History of Kingdom City

(By Evelyn Berry, 1990. Transcribed by Rose Shults, Callaway County Public Library, 2009)

 

It became evident in May of 1925 that the central part of Missouri was finally going to be lifted from mud when two surveys were made to establish the route of what was soon to be known as Highway 40.

One survey was over Highway #2, which was the road from Columbia to Fulton and on to Williamsburg. The other survey was from Perche Creek in Boone County to what is now Kingdom City and on to three miles west of Williamsburg. Old Highway #15, which became Highway 54, was being developed and was expected to intersect Highway 40 somewhere along the line.

It was the hope of Fultonians, particularly the Chamber of Commerce, that the two roads would intersect approximately where the Jameson Cemetery stands. It was their argument that the route would be two and one half miles shorter and that the building of two bridges (Cedar Creek and Auxvasse Creek) would be eliminated. The Highway Commission maintained that the Kingdom City route would be four miles shorter and would save $100,000.

The residents of McCredie were just as interested in having the highways intersect in their area. It was believed that such a junction would serve to stimulate the economy, so a great controversy arose between McCredie and Fulton. McCredie residents even staged a parade through Fulton waving banners which read "54-40 or Fight."

An order restraining the Highway Commission from letting contracts for the road from Perche Creek, five miles west of Columbia, to Williamsburg was made in behalf of Mr. W. J. East and 19 other county men. The controversy went to the State Supreme Court, where a decision was given in favor of the Highway Commission on December 30, 1925.

When all was settled, Davis Construction Company of Boonville was awarded the building contract. An office and a concrete plant were set up just west of the c and A Railroad, alongside the old Fulton-McCredie road.

McCredie became a boom town, as all available homes were opened to highway employees. A restaurant opened, the little Post Office bulged with extra mail, the bank did a thriving business, a barber shop sprang up and the two grocery stores restocked their shelves. The C and A Railroad added more cars for hauling crushed rock and built a railroad spur leading to the concrete plant. For the only time in McCredie's history, one had to look both ways before crossing the street. Residents thought they were facing a bright future.

During the grading and preparatory work on the roadbed, a prison camp was established near Calwood and prisoners did the grading from the Auxvasse Creek to a point one mile west of there. Many prisoners escaped until more guards were hired. Most of the grading was done with pick and shovel. The dirt was moved by horse or mule drawn frenza, a scoop affair on wheels with a gear to raise or lower the scoop.

A little narrow gauge railroad was laid beside the roadbed. When paving began, gas engines pulled a long line of bucketline cars, which were filled with concrete at the concrete plant. An occasional ride on the little trains provided McCredie children with a real treat. I can well remember having my liver shaken because of the rough ride, but to me it was better than a roller coaster. Later, trucks replaced the little trains as the road was paved west of what is now Kingdom City.

The new road divided the Baynham family farm into two sections, making their farming activities very difficult, so the family hired a land promotion company to divide the land into lots and sell it. Because a great deal of advertising preceded the sale, a large crowd was in attendance for the two day event. Glowing accounts of factories belching smoke from their tall stacks, huge business concerns and palatial residential sections were pictured by the auctioneers. Lots priced at $25 were touted as 'bargains of the century.' Two brothers were in attendance; one, swept off his feet by the visions of future growth, bought three lots, the other one fainted.

Local people did look to the future. The Fulton Motor Company, owned by B. P. Beamer, Tyke Harrison, Will Vivion, Edmund Fischer and Crockett Harrison, sold Chevrolets, Pattersons and Oaklands. When it went out of business, the owners formed the Fulton Oil Company and built the first filling station at what was then known as the "Y". Just to the east of it, they built a two story hotel. While the hotel was being built, Mrs. Lottie Fauntz and Miss Millie Burks ran a temporary restaurant.

Estil Pearre, who had run a restaurant in Fulton, was manager of the hotel. He was noted for his Parker House rolls and his porterhouse steaks. (The steak dinners were priced at $1.25.) The hotel was the bus stop for the Pickwick bus line, later the Greyhound bus line, and also had a lively truck trade. The hotel burned in 1930, but the filling station, sold to the champion Oil Company, was in business until Highway 70 was built. Marvin Fischer operated the station for many years.

For some time, people had been aware that the little settlement should have a more dignified than the "Y". Some people in Fulton wanted to call it North Fulton, while others in McCredie wanted to call it South McCredie. The founders of the Kingdom Oil Company, in their great wisdom, came up with the name of Kingdom City, which played no favorites and pleased everyone living in the Kingdom of Callaway.

In 1929, the Anthony Brothers built a log dance hall, where dances were held several nights each week. B. P. Beamer bought the building from the Anthony Brothers. He continued the dances for a while, but closed the place when the crowds became unruly. He convinced Mr. and Mrs. Frank Carr that the dance hall could be converted into a café which would serve a much better purpose. Since the hall was quite large, the east end was made into living quarters for the Carrs and some of their staff. The rest was converted into a restaurant, which was run by Mrs. Carr and her sisters, Mrs. Lottie Fauntz and Miss Millie Burks; hence the name "Three Sisters Café."

In 1932, the original three sisters sold the restaurant to three other sisters, Mrs. Martin Wallace, Mrs. Wise Shiverdecker and Miss Velva Suggett. Under the management of both sets of sisters, the restaurant gained a reputation for excellent food. Plate lunches were 25 cents, later 35 cents, and full meals were 60 cents. Pies sold for 10 cents a slice and 50 cents for a complete pie. It became a favorite truck stop.

