Progress Notes

I have made references on occasion in previous Progress Notes to various members of the Condra family of Iberia. For example, in the Progress Notes of June 22, 2009 I featured Larry Condra, a former Iberia resident. Larry’s grandfather, Clint Condra of Iberia, was a brother to Norma Condra West, who was married to Clarence West, the Iberia artist who painted the landscape painting of the old cabin which hangs in our entrance foyer (photo 01).

01 Larry Condra

Also, in the same Progress Notes of June 22, 2009 I discussed the story of the gift to the museum by Tennyson and Sue Jarrett of the original barber chair which once belonged to Larry’s great uncle, Wes Condra (photos 02 and 03).

02 Wes Condra

03 Tennyson and Sue Jarrett behind Wes's Chair

Wes for many years was the only barber in Tuscumbia back in the 1940’s and 1950’s. The barber shop itself has quite a history especially the time it almost was swept away in the flood of 1943 (photo 04).

04 Barber Shop in Tuscumbia
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But floods were common and often the barbers would move their chair to the higher porch of Hauenstein’s store during a flood (photo 05).

05 Wes Condra giving Charles Webb a haircut on Hauenstein's porch during Flood

Refer back to the same Progress Notes listed above to read the whole story of the barber shop especially when it was owned by Wes Condra.

Another occasion when I referred to some of the Iberia Condra family was in regard to the interesting story of the burial of Willie Hartack, the famous horse racing Jockey, in the Iberia Cemetery. How Willie came to know Garrett Condra (son of Clate Condra) is a truly interesting story which you can read at this previous Progress Notes.

Here is a photo of Garrett and Willie Hartack’s tombstone taken from that story (photo 06):

06 Garrett Condra at Bill Hartack Tombstone

The surname Condra isn’t common and as far as I know, the Condra family of Iberia is the only instance of a family with that name to have settled here. The origin of the name as well as the people who carry it isn’t completely clear. It first was thought that the name Condra originated in France but some dispute that. Luella Condra Bielicke, formerly of Iberia and daughter of Clate Condra, gave me a copy of a discussion of the Condra heritage written a few years ago by one of the Condra family which you can read at this attachment (photo 07).

07 Contra Family History - Nationwide
Click image to view entire document in PDF format

Here is a photo of the Condra Coat of Arms which Luella showed me (photo 08):

08 Condra Family Coat of Arms

Luella is pictured here on the porch of the original Condra home, which before remodeling and additions, was a log cabin (photo 09):

09 Luella Condra

It is believed that the first Condras migrated to the United States around 1751 and settled in Kentucky after which some moved to Indiana and Tennessee. Greenberry Condra, the first Condra to enter Miller County, was born in Tennessee in 1817 and died in 1876. He came to Miller County somtime in the early 1800’s Greenberry is buried in the Iberia Cemetery (photos 10 and 11).

10 Greenberry Condra
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11 Greenberry Condra Tombstone - Iberia Cemetery
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Greenberry, who was married to Minerva Plumlee, had seven children: Andrew, William, Mary Ann, David, Martha Jane, Benjamin, and Charles.

Review of old plat maps from 1905 show that the land owned by Greenberry’s descendents mostly was located in sections 25, 26, 35, and 36 of Township 39N R13W just west and south of Iberia (photos 12 and 13).

12 T39N R13W - 1905
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13 T39N R13W - SE Corner - 1905

At that time the Condra landowners indicated on the plat map were David, William, and Charles, all sons of Greenberry (photos 14, 15 and 16).

14 David and Emma Condra

15 William P. and Melissa Condra

16 Charles and Harriet Emeline Wall Condra with son Elbert

The seven children of Greenberry had quite a number of offspring, many of whom remained here in the county and are well remembered. Nancy Thompson, our museum director who also is a professional genealogist, has researched the genealogical trail of Greenberry and recorded it in two different methods. You can read both of these genealogical surveys at these two attachments (photos 17 and 18).

17 Descendents of Greenberry Condra
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18 Descendents of Greenberry Condra - Outline View
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One of Greenberry’s sons, David Condra, was the one who remained in the original home, which at first was no more than a log cabin. David, however, made some improvements as did his son, Clate Condra, whose family remains in possession of the home and farm which now is a recognized Missouri Century farm. Here is a photo of the home as it appears currently (photo 19), and a much older photo taken back in the 1930’s before it was resided (photo 20):

19 Greenberry/David/Clate Condra home - Luella Condra Bielicke on Porch

20 Greenberry/David/Clate Condra home - 1930’s

Next is a photo of the Century Farm sign which is attached to the barn across the road from the home (photo 21):

21 Missouri Century Farm Sign

The next photo is of the family of David Condra (photo 22):

22 Children of David:
Clate and Sadie Kinder Condra, Everett and Bertha Wall Condra, Blanche Condra Rice and Robert Rice

Here is a photo of the family of David’s son, Clate Condra (photo 23):

23 Family of Clate: Roger, Garrett, Kenneth, Clate, Sadie, Emma Ruth, Imogene and Luella Condra

And here is a photo of the family of David’s other son, Everett Condra (photo 24):

24 Family of Everett and Bertha Condra: Phyllis, Gladys and Robert

Some will remember that for awhile back in the late 1940’s Everett and his wife Bertha operated the service station in Tuscumbia at the junction of Highways 52 and 17. One of his sons, Robert Allen Condra (included in the last photo), was well known in the Tuscumbia community.

