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History of Livingston County from The History of Caldwell and Livingston Counties, Missouri. 1886 |
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General Description - Topography - Timber and Prairie - Streams - Description
and Historical Mention of Grand River - Economic Geology - Coal - Gravel -
Building Stone - General Description of the Soil - Statistics of Population -
Voters - Abstracts of Recent Assessments - Schools - Manufacturing
Establishments - Banks, Etc.
Livingston county has an area of about 582 square miles. Its surface is
either very gently undulating or rolling. The area of broken land is very
limited. West of the East fork of Grand river, in township 59, the county is
somewhat broken for the distance of one mile and a half from the bluffs, also
near the heads of the various streams in township 59, range 25; but none of the
hills exceed 120 feet in height. The southeast part of the county, lying west of
Grand river for the distance of 1 mile, is somewhat broken, but not so much as
the northwest part, for the hills are less than 100 feet in height. On the east
side of Medicine creek, near Collier's mill, and on the west, near Slagle's old
mill, the country is somewhat hilly, but the hills do not exceed 60 feet in
height. The most broken portion of the county, and where the hills are the
highest, is in range 25, on the south side of the West fork of Grand river,
extending from a half mile to three-quarters from the river, from which distance
the hills obtain an elevation of 225 feet above the river; southward it is
gently rolling.
North of Chillicothe the county attains an elevation of 155 feet above Grand
river. Everywhere else the slopes are very gentle; the county is gently
undulating, and lies well for beautiful farms. The bottoms are wide, those of
Grand river and Shoal creek flat, and are from two to three miles in width,
flanked on one side by low bluffs, and on the other rising almost imperceptibly
by gentle slopes to the neighboring uplands. The bottoms of Medicine creek are
from one to one and a half miles in width; those of the other streams are much
narrower. Those on the west side of Grand river, in township 59, range 25, have
scarcely any bottoms, but have steep bluffs.
Timber and Prairie.- There is a good deal of timber in this county,
some of a very good kind. The best and most abundant supplies of timber lie
between the East and West forks of Grand river, where the growth is black oak,
small white oak, shell-bark hickory, red-chestnut oak, white oak, also
crabapple, coffee-tree, red-bud, ash, blackberry, raspberry, gooseberry,
bitter-sweet, mulberry, white elm, red elm, prickly ash, hazel, black-haw,
pignut-hickory, sumac, coralberry. Near the edges of the prairies are pin oak,
hazel, plum and rough-leaved dogwood, also wild cherry, laurel oak, rose,
coralberry. A few pecan trees have been observed on Grand river bottoms; none
have been seen in any county north. In other parts of the county the timber is
mostly confined to the vicinity of the streams. The prairie generally extends
over the ridges and often across the wide flat bottoms.
In the Grand river bottoms, and especially in the forks, there is a great
abundance of shell-bark hickory, of the very best quality, suitable either for
firewood or manufacturing purposes. Superior qualities of this timber are cut up
into cordwood, and much of it hauled to Chillicothe where it is sold on the
streets at prices ranging from $3 to $3.50 per cord.
In the fall of the year the hickory nut crop is an important one in "
the forks." Hundreds of bushels of nuts are gathered and sold to dealers
and shipped from Sampsel, Utica and Mooresville. The nuts are large and usually
bring 25 cents per bushel; the smaller varieties which grow on the uplands are
of better quality, and bring more in the market. Really, hickory-nut gathering
is something of an industry in portions of Sampsel and Jackson townships.
Streams. - Grand river flows through the county from northwest to
southeast; near the center of the county it receives the West fork. These
streams are broad and deep, and can not generally be forded. Medicine creek in
the east, and Shoal creek in the south-west, are both large streams, and are
often too full to be easily forded. They furnish good power for water mills.
There are many other small streams, but their utility is insignificant.
Grand river is formed in the western part of this county (in section. 9 - 57
- 24) by the union of the East and West forks. The two streams have their
sources in Southern Iowa, about fifty miles apart. The East fork (or Weldon's
fork, as it is sometimes called, from an old settler who once lived on its upper
banks), takes its rise in Lucas county, Iowa, and flows nearly southward. The
West fork rises in Union county, Iowa, and runs south and southeast to its
meeting with the East fork.
Nearly Fifty years ago the Legislature of Missouri declared Grand river to he
a navigable stream "to the northern boundary of the State;" but this
was not literally true, if the expression "navigable " was intended to
refer to ordinary steamboats. If, however, the Legislature had located the head
of navigation at the forks the location would have been correct. That the stream
is navigable to that point, at certain seasons of the year, has been proven.
