The document recorded in Camden County Deed Book 85 at page 195 (also recorded in Miller County Deed Book 75 at page 312), by which the State of Missouri acquired Lake of the Ozarks State Park, contains the statement:
"All that part of lands hereinafter described lying above the project boundary of Project No. 459, Missouri. The project boundary is defined by contour lines at various elevations, which elevations are referred to United States Geological Survey, Bench Mark at Bagnell, Missouri, which has an elevation of 586.742 feet above Mean Gulf Sea Level at Biloxi, Mississippi. Said elevations are recited herein for each item of land described giving in the description the acreage above said elevations."
United States Geological Survey Benchmark "589" (NGS PID: JD0227) was described in information published by the United States Geological Survey, dated 1932, as being a standard tablet stamped "589 VRSLS." This information also indicated that the old aluminum tablet was replaced by a bronze tablet on May 15, 1929. The bronze USGS disk was recovered by personnel of the Missouri Department of Natural Resources in late 1999 or early 2000 and found to be set in the vertical face of a rock outcrop.
On February 7, 2000, personnel of the Missouri Department of Natural Resources conducted differential leveling operations to transfer the orthometric height from Benchmark "589" to Missouri Geographic Reference System Station "ML-28." The leveling was double run with a digital level and invar bar code level rods, using Double Simultaneous observation procedures. Loop closure was 0.001 meter.
NAVD 1988 orthometric height at Benchmark "589" is published as 178.630 meters equal to 586.06 feet.
NAVD 1988 orthometric height at "ML-28" is published as 177.24 meters equal to 581.5 feet.
The orthometric height of Benchmark "589" is 586.742 feet equal to 178.84 meters referenced to Mean Gulf Sea Level at Biloxi, Mississippi.
Therefore, the orthometric height of "ML-28" is 582.18 feet equal to 177.45 meters referenced to Mean Gulf Sea Level at Biloxi, Mississippi.
The elevations called for in descriptions around Lake of the Ozarks were determined by actual surveys conducted by the Stone & Webster Engineering Corp. in the late 1920s and early 1930s and were, apparently, all based on the one benchmark previously mentioned. To locate these lines of elevation one would have to retrace the work done by Stone & Webster, using the elevations referenced to Mean Gulf Sea Level at Biloxi, Mississippi.
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Information provided courtesy of Steven E. Weible
Friday, August 3, 2012
Saturday, June 23, 2012
Thomas Hill Holman, Land Surveyor
As land surveyors we follow in the footsteps of those who have gone on before us. We study their field notes and drawings and we search for the monuments that they set and the witness trees that they marked. After following any particular surveyor over time, we begin to develop an understanding of his techniques, his style and his proficiency. We feel a kinship with those we highly regard and a disdain for those whose work we consider "infamous." It’s as if we know them so well, but ... what do we really know about them? What kind of education did he receive? How old was he when he did this particular survey? What ever happened to him?
These were some of the questions about which I began to wonder after following Thomas Holman on several surveys that I worked on in St. Francois County. Having an interest in genealogy and actively searching for information on my own family history, I decided to search and see what I could find concerning the history of Thomas Holman, the land surveyor. The search took me to several internet resources, as well as, county courthouses and cemeteries in St. Francois, Washington and Dent Counties.
Thomas Hill Holman was born November 17, 1864 at Caledonia in Washington County, Missouri. He was the fourth of four children born to his mother and the tenth of ten children born to his father.
His father, William Holman, was native to Tennessee, having been born there in 1813. William married Nancy R. Barksdale in 1836. John Barksdale Holman, Martha Pinchback Holman, and William Turner Holman were born to William and Nancy in Tennessee. Around 1845 the family moved to the Dent County area of Missouri where they developed a considerable landholding. Mary E. Holman, America Holman and Stephen Adair Holman were born to William and Nancy in Missouri.
Thomas’ mother, Zelia Ann Woods, was native to Caledonia in Washington County, Missouri, having been born there in 1822. Zelia was the daughter of William and Elizabeth Woods, both natives of Tennessee who married in Washington County, Missouri in 1809.
In 1853 William Holman’s first wife, Nancy, died. Subsequently, on November 16, 1854 he married Zelia Ann Woods. They apparently resided on the Dent County, Missouri farm where Harvey Woods Holman was born on October 6, 1855 and James Perry Holman was born on November 17, 1857. Following the death of William Woods in April 1856, William, Zelia and their children moved to Zelia’s portion of the Woods estate at Caledonia in Washington County, Missouri. At Caledonia Elizabeth Holman was born May 7, 1862 and then, lastly, Thomas was born.
The early settlement of Caledonia has been described as a settlement of educated and refined Scotch-Irish Presbyterians and Methodists. William Woods has been noted as having been influential in the development of the Methodist Church there. In 1870 the Methodist Episcopal Church, South, organized the Bellevue Collegiate Institute at Caledonia, offering an education from grammar school to a baccalaureate degree. This is where Thomas Holman received his formal education, very likely including instruction in the principles of surveying.
Having completed his schooling, Thomas must have developed expertise and a reputation as a land surveyor for in 1888, at the age of 24, he was elected to the office of County Surveyor in Washington County, Missouri and served two terms to 1896.
As good as his initial education must have been, Thomas, apparently, felt a need for more, because in September 1898 he registered in the surveying short course at the Missouri School of Mines in Rolla, Missouri. The surveying short course was a two-year program described as having the same mathematical, scientific and technical engineering content as the civil engineering degree program, while omitting the nontechnical courses, such as the humanities and electives that generally round out a four year degree. It does not appear that Thomas received a certificate or diploma or degree from MSM, but apparently he got the additional education that he needed.
On his 34th birthday, November 17, 1898, at Caledonia, Thomas married Rollie Goodykoontz of Caledonia, the daughter of prominent local physician William R. Goodykoontz. Their first child, Mary Holman, was born February 15, 1900 at Rolla.
Thomas, Rollie and Mary returned to the home area and settled at Bismarck in St. Francois County, where Thomas is reputed to have engaged in private land surveying. By late 1903 Thomas was serving as deputy to St. Francois County Surveyor, Samuel L. Asbury, a fellow Methodist. Samuel Asbury declined to seek reelection as St. Francois County Surveyor in 1904, allowing Charles W. Francisco to take office. For whatever reason, Mr. Francisco failed to complete his term and Thomas Holman was elected to the office in November 1906.
During this time a second child, Ruth Rollie Holman, was born to Thomas and Rollie on December 7, 1904. Their third child, George Goodykoontz Holman, was born July 8, 1908.
In March of 1907, Thomas and Rollie purchased Lot 14 of the William P. Doss First Addition to the City of Farmington (present address: 320 North A Street, Farmington, MO) and presumably moved their family there. Interestingly, this lot is located just a few blocks from the present Methodist Church.
Thomas was subsequently reelected as the St. Francois County Surveyor in 1912, at the age of 48, and in 1916, at the age of 52. In 1922, 27 year old, World War I veteran, Lovell L. Turley, was elected St. Francois County Surveyor. Plats on file in St. Francois County during Turley’s term show Thomas Holman as the Deputy Surveyor performing the work. Incidentally, Turley went on to become superintendent of St. Joseph Lead Company.
Thomas and Rollie’s second child, Ruth Rollie, died of typhoid August 24, 1924 at the age of 19. She had graduated from Flat River Junior College in the spring of 1924 and would have started in a teaching position the following week in the public school at Ironton. As a result of Ruth Rollie’s death, Thomas acquired Lot 103, Block D of Parkview Cemetery in Farmington for the family burial plot.
