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Note: Robert Jesse Dale migrated to Boone County, Missouri in 1824 and th en on to Luskey Creek, Barry (now Jasper) County, Missouri in 1838, whi ch is a few miles east of the Present day city of Joplin. From "The Carthage Press" December 12, 1901 Pioneer Tales As Yet Untold The formation of a historical society in Carthage and Jasper county has be en suggested and urged by some of those loyal old residenters who believe in perpetuating t he stock of local tradition that is being handed down from mouth to mouth, and from generati on to generation. Joplin has already begun such a movement and it is urged th at the recollections and reminiscence of such old timers as Judge Onstott and R. J. Dale, as pu blished in part in the Press from time to time, would make a most excellent foundation f or a history not only of Carthage and the county, but would throw valuable side light on a sto ry of the development of this entire section of the middle west. In fact the co py of the Press containing Judge Onstott's recent interview has already been sought by t he Missouri historical society now compiling a history of the state. White Girl As Indian Captive R. J. Dale, now 81 years of age, is still living quietly on West Mound str eet in Carthage, on the very spot where sixty odd years ago he saw wild deer roam at will. His li fe story is fraught not only with romance, but with valuable historical observations. For instan ce he recalls his experience as an early Jasper county boy in the recovery of a white girl f rom the Comanche and Osage Indians who had stolen her from her mother, after killing her fa ther and of the final return of the girl, after a long residence in Carthage to her moth er in Texas, as a result of the merest accident incidental to the fortunes of the civil war. But th is is a story of itself and will be told in a future issue of the Press. First Steamboats in Missou ri Mr. Dale and his father saw the beginning of the development of the young Louisiana territo ry, the purchase of which is now about to be celebrated by the word's fair of 1903. In 18 24 the Dales settled in the Boon's Lick country made famous by the discovery of a salt spri ng by Daniel Boon on the Missouri river. There he saw the first steamboat (the old "Globe") whi ch ever plied the waters of the Missouri river, and soon afterward the "Yellowstone." Pirogu es of furs, peltries, buffalo robes and barrels of honey were floated down stream to St. Lou is in the spring. Father Ran the Gauntlet Mr. Dale's father was born in Woodford county, Ky., fought in the war of 1 812 under Gen. Harrison against the British, and at the age of seventeen was taken pris on by the Indians at Dudley's defeat, Kentucky, and compelled to run a gauntlet of Indian warri ors 100 yards long. Most of his companions perished in the ordeal, or were tomahawked af terward in the bull-pen. Settled Here in 1838 In 1837 the elder Dale prospected in the present Jasper county (then pa rt of Barry) and in 1838 moved here bringing his son, R. J. Dale. They settled at the he ad of Turkey creek, east of the future Joplin, and found elk horns, buffalo wallows, and other indi cations of the great game that had departed, besides deer, turkey, wolves, etc. No schools or c hurches existed among the three settlers ahead of them on Turkey creek, but the peop le of this section already here were good and moral. The lived in log houses with puncheon fl oors, clapboard roofs, stick and clay chimneys. The first sawed lumber used in Jasper coun ty was cut with whip saws "logs hewn square and placed on a scaffold" one mad about and o ne on the ground" pulling and pushing the saw up and down. Crude Farm Tools The development which Mr. Dale has witnessed in the Louisiana territory it self is no greater than the mechanical and industrial progress made since the Louisiana purch ase assured the United State its great prosperity and future. The farm tools then us ed in the present empire county were not the self binder, thresher and steam plow of today. Inste ad the pioneers used the barshear, shovel plow, reap hook, scythe and cradle. Threshing was do ne by horses on tramping floors, the straw was pitched off the wooden forks, and chaff w as separated from grain by a home made riddle, the chaff being blown off with a sheet. Drove Stock to Louisiana "Our markets were wide-spread," says Mr. Dale, "but our buying places we re few. Our nearest wholesale point was Boonville on the river, from whence goods ca me by ox wagon. Two stores were soon opened at Sarcoxie, the first in this country. We dro ve our hogs, mules and horses on foot to Louisiana. Our cattle we drove to Illinois and Oh io in the same way. Then trade soon opened up wit the friendly Indians to the west of us, we t rading calico and wampum for their robes, peltries, tallow, etc. The was no post office we st of Sarcoxie till one was established at my father's house near Joplin in 1841." Early Mill Building "In the early forties an ear of mill building set in. Myers and Doil bui lt a saw mill on Turkey creek northwest of the present Joplin, after which we substituted plank f or puncheon floors, and weatherboarded our log houses. Joel Jackson built a grist mill at t he present Redding mill site on Shoal creek, and his brother Isaac, a grandfather of Mrs. S. A. St uckey, built one on Center Creek, near the present Lehigh. Wm. Laxton built a grist mill ea st of the present Lakeside. Now we had mills, and such advanced machinery as threshers' ri g, old straw piler, wheat fans" and as a result had plenty of flour. This was greedily boug ht by the Osage Indians, to whom we hauled flour in ox wagons and came back with their rob es, peltries and tallow which we hauled on to Boonville, and brought back necessary suppli es from the river. Thus we acted as feeders for the great pioneer fur traders and steamboate rs of the Louisiana territory. Later lead furnaces were opened up at Granby, Leadville, Orono go or Minersville, and Moseley furnace on Shoal Creek, furnishing us with a regular wagon fre ight service to Boonville in addition to our Osage traffic." Wolf Scalps For Taxes "In those early Jasper county days we citizens raised and manufactured o ur own bread, made our own molasses out of pumpkins and watermelons till sorghum seed was int roduced at 10 cents per spoonful. We grew, picked, carded, spun and move our own cott on and wool for clothing, plated our own straw hats, and tanned skins and made our own sho es for winter wear." Social Equality "The only barrier to social equality in those hard days was the lack of mo ral integrity and industry. If a man was unworthy from such shortcoming we simply gave his t he cold should, and he soon drifted into more congenial company elsewhere, perhaps joini ng some outlaw band. Up to the civil was Jasper county sent only three men to the state p enitentiary:their three crimes being horse stealing, attempted rape and attempted murder." Names of Streams "Early exploring parties paid a tribute to this section as a great game co untry by the names they applied to the streams, for instance Coon, Possum, Deer, Buffalo, a nd Turkey creeks were they found the respective game plentiful; Spring river was fed by spr ings, Shoal creek abounded in shoals or shallows, Center creek was half way between Spring r iver and Shoal creek, Northfork was north of Spring river; a dead cow's skin gave ri se to the name of a stream; at Sugar creek they saw Indians making sugar, they found wild ho ne on Honey creek, and Short creek was only five miles long."
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