OLD’N NEWS From Around the County

September 27 is coming. That is the day in 1866 that lots were sold in an area of Randolph County that was to be called Moberly. One of the lots already had a house on it. Patrick Lynch had moved it there from the village of Allen in 1860. (The village of Allen was in the vicinity of today’s McDonalds.) The Chariton and Randolph Railroad Company gave him the lot as an inducement to get the town started. However, the Civil War stopped railroad building and thus, town building for a few years. During the war years Patrick Lynch farmed the land that was to become Moberly. His barn was where Commerce Bank is now and his cornfield was across the road from his house. Moberly city hall is now in that corn field. The house was on the parking lot next to the New Beginnings refinishing shop on West Reed Street. The 137th birthday of Moberly will be featured in the Moberly Monitor Index and Evening Democrat in the near future.

ANNUAL DINNER MEETING – Randolph County Historical Society

The Randolph County Historical Society annual dinner meeting is 6:30 PM, Tuesday, September 23, 2003 at the Moberly Country Club. Price of the dinner is $9.00. Our speaker is Jim Harlan, cartographer and senior researcher at the Geographic Resources Center at University of Missouri. Using the journals and surveys of Lewis and Clark, he has created a virtual tour of what Missouri looked like in 1804 when they started their trip west. Jim has identified the exact campsite locations that Lewis and Clark used along the Missouri River. The University website for the project is as follows: http://lewisclark.geog.missouri.edu/index.shtml. The ATLAS of LEWIS and CLARK IN MISSOURI, written by Jim Harlan and Jim Denny, will be available at University of Missouri Press soon. The book details the route that the explorers took across Missouri. Join us in kicking off the Lewis and Clark celebration in Randolph County and the nation. The meeting is always open to anyone that would like to come. For reservations call the Randolph County Historical Society at 660-263-9396 and leave a message or call Karl or Cecy Rice 660-263-4990. Hope to see you there. Cecy

More On LEWIS and CLARK

The joint meeting of people from the Little Dixie Regional Library, the Huntsville Historical Society and the Randolph County Historical Society is going to be held in order to coordinate efforts in Randolph County in helping with the national Lewis and Clark Bicentennial Celebration.

FOURTH STREET THEATER

Carolee Hazlet continues to work on the theater restoration project. The Randolph County Historical Society board of directors recently authorized the restoration committee to hold a salad lunch fundraiser. Be watching for that. Should be fun and lots of ‘good eats.’ Several class reunion groups have toured both the History Center and the Theater recently. Several of the alums have sent in donations of $350 for stars in the sidewalk recently.

THANKS RANDY!

Randy Kadletz of Mid-Missouri Window Cleaning Company comes by the History Center every month and gives our windows a good washing. He really does a good job. Because of Randy we can spend our money for items having a little more to do with history. Thanks again, Randy

UNION STATION DEPOT

The site of the old union station depot at the east end of Reed Street in Moberly is starting to change. Crews have taken up all of the old blacktop and the paving bricks in preparation for the new Wabash Trail Park that will be established there. The Railroad Museum will get heating and air conditioning as a part of the project. That will certainly help the interior environment of the building, which will be good for the items that are on display there. Though attendance was down this summer, people from several states did come through the museum. Serious railroad buffs continue to compliment us on our fine collection.

The collection continues to grow. We have received several important additions to the railroad collection this summer.

     Kale Cook – Picture of KATY Station in Moberly
     John Boulware – Collection of Old RR Buttons, Large Framed Picture of
         Wabash Engine 706, Picture of Wabash Engine 2152, Large Electric
         Conductors Lantern, Small Electric Sleeper Lantern used on Pullman Cars
     John Honey – Framed newsclippings of Casey Jones and an MKT wreck
         in 1907 near Moberly
     Dick Boots – Photo of the Coal Chute in the Railroad Yards
     Helen Vanella – Engineers Caboose Grip (Suitcase)
     Ron Harrison – Collection of 19 railroad switch keys from 14 different railroads