In December of 1925, Thomas and Rollie purchased Lot 9, Block 20 of the Doe Run Lead Company’s Subdivision of the western portion of the Town of Flat River (present address: 602 West Main Street, Park Hills, MO). In April of 1927 they sold the lot previously acquired in Farmington and, presumably, moved to Flat River.
In September of 1929, Thomas and Rollie’s daughter, Mary, was wed to Henry Zapf of Bismarck by the pastor of the Methodist Episcopal Church, South, of Bonne Terre. The Zapf family was established as a fruit and vegetable producer, providing fresh produce for the Lead Belt area.
Following the term of Lovell Turley as St. Francois County Surveyor, it does not appear that Thomas further held that office nor served as deputy. His work as a land surveyor was not done, however, because in late 1929, at the age of 65, we find him working for the Stone and Webster Engineering Corporation at Warsaw, Missouri. The old field books show him as Chief of Party for a crew performing land surveys for the development of Lake of the Ozarks, which was created by Union Electric’s construction of the Bagnell Dam Hydroelectric Project.
The 1930 U. S. Census taken on April 5, 1930 at the incorporated place of Warsaw, Lindsey Township, Benton County, includes Thomas, age 65, Rollie, age 60, and son, George, age 21. Details from the census record indicate that they were renting for $15 per month and they had a radio set. Thomas’ occupation is listed as Civil Engineer in the Dam Construction industry. It appears that Thomas continued working for Stone and Webster Engineering Corp. until at least May 1931.
In August of 1935, Thomas and Rollie acquired the East 75 feet of Lots 1 and 2, Block 2 of W. P. Doss’ Second Addition to the City of Farmington (present address: 313 College Street, Farmington, MO). In February of 1940, they sold the lot previously acquired in Flat River and, presumably, thereafter resided in Farmington.
After his return from Warsaw, Thomas is reputed to have become actively involved in the St. Francois County Abstract Company until retiring in 1953 at the age of 88 or 89. It has been said that his private surveying records came under the custody of the St. Francois County Abstract Company and its successor organization, Preferred Land Title Company.
In November of 1954, Thomas and Rollie sold their lot in Farmington and purchased Lot 3, Block 12 of the Town of Bismarck (present address: 913 Mulberry Street, Bismarck, MO) across the street from the Bismarck Methodist Church.
On September 30, 1965, just a month and a half short of 101 years of age, Thomas Hill Holman slipped into eternity, having lived a long and productive life, and was buried at Parkview Cemetery in Farmington, Missouri (Latitude N 37°48'14.8", Longitude W 90°26'38.4", NAD 1983).
As I started this search of the history of Thomas Holman I had no expectation of finding a family relationship with him. My interest was merely in finding out more about him. As it turns out we’re not directly related, but there is a family link by marriage. Thomas’ daughter’s husband’s brother married my grandfather’s sister’s husband’s sister. So, according to Family Tree Maker, that makes Thomas Hill Holman the father-in-law of the brother-in-law of the sister-in-law of my grand aunt. How about that! We’re like kin after all.
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To see photos of Thomas Holman and some of his family click here
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Original composition by Steven E. Weible
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To see photos of Thomas Holman and some of his family click here
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Original composition by Steven E. Weible
Monday, May 28, 2012
Life on the Farm in Sainte Genevieve County, Missouri
This is a re-worked version of a composition that I originally prepared in May 1992 for a class in Ozark Folklore at the University of Missouri-Rolla (now known as the Missouri University of Science & Technology).
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Before modern technology prevailed upon the world, working the farm was the focus of an Ozark family's activities and the means of their survival. My grandparents began farming in western Sainte Genevieve County after moving there in 1936. They grew grain and feed crops, raised cattle, hogs and chickens, and maintained a garden and an orchard. The methods of harvest and production that were a large part of their life on the farm are presented here.
Before any farming could be done, the land had to be made ready for planting. Much of the area was covered by woodlands, so the trees were cut and used for lumber and firewood, the stumps were removed with a team of mules, and the ground was plowed for planting.
One of the first crops to be sown was oats. The oat seed was usually sown in early spring around February or March along with a combination of grass seed, such as hay seed, lespedeza, and orchard grass. The oats would then be ready to harvest in May and could be cut for hay or combined and threshed like wheat. If it was combined and threshed, the straw was left in the field and the oat seed was sold for grain or feed. The grass seed that was planted with the oats would then be beginning to grow and would be ready to cut for hay in the summer and fall. The grass would continue to grow from year to year and could be cut for hay or used for pasture.
Hay would be ready to cut when the grass was tall enough and could be cut as many as three times in a good year. The grass was cut using a horse drawn mower with a long blade and scissoring teeth. The loose hay was piled on a wagon and taken to the barn, where it was hoisted into the loft using a two-claw hay hook on a pulley that was pulled up by a mule at the opposite end of the barn. The hay could also be stacked in the field. A haystack was laid out in a circle as large as needed and loose hay was thrown from the wagon onto the stack where it was distributed evenly and tromped down good and tight. When the pressure from tromping was removed, the stack would naturally adjust itself, forming a round top to shed rain. If alfalfa hay was being stacked, it had to be topped with grass hay for weather resistance. In the winter, an ax was used to chop into the side of the stack to get hay for feed. The stack was cut in the side to minimize the amount of rain that penetrated the stack.
By mid-June wheat would be ready to harvest. Many people were needed during the wheat harvest, so families in the area worked together to prepare their wheat for the threshing machine. A machine binder pulled by horses or mules would cut the wheat and bind it into bundles. Men following the binder would then bind the bundles in shocks consisting of ten to twelve bundles with a couple bent over the top to keep the rain out. The shocks were then left to dry for a couple of weeks.
The threshing machine was usually owned by one man who traveled from farm to farm when the wheat was ready. The thresher would be stationed at one end of the field, while three to four wagons worked to haul bundles to it. Each wagon had a driver to handle the team of horses or mules and two loaders to throw the bundles of wheat onto the wagon. At the thresher, bundles were thrown into a hopper at the top of the machine. The grain came out the bottom, where it was put into sacks, and the straw was discharged into a strawstack through a pipe at the top. While the men were busy bringing in the bundles and threshing the wheat, the women were busy preparing food for everyone, so that it was truly a community activity.
The harvested grain was then taken to the mill where three bushels would trade for fifty pounds of flour. The straw could be used as bedding for the animals or as filler for mattresses. Cattle could eat straw when times were hard and nothing else could be had, but the nutritional value was less than that of hay or corn.
Corn would be planted in May and was ready to harvest about October. The stalks were cut with a corn knife, stood in shocks and allowed to dry. When sufficiently dry, the ears of corn were broken off, gathered up, and taken to the corn crib for storage. The stalks were tied into bundles and stored to be used as winter feed for the cattle.
Sometimes the corn was left standing in the field. When it was good and dry, the ears of corn would be picked from the stalks, five rows at a time. One person on each side of the wagon would take two rows at a time while a third person followed the wagon and took the down-row, which was the row that was run over by the mules and wagon. The down-row was the hardest to handle because the picker had to pick from the ground and try to keep up with a wagon being pulled by tempermental mules.
Once the corn was picked, the cows could be turned into the field to feed on the stalks. The corn was taken to the corn crib for storage and would be used to feed the farm animals. The ears of corn were shucked and shelled to feed to the chickens and broken into smaller pieces to feed to the cows. When times were hard, this corn could be ground to make corn meal, but usually sweet corn from the garden was used for this purpose.
