Warren E Comstock

 Warren Ennis Comstock (1859-1928) = Advertising Sales Rep. Poet. Born in Calhoun County, Michigan, on May 3 to Hattie (Ennis) and Nicoll H. Comstock, grandson of Congressman Rev. Dr. Oliver Cromwell Comstock, Sr. and nephew of American Baptist missionary to Burma , Rev. Grover S Comstock. 

Warren married Maria Wilson "Boxie" Chiles (1869-1955), daughter of William H. and Mary (Graves) Chiles of Lexington, MO. on 17 October 1888.  They had three lovely daughters, Gladys (b.1889-90), Catherine (b.1892) and Grace (b.1893) and they spent many happy hours in Lexington visiting their daughter's maternal grandparents.  

Near the end of the 19th century, Kansas City's Commercial Club (Chamber of Commerce) was inspired to create their own version of a New Orleans' Mardi Gras festival to bring people into Kansas City, so they invented the Priest of Pallas festival complete with a large parade with floats. Invitations were sent to all the socialites to attend a ball (it ran annually until about 1912).  Boxie wore a brown satin ballgown with a Persian waist, overlaid with blue velvet bands, pink carnations and diamonds to the 1896 Pallas Ball. 

Gladys, in October of 1912, married a Mr. Rollins Smith in her parent's home at 806 East 41st Street. The ceremony was performed by Rev. J. C. Armstrong of the Westport Baptist Church. Catherine, Gladys' sister, was her maid of honor and Mr. Henry Clay Chiles, Glady's uncle, was the best man. 

Warren wrote poetry during his leisure hours when he wasn't engaged in traveling for an advertising sales agency. In 1917, Mr. Comstock was elected as the President of the Quill Club of Kansas City and was a member of the Writer's Guild in Missouri.  

He took a trip to England and returning, he left Liverpool on the ship Cedric and arrived back in New York on 17 Oct 1927 almost a year before he passed away on 17th of September 1928 of cancer and was quietly buried in the Elmwood Cemetery in Kansas City. His tombstone carries the inscription "Missouri's Beloved Poet." 

Warren's Writings:

1. "The First Woman and Other Poems." By Warren E. Comstock, Bishop Press, Kansas City. 1907.
2. The days of long ago and Immortality (antithesis of "The Rubaiyat"), by Warren E. Comstock. Richard G. Badger, Boston, MA, 1908. Internet Archive.
3. Poem: "Evolution." By Warren E. Comstock. The Lexington Intelligencer. Lexington, MO. 13 Nov 1909. Chronicling America Newspapers. 
4. Various Poems. By Warren E. Comstock. Livezey Studio, Kansas City, Missouri, 1910. UMKC Library.
5. Poem: "Hail! and Farewell!" by Warren E. Comstock. 1910.
6. "Mother" By Warren E. Comstock. The Lexington Intelligencer. Lexington, MO. 24 Sept 1910. Chronicling America Newspapers. 
7. The days of long ago and immortality (antithesis of "The Rubaiyat"), by Warren E. Comstock. Foss Publishing Co, St. Joseph, MO. 1912.. UMKC Library.
8. Poem: "The Great Southwest." By Warren E. Comstock. 1912.
9. Poem: "Mental Hospitality." By Warren Comstock. The Detroit Times, Detroit, MI, 15 July 1916. Chronicling America Newspapers. 
10. Poem: "If". By Warren Comstock, President of the Kansas City Quill Club. 1917. 
11. Poem: "Made-In-Japan" Banquet. By Warren E. Comstock (Kansas City). The Daily Missourian, Columbia, MO. 30 May 1917. Chronicling America Newspapers. 
12. "Courage & Culture," "The Willow Tree, or A Legend of Old Japan." By Warren E. Comstock of Kansas City. 1920. 

Farewell forever to the past;

Regrets to leeward we must cast.

Live well the Present; ne'er despair;

Hail to the Future bright and fair. 

By Warren E. Comstock, 1910. 