In the summer of 1842 the small stern-wheel steamer "Bedford ' acceded
Grand river to the forks, bringing up merchandise for the Chillicothe dealers,
from St. Louis and Brunswick, and taking back produce. It is said that two trips
were made, but on its return trip the last time, the water was low and twelve
miles southeast of Chillicothe, where the town of Bedford now stands, it struck
a log and went to pieces. No lives were lost, but the boat was so badly damaged
as to be of no use afterward. The town of Bedford was named for the wrecked
steamer.
In 1849 the " Lake of the Woods " came up to the forks, during a
period of high water, and put off some freight. Here she lay some days and was
laden with wheat by Asa T. Kirtley, Wm. Mead and James Campbell, who shipped the
grain to St. Louis, where it was sold for 50 cents a bushel. This boat made but
one trip.
In the spring of 1857 the "Bonita," a regular Missouri river
packet, came up to the forks and then went a mile up West Grand river where it
discharged several tons of freight for P. S. Kenney, Mr. Austin, and perhaps
other merchants of Utica and Breckinridge. It also put off goods on the east
bank of the main stream for certain Chillicothe merchants. All of this freight
and some passengers were brought from St. Louis. While the " Bonita"
lay tied up near Utica her officers gave a ball or dance in the cabin one night.
This festive occasion was attended by quite a number of the belles and beaux of
Chillicothe and Utica, who long and pleasantly remembered the Occasion.
The "Bonita" made two trips that season, but on her return the last
time she was caught on a bar near the mouth of the river and it was found
impossible to extricate her for some months, or until there was a rise. The last
boat that come up as far as Chillicothe made her trip in the spring of 1865.
Since the settlement of this county Grand river has reached its highest stage
in 1837, 1844, 1851, 1858, and 1865, at a regular interval of seven years. In
1858 the flood was greater than ever before known. Since 1865 the overflows have
been more frequent and irregular. Nearly every spring the bottoms in this county
are submerged.
Competent engineers have declared that with some dredging and jetting Grand
river could be made safely navigable for small boats at the proper seasons. The
fall of the stream is seven inches per mile, and the current is easily overcome.
The workable coal-fields of this county may be divided into two divisions,
the upper coal lying on and near Grand river, west of Utica, and including two
or three thin streams of coal; and the lower, lying along and near Grand river,
below Bedford, in township 56, ranges 21 and 22, and extending in a
northwesterly direction to the northern line of the county. The coal is exposed
in some places along Grand river.
In the northern part of Chillicothe township (sec. 12 - 58 - 24) there has
recently been opened a vein of this coal on the land of Mr. Cox, and the bank
has been worked very successfully. The coal is very similar to that found in
Caldwell, and doubtless belongs to the same seam and formation.
Two miles north of' Avalon, in the northern part of Fairview township, a
twenty-two inch vein of good coal was struck last spring at a depth of forty
feet, and has been worked with good success since that time. It is intended to
go much deeper in search of a thicker vein, but it is very doubtful that it will
be found.
In Sampsel township, near Sampsel Station, a gravel pit has been opened by
the railroad company, and all the indications point to an inexhaustible bed of
gravel in the vicinity and along the Grand river bottoms generally.
Building Stone.- Elsewhere is included a description of the best
building rock of this county. Perhaps the best quarries are those of Chillicothe
and about one mile north of the Hannibal and St. Joseph Railroad. The rock is a
silicous oolitic limestone; occurs generally in thick beds, but some are thin,
and affords a strong and superior building-rock. There is about nine feet
thickness of it. The sandstone at Gillaspie's mill appears thick and thin
strata, and is also an excellent material for building. The quarry in the
southeast quarter section 22, township 56, range 22, is a very even-bedded blue
limestone, occurring in two layers of nine and eleven inches, and admits of fine
polish. The quarry in the west half of southwest quarter section 29, township
58, range 22, includes beds of 10 1/2, 16 and 18 inches limestone, in even
layers. At Utica are thick, rough beds of blue and drab limestone, that answer
very well for coarse masonry, and may also be hydraulic. The quarry three miles
northwest of Chillicothe includes about six feet of' rather rough-bedded
limestone, but of' good thickness; this is much used.
