper, W. M., Achilles Morgan, Sr. W., George W. Lindsey, Jr. W., R. G. Pendleton, Secretary, and John B. Cross, Treasurer. Some of the other members were: William J. Mabary, Rufus B. Green, and George W. Rains. Sometime after 1889, the organization was broken up and the members went to other lodges.

Preston Lodge No. 131, 1. 0. 0. F. was organized about July 1, 1888, with George W. Pack, N. G., H. M. Holt, V. G., A. H. Crouch, Secretary and Conductor, Thomas W. Stewart, Treasurer, George G. Cook, Warden. The present elective officers are: Ellery Walker, N. G., Waiter Robertson, V. G., Winer D. Reser, F. Sec, W. S. Woodford, R. Sec, Thomas W. Stewart, Treasurer. Some of the P. G's., are: WiUiam L. Wilson, H. M. Holt, Walter R. Brewster, Byron Ferguson, Thomas Stephenson, James H. Holt, and D. W. Hartnett.

September 1901, with the following officers: L. E. Giffin, V. C, Asa B. Wilson, W. A., James H. Holt, E. B., D. W. Hartnett. Escort, Ernest P. Stewart, Clerk, Byron Ferguson, Physician. The present officers are: Ernest P. Stewart, V. C, George W. Wilson, W. A., Theodore Lindsey, E. B., James H. Holt, Escort, James M. Robertson, Clerk, W. S. W^oodford, Physician.

The following Physicians have been residents of the town: Richard I. Robertson, Justice F. Powers, Alfred E. Ruby, A. H, Crouch, George W. Pack, George S. Millikan, Byron Ferguson, Thomas Reser, and William S. Woodford.

The land on which this town is situated was entered by Isaac M. Cruce, October 11, 1843, but the place was settled ten years or more before that time. William Kirkpatrick entered the West half of the Northwest quarter of Section 32, Township 38, Range 23. January 6, 1843, which Ues less than a quarter of a mile West of the town. Gladis Nowell and Ephraim Jamison entered tracts North and Northwest of town in Sections 19, 29, and 30, as early as May 1842. James Atkisson and Ira E. Tillford entered land Northeast of town in Section 15, December 30, 1843. The place before it was surveyed and platted went by the name of "Judy's Gap," because Samuel Judy had set up a blacksmith shop there, and operated it for several years and there was a gap or opening near this point between Hogle's creek prairie and twenty-five mile prairie. Mortimore Payne succeeded Judy, and about that time Aaron Ripetoe put up a country store and secured the appointment as Postmaster. He was, no doubt, the first Postmaster within what is now Hickory county. He kept his store and Post Office for several years, and in 1843 John Hunter succeeded him in business and did quite a prosperous business until some time after 1852. He was there in 1852, and received a deed from Isaac M. Cruce dated May 8, 1852, conveying Lots 7 and 8, in Block 1, to him as Trustee for the School district for school house and church purposes. There was a man in partnership with Hunter or in business there alone by the name of Armstrong. The town was evidently surveyed and platted at the instance of Isaac M. Cruce, in 1848, as he owned the land at that time. The deed to the first lot sold was made by Isaac M. Gruce and wife to Murry, dated February 3, 1849.

The date of the survey of the town cannot be given, because the Deed Record containing the plat and Surveyor's certificate was burned in the Court House fire January 6, 1881. Mr. Hunter sold out his business to Whitlow & Miller, who carried on a successful business until 1861. In the meantime William Eastwood run a stage line on the "Old Military" road. Charles Madden and George McGowan run a saloon, and Wm. Bird had a stock of drugs and groceries, and old man Raymond put up the first mill; an old fashioned tread wheel mill. John McDowell also had a carding machine run on the same plan. Then that destructive Civil War came up, and put a stop to business, and most of the citizens of the town and surrounding country, went into the Union army or went South, and the town was almost vacated. About 1863, James H. Raymond was discharged from the army to take charge of the Post Office, and he came home and run a little store, and it was robbed when Captain Rafter, a guerilla officer, was killed here, and John T. Thomas killed and William B. Charlton and Thomas Wilson seriously wounded* Until the war was over a number of persons run "dives" and small business here. After the close of the war William Thomas and Dr. William S. Swicegood, set up and run a general store, and Bennett Wellman and a Mr. StJohn run stores for a while. After this William Flesher run a general store here. A steam saw and grist mill was built on the creek half a mile West of town, but was sold out and moved to the East side of the county, and the machinery finally bought and moved back again about 1874. A log school house stood about half a mile North of town in which there was a school from four to six months in the year. In 1866 or 1867, there was a Woolen mill built in the Southwest part of town, that carded, spun and wove some of the coarser cloths and exchanged cloth for wool. Somewhere about 1874, Marmaduke E. Ferguson, Jame B. Brent and Lyman W. Stiltz built a steam saw and grist mill in Quincy, and soon after it was erected a very good school house in which a public school is kept up from seven to nine months in the year. The town now has a steam roller process flouring mifl operated by J. E. Dicus, a general store and Post Office run by Bert E. Lord, a general store and^harness business by Hally B. Amrine, blacksmiths L. W. Baldwin and William Stiltz, a grocery store by Samuel Estes, dry goods, clothing etc., by R. C. F. Cagle, Millinery stores by Miss Rena Stiltz and Mrs. E. E. Cagle, a drug store by Lyman W. Stiltz,

The A. F. & A. M. own a fairly good hall in the town in which Hogle's Creek Lodge held meetings for years, but the organization has been removed to Wheatland.

The town has no church building but services are held in the lower room of the Masonic building, by Methodist, Baptist, and Christians. The members of the Christian church are most numerous.