The Ozarks are rich in history. To learn more about some of the many stories the hills have to tell, click on the subject of interest: (Most of these articles have appeared in past editions of the park's newspaper, the Rootwad.)
| Ozark Historic Resource Study |
by Cindy Von Halle
| Cold, clear waters rise from deep Alley Spring with an average daily flow of 81 million gallons. The spring basin is funnel-shaped with a depth of 32 feet. Tiny snails and colorful minnows live among clusters of tangy watercress. Trout are not native to Missouri springs but you may see suckers or grass pickerel. A short hiking trail around the spring displays a lush abundance of life. Slick rock walls are adorned with hanging gardens of columbine and lush ferns. These fragile yet hardy beauties thrive in small pockets of soil amid the cracks and crevices of limestone rock. Mink, muskrat, and banded water snakes may also be seen swimming in the spring. Swallows nest among the bluffs in the warmer months and eagles may be seen soaring during the winter. You can help protect Missouri's springs. Please fish, swim and play in the river, NOT in the spring or spring branch! Springs are small areas that are sensitive to disturbances. Springs are home to many unique species that are not commonly found in rivers and need special protection to survive. |  |
Alley was home, farm, and school for people who lived here a century ago. Dances, baseball games, and roller skating were all part of Alley’s busier days. John Knotts purchased the 80 acre site in 1902 and diversified the enterprises to include a well-stocked store and blacksmith shop.
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The milling operation was expanded to include corn meal production as well as flour. Alley’s school in 1903 had an enrollment of 42 students. Church services were also held at the schoolhouse. Conrad Hug became the new owner in 1912, and made Alley one of Missouri’s first resorts, known as Crystal Spring Town Site. Glider swings for tourists were scattered around the spring and July Fourth was one of many festive celebrations. We may not know their names, but the story of Alley wouldn’t be complete without mentioning the farmers who |
A mill was vital to community life, where grain was ground to provide the daily bread. The present building was constructed during 1893-1894 by George Washington McCaskill as a merchant mill. It was larger than most mills in the Jacks Fork area and replaced an earlier mill on this same site that was built by 1868. Originally unpainted, it was first painted white with green trim, then later the famous red color associated with Alley Mill today.
The process of converting wheat into flour was lengthy and time-consuming. The farmer brought his grain, either wheat or corn, to the miller who made an agreement to either buy the grain or make a trade. Often he would take a “toll” or percentage of the grain in exchange for grinding. Since the water supply of Alley Spring was constant, it seemed to be an ideal place for a mill. Free water power provided energy for the machines; however, recurring floods made the operation only marginally successful. The Alley roller mill was designed to process wheat flour in an area where corn was the main crop. This marketing error presented another setback for mill owners.
Located under the back porch is the turbine pit. In it sat a thirty five inch Leffel turbine. Belts from the turbine brought power into the basement. A control wheel on the porch allowed the miller to control how much water entered the turbine and thereby control its speed. This ability to control the speed was one of the innovations that made turbines preferable to the old water wheels.
This is where all power was transmitted to the machinery. Elevators and belts operated from a driveshaft running the length of the building. This section of the mill is not open for public visits.
Whole grain (corn or wheat) entered the mill here. The grain was put into bins, then elevated to chutes that were connected to milling machines. These are the large iron and wood machines near the back of the room. Here the grain was ground, picked up in another elevator, taken back up and dropped down into the next machine. This process allowed the grain to be ground repeatedly to a fine flour suitable for baking. Bins for storage were also located on this floor, as well as the miller's office.
Sifting was the main activity here. The large cube shaped machine was called a swing sifter. It shook the ground grain through a series of sieves to achieve a uniform consistency. The rectangular machines were an earlier way to do the same thing. In these machines, flour was filtered or sifted through silk.
Belts that operated the second floor machines were located here. The attic is not restored and is not open for public visits. Alley Mill is an example of over 100 historic structures found within Ozark National Riverways. By protecting this landmark, we are preserving the heritage of all Americans. Please help by respecting all historic and archeological artifacts in the park. It is illegal to remove artifacts, including arrowheads, from Park Service or other Federal lands. It is also disrespectful to the memories of those who went before us. Please leave them for the next person to enjoy.
by Marla LaVal
Pulltite is a delightful campground on the Current River. Like many places along the Ozark Riverways, Pulltite has a colorful and interesting story behind it. Originally, Pulltite was home to the Watson Mill. As with many Ozark communities, the story of its name begins with the desire for a post office.