Sometimes, after the corn had come up, pumpkins were planted with the corn. They were then both ready to harvest about the same time. The pumpkins would be picked first and then the corn.
Sugar cane was planted about June and was ready to harvest in the fall just before the first frost, usually in September. A corn knife or a board was used to strip the leaves while the cane was still standing. Then it was cut with a corn knife, the seeds at the top cut off, and the stalk thrown onto the wagon. The seed could be collected for bird feed, chicken feed, next year's seed for planting, or just left on the ground.
The cane was then taken to the processing machine, which was a homemade contraption, consisting of a vertical pair of rollers that were turned through gears by a boom pole to which a mule was attached. The rollers were in contact and opposed one another in rotation. A bundle of cane stalks would be fed into the rollers, squeezing out the sweet juice into a trough that emptied into a large barrel. From the barrel, the juice was taken to be cooked into molasses, known locally as "sorghum."
The cooking setup consisted of four pans about 3 feet square arranged in succession over an air passage with a fire at one end. This arrangement allowed high heat at one end for initial cooking and the flow of heat through the air passage to the opposite end where less heat was required for final cooking. The juice was placed in the pan nearest the fire where it was allowed to cook. The pulp and other unwanted material would come to the top where it was skimmed off and discarded. When the juice was sufficiently cooked at this stage, it was allowed to flow into the next pan. Knowing when the juice was sufficiently cooked was knowledge gained from experience and careful observation of the work of others. The juice would continue in this manner until it reached the last pan. When final cooking was complete, the molasses was drawn off into buckets and later placed in jars and jugs. It could then be sold or kept and eaten with homemade biscuits or used in cooking.
The production of grain crops served as a source of income for the family, as well as, provided feed for the cattle, hogs and chickens that they raised.
Although cattle provided a significant source of income, hogs were the primary source of meat for the family through the winter. Hog butchering time came when the weather was cold, no earlier than November, but as late as January or February. The hogs to be butchered were shot, their throats were cut, and the blood allowed to drain. Two to three huge kettles of water were kept fired to have plenty of hot water on hand. Each hog was hung from a boom pole and dipped into a big barrel full of hot water to loosen the hair. When the hair was sufficiently loose, the hog was placed on a table and the hair was scraped off. The hog was then splashed off with water and hung on a beam by placing a rod through both hind legs. The entrails were removed, the insides were washed out and the carcass was left hanging and allowed to cool. Lard was scraped off the entrails and the heart, liver, and melt (i.e., the spleen) were retained to be ground for liver sausage.
Once cool, the carcass was ready to be cut up. The head and feet were cut off and used to make head cheese. To make head cheese the head was cooked until tender and the bones were removed. The feet, when cooked, produced a gel from the juices which helped to hold head cheese and liver sausage together. These juices were poured into bowls with the meat, which was seasoned with salt, pepper, and sage. The mixture was allowed to cool and set, after which it was removed from the bowls and wrapped in wax paper. The heart, liver, melt, and tongue were ground to make liver sausage or lunch meat. All the scraps and trimmings that were left over were ground into pork sausage.
After the hog had been cut up, the meat was ready to cure. The shoulders, hams, sides, and jowls (cheeks at the side of the head) were salted, put in a large box, and left for two weeks. After two weeks, the meat was taken out of the box, washed off and sprinkled with a mix of borax, red pepper, and black pepper. Then it was hung in the smokehouse, where a fire was built in a washtub. The fire was made using green hickory or oak to produce plenty of smoke. The object was plenty of smoke, not a big fire, so ashes would be put over the fire to keep it from blazing. Having the fire in a washtub made it possible to move the fire around the smokehouse, so that all the meat would be well smoked, but not burned. The fire required constant attention, but was allowed to go out at night and was restarted each morning for a week. After being smoked for a week, the meat was ready to eat. It was left hanging in the smokehouse and would keep until it was all used, which was around mid-summer.
The backbones and ribs were often salted and used while fresh. The tenderloin, ribs, sausage, and head cheese could also be canned, in order to store for an extended period. The meat was placed in mason jars with zinc lids and rubber seals and boiled for three hours to obtain a pressure seal. Canned meat would be good for about a year.
Cattle were also a good source of meat, but, unlike pork, beef could not be preserved by salting and smoking. They didn't have freezers then and there wasn't any other way to preserve the quantity of meat that was produced from a butchered beef. As a result, the cattle were usually sold instead of butchered. Some people in the area would butcher a beef, keep what they could use, and sell the rest.
In addition to being a source of meat and income, the cows produced milk from which butter and cottage cheese were also made. After the cows were milked, the cream was separated from the milk. To make butter, the cream was allowed to sour and then agitated in a churn. The agitation caused the butter to form in chunks, which were removed, washed and put into one pound molds. The liquid that was left after the chunks were removed was buttermilk, good to drink or for use in cooking. When the butter had set, it was removed from the mold and wrapped in wax paper. To make cottage cheese, the skimmed milk was allowed to sour and then heated over low heat until it separated and formed kurds. It was allowed to cool and then poured into a colander to separate the liquid part, leaving the cottage cheese.
Chickens also provided meat and a little variety to the dinner table. In contrast to both beef and pork, chickens could be killed as needed without the need for preservation. The head was chopped off and the bird was soaked in scalding water to loosen the feathers.
In addition to the meat produced by raising cattle, hogs and chickens, the family maintained a large garden in which they grew beans, sweet corn, tomatoes, cabbage, spinach, lettuce, onions, radishes, potatoes, carrots, and turnips. They also had strawberry beds and rhubarb and an orchard with apples, peaches, pears, and plums. The fruits and vegetables that they produced were often canned for later use. Turnips, apples, carrots, potatoes, and canned items were placed in the cellar for use through the winter. Wild growth also provided extras for the table. In the summer, blackberries, dewberries, and gooseberries were gathered to make pies, cobblers, and jellies. In the fall, walnuts and hickory nuts were gathered.
The farm required a lot of hard work and the effort of the entire family. But as modern technology became more accessible, self-sufficiency became less necessary. Mechanized farm machinery made it possible for fewer people to do more work with less effort and modern methods of food preservation replaced the salting and smoking processes. As a result, the old methods and practices were abandoned as the character of life in the Ozarks was influenced by the changing power of PROGRESS.
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Original composition by Steven E. Weible
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Before modern technology prevailed upon the world, working the farm was the focus of an Ozark family's activities and the means of their survival. My grandparents began farming in western Sainte Genevieve County after moving there in 1936. They grew grain and feed crops, raised cattle, hogs and chickens, and maintained a garden and an orchard. The methods of harvest and production that were a large part of their life on the farm are presented here.
Before any farming could be done, the land had to be made ready for planting. Much of the area was covered by woodlands, so the trees were cut and used for lumber and firewood, the stumps were removed with a team of mules, and the ground was plowed for planting.
One of the first crops to be sown was oats. The oat seed was usually sown in early spring around February or March along with a combination of grass seed, such as hay seed, lespedeza, and orchard grass. The oats would then be ready to harvest in May and could be cut for hay or combined and threshed like wheat. If it was combined and threshed, the straw was left in the field and the oat seed was sold for grain or feed. The grass seed that was planted with the oats would then be beginning to grow and would be ready to cut for hay in the summer and fall. The grass would continue to grow from year to year and could be cut for hay or used for pasture.
