Pioneers: Early Settlers Who Came to Stay 1850; Trails Mapped
In selecting who to list as pioneer settlers the following conditions were considered. The county was settled three times — as part of Ray County in the 1830s; as an extended area to the Iowa line after 1836; and by the Mormons in 1838. In 1845 the settlers in...
Pioneers: Briefly Reviewing Daviess County’s Lewis Mill
Courthouse records show 23 grain mills operated in Daviess County prior to the Civil War. Not all of these were water-powered, and few if any mills west of the Mississippi River were like the Lewis Mill. The original mill built about 1855 was rebuilt in 1863 by Eramus...
Stagecoach Stopover on the Old Bancroft Trail in Lincoln Twp.
This log structure was used for a stagecoach stopover on the Bancroft Trail. Stagecoaches delivered goods north and south from the railroad bisecting Caldwell County,...
Pre-Civil War Lewis Mill on Grand River Found Nearly Intact in 1989
A pre-Civil War gristmill featuring what appears to be a walnut water turbine wheel was uncovered almost by accident during new bridge construction on the Grand River west of Jameson, MO, in 1989. The archaeological find qualifies the site for inclusion on the...
Financial Giant: Abraham Alphonse Albert Gallatini
Gallatin, MO, takes its name from one of the early financial giants in American history. Born on Jan. 29, 1761 at Geneva, Switzerland, his full name was Abraham Alphonse Albert Gallatini. Gallatin graduated from the University at Geneva at age 18 in 1779. In 1780 he...
Gallatin (MO) Namesake: Abraham Alphonse Albert Gallatini
The Congressman from Pennsylvania turned U.S. Secretary of the Treasury helped the U.S. to end ransom payments to Mediterranean pirate states and reduced national debt even while the Louisiana and Flordia purchases were made. (information from the Daviess County...
Pioneers: Crystal Springs on Gagan Farm Near Pattonsburg, MO
Once one of the most popular institutions of Northwest Missouri was the famous Crystal Springs on the John Gagan farm in Benton Township of Daviess County, about five miles northwest of old Pattonsburg on Crystal Springs Branch that empties into Sampson Creek. John...
1846: Map of Significant Trails in Northwest Missouri
This 1846 map shows the significant trails used by early settlers to populate and transverse Northwest Missouri. Gallatin connects to Chillicothe going eastward. Three trails led westward from Gallatin, to Savannah in Andrew County, to Plattsburg in Clinton County,...
Pioneers: Stalling’s Ferry the First Crossing Over Grand River
One of the very earliest trails approved by the Daviess County judges was the Gallatin-to-Utica road which ran along the south and west side of the Grand River. There are reports that an old trail used by Indians ran northwest from Utica along the river highlands and...
Pioneers: Gallatin’s Capt. John Ballinger (1833-1914)
Capt. John Ballinger came to Daviess County in 1845 at the age of 13 and distinguished himself in Gallatin with his neighbors Jim McFerran, Sam Cox, Joe McGee, Bill Folmsbee, Benton Miller, Bob Grantham, Bill Gillilan and others of our grand old guard. Ballinger was...
1843: Gallatin Christian Church Established
The Christian Church of Gallatin was organized in June, 1843, with 41 charter members. Services were held in the courthouse until the Civil War when the courthouse was taken over by the militia. The congregation then met in the Methodist and Cumberland Presbyterian...
Pioneers: Government Land Sold at Virginia Ridge 1842
The first settlers of Virginia Ridge in Daviess County came to stay. This was during the time immediately after the “Mormon War” of 1838, a time when Daviess County most certainly was in the national news. A few families came here directly from the...
1843: A View of the Daviess County Courthouse in Gallatin, MO
No doubt Ed Ellis came to Gallatin to see the then new Daviess County courthouse in 1843. Ellis planted wheat and had built a cabin (in that order) north of Gallatin on the east side of Little Cypress Creek in 1941 (today south of Route H in Harrison County). Ellis,...
The Founding and Yesteryear Photos of Winston, MO
Colfax Township in Daviess County, MO, was settled in 1836 by the Mormons. Little is known about those who settled there between 1839-1840. We know that James, Joseph and Edward Wood settled in 1839 on Smith Creek, becoming the first settlers after the Mormons....
1840: Daviess County’s First School at Clear Creek near Lock Springs
A total of 400 students in the Clear Creek School was recorded since the time accurate records were kept. The Clear Creek School District, organized in 1840, was the oldest school district in Daviess County, MO. The first school building erected was built one-half...
Oldest School: Clear Creek School 1840
The 1898 Plat Map of Daviess County shows Clear Creek School east and slightly north of Carlow in Jackson Township. The school is shown at the northeast corner of 40 acres owned by Samil M. Wise; surrounding landowners include names like Eads, Stover and Richardson....
1839: The ‘Honey War’ Against Iowa Over Boundaries
Border war clashes were not always between Missouri and Kansas. A dispute over the state boundary between Missouri and Iowa once almost caused a honey of a war. Only a matter of timing kept state militias from both states from expanding a legal dispute into perhaps...
Pioneers: The Long Lost Grist Mills of Daviess County
Much of the time spent by early county court judges was in ordering and approving early roads. These trails ran from historic place to historic place in nearly a direct line. Many of these locations were mills. The records, however, do not describe the power source...
1839: Cravensville Competes to Become the County Seat
During the summer of 1979, Brigham Young University conducted excavations at the Mormon historical site of Adam-ondi-Ahman near Jameson, MO. The work was to correlate archeological findings with historical references to determine the physical location of the town...
Visit the 1889 Squirrel Cage Jail, located 2 blocks west of the Daviess County Courthouse in Gallatin, MO. This historic relic is listed on the National Register of Historic Places and serves as a visitors’ center — by appointment,
Trudi Burton, ph: 660.663.7342
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