The following are the names of all the earliest settlers of Pleasant Gap Township. The Osbornes, a large family from Illinois. Two families of Requas in the Southwest. Old Daniel Francis and his two sons-in-law, Arthur and Constable, and one Abram Towner, were refugees from the Mormon settlement in Jackson County, Missouri, having settled here after the Mormons were driven from Independence. Two families, named Harris and Collins lived near the center of the township. Uncle Jimmy Ridge was where he still lives. A family named Walker, at what is now Pleasant Gap Village. A family named Beatty completes the list of those who settled there in 1839 or previously.

William Harvey came in 1843, from Texas, and went to California in 1849. He located in Pleasant Gap Township, near the north part of the township, and one mile north of Pleasant Gap.

William Hagan, from Kentucky, located two miles north of the present town of Pleasant Gap, and went to California in 1849. It is not known whether he is living or dead. John S. Hagan, a brother of William, came at the same time. He was at one time county surveyor; he went to California in 1852.

James Ridge located in Pleasant Gap Township prior to 1844, and resides on the same farm where he first settled.

Joseph Wix came from Illinois prior to 1843, and opened a farm northeast of Pleasant Gap, where he now lives.

James Cockerell came prior to 1843, from Kentucky, and located about one mile east of Pleasant Gap. Larken Cockerell and James Cockerell, Jr., located also in the township. All went to California in 1849.

Henry Beaver, from Kentucky, took up a claim near Pleasant Gap, and went to California with the others in 1849.

William Dewese came from Illinois in the spring of 1844; he died before the war. Jesse Deweese, Evan Deweese and Elijah Deweese were sons of William Dewese. Evan was killed at the battle of Lone Jack. Jesse lives in St. Clair County. Elijah died in 1880, in Bates County. His family now lives in Bates. Mrs. Boghtol and Mrs. Trimble, daughters of William Deweese, are still living, one in Johnson and the other in Bates County.

One of the oldest of the yet living pioneers of Bates County is Judge Joseph Wix, of Pleasant Gap Township. He was born in Overton County, Tennessee, in 1820. While this makes him twenty-five years younger than Dr. Requa, yet the doctor has been a resident of this county only two years longer than the judge. At about the age of eight years he was taken to Hamilton County, Illinois, where his father's family settled. Seven years afterward they removed to Western Illinois, his father dying with cholera upon the road. In the fall of 1858, being then eighteen years of age, he made a trip to Southwest Missouri and Indian Territory. Notwithstanding his youth and inexperience, he gave careful attention to the natural features and capacities of the various sections through which he traveled, with a view of finally selecting a location for himself which should eventually be in a wealthy, prosperous and every way desirable neighborhood for a home for life. In the spring of 1839 he worked along back to Polk County, Missouri, and in a tavern (they did not call them hotels in those days) he chanced to hear a man remark that the country in the vicinity of Harmony Mission was the best he ever carried a chain over. Entering into conversation with him, he found him to be a government surveyor, and as the result of the conversation he turned his course towards the Mission, arriving there the 1st day of August, 1839. He found two French traders, Colin & Papin, established at Colin's Ford, three miles below where Papinville now stands. The Indians having receded westward, they that fall moved their trading post to what is now Linn County, Kansas. It has not been ascertained when these traders first established themselves in the county. The Harmony Mission having been disbanded and the government having bought the improvements made by the missionaries, they were under lease to Colonel James Allen (a son of this man was the Allen that married the eldest daughter of Dr. Jones. Another son was Robert Allen, who lately died in Clinton). After Allen's lease the property went to waste, and the government never received further benefit from the $8,000 paid the A.B.F.M. for the improvements. The land was held as a reservation by the government for some years, but finally disposed of, and much trouble and litigation arose about the title, that was not finally settled till since the civil war. After a careful survey of the locality, the subject of our sketch decided that he had found that for which he had been seeking, and there being ample room for picking, selected what is now in section 1, township 39, range 30, which has ever since been his home. The land was not then in market, not having, been sectionalized, although the range lines had been run. Northeast of where Wix settled, what is now Deepwater Township, was sectionalized and put into market about that time. But west of the range line, between 29 and 30, in what is now a first-class agricultural country, the land remained unsurveyed for years, the surveyors having reported it not worth the expense of surveying. But after many settlers had located upon it it was decided to be worth something, and was sectionalized and put in market. At the time the judge settled there were not to exceed 150 acres of land in cultivation within a radius of five miles.

Mr. Wix never gave much attention to hunting, but could always easily procure what game was needed for food, sometimes killing four or five deer in one day. In the timber along the larger streams were plenty of wild hogs, supposed to be descended from hogs escaped long before from the early French settlers in the eastern part of the state. They were sometimes killed for food, but after domestic hogs were introduced, the wild ones were driven off to prevent them from enticing them away. The settlers all went long distances to house-raisings, the houses being mostly log cabins.

Mr. Wix married Sarah Beaty, in December, 1841. She died in 1854, leaving five children living, having lost three. The oldest, John D., was accidentally shot during the war. The second boy, Clark, now lives in Deepwater Township. Thomas H. and A. S. now live in Kansas. Louis, the youngest, is now in Texas.

Mr. Wix married a Mrs. Cox, a widow, in 1858. She had two children, Francis A. and Joseph F. She died in 1864. In January 1867, he married Rosanna Deweese, his present wife. She has two children living, having lost three.

