Picture courtesy of Jim Kuntz

Cedar City's Prosperity
The town Hibernia exists in post office records from 1825. A wilder and wider Missouri River was a half mile closer then, and many people arrived by steamboat. While laying out a new town in 1872, David Kenney renamed it Cedar City for the nearby Cedar Creek and the Missouri River Island called Cedar Island. He probably anticipated the arrival of the Chicago and Alton Railroad (C&A) that came from the north and ended at Cedar City -- 21 years before the arrival of the Missouri, Kansas & Texas Railraod (Katy). Three time a week, stagecoaches delivering mail, passengers and supplies to Columbia, Claysville and Ashland. There was a four-room school and a school for African-American children. In the 1890s, a bridge was completed, tying the community to Jefferson City by electric trolley. When the Katy Railroad arrived, a spur and large freight depot were built for the loading and unloading of livestock and grain. Cedar City was a prosperous town. However, floods took their toll. Following a flood in 1973, new buildings were required to meet the 100-year flood standards. This made new construction impractical, but it was excellent foresight. The next 25 years saw more floods. The largest of all came in 1993 when over 20 homes were destroyed. now part of Jefferson City, only four homes remain in the area.

Missouri's State Capital
State lawmakers meeting in St. Charles mandated that the new state's capital be located on the Missouri River near the center of the state. The land for the new state Capitol was still wilderness when the seat of government moved to the city in 1826. This began a period of rapid growth with the lower end of Jefferson Street becoming a lively commercial and transportation hub, known as "the landing."

[Photos and credits: Top Photo: Steamboat travel on the Missouri River was one of the best ways to transport goods into the interior of Missouri during the first half of the 1860s.
Jefferson City, MO., 1869, view from the north by Albert A. Ruger. Original map in the Geography and Map Division, Library of Congress

2nd Photo: Missouri's capital city was named in honor of President Thomas Jefferson whose vision led to the addition of the Missouri Territory as part of the Louisiana Purchase. Karl Bitter's large bronze sculpture depicting the signing of the Louisiana Purchase is located on the Capitol grounds.
Department of Natural Resources file photo

3rd Photo: The first statehouse in Jefferson City (60X40 feet), the only significant building in the capital at the time, housed both legislative and executive branches of state government.
DNR file photo

4th photo: The double doors of the lower level of the Lohman building faced the riverfront, providing easy handling of steamboat freight.
Illustration by Charles A. Dana, "The United States Illustrated" [New York] Hermann J. Meyer, {1853)

Portrait photo: Charles Lohman in partnership with Charles Maus operated a general store in the Lohman Building. They also managed the Lohman Opera House and other Jefferson City businesses.
Photo courtesy of L.M. Lohman.]

Comments (0)

Show/Hide comment form

Name

Email

Comment

Write the displayed characters

Add Comment