Progress Notes

The last few days have brought a little rain but the fields still look brown and dry and the specter of drought can be seen around the county. We periodically have suffered droughts in the past, of course, some of the worst ones being those of the late 1930’s and early 1950’s; but others of significance can be remembered by many. I ran across a short article published in the Advertiser during the severe drought of 1938 written by an Eldon resident named Albert Russell, who was asked to give his memories about a very severe drought occurring in 1875 which I will copy here:

Eldon Advertiser
Thursday, July 14, 1938

Albert Russell Says This Season is Like That of 1875 (photo 00).

00 Albert Russell and Olive White

Albert Russell, who is now residing in the R.B. Snyder Home in Eldon, said Saturday this season is very much like it was in 1875 following the year that the grasshoppers and locusts destroyed most of the crops of a dry year and scarcely anything was produced. In the spring of 1875 he says his father drove to California to buy 20 bushels of corn. The horses had been kept through the winter without grain and were thin and weak so that it took several days to make the trip to California and return. As soon as neighbors, who were not able to make the trip and had no money, found out that his father had brought the corn into the country they began asking him to let them have enough to plant. One farmer offered to return five bushels for one if he could get a loan of one or two bushels. Although Mr. Russell had purchased the corn to feed his team through the planting and growing season, he let it all out but about three bushels he had ground for meal and what he kept to plant on his own farm.

Albert says before the spring plowing for corn was through the horses had grown so weak and the weather so warm that instead of plowing the last field the boys pulled up the stalks left on the field the year before and the girls followed, dropping corn in the holes. The stalks had grown about knee high the year before, but produced no corn. The corn last planted was plowed with a double shovel before it came up by following the rows of the year before. The year 1875 proved to be a good corn year and when the corn was gathered there was no noticeable difference between the corn on the ground that had been broken before planting and that which had been planted without plowing.

While plowing the corn, Mr. Russell said a horse would become weak and unsafe to work because of exhaustion. It would then be turned in the pasture and another horse hitched to the plow for a turn at work. In the early days of corn growing, Mr. Russell said the hand hoe was much used. When it was too wet to plow, the weeds were kept down with the hoe and when it was too wet to hoe, the weeds were pulled by hand. The year 1874, Mr. Russell says, was the most complete crop failure ever known in this part of Missouri in the past 75 years.

As noted in the caption of the photo of Albert and his sister above, at that time they were the oldest living twins in central Missouri. Here is a photo of the home in which he resided at the time of the publication of his article in the Advertiser (photo 01):

01 Snyder home where Albert Russell Lived

Some more information about Albert is available at these websites:

http://www.ourgenealogy.co.uk/tng/getperson.php?personID=I0623&tree=Poingdestre

http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi?page=gr&GRid=69188726

One very interesting website about the drought of the late 1930’s can be read here:

http://www.livinghistoryfarm.org/farminginthe30s/water_01.html

For those who are interested in reading more about the history of droughts in Miller County please refer to this attachment which summarizes previous Progress Notes articles about other droughts in the past (photo 02).

02 References to previous Miller County Droughts
Click image to view entire document in PDF format

From time to time I have featured some of the old time country stores of the past, a summary of which is found at this previous Progress Notes.

Other stores of the past are found at this location on our website.

This week I want to present the story of the Williams’ Store of Ulman. An article in the Advertiser featured the Williams family store a number of years ago which I have copied here:

Operate Store Over Half Century

Eldon Advertiser
September 14, 1972

Mr. and Mrs. L.R. Williams, residents of the Ulman community since 1922, recall many memories of the past 50 years during the operation of their business known as Williams’ Store (photos 03 and 04).

03 Mr. and Mrs. L.R. Williams

04 Williams Store of Ulman

Prices have changed considerable since they took possession of the business from Jody Lovell in March of 1922. Then eggs sold for 10 cents a dozen, coffee was 15 cents a pound and the first baked bread they sold went for 6 cents a loaf, “and at that customers complained that it was high,” Williams said.

Coffee was brought from St. Louis in 50 pound bags and the Williams ground it. Recently, they sold their coffee mill to Harley Humphrey.

