Page:History of Southeast Missouri 1912 Volume 1.djvu/447

 HISTORY OP SOUTHEAST MISSOURI 387 west of the village of Knob Lick is one of the granite peaks of the St. Francois mountains and here for many years have been quarried large quantities of granite. Some of this granite is worked into paving blocks and some of it into building and monumental blocks of various kinds. Libertyville is the present name of one of the oldest settlements in St. Francois county. This was Cook's Settlement in the southern part of the county. It is removed from the railroad and has a few general stores and lilacksmith shops, flouring mill, church and schoolhouse. Doe Run In 1880 Doe Run, an unincorporated vil- lage in St. Francois county, had not been founded. Its site was the pasture land and orchards. About 1885 lead was discovered in that vicinity, and after prospecting it was found that the region was rich in lead ore. The Doe Run Lead Company was organized and commenced a mine there. They operated a number of shafts and built large reduction works for handling the ore. The mine at- tracted large numbers of settlers and the town grew rapidly. It is the southern terminus of the Mississippi River & Bonne Terre Railroad Company and is at a distance of three miles from the Belmont Branch of the Iron Mountain. Oban Oran is in Sylvania township, Scott county, on the Belmont Branch of the Iron Mountain and on the St. Louis & Gulf Branch of the Frisco. The first settlement here was called Sylvania. It was laid out as a town in 1868 and was first called St. Cloud. At a later time it was named Oran. It is on the level sandy ridge just east of the Scott county hills. There are large deposits of yellow ochre and at one time a paint factoiy was operated here. It has five general stores, other minor business establishments, large flouring mill, and the Bank of Oran with a capital of $25,- 000. The public school building is a brick structure of eight rooms and is well equipped. The present population of the town is 1,023. FORNPELT The two towns of Fornfelt and Illmo, Scott county, owe their existence to the building of the Thebes bridge and the consequent con- struction of the St. Louis, Southwestern Rail- way to this bridge. The first persons who made their home in what is now Fornfelt, were G. S. Cannon and A. Baudeudistel. The town dates its settlement from September, 1904, and was incorporated as a town in the following May, the first mayor being Charles Hannn. At the present time there are four general stores together with some other busi- ness interests of minor character. There is one box factory which employs about a hun- dred and fifty men and turns out a large amount of box material, The Bank of Edna is one of the principal institutions of the town. It was organized in 1905 and has a capital of $15,000. Among the more impor- tant buildings are the two brick schoolhouses and the building occupied by the bank. The town is lighted by electricity and other im- provements in the way of sidewalks and streets have been made. The possession of the railroad yards of the St. Louis Southwestern and St. Louis, Iron Mountain & Southern is shared by Fornfelt and Illmo, as the yards are between the two towns. They consist of round houses and machine shops and employ several hundred men forming one of the rea- sons of the prospei-ity of the towns. Fornfelt