Hay would be ready to cut when the grass was tall enough and could be cut as many as three times in a good year. The grass was cut using a horse drawn mower with a long blade and scissoring teeth. The loose hay was piled on a wagon and taken to the barn, where it was hoisted into the loft using a two-claw hay hook on a pulley that was pulled up by a mule at the opposite end of the barn. The hay could also be stacked in the field. A haystack was laid out in a circle as large as needed and loose hay was thrown from the wagon onto the stack where it was distributed evenly and tromped down good and tight. When the pressure from tromping was removed, the stack would naturally adjust itself, forming a round top to shed rain. If alfalfa hay was being stacked, it had to be topped with grass hay for weather resistance. In the winter, an ax was used to chop into the side of the stack to get hay for feed. The stack was cut in the side to minimize the amount of rain that penetrated the stack.
By mid-June wheat would be ready to harvest. Many people were needed during the wheat harvest, so families in the area worked together to prepare their wheat for the threshing machine. A machine binder pulled by horses or mules would cut the wheat and bind it into bundles. Men following the binder would then bind the bundles in shocks consisting of ten to twelve bundles with a couple bent over the top to keep the rain out. The shocks were then left to dry for a couple of weeks.
The threshing machine was usually owned by one man who traveled from farm to farm when the wheat was ready. The thresher would be stationed at one end of the field, while three to four wagons worked to haul bundles to it. Each wagon had a driver to handle the team of horses or mules and two loaders to throw the bundles of wheat onto the wagon. At the thresher, bundles were thrown into a hopper at the top of the machine. The grain came out the bottom, where it was put into sacks, and the straw was discharged into a strawstack through a pipe at the top. While the men were busy bringing in the bundles and threshing the wheat, the women were busy preparing food for everyone, so that it was truly a community activity.
The harvested grain was then taken to the mill where three bushels would trade for fifty pounds of flour. The straw could be used as bedding for the animals or as filler for mattresses. Cattle could eat straw when times were hard and nothing else could be had, but the nutritional value was less than that of hay or corn.
Corn would be planted in May and was ready to harvest about October. The stalks were cut with a corn knife, stood in shocks and allowed to dry. When sufficiently dry, the ears of corn were broken off, gathered up, and taken to the corn crib for storage. The stalks were tied into bundles and stored to be used as winter feed for the cattle.
Sometimes the corn was left standing in the field. When it was good and dry, the ears of corn would be picked from the stalks, five rows at a time. One person on each side of the wagon would take two rows at a time while a third person followed the wagon and took the down-row, which was the row that was run over by the mules and wagon. The down-row was the hardest to handle because the picker had to pick from the ground and try to keep up with a wagon being pulled by tempermental mules.
Once the corn was picked, the cows could be turned into the field to feed on the stalks. The corn was taken to the corn crib for storage and would be used to feed the farm animals. The ears of corn were shucked and shelled to feed to the chickens and broken into smaller pieces to feed to the cows. When times were hard, this corn could be ground to make corn meal, but usually sweet corn from the garden was used for this purpose.
Sometimes, after the corn had come up, pumpkins were planted with the corn. They were then both ready to harvest about the same time. The pumpkins would be picked first and then the corn.
Sugar cane was planted about June and was ready to harvest in the fall just before the first frost, usually in September. A corn knife or a board was used to strip the leaves while the cane was still standing. Then it was cut with a corn knife, the seeds at the top cut off, and the stalk thrown onto the wagon. The seed could be collected for bird feed, chicken feed, next year's seed for planting, or just left on the ground.
The cane was then taken to the processing machine, which was a homemade contraption, consisting of a vertical pair of rollers that were turned through gears by a boom pole to which a mule was attached. The rollers were in contact and opposed one another in rotation. A bundle of cane stalks would be fed into the rollers, squeezing out the sweet juice into a trough that emptied into a large barrel. From the barrel, the juice was taken to be cooked into molasses, known locally as "sorghum."
The cooking setup consisted of four pans about 3 feet square arranged in succession over an air passage with a fire at one end. This arrangement allowed high heat at one end for initial cooking and the flow of heat through the air passage to the opposite end where less heat was required for final cooking. The juice was placed in the pan nearest the fire where it was allowed to cook. The pulp and other unwanted material would come to the top where it was skimmed off and discarded. When the juice was sufficiently cooked at this stage, it was allowed to flow into the next pan. Knowing when the juice was sufficiently cooked was knowledge gained from experience and careful observation of the work of others. The juice would continue in this manner until it reached the last pan. When final cooking was complete, the molasses was drawn off into buckets and later placed in jars and jugs. It could then be sold or kept and eaten with homemade biscuits or used in cooking.
The production of grain crops served as a source of income for the family, as well as, provided feed for the cattle, hogs and chickens that they raised.
Although cattle provided a significant source of income, hogs were the primary source of meat for the family through the winter. Hog butchering time came when the weather was cold, no earlier than November, but as late as January or February. The hogs to be butchered were shot, their throats were cut, and the blood allowed to drain. Two to three huge kettles of water were kept fired to have plenty of hot water on hand. Each hog was hung from a boom pole and dipped into a big barrel full of hot water to loosen the hair. When the hair was sufficiently loose, the hog was placed on a table and the hair was scraped off. The hog was then splashed off with water and hung on a beam by placing a rod through both hind legs. The entrails were removed, the insides were washed out and the carcass was left hanging and allowed to cool. Lard was scraped off the entrails and the heart, liver, and melt (i.e., the spleen) were retained to be ground for liver sausage.
Once cool, the carcass was ready to be cut up. The head and feet were cut off and used to make head cheese. To make head cheese the head was cooked until tender and the bones were removed. The feet, when cooked, produced a gel from the juices which helped to hold head cheese and liver sausage together. These juices were poured into bowls with the meat, which was seasoned with salt, pepper, and sage. The mixture was allowed to cool and set, after which it was removed from the bowls and wrapped in wax paper. The heart, liver, melt, and tongue were ground to make liver sausage or lunch meat. All the scraps and trimmings that were left over were ground into pork sausage.
After the hog had been cut up, the meat was ready to cure. The shoulders, hams, sides, and jowls (cheeks at the side of the head) were salted, put in a large box, and left for two weeks. After two weeks, the meat was taken out of the box, washed off and sprinkled with a mix of borax, red pepper, and black pepper. Then it was hung in the smokehouse, where a fire was built in a washtub. The fire was made using green hickory or oak to produce plenty of smoke. The object was plenty of smoke, not a big fire, so ashes would be put over the fire to keep it from blazing. Having the fire in a washtub made it possible to move the fire around the smokehouse, so that all the meat would be well smoked, but not burned. The fire required constant attention, but was allowed to go out at night and was restarted each morning for a week. After being smoked for a week, the meat was ready to eat. It was left hanging in the smokehouse and would keep until it was all used, which was around mid-summer.
The backbones and ribs were often salted and used while fresh. The tenderloin, ribs, sausage, and head cheese could also be canned, in order to store for an extended period. The meat was placed in mason jars with zinc lids and rubber seals and boiled for three hours to obtain a pressure seal. Canned meat would be good for about a year.
Cattle were also a good source of meat, but, unlike pork, beef could not be preserved by salting and smoking. They didn't have freezers then and there wasn't any other way to preserve the quantity of meat that was produced from a butchered beef. As a result, the cattle were usually sold instead of butchered. Some people in the area would butcher a beef, keep what they could use, and sell the rest.
In addition to being a source of meat and income, the cows produced milk from which butter and cottage cheese were also made. After the cows were milked, the cream was separated from the milk. To make butter, the cream was allowed to sour and then agitated in a churn. The agitation caused the butter to form in chunks, which were removed, washed and put into one pound molds. The liquid that was left after the chunks were removed was buttermilk, good to drink or for use in cooking. When the butter had set, it was removed from the mold and wrapped in wax paper. To make cottage cheese, the skimmed milk was allowed to sour and then heated over low heat until it separated and formed kurds. It was allowed to cool and then poured into a colander to separate the liquid part, leaving the cottage cheese.