More to Read:

1. His mother's family's genealogy = Genealogy of the Descendants of Lawrence and Cassandra Southwick of Salem, Mass.: the original emigrants, and the ancestors of the families who have since borne his name. By James Moore Caller (1813-1884), J. H. Coate & Co, Salem, MA, 1881. p. 278, 425. Internet Archive.
2. "Rev. Grover Smith Comstock." By Rev. Pharcellus Church, D.D. Brandon, VT. 
    American Missionary Memorial: including biographical and historical sketches. By Hamilton Wilcox Pierson. Harper & Brothers, New York. 1853. p. 149. Internet Archive.  
3. "Personalities." The Intelligencer. Lexington, MO. 13 October 1888. Chronicling America Newspapers. 
4. "The Priests of Pallas Shaped Kansas City's Spirit." by Diane Euston. Martin City and South KC Telegraph. Kansas City, Missouri.  1 July 2019. 
5. "Pallas' Tenth Annual Ball: Scene in the Ballroom." Kansas City Daily Journal. Kansas City, MO. 8 Oct 1896. Chronicling America Newspapers. 
6. Kansas City Journal, Kansas City, MO. 21 Feb 1897. Chronicling America Newspapers. 
7. "Was Like a Dream." and "Invitation List." Kansas City Journal. Kansas City, MO. 5 Oct 1899. Chronicling America Newspapers. 
8. Some Descendants of Samuel Comstock of Providence, R.I. who died about 1660. Edited by C. B. Comstock. The Knickerbocker Press, New York, 1905. p. 127-128, 190, 221. Internet Archive, HathiTrust. 
9. The Lexington Intelligencer, Lexington, MO. 8 July 1905. Chronicling America Newspapers. 
10. "A Clever Poet." The Lexington Intelligencer. Lexington, MO. 1 Feb 1908. Chronicling America Newspaper. 
11. "Local Briefs." The Lexington Intelligencer, Lexington, MO. 5 September 1908. Chronicling America Newspapers. 
12. The Annual American Catalog, 1900-1909. The University of Michigan, 1901. Vol. 6., p. 1908. Google Books. 
13. The Lexington Intelligencer. Lexington, MO. 8 Jan 1910. Chronicling America Newspapers. 
14. "Talk About Ads: Big Men in Business World at Leavenworth." The Topeka State Journal. Topeka, KS, 21 Feb 1912. Chronicling America Newspapers.  
15. "Smith-Comstock." The Lexington Intelligencer. Lexington, MO. 25 October 1912. Chronicling America Newspapers. 
16. The Daily Missourian. Columbia, MO. 14 May 1917. Chronicling America Newspapers. 
17. "MO. Writers Open Journalism Week." The Daily Missourian, Columbia, MO. 14 May 1917. Chronicling America Newspapers. 
18. "Journalism Week Notes." The Daily Missourian. Columbia, MO. 15 May 1917. Chronicling America Newspapers.  
19. "Missouri Ranks High in Literary Field: Active and Associate Members." The Daily Missourian, Columbia, MO. 18 May 1917. Chronicling America Newspapers. 
20. "Paddling" Impresses Visitor: Warren E. Comstock of Kansas City Tells of Journalism Week Incident. The Daily Missourian, Columbia, MO. 31 May 1917. Chronicling America Newspapers. 
21. "Echoes of Journalism Week: An Honor to Missouri." The Daily Missourian, Columbia, MO 21 June, 1917. Chronicling America Newspapers. 
22. "Journalism Week: Switzler Hall." Two Poems," Warren E. Comstock of Kansas City. 
23. The Evening Missourian, Columbia, MO. 3 May 1919. Chronicling America Newspapers. 
24. "Guild Opens Tenth Journalism Week." The Evening Missourian. Columbia, MO. 5 May 1919. Chronicling America Newspapers. 
25. "I. D. Mullinax First on Week's Program." The Evening Missourian, Columbia, MO. 3 May 1920. Chronicling America Newspapers. 
26. "Script-Crafters Please." The Evening Missourian. Columbia, MO. 4 May 1920. Chronicling America Newspapers. 
27. "Will Hear Missouri Writers on Monday." The Evening Missourian. Columbia, MO. 1 May 1920. Chronicling America Newspapers. 
28. USA Census Records
29. Missouri Death Certificate #30591 and Marie's Missouri Death Certificate #4700. 

Places to Visit:
Elmwood Cemetery, Kansas City, Missouri. 

XXVIII

We'll dwell throughout Eternity, and Wait

For other Pilgrims who have traveled Straight

The Narrow Path that leads to Heaven's Gate. 

By Warren E. Comstock, Immortality (Antithesis of "The Rubaiyat")

Citation: "Warren E Comstock." Written by Dolores J. Rush. 4 October 2022. History Nut of Missouri, USA. 

