The daily Gate City and constitution-Democrat. (Keokuk, Iowa) 1916-1922, 1919-02-13
Legend That He Was Interested Fl
naneiaIly with His Brother In
Big Farm In Adjoining
Missouri Section.
RECORDING OLD HISTORY
Much Attention Is Being Paid Just
Now to Making a Permanent
Record Of the Facts Of
Early Clark County

Clark county, Missouri, near Luray.
and the great general had f1nanclal
interest in the farm there.
The first church in that county
was one built by the Baptists In
1895, and its foundations were there
on Fox river recently.
The first settlement of permanent
residents and farmers In Clark co1In-
ty was made In 1929, nine years after
DR.. Muir came from Fort Edwards to
found Keokuk.
One of the first permanent .citizens
Of Clark county was Jacob Weaver,
who stopped near st. Francisvile In
1929 He was not of the same family
as Mrs. Emma G. Summers and Mrs
Emma Weaver Bridgman, of Keo-
kuk, whose ancestry also dates back
into Clark county history.
Earliest Permanent Settlers.
The above facts about Clark coun-
ty history are given by Leo Mccoy,
of Red Bluff, Calf, who, with his
brothers, one of them formerly a
cracker manufacturer Of keokuk,
was born and reared in Clark coun-
ty. He writes an article for the ka-
hoka Gazette-Herald, part of which
is as follows:
l have dug up lot Of scraps or
ancient history OF the early settle
ment of Clark county. Charles e.
Worthington, son OF Robert Worth
ington, states that his father tells
him that his family went from Ken.
lucky to Missouri in 1928 and settled
on the Des Moines river, two miles
above st. Francisyille, in 1923.
Historic st. Franoisviile.
David N. Lapsley states in one OF
his articles thae Jerry Wayland,
Mr.. Weaver Chat was Jacob Weav.-
cry, Mr.. Clark and Mr.. Webb settled
at st. Francisville in 1929" The old
pioneer, P. S. Stanley, states IN one
of his articles that Jacob Weaver,
with wife and five children, came
from Kentucky and settled Just
above st. Francisville, on the Des
Moines river, in September, 1873;
that Jerry Wayland, George Hay
wood and Samuel Bartlett. all from
the same nefghborhood In Kentucky,
followed in November the same year
The year 1929 may be the year IN
VI hich the first settlement wAs made
by the old settlers above named, as
well as others named in my letter.
have seen it somewhere stated that
there was a man by the name or
Harrison who settled on the Des
MONIES river above st. Franc1sv1lle
at an earlier date. Seems to me he
was called General Harrison.
The Mccoys Were Pioneers.
in an article written by P. S. Stan
ley, / find this statement:
IN the spring of 1886 came Joseph
Mccoy, ST., and settled two and
half miles east OF the present town
of Waterloo. At that time the only
indication of town was a little
water-mill to saw logs and crack
corn. erected by Whiting Johnson
and Colonel o. 0. Stanford rms
same season Captain Harrison Mum
day brought from Clarksville, Mo-, g
flatboit load of corn and landed it
about five miles up the Dies MONIES
river. Our present esteemed citizen,
Joseph Mccoy, was then lad OF
thirteen years of age and hauled
that corn to the little mill at Water
loo. where 1t was converted into
meal .by his father to sell to those
who had sought homes in the then
far northwest" Captain Munday and
Joseph Mccoy, Jr., were acquainted
before this.
The First Church There.
P. 8. Stanley states that ''the first
church in the county was Baptist,
organized May Z, 1885, and the house
soon after built on the trail Of the
first settlers at the fording of Fox
river"
AS a boy. I can remember signs OF
the foundation of that old church. 1t
stood near the bank of Fox river,
lust above where the bridge stood In
years past, about a mile above the
old brick church.
In about 1880 there was no road
farther north than Tully. a little
landing on the river just above where
Canton now is. l well remember to
have heard Mrs. George K. Biggs.
who was then the Wife of Samuel
BARTLETT, tell Of their experience in
passing up near where Mr.. Biggs
lived and where we lived and on up
near the old brick church, and cross
ing Fox river very near where for
many years the bridge has stood,
this being the place where the first
church was built. There Is a little
spring in the bluff or north bank Of
the river, Just above the bridge.
The Lee Family in Clark County.
Mr.. Stanley states that brother
of General Robert E. Lee in an early
day settled above Luray and did con
siderable farming, but finally went
back to Virginia. During the early
years of the war, I drove cattle a
good deal through Clark and Scot
land counties. We often stopped al
the Combs farm, above Luray, which
was in the neighborhood of the Lee
tract. I heard it said then that Gen
eral Robert e. Lee had an Interest
with his brother and had been there