Chickens also provided meat and a little variety to the dinner table. In contrast to both beef and pork, chickens could be killed as needed without the need for preservation. The head was chopped off and the bird was soaked in scalding water to loosen the feathers.
In addition to the meat produced by raising cattle, hogs and chickens, the family maintained a large garden in which they grew beans, sweet corn, tomatoes, cabbage, spinach, lettuce, onions, radishes, potatoes, carrots, and turnips. They also had strawberry beds and rhubarb and an orchard with apples, peaches, pears, and plums. The fruits and vegetables that they produced were often canned for later use. Turnips, apples, carrots, potatoes, and canned items were placed in the cellar for use through the winter. Wild growth also provided extras for the table. In the summer, blackberries, dewberries, and gooseberries were gathered to make pies, cobblers, and jellies. In the fall, walnuts and hickory nuts were gathered.
The farm required a lot of hard work and the effort of the entire family. But as modern technology became more accessible, self-sufficiency became less necessary. Mechanized farm machinery made it possible for fewer people to do more work with less effort and modern methods of food preservation replaced the salting and smoking processes. As a result, the old methods and practices were abandoned as the character of life in the Ozarks was influenced by the changing power of PROGRESS.
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Original composition by Steven E. Weible
Friday, May 18, 2012
Freshman Initiation: Genesis of a Tradition
I was looking back through some of my files and found this compostion, dated February 13, 1992, that I had prepared for a class in Ozark Folklore at the University of Missouri-Rolla (now known as Missouri University of Science & Technology).
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The initiation of freshmen in one form or another is a matter with which every college student is familiar, whether having experienced it or merely having heard about it. The campus of the University of Missouri-Rolla is no exception and has had its share of initiation activities. Today's UMR students may observe initiation activities associated with particular groups such as fraternities and residence halls, but all of these activities had to have had a beginning somewhere in the school's history. Looking back to the first years that the ROLLAMO [MSM-UMR yearbook] was published, one can find accounts in class histories of the development of freshmen initiation traditions.
The exact origin of initiation activities is debatable, but one might attribute its beginning to Missouri School of Mines's class of 1909, who claims to have introduced college spirit into the school. They decided that no freshmen would be allowed to wear corduroy pants. From then on, the sophomores and juniors would capture the freshmen and bind them with rope. A struggle would ensue, of course, but the upperclassmen would soon prevail and the entire student body would join in a procession to a secluded location. There they sat on the hillside in the shade where some gave speeches and all joined together in song. All emerged from the gathering with a sense of good fellowship. It served as a unifying social event that enabled the upperclassmen to incorporate the freshmen into the student body.
The following year, the previous year's freshmen, now sophomores, felt obliged to continue the tradition. They added some creativity by inviting the freshmen to the cemetery. All freshmen were compelled to attend because the invitation came in the form of strong-armed sophomores wielding paddles in the middle of the night. Freshmen were pulled from their beds and carted off to the cemetery where they were required to sing songs, bark at the moon, and get tossed into the air with a blanket. They came away from the experience having had a good time and being better prepared to minister to the needs of the next year's freshmen.
By this time, the initiation of freshmen had become a tradition at M.S.M. The next September the new sophomores, donning their corduroy pants, set about the task. One day, however, was not quite enough, so they devoted the entire first week of school to the endeavor. Every night for a week freshmen were hauled from their beds and made to eat grass, sing songs, bark at the moon, and give old high school yells. They were given a good paddling and sent home only to have the same encounter again the next night. At the end of the week, the freshmen and sophomores were to engage in battle in the "Green Cap Scrap." The night before this confrontation, the freshmen were run out of town. The freshmen would meet to develop a battle plan and spend the night away from the harassing sophomores. In early years the freshmen retreated to the Grant House. After that, Panther Bluff was chosen. The enduring choice, however, was the Fairgrounds. Not much sleep was to be had due to the constant presence of sophomore spies sent out to keep the freshmen uneasy.
The following day, the freshmen arrived on campus and were met in battle. The scuffle could last anywhere from twenty to forty minutes depending upon the evenness of the matchup. Eventually, the freshmen would be defeated and bound with rope, often neck to neck in single file with tin cans trailing. Their appearance was then enhanced with the addition of nightgowns, signs, and red or green paint. They were then marched around town. When the upperclassmen were satisfied, the freshmen were required to purchase green caps and allowed to go free. Afterwards, they were invited to a smoker which was an opportunity for the upperclassmen to welcome the freshmen into the student body.
The whole business of freshmen initiation may seem foolish, but it is a means by which the upperclassmen can convert the freshmen from arrogant high school graduates into college students. It provides a means by which the two groups can become acquainted and it serves as a diversion from the tedium of schoolwork. It is a means of keeping "something going on." It's tradition, the stuff that will endure.
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Original composition by Steven E. Weible
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The initiation of freshmen in one form or another is a matter with which every college student is familiar, whether having experienced it or merely having heard about it. The campus of the University of Missouri-Rolla is no exception and has had its share of initiation activities. Today's UMR students may observe initiation activities associated with particular groups such as fraternities and residence halls, but all of these activities had to have had a beginning somewhere in the school's history. Looking back to the first years that the ROLLAMO [MSM-UMR yearbook] was published, one can find accounts in class histories of the development of freshmen initiation traditions.
The exact origin of initiation activities is debatable, but one might attribute its beginning to Missouri School of Mines's class of 1909, who claims to have introduced college spirit into the school. They decided that no freshmen would be allowed to wear corduroy pants. From then on, the sophomores and juniors would capture the freshmen and bind them with rope. A struggle would ensue, of course, but the upperclassmen would soon prevail and the entire student body would join in a procession to a secluded location. There they sat on the hillside in the shade where some gave speeches and all joined together in song. All emerged from the gathering with a sense of good fellowship. It served as a unifying social event that enabled the upperclassmen to incorporate the freshmen into the student body.
The following year, the previous year's freshmen, now sophomores, felt obliged to continue the tradition. They added some creativity by inviting the freshmen to the cemetery. All freshmen were compelled to attend because the invitation came in the form of strong-armed sophomores wielding paddles in the middle of the night. Freshmen were pulled from their beds and carted off to the cemetery where they were required to sing songs, bark at the moon, and get tossed into the air with a blanket. They came away from the experience having had a good time and being better prepared to minister to the needs of the next year's freshmen.
By this time, the initiation of freshmen had become a tradition at M.S.M. The next September the new sophomores, donning their corduroy pants, set about the task. One day, however, was not quite enough, so they devoted the entire first week of school to the endeavor. Every night for a week freshmen were hauled from their beds and made to eat grass, sing songs, bark at the moon, and give old high school yells. They were given a good paddling and sent home only to have the same encounter again the next night. At the end of the week, the freshmen and sophomores were to engage in battle in the "Green Cap Scrap." The night before this confrontation, the freshmen were run out of town. The freshmen would meet to develop a battle plan and spend the night away from the harassing sophomores. In early years the freshmen retreated to the Grant House. After that, Panther Bluff was chosen. The enduring choice, however, was the Fairgrounds. Not much sleep was to be had due to the constant presence of sophomore spies sent out to keep the freshmen uneasy.