Lee Mace

Lee Mace (1927-1985) - Entertainer. Bass String musician. Best known for Lee Mace's Ozark Opry. Born to Lucian Thomas and Anna Jane "Clare" (Buster) Mace on a summer day (30 July) near Brumley, Missouri, almost a year after his parent's marriage on 8 Aug 1926. He was the oldest of three children.
Lee grew up in Tuscumbia, Missouri in the quarters above the jail when his dad, Lucian, was elected Sheriff (1940s). Lee's dad was later elected to the Missouri House of Representatives and served as both a Judge and a school teacher. His mother wrote a column for the local paper. She, a Baptist, adopted a Bible verse (Philippians 4:8-9) that was her philosophy of life.
Lee received a shiny red Western Flyer bicycle one year for Christmas and a new baby sister.
He graduated from Tuscumbia High School in 1945 and then served in the Navy during the last part of WWII and in the Army during the Korean Conflict. Lee married Joyce Williams on 16 Aug 1950.
Three years later, Lee founded his Ozark Opry. He got some folks together from the area and began putting on hillbilly music shows. His wholesome, family shows grew so much that he built a new auditorium in 1957 with a seating capacity that eventually reached 1000 seats. They performed from mid-April to mid-October every night except Sundays as well as a half-hour show on television by 1966 which aired in the central Missouri region.
Lee died in a private plane crash on 16 June of 1985. Joyce continued running the show until she retired in 2005. Lee is buried in the Gott cemetery in Ulman. Look for the big bass fiddle carved on Lee's tombstone. 

More to Read:
1. Ancestry.com Census Records

2. Hillbilly-Music dot com 
3. Lee Mace's Ozark Opry

4. Lee Mace Biography 
5. The Story of Lee Mace by Joe Pryor, former President of the Miller County Historical Society museum. 2008.
6. Miller County Historical Society's YouTube Channel
7. Findagrave #14789856 

Places to Visit in MO:
1. Miller County Historical Society Museum and gift shop, PO Box 57, 2005 Hwy 52, Tuscumbia 65082, 573-369-3500 

2. Old Jail, Tuscumbia

3. Lee Mace Memorial Highway, Osage Beach

4. Mace Ozark Opry Museum, 54 Hwy, Osage Beach
5. Gott Cemetery, Ulman, Miller County

🎸🎸🎸🎸🎸🎸🎸🎸🎸🎸

Memories of that Mountain Music! 

Citation: "Lee Mace." Written by Dolores J. Rush. 3 January 2019. History Nut of Missouri, USA. 

John William "Blind" Boone

John William "Blind" Boone (1864-1927 ) -- A bi-racial, disabled Concert Pianist. Best known as the pioneer of ragtime music, he was recorded in 1912 by the QRS piano roll company. Born to Rachel Ann Carpenter Boone*  (1841, KY-1901, Mo.), a mulatto "liberated" slave, she gave birth to John William on May 17, 1864. When Willie was six months old, he contracted a serious illness known as "brain fever" and doctors removed his eyes in an attempt to cure it. 

Rachel, a single mom, moved to Warrensburg where she worked as a servant for several families. She married his step-father, Harrison Hendrick, May 17, 1871, when Willie was 8. She wanted her son to have a good education, so with the help of friends, he was sent to St. Louis in 1872/3 to the School of the Blind where he would be taught a trade, so he could support himself when he grew up, but he was not happy there, mostly because he was bored with the subjects he was forced to learn such as making brooms and Braille. He soon was expelled for skipping classes and a train conductor kindly sent him home after finding him living on the streets.

Boone had a fine mind with a good memory and could remember how to play the music he heard. Recognizing Boone's musical talent, John B. Lange, Jr. (1840-1916) became his manager, forming the Blind Boone Company. Willy married Eugenia Lang (1870-1931), his manager's youngest sister.

They traveled in the US, Canada, and Mexico where Boone gave as many as 8,000 public concerts during his lifetime, but was known to visit friends to play a song or two. He always played hymns during his concerts and one of his favorites was "Nearer, My God to Thee", words by Sarah F. Adams, 1841, and music by Lowell Mason, 1856.

He passed away October 4, 1927 while visiting his half-brother, Sam Hendrick, in Warrensburg, with Eugenia following on March 16, 1931. Both were buried side by side in the Columbia City Cemetery.

*Note: Due to the confusion over Rachel's name, I thought a little explanation was in order. According to David W. Jackson, author of Born a Slave: Rediscovering Arthur Jackson’s African American Heritage and editor of "Generations," the official newsletter of the Mid-west Afro-American Genealogical Interest Coalition (M.A.G.I.C), emancipated slaves had the freedom to choose their own surnames. Whether Rachel was liberated from her former Benton County, Mo. slave-owners by running away or being stolen is undetermined, but Sam Hendricks, informant for Blind Boone's death certificate and his brother, Rachel's maiden surname was Carpenter, therefore Blind Boone was a product of her liberated state as she later married Hendricks when John William was 8 years old and had other children.  