Martin Dudley ran the filling station, a part of the restaurant complex from 1931 to 1943. He said the cheapest gas he sold was 12 cents per gallon during a price war and the highest price was 15 cents per gallon. He only had $300 on the books when he sold out to go to the Navy. He sold it to Fred Springer, whose sister Kate took over the restaurant. The last owners of the filling station were Don and Jack Tenny.

The first trucks to travel Highway 40 were built by Baer and Schwartzman Motor Service. The tires were solid rubber. They could be heard miles away as they lumbered down the road. At that time, cars and trucks had no insurance. If a wreck occurred, it was "You fix yours and I'll fix mine." It wasn't until 1935 that the Public Safety Commission demanded that trucks carry insurance. Soon it became law that all vehicles carry insurance.

One night in 1932, an Orchelin Brothers truck loaded with butter and blow gas came into Dudley's station to be serviced. The local loafers gathered around to inspect the rig, as it was the first one through with sleeping quarters for an extra driver. While the truck was being filled with gas, the driver invited the onlookers to view the sleeping quarters. He reached into a tool box to find the key but couldn't see, so he lit a match and that did it. The whole rig became engulfed in flames and the blow gas started shooting off through the café. In minutes, the building was on fire. The building was a total loss, but no one was hurt. The place was quickly rebuilt and business went on as usual.

The Bell Telephone Repeater Station was built in 1930 and operated for many hears under the management of Louis Schrader and his assistants, jack Payne and John Gantner. It stands idle now since computers and other new kinds of equipment have replaced the methods of relaying messages.

The weight station was put into effect when the highway opened. Mr. Mac Robinson was named constable and the Highway Patrol officers took violations to him.

At that time, slot machines were in the restaurants and filling stations. They were thought to be legal, until it was determined that the agents out of the Lt. Louis and Kansas City areas were paying off the state attorneys. That brought an abrupt stop to such foolishness.

About the time the Anthony Brothers built their dance hall, Jack Lay built a restaurant and garage. It served as the Greyhound bus stop and was a popular place for youngsters to go after a dance or a show. The good food attracted local people as well as tourists. In the late thirties, the original building burned in a disastrous fire in which Raymond Churnside, a local young man, lost his life. Mr. Lay erected a new brick building on the same site which opened for business in 1945. He also built what were then called "tourist cabins" and created a nice park with a fountain and a children's play area. In the mid-thirties, he erected a dance hall known as "The Gables". It had an air of glamour about it and attracted big bands and large crowds. As so often happens, a rough crowd invaded the place causing Mr. Lay to close it. The beautiful hardwood floor was used by the Lays in a new home they built.

In the early thirties, Ernest Oliver built the Cavalier Hotel. The two story building burned in 1937 and was rebuilt by Don Fire, not as a hotel but as a dine and dance place. It was later run by Clarence and Winnie Rentschler.

In 1936, Don Fire bought two buildings and six lots just west of the railroad overpass on the north side of the highway. Mr. and Mrs. Art Daro bought one of the houses, where they lived and ran a small grocery store for many years. At present on that property is Van's Garage and a store called "Seventy Store".

Later, Mr. Fike bought 31 acres, which run south from Highway 40 behind the Bell Telephone building. He built a large home there which was later moved back northwest of its original site. In its place, he built a Standard Oil station and a quick shop. His daughter, Ruth Ann Atkinson, now owns the property. Mr. Fire had the area's first propane gas company which he sold in 1977.

When the highway first opened to traffic, there were no speed laws nor any signs indicating curves, so many tragic wrecks occurred. On the lighter side of this problem the story is told of a Mr. Dunn, who lived just west of Kingdom City. He undertook to turn into his own driveway and was hit by another can. When asked why he didn't give the signal for a turn, he replied, "Hell, I thought everybody knew where Charlie Dunn lived." Fortunately, only minor damage was done.

Another incident occurred involving old pipe smoking Bertha (better known as Buz) Graves. As she was driving her rickety old school bus full of black children across the intersection of Highways 54 and 40, she was hit by an oncoming car. This tore the bus apart and scattered little children along the roadside. Fortunately, no one was hurt but Buz, who was knocked out for a short while. When she came to, her first words were "My God! Where's my pipe?"

This article deals almost altogether with the early days of Kingdom City and not its current history. Just briefly, the town was incorporated in 1970 with a population of 146. Restaurants come and go, but Gasper's which opened in 1965, is still considered one of the best restaurants along the entire Highway 70 route. In 1970, a branch of the Auxvasse Security Bank opened and the McCredie Post Office moved to Kingdom City. McCredie is no longer a town in itself but a residential area included in Kingdom City. Several new motels have sprung up in the last few years. The Iron Skillet Restaurant, located just across from Gasper's, has been open about two years. Ozark Land, a candy and souvenir shop, opened in 1960 and still attracts a large tourist trade.

Though there are no belching smoke stacks, no large corporations or any of the other things so vividly pictured in the promotion sale so long ago, Kingdom City has had a real impact on the economy of the county. The Great Depression was in full swing during its founding days and jobs were hard to come by. Youths of the community were glad to accept jobs as waitresses and filling station attendants. For many, it was a means of financing their way through college. For others, it was a means of holding their families together until something more profitable came along. Some workers started out at less than five dollars a week. Perhaps other compensations made up for lack of pay, as many of the employees had known each other most of their lives. There was a general feeling of friendship and a help-one-another attitude, which held them together through tough times and very hard work. A number of these young workers later became teachers, nurses, prosperous farmers, businessmen or just good housewives.

They have scattered far and wide, but, for the last few years, have held an annual reunion at the Hatton Community Hall. There over a bountiful dinner, they recall old times and show pictures of children and grandchildren. They count themselves lucky to have weathered hard times, where they learned the value of a dollar and, most of all, the value of friendships which have survived these many years. -----Evelyn Berry, 1990