Picture courtesy of Jim Kuntz.

Picture courtesy of Jim Kuntz.

Daniel Boone first blazed this trail following old Indian paths to a salt spring near Booneville, Mo. In 1806 Boone's sons, Nathan and Daniel Morgan, moved to the salt springs near Boonville to harvest salt for pioneers. Salt, essential for the preservation of meat, sold for $4 a bushel. Nathan helped survey and straighten the trail, renaming it the Boone's Lick Road. It became a state road in 1827. Boone's Lick became the first westward passage to the Oregon, Santa Fe Trail and California Trail. On April 14, 1849, the St. Charles Western Star predicted, "thirty thousand pioneers will use this route to get to the California Gold Rush in the next three months.

[Note: Suggest readers refer to other Boone information about this Trail. This marker is slightly misleading, i.e. Daniel Boone was denied his Spanish land Granted by the Spanish Government and the American Government in 1804. He did not live with his wife; Daniel moved into Nathans home (near current Defiance, Mo) and Rebecca moved in with their daughter Jemima Boone Callaway near the current town of Dutzow, Mo. Which implies they could not care for themselves, and Daniel was 70 years old in 1804 could he be blazing a trail? JRK 5-23-'06]

Comments (1)

Jim Kuntz: ... Couple of errors in this marker. I noticed when I revisited it today. "Booneville" in the test should be spelt - Boonville. The salt lick was in Franklin, MO. Yes, it is near Boonville, but why not say, Franklin? Nathan and Daniel Morgan Boone, had homes here during that period. They would go there for periods of time to work, and return with the salt. 1 March 13, 2008

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