Recalling the appearance of bakery bread, Williams said, “It was expressed to Eldon, then trucked to Ulman. It arrived with 50 loaves in a box not wrapped or sliced. Things have really changed through the years. Now bread is delivered daily, sliced and wrapped.”

Refrigeration was no problem for meat items. A 300 pound block of ice was delivered twice weekly from the Brays Mill Ice Company, east of Iberia.

Many customers did not pay cash for their purchases. They would trade with Williams. Items often bartered included eggs, furs, turkeys, chickens, milk, and cream. The milk was tested right at the store. The original equipment used for the process is still in the store (photo 05).

05 Milk Testing Equipment

Individuals often ran a continuous bill.

“But come Christmas, they all paid off,” Williams noted.

When the depression came, some were unable to meet their bills.

“It made it hard for us to operate,” Mrs. Williams pointed out. “We still had to meet our bills whether they did nor not.”

The present building did not house the original store. When the Williams moved to Ulman, they were located in a building that sat south of the present site. After two years in business their store, along with two others, was destroyed by fire.

“What few items we were able to save, we moved to our garage. There we set up a temporary store until we were able to rebuild,” Mrs. Williams pointed out.

The new building was constructed of lumber cut from trees on the original Williams farm, now owned by Mrs. Gail Hix. Williams, with help, was able to build the present building in a six months period. They have served customers from that building since 1924.

Williams is the son of the late George H. and Columbia (Curry) Williams. His father, born in Wales, England, came to America in 1858, and lived in Ohio, where he met his wife. They moved to Missouri in 1881, leaving Cleveland the day of President Cleveland’s funeral. As they left town they saw the procession moving down the street.

When the senior Williams moved to Missouri, they settled on a farm located on Brushy Fork midway between Tuscumbia and Iberia. That farm remained in the Williams family for 49 years. Some two miles from the Williams farm was the late Joseph and Azalea James farm. The James’s were the parents of Mrs. L.R. Williams.

“Though two miles was all that was between our farms, it was like 100 would be today,” Williams said.

As youngsters he and his wife did not attend the same schools. He attended Howell No. 1 and she attended the Hickory Point school.

Married August 1, 1909, the couple lived on a farm in Miller County, and then lived for a period of time in Crocker before moving to Ulman.

When they moved to Ulman, they first lived in a house now occupied by the Harley Lupardus family. In 1928 they moved to a house just south of that dwelling and are presently living there (photo 06).

06 Williams Home

“When we first moved in it was a log house, but I’ve remodeled and added till the house is as it now appears,” said Williams.

Time has made many changes in Ulman since the Williams family moved there. “We’ve seen at least 10 businesses come and go during the time we’ve lived here,” they said.

“Our store was the meeting place of all the school children. We’d open up at 7 a.m., so they would have a place to catch the bus,” Mrs. Williams said.

Now few youngsters gather there for transportation.

The store in Ulman, now listed for sale, has been the means of livelihood for the Williams. They are the parents of four living children, Donald, and Mrs. Nina Jones of Eldon, Mrs. Azalea James of Mt. Pleasant and Mrs. Betty Gentch of Adrain. One child, Enza, died as a young woman. Besides their children they have nine grandchildren and five great grandchildren.

Having served the Ulman community for 50 years, the Williams’ have seen three generations grow up. They recalled serving Tennyson Patterson as a child; then his daughter, Myna; and now his three grandchildren, Shannon Sheldon and Sharla McGowin. Another three generation family they have served are Hart Hix; his son, Herbert, and his grandson, Robert Hix.

My mother in law, Elva Boyd Steen, was raised on a farm near Ulman. She remembers well the Williams’ Store and their family. She said that she brought eggs to sell to the store when she was a young girl.

One of the Williams’ children who was well known in Miller County was Donald Williams. Not only was he a county officer at one time but also was a decorated veteran of WWII (photo 07).

07 Donald Williams

He and his wife, Phoebe, were well known and liked. For a few years when I was a boy they lived across the road from my house in Tuscumbia. At the time Phoebe was the County Health Nurse. I remember all too well the year that Typhoid Fever was running through the county and Phoebe was the one who administered a Typhoid vaccination to all the residents of Tuscumbia. For some reason, my vaccine caused an allergic reaction to occur which made my arm swell by a third in diameter.