The first post office in the eastern part of the county was established in 1840, near where Pleasant Gap village now is. An old man from Kentucky, named Anderson Cockrell, was the postmaster. A mail route was established from Boonville through Clinton and Pleasant Gap to Balltown.

The first school house (except at Harmony Mission) was in Deepwater Township, in the Sutenhinger neighborhood. The second was in section 1, within less than half a mile of Wix's house. It was built of logs, floored with puncheons. (As most of our young people never saw a "puncheon," we will explain that they were made by selecting the finest timber and splitting it into strips as uniform in thickness and as wide as possible, and then hewing to the required shape for floor planks). The school, of course, was supported by rate "bills," there being no public school fund. Neighboring townships furnished some of the pupils, others coming from as great a distance as twenty miles and hiring board that they might attend the school, which flourished finely. The first teacher was S. D. Cockrell, son of the postmaster. He was hired by the year for three years in succession. The house was also used for religious meetings, the earliest preacher being "Uncle Dicky," a good old negro from Balltown, who came occasionally as circumstances would permit. He was a Presbyterian, and afterward went as a preacher with the negroes sent to Liberia, Africa, by the Colonization Society.

The first church organization in the east part of the county (except Harmony Mission) was in Deepwater, and was a Methodist. The second was an "Old Baptist," in Wix's neighborhood. They also used the school house for religious worship. The next church was in the Osborne neighborhood, and was of the Christian denomination.

A man named Beaver established the first blacksmith shop a quarter of a mile north of where Pleasant Gap now stands. Previous to that the settlers went to William Tyree, who had a shop on Deepwater, just over the Henry County line.

The first store at Pleasant Gap was kept by a man named Joseph Smith. The exact date is not known, but it was about 1850. Abner Bryant, the son-in-law of Smith, assisted him in his store. Bryant was killed at the battle of Lone Jack.

Settlers soon became sufficiently numerous so that Mr. Wix had good neighbors not very far distant, and the real hardships of pioneer life were soon over. He was, and still is, a man of energy and perseverance, is sure to accomplish whatever he sets his hand to, is reliable and trustworthy in every respect and possesses the respect and confidence of a large circle of acquaintances. He served as a justice of the peace for a long time and was also once a member of the county court. He was largely engaged in farming and stock raising, and when the war came on had accumulated quite a large property. He was always at heart opposed to slavery, but as he recognized it to be allowed by law, never had any disposition to interfere with it, but as far as his vote and influence (properly and lawfully exerted) would go, he was opposed to its extension into free territory, and consequently had nothing to do with the Kansas border war. When the civil war came up he was a staunch Union man and in favor of supporting the government. Being always in the habit of expressing his opinion freely, he of course could not remain neutral as affairs then existed in this section. He was enrolled in Company K of the Sixtieth Regiment of Militia, commanded by Captain Newberry, Being in poor health, in 1863 he removed to Kansas, and staid until the war was over. His health continuing poor, he went in 1880 to Washington Territory in a wagon, and returned in 1881, and is now living at his old home.

Among other early settlers in the township was R. W. McNeil, from New York, who located south of Pleasant Gap, on section 11; as did also his brother, Dr. John H. McNeil, who died in Butler. There were also Peter Trimble, James Ridge, Horace Milton, Cornelius Neafus, S. S. Burch, George M. Requa, John Dillon, W. H. Pitts, J. M. Rogers, William Campbell, Jesse Rinehart, W. B. Young, John Haskins, Phillip Stanford, James Coe, W. L. Campbell and John Sisson. The old settlers were generally from Kentucky, Virginia and Tennessee.

Near the western boundary line of the township, and located in the southeastern part of section 18, is a post office called Lone Oak. A small trading post was established there as early as 1854. The place was christened Stump Town, and has ever since rejoiced in that western euphonius name. W. B. Young was the father of the village, opening the first business house in 1854. His stock consisted of general merchandise, the predominating articles, however, being "manifac backer" and whisky the latter being almost universally used as the matutinal drink of the old pioneer. Young was noted for his bonhomie, and was not only the recognized fiddler of the vicinity, but was intensely fond of and well versed in all the rural games and enjoyments of that day. During his early manhood, he was --

His fiddle was his inseparable companion and when spending an evening with neighbors and friends, he had the happy faculty of discoursing to them the most delightful music, always accompanying his instrument with a unique and improvised song, which was replete with wise and startling hits, and felicitous innuendoes, touching the vulnerability of some one or more of his entranced and rustic auditors.

Young was the sole editor and proprietor of the Stump Town Clipper, which appeared at irregular intervals in manuscript form. The happenings, the sayings, and the doings of the neighborhood were all faithfully gathered and garnered by this original chronicler, who read them aloud to his admirers in his own inimitable style.

If there occurred a dance in the locality, a record of it was made in the Clipper. If a quilting party, or shooting match came off, the particulars were given in the Clipper. If a wedding took place, the event was mentioned in a recherche manner in the Clipper. The bride was the special theme for highest eulogium and the wedded pair, always elicited the Clipper's warmest wishes for their future happiness. In fact, the Clipper, like the good mirror, reflected not only the redoubtable editor's views of matters and things, but reflected as well on popular subjects, the will of the people.

David Laskey, postmaster and merchant.
John Starr, blacksmith.
D. P. Lee, physician.
J. D. Donnohoe, physician.

Bates County Missouri MOGenWeb