51st annual Stockton area Chamber banquet Friday, March 9

by Connie Maupin

The Cedar County Historical Society met at the museum in Stockton on January 26, 2024. The meeting was called to order and Pledge of Allegiance recited. Those present were President Judy Nichols, Vice President Chris Barber, Secretary Connie Maupin, Treasurer Anna Hopkins, Judi Cain, Luella Phipps, Sharyl Henry, Ellis Benham, Joe B. Phillips, Bob H. Phillips, Bob Estes and Virginia Barber.

Bob Phillips gave a short talk about John Paynter, who was the first sheriff shot and killed in Cedar County. Prior to serving as sheriff, he was a Captain in the Union Army. In 1864, he was appointed sheriff by the state governor. He was shot when upon locating a suspect lying in bed, he grabbed the man by the foot, proclaimed the man as caught and was promptly shot with a gun the suspect had hidden under the blanket. The deputy accompanying him, William Harville, was also shot. The culprit was never caught. Harville is buried in Lindley Prairie Cemetery. Paynter may be buried there as well, although there is no stone. All of his family are buried there.

Chris and Virginia Barber are discussing a possible August program featuring Larry Wood, author of several historical books about Missouri.

The 51st. annual Stockton Area Chamber of Commerce Banquet will be held on March 9. They requested the society donate a book again this year for their auction. Members voted to donate a copy of, “The Era of the One-Room Rural School in Cedar County, Missouri.”

Longtime member Bob Estes will have a photo slide show display in the library in El Dorado Springs at 2 p.m. on Feb. 29.

A correction to a statement made in last month’s meeting regarding the origin of the steel for the

Caplinger bridge. It has come to light that the Beaumont plant in Texas was not in service until the 1980’s, so the iron was actually milled in Chicago’s Southeast Side Industrial District in Calumet, Illinois. It was shipped by a small railroad to Chicago and then on to Kansas City on the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe. The railroad car was then transferred to the Kansas City-Clinton and Springfield Railroad (later named the Frisco Line) and sent to Humansville. It was loaded onto wagons at Humansville and pulled by horses to the bridge site where it was assembled by local workers.

The Caplinger community is still trying to find a way to save the bridge. Controversy as to the ownership of the bridge continues. See the Wednesday, February 24, 2024 edition of The Cedar County Republican for more information. They will be printing a series of stories and updates.

The Stockton All-School Reunion will be held on June 7, 8 and 9th. Society member, Sheila Griggs is one of the organizers of the event and they can always use volunteers. More information will be forthcoming.

The society is still collecting Best Choice, B.C. Selections and B.C. Clearly food labels and used computer printer cartridges.

Donations in February: The Cedar County Commission donated two photocopies of the Cedar County Courthouse when it was under construction in 1939 and the handles from the front door of the courthouse that had been replaced when a new door was installed recently. Claud Hoffman donated some of his recent writings.

The next meeting will be held in the museum on Monday, March 25, at 1 p.m. Winter hours remain in effect for now. The museum is open during meeting on the last Monday of the month from 1 to 4 p.m. Regular hours will resume in April or May, depending on the weather.

The museum is located at 106 W. Davis St. in Stockton.  For information or appointments, membership inquiries or to purchase publications call: 417-276-1142, by email at  cedarcomohistsoc@gmail.com, on Facebook at “Cedar County Mo Historical Society” or by mail at P.O. Box 111, Stockton, MO 65785.