Progress Notes

One of the really scenic drives in Miller County begins on county road F a mile south of the Osage River bridge at Tuscumbia. Turning right on F off of Highway 17 the road follows the hill top ridge in a south west direction and for several miles follows a course high above the Osage River. This time of the year when the leaves haven’t budded one can see many interesting views of the river valley far down below the road. Here is a photo of the old Miller County Courthouse in the distance taken on Highway F from one of the most elevated points on the bluff (photo 01):

01 Courthouse from river bluff across the River

Here are two more closeup photos of the courthouse taken by MCHS volunteer Doris Wiggins with her telephoto lens (photos 01 and 01b):

01a Courthouse from F Road

01b Courthouse from F Road

After a few miles F highway becomes Pea Ridge Road which turns south. If one leaves Pea Ridge Road turning right (west) on to Bear Creek Road some of the most interesting and beautiful scenery in the county can be enjoyed. Bear Creek road pretty much follows the course of Wildcat Creek eventually crossing over Wildcat Creek to turn south and follow Bear Creek upstream for a few miles before the road ends at its intersection with Highway 42 a couple of miles east of the Lake of the Ozarks state park. You can trace the route on this map of the area which is highlighted in yellow (photo 02).

02 F Highway to Pea Ridge Road to Bear Creek Road
(Route is highlighted in Yellow)
Click image for larger view

Following Bear Creek road a few miles after leaving Pea Ridge Road one approaches the area where once lived the famous Tuscumbia Autogram columnist, Charlotte Beard, who wrote a weekly column named “Wildcat Creek” (photo 03).

03 Charlotte Francis Huddleston Beard

Her articles featured tales of her childhood and what it was like to live in the area before the Lake of the Ozarks was created by the construction of Bagnell Dam.

The home where she raised her family and wrote the Autogram articles no longer is standing as it burned quite a number of years ago. However, one of her grandsons now lives on a farm just a few hundred yards east of where Charlotte’s original home was located. When you see a mailbox on the right (north) side of the road with the Beard name on it you will know you are just a few hundred yards east of where Charlotte’s home was located before it burned.

Here is a map which displays Wildcat Creek Holler where the Beards lived (photo 04).

04 Topographic Map of Wildcat and Bear Creek
Click image for larger view

You will notice in the map that Wildcat Creek runs to the northwest where it empties into Bear Creek.

I have been corresponding with one of Charlotte’s granddaughters, Sarah Beard, who sent me some photos of Charlotte’s old home and some out buildings as well (photos 05 - 11).

05 Charlotte and Ira's Home

06 Charlotte and Ira's Home

07 Charlotte and Ira's Home

08 Charlotte and Ira's Home

09 Charlotte and Ira's Home

10 Chicken House

11 Fruit Cellar

Sarah also sent me a short biography of her grandmother:

Charlotte “Lottie” Francis Huddleston was born on April 9, 1902 to Anna Phillips and Alonzo Huddleston in Brumley. Anna and Alonzo also had a son, Golfrey. Anna and Alonzo separated and Charlotte was sent to live with her grandmother, Mary Huddleston Jeffries, who was married to Sanford Jeffries. Golfrey remained with Anna and her second husband, William Silsby. Alonzo would come around once in a while to visit Charlotte. Anna tried to come into Charlotte’s life later on, but a good relationship was not maintained. However, Charlotte adored her grandparents who gave her a strict upbringing and they loved her very much.

Note: Here is a photo of Charlotte as a child, another of her with her class at Barnett School, and another with her pet pig (photos 12, 13 and 13a):

12 Charlotte as Young Girl

13 Charlotte at Barnett School
Click image for larger view

13a Grandma Beard and Pet Pig

On June 25, 1920, Charlotte was united in marriage to Ira Thomas Beard (1890-1977) (photos 14 and 15).

14 Ira Beard - 1910

15 Ira Beard - WWI

Ira was the son of Joanna Horton and Joseph Beard (photo 16).

16 Joanna Horton Beard and Joseph M. Beard

He had one brother and two sisters; Perry, Patsy, and Mary.

He also had one half brother from Joanna’s previous marriage to Simon Peter Cox.