The homes of Greenberry Condra’s sons, Charles and William, who also owned land near Iberia as shown in the plat maps above, no longer are standing and I have found no photos of those homes.

According to Russel Condra, grandson of William, the home of William was an old and aging southern style house having two stories, a winding staircase and fireplace heat only. Russel said it was located on the south side of EE Highway about a half mile west of Iberia but was torn down in the 1930’s. Russel is old enough to have remembered this home. Russel said that William moved into another home on the other side of the highway (north side) about 1000 yards west of the old home. Here is where William lived the last years of his life. This home is still standing (photo 24a).

24a Second William Condra Home

William built this home in the 1920’s or before. Here is a photo of the home soon after it was built (photo 24b):

24b William Condra Second Home

Peggy Hake wrote a short biography of William for her historical column in the Autogram (photo 24c).

24c William and Melissa Miller Condra Narrative
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I mentioned above that one of William’s daughters, Norma, had married Clarence West, who was the artist who painted the picture of the old cabin hanging on the wall of our museum entry way. Here is a photo of Clarence and Norma and one of their children (photo 24d).

24d Clarence West and Norma Condra West, daughter of William Condra

Clarence painted a similar picture of a cabin which is in the possession of Bill Condra, a nephew of Norma and grandson of William Condra. Here is a photo of that painting (photo 24e):

24e Cabin by Clarence West, Husband of Norma Condra, daughter of William

Bill and his sister Cleora Condra Karr provided some of the photos for this narrative for which we are very grateful. Here are photos of Bill and Cleora with their spouses (photos 24f and 24g):

24f John William and Connie Condra

24g Cleora Condra Karr and Charles Karr

Cleora and her husband Charles, who also is a native of Iberia, now live near Chicago. Bill and Connie live in Springfield. Cleora also is an artist. Here are some of her paintings collected in a collage (photo 24h - 24m):

Hover over the photo thumbnails to view caption and click on any of the thumbnails to view a larger image.

Note: Once you click on an image below, a new window will open. It would be best to maximize this new window by clicking on the middle box in the upper right-hand corner of the window. When you move your cursor over the image in this new window, it will change to a magnifying glass. Once this occurs, click on the image and it will show in a larger format for easier viewing.

The portrait of Greenberry Condra which I featured above in photo number 10 is very old. I felt fortunate to have discovered it. The portrait belongs to Anna Shelton McDonald of Brumley but I found it in the home of her brother, Glen Shelton of Brumley who kindly allowed me to photograph it for our website. I had difficulty photographing the portrait because of flash and ceiling light reflection but our website engineer, David Statler, was able with his magic to “cure” the problem.

Anna lives in a large home on Mill Creek Road outside of Brumley on a farm settled by her grandfather, John Shelton. Anna and Glen’s mother, Ada, was a daughter of Charles Condra who married Gilbert Shelton. Here is a photo of Anna on the porch of the Shelton home (photo 25); and another photo of the home from a short distance away (photo 26):

25 Anna Shelton McDonald - Granddaughter of Charles

26 Anna Shelton McDonald at original John Shelton Home

The Condra surname is not seen often now in Miller County. However, quite a few descendents of the family live in the area. For more details about the family please read the two genealogical attachments compiled by Nancy Thompson to which I referred in photos 17 and 18.

At one time however, many Condra family members lived here as is attested by this list of Condras’ buried in the Iberia Cemetery (photo 26a).

26a Condra's buried in Iberia Cemetery
Click image to read entire document in PDF format

Recently, Mike Wieneman sent me a copy of a shelter pass card issued by the management of the Stark Caverns Cave during the time of the atomic bomb threat scare presented to our country by communist Russia during the early 1950’s (photos 27 and 28).

27 Stark Caverns Shelter Pass

28 Stark Caverns

How many readers remember those days? I certainly do. I was scared *!*!*!*!*! “you know what” by the way the threat was publicized to school children to instruct us how to protect ourselves in the event of an atomic bomb attack. I remember the drills at the Tuscumbia grade school in which all of us had quickly to get underneath our desks and cover our heads with our arms and hands when the alarm was sounded. These were the old wooden desks with fold up seats and black painted iron supports. Too bad if you were a little on the heavy side! I used to worry a lot back then about an atomic bomb exploding above Tuscumbia. I was too young to realize that of all the places in the world the Russians might choose to attack, Tuscumbia probably was not high on the list! Let’s face it, even today how many people away from here have ever heard of our little town, the county seat of Miller County?