Personal Motto: "Merit, Not Sympathy, Wins." 

More to Read:
1. Dr. Ashley's biography: Click Here
2. Blind Boone: His Early Life and Achievements. By Mrs. Melissa Fuell-Cuther, B.S.D., (First edition: Burton Pub., Kansas City, MO. 1915; Second Edition: Evangel Pub. Society, Robbins, TN; 1918.)
3. Blind Boone: Missouri's Ragtime Pioneer. By Jack A. Batterson. Univ. of Mo. Press.
4. Eugenia & John Lange, Jr.'s father, John Lange, Sr., Free Man of Color.
5. "Historic Missourians: John William "Blind" Boone (1864-1927). Retrieved from the State Historical Society of Missouri. Retrieved from this website.
6. "Blind" Boone: Missouri Honors Its Ragtime Pioneer. By Phoebe Prioleau. Retrieved from this website here. 
7. The African American Atlas. Black History & Culture an Illustrated Reference. by Molefi K. Asanta and Mark T. Mattson. Macmillan USA, Simon & Schuster, New York. Retrieved from website: African-American Registry. 
8. Merit, Not Sympathy, Wins: The Life and Times of Blind Boone. By Dr. Mary Barile and Christine Montgomery. Retrieved from website: Blind Boone. By Mo Sec of State.
9. "Presenting Blind Boone: A Life from Rags to Ragtime Riches" By Leslie Lyon. Columbia Missourian Newspaper. 1975-11-30. No. 58.
10. "J.W. Boone Was County Celebrity." By John Jaeger. Columbia Missourian Newspaper. 1971-08-22. No. 289. 
11.) John William Boone article at the Boone Society website. 
12.) MO. Death Certificate
13.) His manager: John B. Lange, Jr. Mo. Death Certificate: 24534

14.) Black Archives of Mid-America in Kansas City, Inc. 
15.) Findagrave, # 4391. 

Poem written about Blind Boone: Blind Boone's Vision. By Tyehimba Jess.

CD - "Blind Boone: Strains from the Flat Branch." Contains music from seven known QRS piano roll recordings, circa 1912/1913. See the Blind Boone Park link below to obtain a copy.

Places to Visit:
1.) Boone's Home (built by Eugenia's brother, Thadius Lange), 10 North Fourth Street, Columbia (National Register of Historic Places).

2.) Second Missionary Baptist Church. North 4th St, Columbia. Stained Glass window donated by John Lange, Blind Boone's brother-in-law and manager.
3.) Blind Boone Sculpture. Artist: Ai Qiu Hopen. Blind Boone Park, 402 W. Pine St., Warrensburg. 2 Markers

4.) City of Warrensburg Roadside Historical Marker. 812 East Young Avenue (Young Avenue and US Hwy 50 Access Ramp), Johnson County, Warrensburg.

5.) Boone County Historical Museum, 3801 Ponderosa St, Columbia
6.) Columbia Cemetery, E. Broadway & 163 Hwy, Boone county, Columbia.

7.) Thespian Hall, 522 Main St, Booneville

8.) John B. Lange, Jr. lived at 912 Park Ave, Kansas City. He and his wife, Ruth, are buried in the Highland Cemetery, Jackson County, Kansas City.  Findagrave # 55539392

9.) Stand on the corner where Blind Boone's Theatre (1929) historic building presently stands at 18th & Highland Ave, Kansas City. 

Kansas City Jazz - Musicians Local No. 627 (Blind Boone's Southern Rag Medley is the very first clip)

10.) Webster County, Missouri Roadside Marker. Webster County Courthouse, Marshfield.

Quote: "Blindness has not affected my disposition. It has never made me at outs with the world. Many times I regard it as a blessing, for had I not been blind, I would not have given the inspiration to the world that I have. I have shown that no matter how a person is afflicted, there is something that he can do worthwhile." ~ Blind Boone.

Citation: "John William 'Blind' Boone." Written by Dolores J. Rush. 18 October 2016. History Nut of Missouri, USA. 

Miss Mary Jane Truman

Miss Mary Jane Truman

Mary Jane Truman (1889-1978) = Pianist/Organist, Sunday School teacher, & sister to former US President Harry S. Truman. Mary Jane was the third child born to John Anderson (1851-1914) and Martha Ellen Young Truman (1852-1947) on August 12. Mary Jane's paternal grandparents were Anderson Shipp and Mary Jane Holmes Truman and her maternal grandparents were Solomon and Harriet Louisa Gregg Young. She was named for her paternal grandmother and Harry's daughter, Mary Margaret Truman was, in turn, named for her.