The following day, the freshmen arrived on campus and were met in battle. The scuffle could last anywhere from twenty to forty minutes depending upon the evenness of the matchup. Eventually, the freshmen would be defeated and bound with rope, often neck to neck in single file with tin cans trailing. Their appearance was then enhanced with the addition of nightgowns, signs, and red or green paint. They were then marched around town. When the upperclassmen were satisfied, the freshmen were required to purchase green caps and allowed to go free. Afterwards, they were invited to a smoker which was an opportunity for the upperclassmen to welcome the freshmen into the student body.
The whole business of freshmen initiation may seem foolish, but it is a means by which the upperclassmen can convert the freshmen from arrogant high school graduates into college students. It provides a means by which the two groups can become acquainted and it serves as a diversion from the tedium of schoolwork. It is a means of keeping "something going on." It's tradition, the stuff that will endure.
----------------------------------------
Original composition by Steven E. Weible
Saturday, April 28, 2012
Deposition of Robert McCay, August 1825
As I was researching information for the article that I was writing about the General Land Office surveys of Town and Village Lots (see post of April 10, 2012), I came across an interesting deposition given by Robert McCay of the Town of New Madrid, Missouri, and recorded by Theodore Hunt, the U. S. Recorder of Land Titles in Missouri, while hearing claims and testimony pertaining to Town and Village Lots in 1825. Spelling is as it appears in the minutes of Recorder Hunt. Source reference: Hunt's Minute Book #2, pages 154 and 155 (Missouri Department of Natural Resources, Land Survey Repository microfiche location: 720/3198A1).
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John La Valleé’s legal representatives claim a square in the Village of New Madrid containing Lots No. 98, 99, 100 & 101. Bounded South by St. Margarette Street, West by St. Pie Street, North by Street St. Joseph & East by St. Laurent Street, containing about three hundred & Sixty feet in front by three hundred and Sixty feet in depth.
Robert McCay, being duly sworn, says He knows the lot and square claimed, this deponent says that AD Seventeen hundred Eighty Six, He this deponent was on his way to New Orleans from Post St. Vincennes, and in the month of December of that year he stopped at the place where the village of New Madrid now stands, at which time, there was not any persons living there, it being a perfect wilderson. This deponent further says, that in the Spring of the following year, being AD One thousand Seven Hundred and Eighty seven, when He returned there was about twelve persons living on the spot where the village now stands, being employed in trading with the Indians. Among the number was Joseph Lesieur, this deponent further says that in seventeen hundred and Eighty nine, He was again at New Orleans, when the then Governor sent for Him & made enquirys as to the situation of the Place &c, and in the year of AD seventeen Hundred and ninety, Pierre Fouché arrived at this place and took command of the same, and named the village New Madrid, and then Built Fort Celeste, which was named thus, in compliment to the wife of Don Stephen Miro the Govr of Louisiana. From this time, this deponent has made the village of New Madrid his place of residence. This deponent further says that the place where Gov Morgan located himself AD Seventeen hundred and Eighty Eight, was below lake St. Ann being about One Mile below the sight of the present village of New Madrid and this deponent further says, that AD seventeen hundred and ninty four or five, the village of Little Prairie was settled by Francis Lesieur. AD 1793 Don Pierre Fouché was relieved by Don Thomas Portell as Commandant, AD 1796 Don T Portell was relieved as commandant by Don Carlos De hault Delassus, and AD 1798 Don C. D H Delassus was made Lieut Govr of Upper Louisiana and this deponent who commanded in the Spanish Naval service, remained in command of the Village until the arrival of Don _dré Pereux, who remained in command until a short time before the Country was ceded, when John B. La Valleé had command. And to the knowledge of this deponent, the Regulations of Moralles whas published about AD Eighteen hundred by the beat of the drum, reading it at the corners of the Streets, and afterwards putting up the order at some Public Place, as was allways done when Royal Orders where made public. This deponent furthers says that on the Morning of the seventeenth of December AD One thousand Eight hundred and Eleven the first Earthquake was felt, which was the one that destroyed the little prairie, but the one that did the material injury to the Village of New Madrid was not until the seventh of February following. This Deponent says that Earthquakes have continued from that time to this time, during the fall & winter. This deponent further says, that prior to, and on the twentieth of December Eighteen hundred & three, this square was possessed and occupied by John La Valleé, and that He occupied this same square until his death AD Eighteen hundred & nineteen.
Robert McCay
Sworn to before me
August 15, 1825
Theodore Hunt
Recorder L T
[Remark in Exhibit Private Claims for claim of John La Valleé, Hunt’s number 659 in the Surveyor General’s office: "In 1845 the Deputy Surveyor reported that this ground had been washed away by the Mississippi river."]
[For a copy of the Regulations of Morales referred to in this deposition, see American State Papers, Public Lands, Volume 3, page 432, No. 330. The American State Papers can be found by following the link to "U. S. Congressional Documents" under "Favorite Links" at right.]
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Transcribed by Steven E. Weible
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John La Valleé’s legal representatives claim a square in the Village of New Madrid containing Lots No. 98, 99, 100 & 101. Bounded South by St. Margarette Street, West by St. Pie Street, North by Street St. Joseph & East by St. Laurent Street, containing about three hundred & Sixty feet in front by three hundred and Sixty feet in depth.
Robert McCay, being duly sworn, says He knows the lot and square claimed, this deponent says that AD Seventeen hundred Eighty Six, He this deponent was on his way to New Orleans from Post St. Vincennes, and in the month of December of that year he stopped at the place where the village of New Madrid now stands, at which time, there was not any persons living there, it being a perfect wilderson. This deponent further says, that in the Spring of the following year, being AD One thousand Seven Hundred and Eighty seven, when He returned there was about twelve persons living on the spot where the village now stands, being employed in trading with the Indians. Among the number was Joseph Lesieur, this deponent further says that in seventeen hundred and Eighty nine, He was again at New Orleans, when the then Governor sent for Him & made enquirys as to the situation of the Place &c, and in the year of AD seventeen Hundred and ninety, Pierre Fouché arrived at this place and took command of the same, and named the village New Madrid, and then Built Fort Celeste, which was named thus, in compliment to the wife of Don Stephen Miro the Govr of Louisiana. From this time, this deponent has made the village of New Madrid his place of residence. This deponent further says that the place where Gov Morgan located himself AD Seventeen hundred and Eighty Eight, was below lake St. Ann being about One Mile below the sight of the present village of New Madrid and this deponent further says, that AD seventeen hundred and ninty four or five, the village of Little Prairie was settled by Francis Lesieur. AD 1793 Don Pierre Fouché was relieved by Don Thomas Portell as Commandant, AD 1796 Don T Portell was relieved as commandant by Don Carlos De hault Delassus, and AD 1798 Don C. D H Delassus was made Lieut Govr of Upper Louisiana and this deponent who commanded in the Spanish Naval service, remained in command of the Village until the arrival of Don _dré Pereux, who remained in command until a short time before the Country was ceded, when John B. La Valleé had command. And to the knowledge of this deponent, the Regulations of Moralles whas published about AD Eighteen hundred by the beat of the drum, reading it at the corners of the Streets, and afterwards putting up the order at some Public Place, as was allways done when Royal Orders where made public. This deponent furthers says that on the Morning of the seventeenth of December AD One thousand Eight hundred and Eleven the first Earthquake was felt, which was the one that destroyed the little prairie, but the one that did the material injury to the Village of New Madrid was not until the seventh of February following. This Deponent says that Earthquakes have continued from that time to this time, during the fall & winter. This deponent further says, that prior to, and on the twentieth of December Eighteen hundred & three, this square was possessed and occupied by John La Valleé, and that He occupied this same square until his death AD Eighteen hundred & nineteen.