Clays.- A deep red ochrey clay at Collier's mill (southwest quarter
section 29, township 58, range 22) would afford a good material for paint; a
similar but paler red has been observed on Collier's land, one mile from the
mill. In Collier's shaft, near this place, are ten feet of alterations of yellow
ochre bands, with blue shells; beneath it is four inches good band of bright
yellow ochre; At Leaton's coal-bank, in Grand River township, there is six
inches of brown ochre, containing selenite crystals. There are good beds of
fire-clay under most of the coal-beds, particularly those on lower Grand River.
Bands and concretionary beds of carbonate of iron occur in shales on lower Grand
river.
Soil.- The soil is generally very rich; those portions of the county
which have been mentioned as broken contain the only tracts of poor land, and
the area is quite limited; the soil of the latter is light mulatto, and often
sandy for a few inches in depth. The soil throughout. most of the county is dark
and rich, and varies from one to two and a half feet in depth. Near the western
part of the county it has much lime in its composition, resulting from the
disintegration of limestone. The slopes generally are so very gentle that the
county seems admirably adapted for grasses and meadows. The bottom lands are
wide and flat, and have very dark and deep soil, but are often too wet for
cultivation.
The following table shows approximately the number of acres of upland, the
number of acres of bottom land, the number of acres of timbered land, and the
number of acres in cultivation; giving the leading products of the townships in
the order of predomination, according to an estimate carefully made in 1880: -
About one-third of the county is timbered land. Two-thirds of the uplands,
268,160 acres, are in cultivation, embracing upland pastures and orchards, and
10 per cent of the bottom land, 71,600 acres, approximately, 180,000 acres of
cultivated lands.
Of the soil of Livingston county and its capacity for producing bountiful
crops, no better description need be given than the following, which was written
by a well posted resident of the county a few years since. As to the surface
soil of the county, he says it is no mean or common thing. The same rich, black
mold - mostly decomposed vegetable matter - that obtains in the richest valleys
of the old prairie States, covers the surface of the county from 12 to 18 inches
in depth. Of course it is very strong in productive elements as the rank
vegetation everywhere indicates, and there are numerous instances where the old
farmers have taken from 25 to 40 successive corn crops from the same field with
no sign of diminution in yield.
The sub-soil of the county is a seemingly impervious clay, but it is
wholly unlike the heavy, dead, unmanageable red and blue clays of the Ohio, New
York and Canada sub-soils, being largely composed of siliceous matter, lime and
magnesia carbonite, lime phosphate and organic matter, and is nearly identical
with the Lacustrine deposits of the Missouri river slopes of Northwestern
Missouri, Southeastern Kansas, Western Iowa, Eastern Nebraska, and the world
famous Loess deposits of the Rhine, Nile and minor Swiss valleys. It
slacks to the loose, flexible consistency of alluvium on exposure to the frost
and air, is absolutely imperishable as an element of fertility, and forms the
finest and most enduring basis for grasses, fruits and grains known to the world
of agriculture. This deposit underlies the entire surface of the country to a
depth of 10 to 30 feet, and will prove a permanent agricultural and
horticultural resource of incomparable value.
The conjunction of these two soils gives the broadest range of production
enjoyed by any part of the continent. There is not a single article of
artificial production grown in the soil from the northern limit of the orange
groves to the Northern Red river that does not Flourish here in high degree.
The great staple grain is corn, which gives a yield of 30 to 90 bushels per
acre, and of which this county annually grows from 2,500,-000 to 8,000,000
bushels. Close to 200,000 bushels of winter wheat is annually grown, the yield
running from 14 to 85 bushels per acre, according to season and culture. Tobacco
is a splendid crop. Oats are grown to the extent of 250,000 bushels yearly and
are a fine crop. Barley and rye do equally well, though they are but little
cultivated. Flax is a sure and profitable crop. Sorghum, broom corn, millet,
Hungarian, all the field and garden vegetables, all the fruits of orchard,
vineyard and garden, all the grasses, flowers and plants of the middle latitudes
grow in rich profusion in Livingston county.
Of course it is the paradise of mixed husbandry, no country leading it in
that respect. The Livingston county farmers cover "the field "
admirably. They grow a little wheat, much corn, some oats, a little flax, a good
variety of vegetables and fruits; raise and feed cattle, sheep and swine in
measure; raise mules and horses largely for the markets; sell wool, poultry and
dairy products, and know nothing of the failures that attend "special
farming." If one, two or three of these resources fail them, what of that!
Have they not the whole "field" against the one possible winning crop
of the all-wheat or all-wool man, to whole a single failure is almost certain
ruin?