Solomon Young's Home, Grandview, MO.

Sometime after the Trumans moved to Independence in 1890, Mary's brothers Harry and Vivian came down with diphtheria and she was taken to Grandma Young's in Grandview, MO. to stay until her brothers were well. When Mary Jane was older, she helped with chores in the house and learned to cook for the family as well as the farm hands. She rode a horse on errands to town. After Grandpa passed away, Grandma Young needed help running the farm, so the Truman's moved back. Mary Jane and her mother lived on the farm until the 1940s when they moved into Grandview.

As a member of Grandview's First Baptist Church (f. 1848), Mary Jane taught a Sunday School class and hosted Sunday School picnics on the lawn of their home. Like Harry, she could play the piano or organ and did so regularly for church services. When she was 19, she played for the Grandview Methodist's very first church service, then at 8th and Goode.

She was a postal clerk and an active member of the Chamber of Commerce. She was instrumental in the sale of lands for the Truman Shopping Center built in 1957.

More to Read:
1. Harry S. Truman: Missouri Farm Boy. By Wilma J. Hudson. 1973.
2. History of Grandview, Missouri: 1844-1994. Grandview Historical Society, 1995.
3. "History of Grandview." City Hall,  City of Grandview, MO.
4.  Jackson County Pioneers. By Pearl Wilcox. 1975.
5. Mr. President. The First Publication from the Personal Diaries, Private Letters Papers, and Revealing Interviews of Harry S. Truman. By William Hillman. 1952.

6. “Harry Truman: The Millionaire Next Door” By Brian Burnes. The Kansas City Star

     Magazine, Kansas City, MO.; January 15, 2012. PP. 6-13.
7. Truman’s Grandview Farm. By Jon Taylor. 2011. Also read here. 
8. Solomon Young's Farm Marker History 

9. First Baptist Church History. 
10. Missouri Roadsides: The Traveler's Companion. By Bill Earngey. University of MO

     Press, 1995.

11. Childhoods of the American Presidents. By William O. Foss. McFarland & Co, 2005.
12. "Truman and the Trails" Niel M. Johnson. Overland Journal, Vol. 5, Number 2, 1988. Pp. 25-29 (photo of Solomon Young included in article)

13. Some Truman Photos here
14. Sister-in-law, Bess Truman's biography.
15. This article gives names of Miss Mary's girlfriends. See if you can find them. 

16. Findagrave #6137032


Places to Visit in MO.:
1. Former Truman Homes (private residences), on Chrysler St. & at 909 W. Waldo Ave., Independence.  

2.  Harry S. Truman Library and Museum, Independence

3. Historical marker at Truman (former name: Corners) Marketplace Shopping Center, between 71/49 Hwy and Blue Ridge Blvd, Grandview

4. Church of God, 8th & Goode, Grandview
5. First Baptist Church Historic Room, 15th and Main St., Grandview (by appointment only)
6. Solomon Young's home, 12301 Blue Ridge Blvd, Grandview. Truman Farm Home
7. Annual Truman Heritage Festival - Harry's Hay Days, Grandview (parade,

     craft/food vendors, BBQ contest, entertainment, etc.) 
8. Grandview Historical Society, Train Depot Museum, Freedom Park (behind City Hall), 1205 Jones, Grandview. Greater Kansas City History Day

Update: The National Archives holds the Presidential Secretary's Files from the Truman Administration (1945-1960). Among those papers is his diary he kept while in office.

Citation: "Miss Mary Jane Truman." Written by Dolores J. Rush. 28 April 2016. History Nut of Missouri, USA. 

Thomas Roy Musick

My husband's grandmother had this newsletter tucked away inside a scrapbook. The first page mentions a State Evangelism conference at the Fee Fee Baptist church in St. Louis and the second has an interesting Christmas tree illustration.

The Fee Fee Baptist church is one of the oldest Baptist churches in Missouri and was organized by the following minister:

Thomas Roy Musick (1757-1843) = Baptist minister. Thomas was the son of Ephraim and Isabella (Roy) Musick, members of the Church of England. Thomas became a Baptist at the age of 17. He came to Missouri in 1801 before the Louisiana Purchase (1803) and began the Fee Fee Baptist Church in 1807, named for the nearby creek, at the present town of Bridgeton in St. Louis County and served as its pastor for 30 years.

Two of his charter members were John (1730-1808) and Virginia "Jane" (b. 1735) (Childress) Sullins. Two of their children married Musicks, first cousins to Thomas. Edward married Susannah and Elizabeth married Uriah (1782-1851). My husband's line of descent comes through Peter Sullins, a brother to Edward and Elizabeth.