The U.S. government made a film in the early 1950’s to tell school children what to do in the event of an atomic bomb attack. Did any of you ever see it? I think the film is what really gave me nightmares after watching it at school. Just hearing the words “Duck and Cover” gives me the “Willies!” You can read more about "Duck and Cover" and also view the film for yourself at Wikipedia.

Here is also a version found at YouTube:

Note: If you experience problems with playback on this YouTube version, go to the Wikipedia site to view the same film clip.

One of the most interesting exhibits we have in our museum is an original collection of fish and bird wood carvings donated to us by the family of Hadley Thompson. Here are some photos of Hadley’s collection (photos 29 - 32):

29 Fish Carvings
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30 Fish and Bird Carvings
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31 Bird Carving
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32 Bird Carving
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Hadley was born in 1911 on a farm below Old Bagnell. His parents were Grant James and Myrtle Warnell Thompson. In 1937 he married Icle Irene Percival who was from the Zebra community. Here is a photo of Hadley and Icle (photo 33):

33 Hadley and Icel Thompson

Hadley was a pilot of the Tom Sawyer commercial cruise boat (photo 34).

34 The Tom Sawyer

He also operated the first ski show at Lake of the Ozarks (photo 35).

35 Hadley Thompson Cottages - photo and caption by Dwight Weaver
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Hadley wrote his own biography for the Lake of the Ozarks Fiftieth Anniversary Edition 1981 which I will copy here:

Hadley H. Thompson family
Lake of the Ozarks Fiftieth Anniversary Edition

I was born in 1911 about 2 miles below Bagnell on a farm on the Osage River. My wife, Icel I. Percival was born at Zebra, Missouri.

I was in the regular Navy for a number of years. I lost a lot of good friends at Pearl Harbor. I was discharged in 1945 as a Chief Commissary Steward with a disability discharge. I worked a while in Kansas City until one day in 1954 my doctor called me in his office and told me I had about one year to live. We sold our house and moved to the Lake.

In the years I’ve lived at the Lake, I’ve built and sold a resort, served as President of the Bagnell Dam Chamber of Commerce, served as President of the Lake Ozark Christian Church and Secretary of the Lake Ozark Lions Club.

I made the first move to have the Bagnell Dam area incorporated as a town. Later I served as Alderman as well as Police Commissioner.

My wife, Icle, retired from the Lake Ozark Post Office. At one time, we were the only persons living in the whole of Horseshoe Bend after the Dam was built.

A very interesting interview of Hadley was published in a local paper by Tammy Witherspoon in 1992:

Lakeland/Lake Ozark Resident Hadley Thompson

88 Years of Politics, Art and Romance

Story by Tammy Witherspoon

I had seen Hadley Thompson at the Lake Ozark board meetings. He was a trustee at Lakeland and when the cities decided to try consolidation, Thompson began coming to the meetings. One Tuesday night Hadley told me there were some stories he could tell me and last Friday I finally got around to taking him up on his offer. I’m glad I did. The interview was a thoroughly enjoyable way to spend a morning. So read on and get acquainted with Hadley. I think you’ll find him very interesting.

Hadley Thompson was born on a farm below Old Bagnell to Grant James and Amanie Myrtle Thompson in 1911.

Hadley attended school at Post Oak District School 49. It was a one room school with outside toilets and Hadley said he wished schools were still like that (photo 36).

36 Post Oak School

He met his wife Icle Irene Percival when she was fourteen. She lived at Old Zebra which is now under water. Icle was sitting leaning against a tree and Hadley said when he looked at her he knew she was the prettiest girl he had ever seen.

Hadley left the area in 1928 when he was seventeen to join the navy. He was stationed all over the place while he was in the navy. He served in both the South Pacific and North Atlantic. He spent World War II as a Chief Commissary Steward in the north Atlantic.

Hadley and Icle corresponded while he was in the navy, though Icle’s mother wasn’t sure what to think about the Thompson boy. And they were finally married in 1937, which means they celebrated 62 years of marriage this year.

They were married by Judge Bert Rogers in Kansas City. Bert was the father of Buddy Rogers who was married to Mary Pickford at the time. Hadley said he found out from Judge Rogers that Icle meant sweetheart in Indian language.

After the War, Hadley worked for public services in Kansas City, though he still had some land down at the lake. He ended up back at the lake when a doctor in 1955 told him he had one year to live. Hadley and Icle packed up quickly and came back to the lake area. Hadley decided he wasn’t going to wait around to die so he started clearing out brush on his land and building what became the Thompson Resort. Lake Ozark Mayor Gary Weber now owns the resort the Thompsons used to own.