Together, Ira and Lottie (Charlotte) raised 12 children:

Blanche (Boatman)
Bernice (Walker)
Wayne
Calvin
Ruby (Belairs)
Byron
Jewell
Joann (Trudell)
Alice (Kelley)
Marvin
Wendell
Shirley (Crowley)

Note: Here is a photo of Ira and Lottie and their 12 children (photo 17):

17 Charlotte with 12 Children

Here are the names of those in the above photo:
Front Row: Jewell, Berneice, Ruby, Ira, Charlotte, Shirley, Jo Ann
Back Row: Byron, Calvin, Alice, Marvin, Blanche, Wayne, Wendell

Charlotte established a following to her Wild Cat Creek column published by the Miller County Autogram-Sentinel for many years. Charlotte's column ran from June 12th, 1973 thru Dec. 9th, 1982. Her inspiration for these writings included subjects ranging from gardening to her memories of her upbringing in the Ozarks. On August 14, 1977, Ira passed away and Charlotte became a widow. She continued to write her Wild Creek column for a few years after his death.

On July 21, 1984 Charlotte died at what is now known as Lake of the Ozarks General Hospital in Osage Beach. She was buried beside her husband, Ira, in Boltz Cemetery.

Here are some photos of Charlotte later in life as an older adult sent me by her granddaughter, Sarah Beard (photos 18 - 21):

18 Charlotte and Ira with Car

19 Charlotte in Parlor

20 Charlotte with Pet Cat

21 Charlotte in chair at Home

Charlotte, as other women in her community, enjoyed making quilts. Here is a photo of one of her quilts taken quite a number of years ago (photo 21a):

21a Charlotte's Quilt

Charlotte was loved by her children. In fact, she may have been considered a playmate! I received this cute memory of Charlotte from her granddaughter, Brenda Beard Jaeger by email:

I always enjoyed reading Charlotte’s columns since most of the time she wrote about how life was lived years ago when she was a child or young adult. She had a good memory and always had a good “tale” to tell each week about her life in the hills many years before.

Recently, I had the good fortune to meet a lady who had saved some of Charlotte Beard’s columns. She was Gean Mongold who lives on Highway 52 a couple of miles east of its intersection with Highway 17 south of the Osage River. Gean gave me several copies of previous columns Charlotte had written for the Autogram which I have attached below so readers of this website can get some idea of how life was lived in the Ozarks a couple of generations ago. The columns were not dated so they are in no particular order. The first column is one of particular interest regarding the story of the infamous criminal “Pretty Boy Floyd” who hid out in Wildcat Creek Holler near where Charlotte lived (photos 22 - 36b).

22-36b Charlotte Beard Article Collection
Click image to read entire collection in PDF format

As was mentioned above in the history of Charlotte Beard written by her granddaughter, Sarah Beard, Charlotte as a young child was raised by her grandmother, Mary Blankenship Huddleston Jeffries who was married to Sanford Jeffries. Sanford had a twin brother named Hansford. Here is their photo (photo 37):

37 Sanford and Hansford Jeffries

Sanford’s history is interesting as he was a veteran of the Civil War. Peggy Hake has written his biography:

SANFORD JEFFRIES

Sanford Jeffries was born in Russell County, Kentucky on 16 September 1837. He had a twin brother, Hansford Jeffries, and they were the youngest of 14 children born to Toliver Jeffries and Mary (Warner). The known children of Toliver and Mary were: John Thomas Jeffries b. c/1812; Eliza Jeffries b. c/1817 m. Jesse Martin; James Madison Jeffries b. 1818; Derrick Jeffries b. c/1819 m. Nancy Jane Patterson; Samuel Jeffries b. c/1820; Toliver Jeffries Jr. b. c/1824; William W. Jeffries b. c/1826; Benjamin D. Jeffries b. c/1827; Sanford Jeffries and his twin brother, Hansford Jeffries b. 1837.

The Jeffries family left Russell County, Kentucky about 1854 and came to central Missouri. They settled in the Miller/Camden counties area and continued to live in the same region of Glaize Township of Miller County where the Lake of the Ozarks State Park is now located.

In July 1855, Sanford married Elizabeth/Betsy Kuykendall, a daughter of Jacob Kuykendall. His twin brother, Hansford, married Susan Ann Kuykendall, a sister to Betsy. In 1866, Sanford, Betsy, Hansford and Susan Ann were named as heirs of Jacob Kuykendall in his probate records at the Miller County courthouse. They fell heir to 80 acres of land in the southwest corner of Glaize Township, south of the Auglaize Creek.

During the Civil War, Sanford served with the Union army in Company D of the Osage Battalion, under the leadership of Major J. W. McClennen. His older brother, Benjamin Jeffries, was Captain of Company D........Sanford served from 1861-1865.