The grandest resource of the Livingston county farmer is found in the native
and domestic grasses. This is essentially a grass country. The wild prairie
grasses were always rich and rank of growth, but civilization has proved too
much for them, and they have mostly yielded to the more tenacious and hardy blue
grass and white clover, both of which are indigenous to the country, and only
awaited the coming of the domestic herds to give them the all-conquering
impulse. Blue grass is king of grasses here, as in the realm of Kentucky and
Illinois cattle princes. It is assuring to see how grandly it is sweeping over
prairie, woodland, field and lawn, driving everything before it. There is not a
more natural blue grass country in the world.
The Kentucky, Illinois and Ohio stock men, who have settled here, are charmed
with the situation. They say there are no such blue grass pastures as these of
Northwestern Missouri. White clover is abundant in seasons of plenteous
moisture. The timothy meadows, too, are worth the journey of a thousand miles to
see. They are resplendent, with the richest, rankest, most nutritious growth of
this grass to be found anywhere in the wide kingdom of grasses. Everybody grows
timothy, and these royal meadows yield one and a half, two and three tons per
acre of hay, which must get its remarkable feeding value from the peculiar
character of this soil. Timothy seed is an important staple. Red clover does
well and is popular with the farmers.
The population of the county in 1840, when the first census was taken after
its organization, was 4,825; in 1850 (owing to the striking off of Grundy county
and the large California emigration) it was but 4,247; in 1860 it was 7,417, of
which 6,812 were whites and 605 were slaves - no free colored; in 1870 the
population was 16,780; of which 15,744 were whites and 956 colored, 1,854 were
foreign born, 6,567 were natives of Missouri, 8,793 were males, and 7,987 were
females; in 1876 it was 18,074, and in 1880 it was 20,196.
The population by townships in 1880 and in 1870 was as follows: -
| Townships. | 1880 | 1870 |
| Blue Mound | ||
| Chillicothe, including city of Chillicothe | ||
| Cream Ridge | ||
| Fairview | ||
| Grand River | ||
| Greene | ||
| Jackson | ||
| Medicine | ||
| Monroe | ||
| Mooresville, including town of Mooresville | ||
| Rich Hill | ||
| Sampsel | ||
| Wheeling | ||
The population of Chillicothe in 1880 was 4,078; in 1870 it was 3,978. Rich
Hill and Sampsel townships were not organized in 1870.
The total number of males in the county 21 years of age and over in the year
1880, according to the national census, was 4,945; but the same year the
greatest number of votes polled by all parties (the vote for Governor being
highest) was 4,284, showing that 651 voters in the county did not go to the
polls. In 1884 the total vote was 4,290, or four votes less than that casting
1880, four years previously.
The number of horses in the county in 1880 was 8,807; of mules, 1,384; of
asses, 82; of milk cows and other cattle, 24,216; sheep, 22,112; swine, 48,496.
The same year the number of acres of taxable lands was 8&,825. The total
assessed value of all property was $40,034,490.
The total assessed valuation of the county in 1885, not including $200,000 of
merchandise, was $4,982,417.54, as follows: -
| Assessed value of real estate | $ 2,217,808 00 |
| Assessed value of town lots | 605,450 00 |
| Assessed value of personal property | 1,605,088 00 |
| Assessed value of railway and telegraph lines | 504,071 54 |
The average assessment of land per acre was $6.25. The number of' miles of
railway was 48. The annual revenue derived from railway and telegraph lines was
$5,859.08; the revenue from railroads was about $120 per mile.
The live stock of the county was assessed as follows: -
| Kind | Number | Assessed Value |
| Cattle | $ 364,009 00 | |
| Swine | 71,170 00 | |
| Sheep | 20,000 00 | |
| Horses | 316,480 00 | |
| Mules | 58,185 00 |
In 1885 the school population of the county was as follows: White males,
3,579; females, 3,404; total whites, 6,983. Colored males, 164; females, 181;
total colored, 345. Total white and colored, 7,328.
The total amount actually expended for school purposes in the county for the
year ending April 1, 1885, was $45,573.37. The average expense for each child of
school age in the county was $622; but, as not all of the school children in the
county attended school, the average amount expended on each scholar of those who
actually did attend was a large sum.
