Page:History of Southeast Missouri 1912 Volume 1.djvu/353

 HISTORY OF SOUTHEAST MISSOURI 293 court assembled for its first meeting in Poplar Bluff. This meeting was held in a rail pen, or shed, on the bank of Black river, near the foot of what is now Vine street. The judges at this time were Abraham Romine, John N. Yarber and William Yandover. The place selected was in the woods, and is named be- cause of the presence of large poplar trees. A postoffice was established February 27, 1850, and the first postmaster was Jesse A. Gilley, who was succeeded in September of the same year by Jacob C. Blount. The post- office was kept at the east end of the old county bridge, in a small one-room cabin. The mail was brought to this place on horseback but was so uncertain that the postoffice was dis- continued in December, 1851. The only mer- cantile establishment in Poplar Bluff was a small cabin built of hickory logs at the corner of Second and Vine streets. Charles S. Hen- derson was the proprietor, and he sold whisky and tobacco and dealt in furs. Other mer- chants who conducted stores in Poplar Bluff during the early j'ears wei'e C. P. Phelps, who operated a general store, Kelley & Taylor, and Henderson & Lawson. The town grew slowly of course during the period before the war, and was almost depopulated during the war. The first circuit courts in Poplar Blull were presided over by the Hon. Henderson Huff. The sittings of the court were held in the house opposite the present court house square. General "Watkins, Thomas B. English and a ]Ir. Hill were the lawyers who con- ducted most of the cases before the court. They were all from Cape Girardeau coiuity. In 1859 a contract was let to S. G. Kitchen and D. B. ]Miller to build a brick court house. The work was supervised by William Ringer of Stoddard county. The building, which cost $6,000, was paid partly in cash and partly in lands. The first frame house was built in 1859 by James S. Ferguson. By the year 1860 there were twelve houses and ten families in the town. Among the early settlers one of the most prominent was John N. Yarber. He was a native of North Carolina and came to the vicinity of Poplar Bluff in 1844. He took part in all the activities of his time and held numerous offices in the county. He lived for many years after the war and was held in great esteem by those who knew him. An- other man prominent in the early times was James S. Ferguson, who built the first frame house in the town. He also held a number of offices, being clerk of the courts and county judge. Other citizens were James M. Spence, Dr. J. R. Franklin, Dr. James T. Adams, John Snoddy and Jesse A. Gilley. They were all prominent in the life of the town in its early years. We may well suppose that life in a com- munity like this was hampered in many ways and that the growth of the count.y, and neces- sarily the towns, was slow. Possibly one of the most remarkable records ever entered by a court was made by one of the courts in Poplar Bluff, as follows: "It is ordered by the court that the slieriff borrow $20 from anybody who would loan it to him for the purpose of buying two seals, one for the cir- cuit clerk and one for the county clerk. ' ' We are left in doubt as to whether anyone was good enough to lend this money, but as seals were used by the courts within a short time after this we ma.y reasonably conclude that the loan was made. At the present time there are in Poplar Bhiff about seventy-five mercantile establish- ments of every kind; this large number indi- cates the amount of mercantile business trans- acted in the town. In addition to these there