Robert McCay
Sworn to before me
August 15, 1825
Theodore Hunt
Recorder L T
[Remark in Exhibit Private Claims for claim of John La Valleé, Hunt’s number 659 in the Surveyor General’s office: "In 1845 the Deputy Surveyor reported that this ground had been washed away by the Mississippi river."]
[For a copy of the Regulations of Morales referred to in this deposition, see American State Papers, Public Lands, Volume 3, page 432, No. 330. The American State Papers can be found by following the link to "U. S. Congressional Documents" under "Favorite Links" at right.]
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Transcribed by Steven E. Weible
Deposition of Pierre Boyer, July 1825
As I was researching information for the article that I was writing about the General Land Office surveys of Town and Village Lots (see post of April 10, 2012), I came across an interesting deposition given by Pierre Boyer of Mine à Burton (present City of Potosi, Missouri) and recorded by Theodore Hunt, the U. S. Recorder of Land Titles in Missouri, while hearing claims and testimony pertaining to Town and Village Lots in 1825. Spelling is as it appears in the minutes of Recorder Hunt. Source reference: Hunt's Minute Book #2, pages 87 and 88 (Missouri Department of Natural Resources, Land Survey Repository microfiche location: 720/3194B2).
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Pierre Boyer being duly sworn says, that about forty five years ago this deponent was employed by Joseph Yaso Breton to assist him in hunting, who took this deponent to the present tract called mine à Burton which said Breton informed this deponent He had discovered the year before (while hunting) to contain quantities of Lead. Immediately after this there was some Cabbins built where the Village now is, and they commenced to dig mineral, and that He this deponent was one of the first that went to live there and this deponent further says, that from the time they first commenced living where the Village of Mine à Burton now is till the change of Government from France to the United States, they the Inhabitants suffered great inconvenience from the repeated inroads made by the Osage Indians on the said Inhabitants during the Spring of almost every year, when the Indians used to come and plunder the Cabins, steal their Horses and sometimes flog the Inhabitants, and He this deponent says He has been one of those Inhabitants that has suffered all these inconveniences above stated. This deponent says that said Breton was a Frenchman by birth and that He came to this country as a Seaman or Cannonier and afterwards became a Hunter.
Pierre (his X mark) Boyer
Sworn to before me
July 22nd 1825
Theodore Hunt
Charles Boyer being duly sworn says He has had the testimony of Pierre Boyer read to him, and of His knowledge He believe it to be true
Charles Bojeye
Sworn to before me
July 25, 1825
Theodore Hunt
Recorder L T
I James G. Soulard do solemnly declare I have truly translated the foregoing Testimony to each of the above named Persons to wit Pierre Boyer and Charles Boyer.
July 25, 1825
James G. Soulard
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Transcribed by Steven E. Weible
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Pierre Boyer being duly sworn says, that about forty five years ago this deponent was employed by Joseph Yaso Breton to assist him in hunting, who took this deponent to the present tract called mine à Burton which said Breton informed this deponent He had discovered the year before (while hunting) to contain quantities of Lead. Immediately after this there was some Cabbins built where the Village now is, and they commenced to dig mineral, and that He this deponent was one of the first that went to live there and this deponent further says, that from the time they first commenced living where the Village of Mine à Burton now is till the change of Government from France to the United States, they the Inhabitants suffered great inconvenience from the repeated inroads made by the Osage Indians on the said Inhabitants during the Spring of almost every year, when the Indians used to come and plunder the Cabins, steal their Horses and sometimes flog the Inhabitants, and He this deponent says He has been one of those Inhabitants that has suffered all these inconveniences above stated. This deponent says that said Breton was a Frenchman by birth and that He came to this country as a Seaman or Cannonier and afterwards became a Hunter.
Pierre (his X mark) Boyer
Sworn to before me
July 22nd 1825
Theodore Hunt
Charles Boyer being duly sworn says He has had the testimony of Pierre Boyer read to him, and of His knowledge He believe it to be true
Charles Bojeye
Sworn to before me
July 25, 1825
Theodore Hunt
Recorder L T
I James G. Soulard do solemnly declare I have truly translated the foregoing Testimony to each of the above named Persons to wit Pierre Boyer and Charles Boyer.
July 25, 1825
James G. Soulard
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Transcribed by Steven E. Weible
Tuesday, April 10, 2012
GLO Surveys of Town and Village Lots
This article has been modified. See Chapters 13 and 14 of "It Was Not Quick and It Was Not Simple: The Saga of Private Land Claims in Missouri". (Go to book now.)
From 1763 Spain controlled the development of the territory that would later become the State of Missouri. Lands were granted to settlers and towns were developed during this period, while the fledgling United States divested Great Britain of its holdings in North America and Napoleon Bonaparte rose to power in France. Napoleon persuaded Spain to return Louisiana and, as a result, on October 1, 1800 by the Treaty of San Ildefonso, the Louisiana territory west of the Mississippi River was retroceded to France.
Upon learning of the transfer to France, the United States took steps to negotiate for the acquisition of New Orleans to ensure the passage of trade through that corridor. As circumstances would have it, Napoleon offered up the whole of the Louisiana territory and a treaty was concluded on April 30, 1803, providing for the acquisition that we know today as the Louisiana Purchase.
The United States formally took possession of Lower Louisiana at New Orleans on December 20, 1803 and formally took possession of Upper Louisiana at Saint Louis on March 10, 1804.
Having taken possession of Louisiana, the United States was eager to offer lands for sale in order to raise money for the support of the government. Before that could be done, though, claims to land that had been granted by the Spanish and the French had to be addressed. The Act of March 2, 1805, chapter 26, (U. S. Statutes at Large, Volume 2, page 324) provided for the appointment of commissioners to examine and decide upon the validity of these claims.
At the conclusion of the proceedings this first Board of Commissioners presented a report to the United States House of Representatives on April 22, 1812, in which they characterized the claims in the Territory of Louisiana that had been brought before them (American State Papers, Public Lands, Volume 2, page 377, No. 200). The claims were segregated into various classes, one of which was town and village lots, out lots and common field lots that had been inhabited, possessed and cultivated prior to December 20, 1803, the date on which the United States began to formally take possession of the Louisiana territory. It was estimated by the Board that villages, commons and common fields comprised about one fourth of all of the claims examined. The Board of Commissioners, therefore, recommended that it would be best to make a general confirmation of these towns to the inhabitants and to grant the unclaimed lots to the towns for the support of public schools.
Congress, apparently, saw wisdom in the recommendation of the Board of Commissioners and passed the Act of June 13, 1812, chapter 99 (U. S. Statutes at Large, Volume 2, page 748). This act confirmed those claims to town or village lots, out lots, common field lots and commons, which had been inhabited, cultivated or possessed prior to December 20, 1803. The towns and villages to which the act pertained were: Portage des Sioux, St. Charles, St. Louis, St. Ferdinand (present City of Florissant), Village à Robert (present location of Bridgeton), Carondelet, Ste. Genevieve, New Bourbon, New Madrid and Little Prairie. In each of these towns or villages the principal deputy surveyor was directed to survey and mark the out boundary lines and to prepare plats of the surveys. Those tracts lying within the limits of the towns surveyed, which were not claimed by any individual or the inhabitants in general, were reserved for the support of schools in the town or village in which they were located. The total amount of lands reserved for the support of schools could not exceed 1/20 of the total area enclosed by the general survey of the town or village.