When Mr. Musick first came to the area of the Spanish-held territory where a Catholic official, M. Trudeau, governed, he was consistently refused permission to preach there and was told not to put a steeple on his house, nor ring a bell, or baptize infants unless a priest was present or he would be sent to the calaboza (jail). He was also told that if some friends, like Mr. Clark, came to his house to visit, sing songs and pray, that was all right, because they were all good Catholics.

More to Read:

1. As A Tree Planted: History of Fee Fee Baptist Church 1807-1970. By Ruth E. Abraham. 1957. Revised 1970. (online index)

2. Peter Sullens and Mary Carson and Two Hundred Years of Descendants. By Maude Sullens Hoffman, Oklahoma. Printed by J.W. Brown. 1971.
3. Historical timeline signage at Fee-Fee Baptist Church (org. 1807), see below.

4. Primitive Baptist Library website, Carthage, Illinois

5. See the "Leaf" labeled biographies for more information.
6. "A Tardy Pardon and Other Buried Treasures" By Kyle Schrader.
7."A History of the Pioneer Families of Missouri, with numerous sketches, anecdotes, adventures, etc., relating to Early Days in Missouri" by William S. Bryan and Robert Rose, Published by Bryan, Brand & Co., St. Louis Missouri, 1876. 8. "Rev. Thomas Musick" Missouri Baptist Biography: A Series of Life-Sketches Indicating the Growth and Prosperity of the Baptist Churches as Represented in the Lives and Labors of Eminent Men and Women in Missouri. By J. C. Maple & R. P. Rider. Western Baptist Pub, Co., Kansas City, MO, 1914. Vol. 1, pp. 20-24. Free e-book retrieved from Google Books website. 9. "Fee-Fee Baptist Church." History of St. Louis County, Missouri. By William Lyman Thomas. S. J. Clarke Pub Co, St. Louis, Mo; 1911.p. 72-73. Free e-book retrieved from Google Books website, https://books.google.com/ 10. Diary of William Joseph Clark, Being an Account of His Trip from Clark County, Kentucky, to St. Louis, MO, To take the Deposition of Col Daniel M. Boone for the Widow Swinney in 1804. RKHS,(May 1927) 25:193-206. p. 6, 8, Henry Enoch.

11. Missouri Baptist Ministers. Click here.

12. Findagrave #12452929

Places to Visit:

1. Fee Fee Baptist Church, 11330 St. Charles Road (corner of Fee Fee and St. Charles Rock St), Bridgeton, MO.

2. Musick Memorial Drive, St. Louis
3.  American Revolutionary War Veteran Marker, Fee Fee Cemetery, 11210 Old Saint Charles Road Bridgeton, Mo.



This is obviously not the original log church
but is the oldest sanctuary building on the
property.

First Hundred Years:

1807 = First church est. in the home of Mrs. Jane Sullens. 

1815 = First log building erected on Fee Fee creek on three acres donated by Major James Richardson to be used for a church & cemetery.

1828 = First brick bldg. erected on Old St. Charles & Fee Fee roads incorporating the logs from the previous building. This building still stands on cemetery property.

1842 = Fee Fee Baptist Church began sharing the church bldg. with the Presbyterians & the Methodists. Baptists used the church on the 2nd & 4th Sundays, Presbyterians on the 1st & 3rd Sundays, & the Methodists on the 5th Sunday.

1870 = Fee Fee Baptist Church was erected at the current location & dedicated in July. It was built on 5 acres of land donated by Erastus Post on the newly rocked St. Charles road. It was at this time that the "Creek" was dropped from the name of the church.

1877-1882 = These were dark years for Fee Fee. Many members died or left for cheaper land out west. The debt was heavy and the church was discouraged.

1882 = On the 75th anniversary (Jubilee Yr.), the debt was paid off with help from other Missouri Baptist churches.

1904 = Parsonage was erected on the east side of the church bldg. A great deal of the funds was raised by the Ladies Aid Society.

1907 = Centennial celebration of the Fee Fee Baptist Church.

Citation: "Thomas Roy Musick." Written by Dolores J. Rush. 3 June 2015. History Nut of Missouri, USA. 

Elizabeth "Bess" Virginia Wallace Truman

By Dolores J. Rush.

