The Butler weekly times. (Butler, Mo.) 1881-1918, 1882-03-01

cabins The following are the names
Of alIthe earliest settlers of Pleasant
Gap township. The Osbornes, a
large family from Illinois. Two
families of Requa's in the Southwest.
Old Daniel Francis and his two Sc ns-
| in Law, Arthur and Constable, md
one Abram Towner were refugees
from the Mormon settlement in lack
son county Missouri, having settled
here after the Aormons were driven
from Independence. Two families
named Harris and Collins lived near
the celaer of the township. Uncle
JIm'nyR1dge was where he still lives.
A family named Walker at what is
now Pleasant Gap village, A fami-
" Of Beatty's completes the list OF
those who settled there in 1890 or
previously. Other information Civ
en- by Judge Wix concerning the set
tiers of Deepw2ter. and Hudson will
be given IN other articles.
JUDGE wIx's FAMILY.
Mr.. NVix married Sarah Beatty in
Dec. 1871. She died in 1874. leav-
ing Giving children having lost three.
The oldest John D. was accidently
shot during the war. The second
boy, Clark, now lives IN Dsepwater
TIP. Thomas H. and A. S. now
1--we m Kansas. Louis, the youngest,
IS now in Texas.
MFR. Wix married Mrs. Cox. a
widow, in 1888. She had two child
rem, Francis A and Joseph F. She
died in 1864. In January 1867, he
married Rosanna Deweese, his pres
ent wife. She has two children liv-
ing, having lost three.
The first post office in the east
partot the county was established in
1S4o near where Pleasant Gap viii
lagenow is. An old man from Ken
tucky named Anderson Cockrell was
the postmaster. A mail route was
established from. Bosnville through
Clinton, Pleasant Gap to Bailtown.
The first school house (except at
Harmony Mission) was in Deepwater
township, in the Sutenhinger neigh
borhood. The second was in section
I, within less than half a mile of
Wm's house. 1t was built of logs,
foored with puncheons. { As most
our young people never saw pun
cheon" we will explain that they were
made by selecting the finest timber
and splitting it into strips as uniform
in thickness and as wide as possible
and then hewing to the required shape
for floor planks). The school of
course was supported by crate bills
there being no ''publIc school fund.-"
Neighborlng townships furnished
some of the pupils, some coming
from as great q distance as 20 miles
and hiring board that they might at
tend the school which f1ourished fine
ly. The first teacher was S. D.
Cockrell, son of the postmaster. He
was hired by the year for three years
insuccession. The house was also
used for religious meetings, the ear
liest preacher being ''Cncle Dicky,"
a good old negro from Balltown.
who came occasionally as CirCum-
stances would permit. He was Il
Presbyterian and afterwards went as
a preacher with the negroes sent to
Liberia, Africa, by the Colonization
Society. The first church orsaniza-
ton IN the east part of the county
Except Harmony Mission) was in
Deepwater and was Methodist
The second was and .'Old Baptist
in Wix's neighborhood. They also
psed the school house for religious |
worship. The next church was in |
the Osborne neighborhood and was
OF the Christian denomination.
A man named Beaver established |
the first blacksmith shop a quarter of |
annie north of where Pleasant Gap |
lpw stands. Previous TO that the
ssttlers went to VIM. Tyree, whs
had shop on Dcepwater just over
the Henry county line. The first |
sore at Pleasant Gap was kept by
nan named Joseph Smith. Exact |
date not known, but about IS5O.-
Settlers soon became sufficiently nu
nerous SO that Mr.. WIx had good |
ucighbors not very :ar distant, and |
he real hardships of pioneer life
were soon over. He was and still is |
q man of energy and perseverance. /
i sure to accomplish whatever he |
cts his hand to. is rclia Alc and trust !
worthy i'll every respect and possesses /
De ,sc.,ect and ,>ouf1dpn.,,. of . farpc (