Hadley also helped to build roads in Horseshoe and Shawnee Bend and did some work at Wilmore.

While running the resort, Hadley got involved with the Bagnell Dam Chamber of Commerce. One of the complaints the Chamber received was about having no restrooms so Hadley built restrooms right across from what is now the Casino Boat Dock.

One night the phone rang and someone called to tell him his restrooms were being torn up. Hadley jumped in a boat and raced over to where the damage was being done. He said there were beer and whiskey everywhere and individuals engaging in activity which wasn’t decent in public. The incident made Hadley get behind a drive to get Lake Ozark incorporated so they could have police protection.

There were several meetings which took place over a period of time and at least one attempt at incorporation which failed when it was learned that the boundaries were wrong.

LeRoy Snodgrass of Tuscumbia acted as an attorney for Lake Ozark and high school seniors were given the job of knocking on every door in Lake Ozark.

Hadley conducted the last meeting held when incorporation was successful but got frustrated with the whole thing when he was accused of not getting M.P.s from Fort Leonard Wood fast enough to handle unruly soldiers. A man stood up to defend him and Hadley turned the job over to him and got out of it. This was approximately 1962 or 1963.

Hadley moved to Lakeland in 1973 and became active in city politics by serving on the board of trustees. Lakeland also had a problem with getting police protection.

Hadley believes police protection is the major gain for Lakeland in the consolidation with Lake Ozark. He said Lakeland had tried to get a 30 cent increase in taxes which they didn’t get and they also didn’t have a way to enforce the ordinances they made.

Besides being active in politics, Hadley has done wood carving for most of his life. His house is full of pieces he has finished including a schooner he started in 1944 and finished in 1949. He bought the blueprints for the schooner from a man named Mr. Seals when he was stationed in Nantucket. The blueprints cost him a dollar.

Hadley has also done carvings of dolphins, whales, freshwater fish and birds of all kinds. The carvings are remarkably lifelike and the detail is wonderful.

When he was taking me out to his workshop Hadley said he believed he had a very good life. I tend to agree. What more can anyone ask from life than to stay occupied doing something you enjoy and to stay in love for 62 years?

Hadley will continue to take part in city government. He plans to make all the Lake Ozark meetings. And he won’t be shy about making suggestions either.

Finally, the obituary of Hadley offers more information about this very innovative and interesting Miller County native:

Obituary: The Eldon Advertiser, Friday, May 5, 2000

Hadley H. Thompson, 88, of Eldon died Thursday, May 4, 2000, at his home. He was born May 17, 1911, at Bagnell to Grant and Myrtle Warnell Thompson. In 1937, he was married in Olathe, Kan., to Icel I. Percival, who survives at the home.

Mr. Thompson attended Bagnell High School and retired from the U.S. Navy after serving 38 years. He was a veteran of World War II. He was owner-operator of Thompson Cottages in Lake Ozark, operated the first ski show in Lake Ozark and was pilot of the Tom Sawyer at Lake of the Ozarks. He also was active in Lakeland and Lake Ozark city politics and had been a deputy law enforcement officer.

He was a member of the Horseshoe Bend Baptist Church at Lake Ozark. He was active in VFW Post 2442 at Eldon and helped provide military honors at many area funerals. He was well known as a wood carver.

In addition to his wife, Mr. Thompson is survived by a daughter, Patricia Pfaff of Mims, Fla.; a son, Gregory Byler of Springfield; three grandchildren; nine great-grandchildren; and two brothers, Paul Thompson of Pueblo, Colo., and Joe Thompson of Leeton.

Visitation will be held from 1 to 3 p.m. Saturday at Horseshoe Bend Baptist Church. Funeral services will be held at 3 p.m. Saturday at Horseshoe Bend Baptist Church with the Pastor Clyde Leonard officiating. Burial will be in Hawkins Cemetery at Brumley under the direction of Phillips Funeral Home of Eldon. Full military graveside honors will be provided by Eldon VFW Post 2442.

We are getting close to the end of the book, Ozark Superstitions, by Vance Randolph (photo 37).

37 Vance Randolph

Last week Vance wrote about Ozark Witchcraft which may have been the most popular of all the chapters so far presented from his book. Especially interesting were those Life Magazine photos which David Statler, our technical expert for this part of our website, collected and added to the narrative. This week Vance discusses Ozark traditions regarding death and burial. You may have noticed that Vance had collected stories from all over the southern half of Missouri. This week he includes a story which took place in Tuscumbia. If you want to read Vance’s biography refer back to the Progress Notes of August 30. To read this week’s chapter from Ozark Superstitions click on the photo below (photo 38).

38 Ozark Superstitions - Death and Burial
Click image to read entire chapter in PDF format

That’s all for this week.

Joe Pryor

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