The number of school districts in the county, Chillicothe not included, is
97. The number of school houses, 105, Chillicothe included.
The total amount of the school fund collected during the year ending April 1,
1885, was as follows: -
| Amount received from interest on the permanent fund | $ 11,521 96 |
| Amount received from the State | 5,357 35 |
| Amount received from district tax | 22,514 16 |
| Amount received from all other sources | 2,488 81 |
| $ 41,681 78 | |
| Add amount on hand at beginning of school year | 12,911 14 |
| Aggregate fund available during the year | $ 54,592 92 |
| Amount expended during the year | 45,573 87 |
| $ 9,019 55 |
The amount of the permanent school fund belonging to the county is $126,067.52,
as follows: -
| Swamp land fund | $ 101,485 82 |
| Township fund | 23,694 27 |
| Other permanent funds | 937 93 |
| Total | $ 126,007 52 |
In December, 1885, the following statistics concerning the manufactories of
the county were compiled by the county clerk, T. B. Brookshier, Esq.: -
| Number and Kind. | Capital | ||
| 6 flouring mills | $ 71,000 | $ 212,750 | |
| 11 Saw mills | 5,500 | 45,000 | |
| 1 Planing mill | 3,500 | 3,000 | |
| 1 Foundry | 500 | 3,750 | |
| 1 Carriage factory | 3,000 | 4,695 | |
| 2 Wagon factories | 8,500 | 6,886 | |
| 1 Ax-handle factory | 8,000 | 8,000 | |
| 1 Broom factory | 1,000 | 3,000 | |
| 1 Tobacco factory | 10,000 | 50,000 | |
| 1 Cigar factory | 2,500 | 7,800 | |
| 1 Brewer | 8,000 | 12,520 | |
| 1 Soda-pop factory | 1,000 | 3,200 | |
| 3 Creameries | 11,000 | 67,295 | |
| Total | $ 126,500 | $ 427,896 |
There were two banking houses in the county, at Chillicothe, with an
aggregate capital of $78,000. Following were the statements of their condition
December 31, 1885: -
Official statement of the financial condition of the People's Savings Bank,
at Chillicothe, State of Missouri, at the close of business on the 31st day of
December, 1885: -
| Resources - | |
| Loans undoubtedly good on personal or collateral security | $ 138,897 86 |
| Loans and discounts undoubtedly good on real estate security | 8,418 65 |
| Overdrafts by solvent customers | 587 00 |
| United States bonds on hand | …… |
| Other bonds and stock at their present cash market price | 5,107 84 |
| Due from other banks good on sight draft | 35,971 39 |
| Real estate at present cash market value . | 4,000 00 |
| Furniture and fixtures | 25,000 00 |
| Checks and other cash items | 427 81 |
| Bills of National banks and legal tender United States notes | 15,564 00 |
| Gold coin | 4,122 90 |
| Silver coin | 1,652 82 |
| Exchange maturing and matured | …… |
| Total | $ 217,249 77 |
| Liabilities - | |
| Capital stock paid in | $ 50,000 00 |
| Surplus funds on hand | 12,471 89 |
| Undivided declared dividends | …… |
| Deposits subject to draft on sight | 156,765 81 |
| Deposits subject to draft at given dates | …… |
| Bills payable | …… |
| Due to other bank and bankers | …… |
| Expenses now due | …… |
Total |
$219,237 13 |
W. B. Leach, Cashier. |
Sidney McWilliams, President. |
Official statement of the financial condition of the Chillicothe Savings
Association, at Chillicothe, State of Missouri, at the close of business on the
31st day of December, 1885: -
| Resources - | |
| Loans undoubtedly good on personal or collateral security | $ 48,667 04 |
| Loans and discounts undoubtedly good on real estate security | 18,616 67 |
| Overdrafts by solvent customers | 6,845 57 |
| United States bonds on hand | …… |
| Other bonds and stocks at their present cash market price | …… |
| Due from other banks, good on sight draft | 15,852 88 |
| Real estate at present cash market value | 9,957 98 |
| Furniture and fixtures | 1,816 00 |
| Checks and other cash items | 711 54 |
| Bills of National banks and legal tender United States notes | 8,364 00 |
| Gold coin | 2,415 00 |
| Silver coin | 2,489 88 |
| Exchange maturing and matured | …… |
Total |
$ 110,186 41 |
| Liabilities - | $ 28,000 00 |
| Capital stock paid in | 7,251 84 |
| Surplus funds on hand | …… |
| Undivided declared dividends | …… |
| Deposits subject to draft on sight | 63,980 31 |
| Deposits subject to draft at given dates | l,503 26 |
| Bills payable | 10,000 00 |
| Due other banks and bankers | …… |
| Expenses now due | …… |
Total |
$110,735 41 |
J. R. Middleton, Cashier. |
W. H. Mansur, President. |
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