Cedar County Historical Society news

by Connie Maupin

The monthly meeting of the Cedar County Historical Society was held March 25, in the Stockton museum. Those present were President Judy Nichols, Vice President Judith Cain, Secretary Connie Maupin, Assistant Treasurer Anna Hopkins, Luella Phipps, Sharyl Henry, Ellis Benham, Chris Barber and Bob Phillips.

The meeting was called to order and the Pledge of Allegiance recited. The February minutes and the January Treasurer’s report were approved. The February and March Treasurer’s report were tabled to await further clarification.

Member Anna Hopkins gave a very informative lesson in regards to the VFW “Buddy Poppy”. We were all familiar with the poppy but few if any of us were familiar with the inception and history. Anna Hopkins is the Auxiliary Chaplain of the VFW in Stockton.

President Nichols reported she is still filing and bringing the Research Room files up to date. MODOT is still working on the new Cedar County road map. They will let us know as soon as it is finished.

Claud Hoffman has finished his fourth bridge book. Judy Nichols will be assisting him with information on the Bear Creek Bridge for the fifth volume. The members voted to donate a Bear Creek Lyceum book to him to aid in his research.

Corrected copies of our newsletter have been mailed to Dean Hargett at the State Historical Society.

The date set for our White Elephant sale is not working out for a number of reasons. After some discussion the members voted to change the date to May 18, 2019, from 9:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. The sale will be held in the museum and anyone wishing to donate articles to sell should do so as soon as possible. As always, no clothing or shoes unless new in packaging or with tags still attached. Please be sure any items donated are clean. For information about donating items, call 417-276-1142.

Judy Nichols has not been able to finish placing the Hoff papers into the book due to lack of available supplies. She should be able to have it finished by the April meeting. She also has purchased the George Nafus Funeral Home book which contains burial records from Stockton years 1902 to 1924. George Nafus and his father, James, also had a funeral home in El Dorado Springs. A decision has not been reached as to how best to share the information it contains as the book is in very delicate condition.

Check out the new website on Jerico Springs, Missouri by John Beydler, www.jericospringshistory.com He has given the Society permission to keep a copy of his articles in our archives and will continue to add more information as he locates it. He would welcome pictures or pertinent information related to the subject that anyone might be willing to share with him.

Carol Blackard, Jean Nipps Swaim’s daughter, offered to donate a set of hand painted glasses by John Herbert Nipps formerly of El Dorado Springs. Her offer was happily accepted.

Claud Hoffman donated “Old Historic Bridges in the Missouri Ozarks – Part Four”, “A Directory of Towns, Villages and Hamlets of Cedar County, Missouri”, a copy of the original 1820 Missouri Constitution, Shell City Centennial 1971, MODOT booklets: Historical Resources Mitigation; Missouri Historic Bridge Inventory- Vol. 1; Missouri Historic Bridge List; Missouri Roads and Their Builders; Historic Bridges and Transportation Projects in Missouri. Judy Nichols donated Military Service Records Catalog, Federal Census Catalogs for 1900, 1910 and 1920. Luella Phipps donated an antique picnic basket which will be used in a museum display and Linda and Wayne Kenney donated a book of blank checks pre-dated for the 1960’s from the Sac River Valley Bank.

Beginning in April the museum will be open the first and third Saturday of each month from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. and on the last Monday of the month from 1 to 4 p.m. Admission to the museum is free, however the Historical Society and Museum are not tax funded and operate on donations from the public. The museum is wheel chair accessible. Meetings are held the last Monday of the month. The next meeting will be April 29, at 1 p.m. in the museum at 106 West Davis Street in Stockton. Meetings are open to the public and free coffee is provided. For information, appointments or to purchase publications, call 417-276-1142. Contact the Society by email at cedarcomohistoc@gmail.com, on Facebook at “Cedar County MO Historical Society” or by mail at P.O. Box 111, Stockton, MO 65785.