Elizabeth "Bess" Virginia Wallace Truman (1885-1982) = Former First Lady. Favorite colors: Plum, Blue. Born in Independence, MO on February 13 to David Willock, a banker, and Margaret "Madge" Gates Wallace . She was the eldest and only daughter of four children. With blue-eyes and golden curls, Bess, in her future husband Harry S. Truman's estimation, was the "sweetest, prettiest girl" he had ever seen when he saw her for the first time in Sunday School at the age of six. She was very popular and she graduated from the Independence High School in 1901. She also attended the Barstow School for Girls in Kansas City, for a year.

When Harry moved to Grandview, MO. to help his father with the farm and while he was away at war, they wrote letters regularly.

They were married on June 28, 1919, at an Episcopal Church and lived in her widowed mother's home. In 1924, Mary Margaret, their first and only child, was born there.

When Harry became active in politics, first in Kansas City, then in Washington D.C., she traveled with him and fulfilled the social obligations of her position as a Judge's wife, a US Senator's wife, and First Lady after the death of President Franklin D. Roosevelt. During Harry's second term, they were denied the pleasure of living in the White House until early 1952, while the century-old Executive Mansion underwent a major renovation. During this time, they lived in Blair House instead. In  late 1952, she welcomed Mrs. Mamie Eisenhower as the new First Lady to the White House. She was looking forward to going home to Independence. Her chief enjoyments there were reading books from her library and devoting time to friends and family such as her daughter, Margaret, and Margaret's husband, Clifton Daniel, and Bess & Harry's four grandsons.

More to Read:

1. Our First Ladies: Martha Washington to Pat Ryan Nixon. By Jane & Burt McConnell. 1969.

2. The First Ladies. By Margaret Brown Klapthor. White House Historical Association, Washington, D.C., 1979.

3. American Inaugurals: The Speeches, the Presidents, and Their Times. By Kristen Woronoff. Blackbirch Press, New York, 2002.

4. The Presidents In American History. By Dr. Charles A. & Wm. Beard, PhD. Julian Messner, New York, 1935; re-printed 1977.

5. Presidents of the United States. Jane & Burt McConnell.

6. Childhoods of the American Presidents. By William O. Foss. McFarland & Co, 2005.

7. Homes and Libraries of the Presidents. By William G. Clotworthy. McDonald & Woodward, 2008.

8. Hospital Hill: an Illustrated Account of Public Healthcare Institutions in Kansas City, Missouri. James L. Soward, Kansas City: Truman Medical Center Charitable Foundation, 1995

9. University Health/Truman Hospital History

10. Harry Truman and Solomon Young's Farm home. Read here. 
11. Sister-in-law, Miss Mary Jane Truman's biography.

12. Findagrave # 19671

Places to Visit:

1. Bess Truman's Birthplace (private residence with marker, near Bingham-Wagner's home), 117 Ruby Ave, Independence, MO.

2. National Agricultural Center and Hall of Fame (Harry's plow), 630 Hall of Fame Drive, Bonner Springs, KS.

3. Bess Truman Clinic, Truman Medical Hospital Lakewood, 7900 Lee's Summit Road, Kansas City, MO.

4. Truman Heritage Festival - Harry's Hay Days, Grandview, Mo.
5. Historical Marker at the Truman Marketplace Shopping Center. 71/39 Hwy, Grandview

6. Truman Home, 219 North Delaware, Independence, MO.

7. Truman Library, 500 West US Highway 24, Independence, MO. (Bess and Harry are buried on the site of the Truman Library.)

8. Third Street Social restaurant, 123 SE 3rd Street, Lee's Summit, MO (click on "About;" historic building along w/ photos of Harry). 

Bess Truman was born here!

Citation: "Elizabeth 'Bess' Virginia Wallace Truman." Written by Dolores J. Rush. 14 April 2015. History Nut of Missouri, USA. 

George Champlin Sibley

Major George Champlain Sibley (1782-1863) = Factor of Fort Osage. Surveyor. George left Fort Bellefontaine near St. Louis and headed up the Missouri River to build Fort Osage. He kept a journal of his trip and noted on September 5, the boats were unloaded, tools laid-out, and a sketch of the fort's layout was drawn. Paint indicated which type of buildings went where – red for blockhouses, green, the factory and his home, and blue for the officer’s quarters. A trading post and a church was soon built close by. After signing a treaty with the Osage Indians, Fort Osage was christened on November 10, 1808.

The War of 1812 caused the evacuation of the Fort from 1813 to 1815 and when George returned, he brought back his bride of fifteen years, Mary Easton (1800-1878), born in Rome, New York, the daughter of Rufus Easton, St. Louis' first postmaster. They married in September of 1815. Fountain Green, a home he built for them outside of the fort, was filled with furniture, books and a piano. The Indians were fascinated by the piano and would gather outside whenever Mary played. They adopted three children, orphans of their long-time Osage friend, Sans Oreille.