Sanford and Elizabeth/Betsy (Kuykendall) were parents of seven children. Betsy died while still young and Sanford married his second wife, Mary Rinard. They became parents of three children. I have found the names of his ten children but do not know to which mother they belonged. The children were: Susan, Frank, Benjamin, Clate, Ada, Sadie (Blize), Dora (Huddleston), W. T., D. L., and E. H. These names appeared in Sanford's obituary notice.

In 1889, Sanford married his third wife, Mary Frances Blankenship Huddleston, widow of George W. Huddleston. She was a daughter of David Blankenship and Mary Ballenger. Mary lived until 1925. Sanford Jeffries outlived three wives and five children. He died on March 23, 1935, almost reaching his 98th year. His funeral services were conducted by Rev. Charles Sooter at the New Hope Church near Kaiser. He was buried in the church's cemetery located nearby.

Sanford Jeffries fought in the Civil War as did one of his brothers, Captain Ben Jeffries. You can read more about Sanford Jeffries at this page at Ancestry.com. Copied below is the story of one of the incidents which occurred to Sanford and his brother at Tuscumbia:

COURTHOUSE AT TUSCUMBIA

FORTIFIED FOR ATTACK

Sixteen Men Killed at Mining Post Ford on Osage River above Bagnell

Eldon Advertiser 12/11/1919

Sanford Jefferies, 82 years old, now of Eldon, came to Miller County when 16 years old. His parents moved here from Russell County, Kentucky coming from there on the Mississippi river to St. Louis and on the Missouri to Jefferson City, and from there they followed the Osage River, driving an ox team, to Tuscumbia and located on the Wet Glaze.

Mr. Jefferies cast his first vote for president for Abraham Lincoln. He remembers distinctly the following war incident.

During Price's raids in Missouri while Mr. Jeffries' regiment was stationed at Jefferson City under command of his brother, Captain Ben Jeffries, it became known that Price's army would make an attack on Tuscumbia and Captain Jeffries regiment was ordered to Tuscumbia to prepare for the attack. A large cannon was mounted on a platform in the door of the court house, the barrel pointing straight down the old road which at that time was the only road leading to the courthouse.

The courthouse was full of soldiers, two were stationed at each window with their guns ready for immediate action and others ready to take their places as fast as they would fire. Guards were placed along the river below the hill to give warning of the approach of the enemy.

One of these guards, Mike Gleson, an Irishman, happened to be stationed near a small warehouse where several barrels of whiskey had been stored. The odor created too strong a temptation for his appetite and by making use of his bayonet, he bored a hole in one of the barrels taking an oversupply for good service. While thus intoxicated he was disturbed by a dark object approaching and having been given orders to call halt three times and then fire if no response was made, one of the other guards heard his say, "Halt couple o' three time" and then the report of his gun aroused the regiment on the hill to alert readiness for the enemy which proved to be a stray cow Mike had killed in the dark.

After this Captain Jeffries, Joe Worth, Albert Harrison and Sam Salsmon were killed by bushwhackers in the lane near Kaiser and a company of soldiers stationed at Linn Creek, hearing of the fight, went in pursuit and overtook the rebels at Mining Post Ford, above Bagnell where they killed sixteen.

Mr. Jefferies camped near where Eldon is now located at one time during the war when it was dangerous to camp out in the open here.

And so ends the story of Charlotte Beard, one of our more interesting Miller County natives and authors, and that of her family. Her ancestral heritage in our county went far back in time and included important historical figures who contributed much to our county’s history.

I am grateful to Marvin Beard, son of Charlotte, and his granddaughter, Sarah Beard, for much of the information contained in the narrative and most of the photos which accompanied it.

Recently, we were visited at the museum by Richard Abbott of Tuscumbia and Rick Nelson of Iberia. Rick was researching the history of Provost Marshalls in Miller County (some of which is contained in Judge Jenkins’ History of Miller County). Richard has an interest in the mining history of Miller County. In fact, after much research he created a map of the major mines in Miller County of the late 19th Century. Here is a photo of Richard and Rick holding the map for the camera (photo 38), and here is a close up of the map (photo 39):

38 Richard Abbott and Rick Nelson

39 Map of Historical Miller County Mines

As you can see from the photo the map contains much information regarding these old mines. I had discussed the subject of mining in Miller County at this previous Progress Notes for those who would want to learn more about the subject.

A couple of weeks ago I presented a collage of old newspaper advertisements from a 1905 edition of the Autogram. In a later 1937 edition of the Autogram I found this old advertisement of a 1938 Chevrolet which I also thought was interesting (photo 40):

40 1938 Chevrolet Ad - Autogram - Nov. 18, 1937
Click image for larger view

That’s all for this week.

Joe Pryor

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