Although this act confirmed the claims to town and village lots, out lots and common field lots, it did not make provision for the survey of the individual claims, only the out boundary was to be surveyed. As a result of this deficiency, Congress passed the supplementary Act of May 26, 1824, chapter 184 (U. S. Statutes at Large, Volume 4, page 65), requiring those claiming town or village lots, out lots and common field lots under the Act of June 13, 1812, chapter 99, to file their claim with the recorder of land titles within eighteen months after the passage of the Act to enable the surveyor general to distinguish the claimed lots from the unclaimed lots. Each claimant was to designate the boundaries and extent of their claim and prove inhabitation, cultivation or possession prior to December 20, 1803. It also extended the Act of June 13, 1812, chapter 99, to include the town of Mine à Burton (present City of Potosi).
As the word reached the towns and villages about the requirements of the Act, claimants began to make their way to St. Louis to file their claims with Theodore Hunt, the recorder of land titles. The first claim was filed on February 13, 1825 by Louis Lemonde for a lot in the City of St. Louis.
A conceptual map depicting the general layout of each town or village was prepared with numbered blocks and identified streets so that each claimant could identify the location of his claim. The claimant then had to identify the bounds of the tract claimed and provide a witness to testify that the requirements of the confirming Act had been met. This information was recorded by the recorder of land titles in a minute book and the name of each claimant was successively added to a numbered list, which came to be known as "Hunt's List of Proofs" or, simply, "Hunt's List."
The following is the "proof" of a claim made by William Clark for a tract located in the Town of Saint Louis and recorded in Minute Book 2 at page 32:
William Clark deriving title from Auguste Chouteau claims a lot in the Town of Saint Louis being part of square No. 12 containing one hundred and twenty feet in front by one hundred and fifty in depth; bounded East by Front Street, which separates it from the Mississippi; North by North E Street; West by Main Street and South by balance of same square.
Copy of deed from Chouteau to Clark left in this office.
Alexander Bellesime being duly sworn says he knows the lot claimed and that upwards of twenty three years ago this Lot was owned and occupied by Auguste Chouteau who owned and occupied the same until he sold this lot to William Clark who has occupied it ever since.
Alexander (his X mark) Bellesime
sworn to before me
June 15, 1825
Theodore Hunt, Recorder of Land Titles
In order to relinquish to the inhabitants of the several towns and villages all right, title and interest of the United States to the town or village lots, out lots, common field lots and commons of the respective towns or villages that were confirmed by the Act of June 13, 1812, chapter 99, Congress passed the Act of January 27, 1831, chapter 12 (U. S. Statutes at Large, Volume 4, page 435). It also relinquished all right, title and interest of the United States to those unclaimed tracts within the respective towns or villages that were reserved for the support of schools.
The required surveys were begun when, in September of 1835, Surveyor of the public lands in Illinois and Missouri, Elias T. Langham, entered into a contract with Joseph C. Brown to survey the town lots, out lots and common fields of Saint Louis (MoDNR microfiche location: 720/3303A04). Brown was to deliver his field notes and a separate plat of each lot and block, showing the proper connection with the adjoining and adjacent lots and blocks. In return Brown was to be compensated at the rate of six dollars per day, from the time he commenced work until the surveys and returns were completed.
In the record book that Joseph C. Brown prepared for the surveys in St. Louis, he describes the field procedures used for surveying town and village lots (pages 339 and 340, MoDNR microfiche location: 724/0053A01):
"I have surveyed the lines of the streets with the theodolite and have measured the streets in all cases with 2 poles, each 20 english feet long, moving them alternately & putting their ends just in contact. Where obstructions have existed I have determined the lines by calculation and that has been very often except on the streets, where I have always measured. In surveying the blocks, local references as witnesses are given and such I have deemed entirely sufficient for the lots in the respective blocks and more truly to be depended upon than any that could be given for individual lots. The course of the lines are not so correctly given as are the measures. I have used a compass in taking the courses, and on intermediate lines which the measures on the different sides show to be not parallel I have calculated the courses. At the commencement of the work I gave notice thereof in all the papers there published in the City requesting information from the owners of lots that might enable me to survey them correctly, but the call was but little attended to. I have lost much time in endeavoring to obtain information as to the location of lots, but after all there are many lots of which I cannot learn the situation and that are not embraced in the foregoing work, and some that are so far located as to name the block are yet indefinite as to what part of the block. Many lots have been long occupied on the ground of which I cannot learn anything from the documents in my possession ... in certain cases the plat and descriptions of the survey of the lot does not agree in form and size to the grant of said lot, or to the claim and proof thereof before the recorder of land titles. These irregularities were imposed on me by the possessions on the ground, which possessions I considered as guaranteed by the law of Confirmation of town and village lots."
In the record of surveys in Ste. Genevieve and New Bourbon (page 279, MoDNR microfiche location: 724/0474A01), Mr. Brown goes on to describe the relationship of the conceptual maps with the actual facts on the ground:
"The other parts of the town of Ste. Genevieve which are not embraced by the blocks of the town already described by the foregoing numbers thereof from No. 1 to No. 30 are so different on the ground from the sketches (designed therefor) furnished me from the Surveyor General's office, as will appear by my connected map of the surveys thereof, that I shall no further attempt a description of blocks or streets according to those sketches but will describe the several individual lots as I have surveyed them aided by those sketches and by satisfactory information given me on the ground of the metes and bounds of the several lots by persons knowing the same."
In the record book of Brown's Surveys in and near St. Charles (page 24, MoDNR microfiche location: 724/0319A02), Mr. Brown describes how town and village lot corners were monumented:
"In all cases in setting stones for corners to town lots or blocks where precision is required I have had the stone set on the lot (not in the street) and so that a corner of the stone shall mark the exact corner of the lot or block, to wit at the NE corner of a lot or block the NE corner of the stone as set is the corner, at the SE the SE corner of the stone and in like manner at the other corners. Where a stone is set as common corner to two lots it is set so as to be on the line between the lots with the middle point of the outer edge of the stone at the corner and when common corner to more than two lots, the middle point on the stone is intended to be the place of corner."
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| Joseph C. Brown's illustration of the manner of setting stones for corners of town lots. |
Once the surveys for a town or village were completed, a drawing and description of each lot was set down in a record book for that particular town or village. At some later date, the Surveyor General, or a clerk in his office, assigned a number to each lot according to the order in which it appeared in the record book. Each town or village was numbered separately so that each constitutes its own series, except that Sainte Genevieve and New Bourbon were surveyed as one series. It is necessary, therefore, to make a distinction as to which series the survey belongs. As an example, Survey #1 in the City of Saint Louis would be referred to as "Survey #1 of the Saint Louis Series". Survey #1 in the City of Sainte Genevieve would be referred to as "Survey #1 of the Sainte Genevieve and New Bourbon Series."
It is important to note that those private claims that are typically referred to as "U. S. Surveys" actually constitute a series separate from the surveys of town and village lots. These include the claims approved by the first and second boards of commissioners, New Madrid claims and claims approved by other acts of Congress. The General Land Office referred to these surveys as belonging to the "General Series." Since a survey in any series may be referred to as a "U. S. Survey," it is entirely possible that more than one "U. S. Survey" of the same number, but of a different series, could occur within the same township or general locality. For instance, in Township 38 North, Range 9 East at Sainte Genevieve, both the General Series and the Ste. Genevieve and New Bourbon Series have Surveys numbered 96, 146 and 253. Town and village lot surveys are often intermingled with and adjoining surveys of the General Series, so it is important to recognize the different series and identify them appropriately.
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Original composition by Steven E. Weible
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