When missionaries from the American Board of Commissioners for Foreign Missions (Boston, Massachusetts) arrived at Rapid de Kaw (Collen’s Ford) in 1821 to build Harmony Mission School at the request of some of the Osage Tribal Chiefs, Sibley was there to oversee the work on the construction of a government trading post near the mission. In 1825, Sibley, Ben, Alexander Majors' father, and others surveyed the Santa Fe Trail, a distance of about 775 miles.

After Sibley's retirement, George and Mary joined Old Blue First Presbyterian Church (f. 1818) in St. Charles. They are buried on the Lindenwood University campus.

Historical Note: Chester Harding painted a portrait of George Sibley sometime in the 1830s. Mr. Harding also painted a portrait of Daniel Boone.

More to Read:

1. Jackson County Pioneers. By Pearl Wilcox. 1975.

2. “Genealogy News Bytes” April 2008. (e-newsletter); "Letters Received by Agents from All of the Factories" (microfilm) and "Indian Trade Letters, January 19, 1822, Serial 60" (microfiche) at Midwest Genealogy Library, 3440 South Lee’s Summit Road, Independence, MO

3. Seeking a Newer World: The Fort Osage Journals & Letters of George Sibley. By Jeffery Smith. 2003

4. A Condensed History of the Kansas City Area: Its Mayors and Some V.I.P.s 1850-1950 ” Assembled by George Fuller Green. City Historian. The Lowell Press; Kansas City, MO. 1968.

5. Empires, Nations and Families: History of the North American West 1800-1860. Anne F. Hyde. University of Nebraska Press, 2011.

6. Wikipedia article

7. Santa Fe Trail Map, either obtained from the National Trails System Office or the Santa Fe Trail Association, Larned, KS

8. The Survey and Maps of the Sibley Expedition, 1825, 1826, & 1827. By Stephen Schmidt & Richard E. Hayden. Santa Fe Trail Association, August 2011. 
9. Kansas City, Missouri: Its History and Its People 1808-1908 By Carrie Westlake Whitney, S. J. Clarke, Chicago, IL, p. 28

10. Findagrave  Memorial #21640843

Places to Visit in Mo. & KS:

1. Missouri River
2. DAR "Trail to Ft. Osage" marker, Main St, St. Charles, MO.  

3. First Presbyterian Church (est. 8/30/1818). Founded as the Old Blue Church by Rev. Salmon Gidding and Rev. M. Matthews. St. Charles. St. Charles County.

4. Lindenwood University (f. 1827), 209 S. Kings Highway, St. Charles

5. Fort Osage, 107 Osage Street, (formerly: Six Mile), present-day Sibley.

6. Fort Osage Historical Marker, put into place by the Native Sons and Daughters of Kansas City,

 7. Try to trace the old Mission Road. It began between Lexington and Fort Osage, running through Van Buren Township in Jackson County to the north bank of the Marais des Cygnes River in the extreme southern part of future Bates County, near Papinville above the point where it merges with the Osage River.

 7. National Trails Museum, 318 W. Pacific, Independence (across the street from the Bingham-Wagner home).

 9. Santa Fe Trail

 10. Papinville Historical Society Museum, Market Street,  Bates Co. and the Marais des Cygnes River

11. Sibley's Ridge, US 56, Larned, KS. (August 31, 1825, Sibley Survey Campsite)

The Trail to Fort Osage
Western Trailhead
Ca. 1808
The trail from St. Charles to Fort Osage was likely the earliest American Overland Trail across present-day Missouri. Its origins date to 1808. William Clark, then a Brigadier-General in Louisiana's Territorial Militia, accompanied the St. Charles Dragoons to this site for the purpose of Building a US Fort and Government-Trading House.
Under the Guidance of Daniel Boone's son, Nathan Boone, the expedition traveled through open prairies to Arrow Rock, and from there along a path parallel to the Missouri River, passing in the vicinity of the later towns of Marshall, Grand Pass, Waverly, Dover, Lexington, Wellington, Napoleon, Levasy and Sibley.
Dedicated October 31, 2010
Missouri State Society Daughters of the American Revolution-Fort Osage Chapter, NSDAR.

For the Educator:

Educational Experiences Outdoor Field Trips

Teachers Guide to Missouri Town and Fort Osage

Fort Osage Curriculum Guide

Citation: "George Champlin Sibley." Written by Dolores J. Rush. 20 November 2014. History Nut of Missouri, USA.