Here is Donald’s obituary which gives more detail about his very productive life in Miller County:

Miller County Autogram-Sentinel
March 2005

Donald Williams, 92, of Eldon, died Wednesday, March 16, 2005, at his home. He was born March 25, 1912, in Ulman to Lee Roy and Minnie Williams. On June 17, 1951, he was married in Cyrene, Mo to Phoebe Jane Bibb, who survives at the home.

Mr. Williams attended elementary school in Ulman and was a graduate of Brumley High School. He attended Iberia Junior College and Chillicothe Business School.

From 1936 until 1942, he was in the trucking business. On May 15, 1942, he joined the U.S. Army and served in the 36th Regiment. Mr. Williams spent three and a half years in Europe, including Italy, Austria, France and Germany, and in Africa. He received four Bronze Stars and the Good Conduct Medal.

After World War II, Mr. Williams was elected Miller County Circuit Clerk and Ex-Officio Recorder. He served for eight years. He then was employed by the Bank of Eldon and retired in 1977 as senior executive vice president with 25 years in banking.

Mr. Williams was a member of the Eldon First Baptist Church and Miller County VFW Post 2442 at Eldon. He was a charter member of the Masons for 62 years. He belonged to the Eagles Club for 25 years. He was also a longtime member of the Miller County Republican Party and the Eldon Golf Club.

In addition to his wife, he is survived by a son and daughter in law, Stephen L. and Susan Williams of Olean; a daughter, Donna L. Schubert of Tuscumbia; five grandchildren; two great grandchildren and a sister.

One son, Richard B. Williams preceded him in death

Funeral services were held at 2 p.m. Sunday at the Eldon First Baptist Church with the Reverend Randall Bunch and Bart Larson officiating. Burial was in the Eldon Cemetery under the direction of Phillips Funeral Home of Eldon. Full military honors were presented at graveside by VFW Post 2442. Memorials may be made to the Donald and Phoebe Williams Nursing Scholarship Fund at Eldon High School or the charity of the donor’s choice.

Once again this year, my mother in law, Elva Boyd Steen, has given us a quilt for raffle sale which is now hanging on the wall in the lower level of the new addition. Here is a photo of Elva with the quilt now on display at the museum (photo 08):

08 Elva Steen with Handmade Quilt

Those readers of this website who are members of the Historical Society received raffle tickets for purchase in our recent newsletter mailing. If you would want to participate in the raffle which occurs later this year, fill out the raffle tickets, enclose a check for the cost of the tickets and mail them to the museum. We will add them to the others already received. Raffle tickets also are now for sale at the museum.

The Ice Cream Social event held last Saturday was very successful; more than one hundred tickets were sold. We had tables placed throughout the museum for visitors to sit and enjoy home made ice cream as well as various assorted pastries made by museum members. Here are some photos of those who were present (photos 09 - 12):

09 Ice Cream Social

10 Ice Cream Social

11 Ice Cream Social

12 Ice Cream Social

We also had just enough space to place a couple of tables in the area of the Civil War Display which was one of the main attractions in addition to the ice cream (photo 13).

13 Ice Cream Social

Quite a number of candidates for county office also came to the event to chat with our guests who came from all areas of the county.

One of the guests, Richard Meyer of Iberia, brought a plaque from one of the few remaining Bicentennial trees in the county which is located in the town of Iberia (photo 14).

14 Richard Meyer - Iberia, Missouri

Richard is planning a special event for the near future to gather support for maintaining the vitality and life span of the tree so that possibly it could remain viable until 2026, its 250th birthday!

Dr. and Mrs. Haggerty of Lake Ozark also were visitors; Mrs. Haggerty donated a wonderful miniature 19th Century home with miniature figures to the museum a few years ago (photos 15 and 16).

15 Dr. and Mrs. Clem Haggerty

16 Dr. and Mrs. Haggerty with Miniature Home

That’s all for this week.

Joe Pryor

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