In 1889 John P. Patton received a post office on his farm. His quest for a name for his post office lead him to the spring area up river about a mile. This spring was known as Pulltight for it was a tight pull for the horses as they worked to make it up the steep hill heavily laden with meal after visiting the
| Watson Mill. It was hard work both ways. The way down to the mill was so steep that the driver would have to brace the back wheels of the wagon with a chain or tree limb. This prevented the wagon from running over the team of horses. To retain control, he would have to pull tightly on the reins to slowly guide the team and wagon down the hill. Therefore the area became known as Pulltight. The spelling was shortened recently to "Pulltite." |  |
Three different mills were built at the spring over the years between the Civil War and 1911. Each of these required a small dam to more efficiently harness the power of the spring. The first mill was turbine powered and located near the present cabin. Eventually a second replaced the first and then a third mill. The third mill was powered by an undershot wheel and was built close to the point at which the spring empties into the river.
Mills were important social gathering places. While farmers waited for their grain to be ground they passed the time of day and shared news. Mills such as these were often the heart of small Ozark hamlets. When these mills went out of business the mill towns soon followed them into oblivion. Near Pulltite is the Weese Cemetery. Take a quiet walk through history by reading the headstones of those that have gone before us.
The Pulltite Cabin is across the river from the campground. The only way to see the cabin is by use of a boat or by wading across the river. The cabin is next to the Pulltite Spring. Pulltite Spring flows out of the base of a bluff with a daily flow of 20 to 30 million gallons.
The cabin was built in the French style in which the logs are placed upright so as not to have to notch them. It was built as a vacation lodge by the six man "Pulltight Corporation," which was created to develop the cabin into a retreat facility. These six men found the area on a float trip and thought it to be so beautiful and peaceful that it would make a great place for a retreat. After purchasing the surrounding land and spring the Corporation built the cabin and had the dams in the spring rebuilt, hoping to improve the fishing. In the center of the cabin is a pine log that is 38 feet long. The outer logs used to build the cabin are also quite impressive. Imagine the hard work it took to haul in these massive logs and build this cabin, using mostly hand tools. The cabin was completed on the day before Thanksgiving in 1913. Pulltite Cabin is open for your exploration. The National Park Service hopes to restore it to its former beauty.
Pulltite has many stories to tell, as do many of the places around the Ozark Riverways. Take the time to ask a ranger about the name of a place that catches your interest. Why "Jerk Tail," why "Troublesome Hollow," why "Powder Mill"? These stories are as old, and as fascinating, as the history of the land.
by Bill O'Donnell and Linda Chandler
"An honest man is the noblest work of God" reads a tombstone in the Alley Cemetery. Cemeteries have much to teach us about the values and lives of those who went before us. Ozark Riverways is dotted with cemeteries, some just family plots of one or two graves, others large affairs where villages and hamlets once were.
A wonderful way to imagine the past is to wander through a graveyard while letting your imagination wander through the mists of time. Mary Lynch was the "sunshine of our home," while another stone tells us that T.M. Ellis' "last rational act was reading 15 Chapter of 1st Corinthians." What are the stories of these early Ozarkers' lives? Some we know from the memories of elder residents, others from old newspapers and books, some we guess about from the tombstones and most we just don't know.
The original Alley Cemetery is located near Horse Camp. Follow the dirt road off of State Route 106 (about 3 miles east of Alley) and turn right at the first intersection. The cemetery is about another mile, on your left. This is the cemetery where John Alley is buried, the man Alley Spring is named after. At one time, a tornado struck the cemetery, scattering the tombstones. Local residents returned the tombstones as best they could to where they belonged. When Senator Danny Staples was a boy, he remembers helping to dig graves there and finding bones already in the spot they had chosen. The cemetery is now considered full.
Frank Bell is laid to rest in Alley Cemetery. He was a bachelor with a long white beard and everyone called him Uncle Frank. He had gone to California with hopes of finding gold. No one knows if he did or not, but he always seemed to have money. People would go to his cabin to borrow money and he would say "Well, I don't have it today, but if you come back tomorrow I will." When they came back, Frank would have the money. He did not have a bank account and apparently never left his home. After he died, the family that inherited the house searched for the hidden cache. They never told anyone if they had found it or not.
Anna Boyd, age six, and Grace Crider and Cora Birge, both seven, died in a Diphtheria outbreak in 1911. Times were hard on the Ozarks frontier, sanitation was poor, nutrition was often poor and many children died in childhood. Any walk through a cemetery will show tombstones of infants and small children. Imagine for a moment the scene as a family gathers round and lays a beloved child to rest, each person adding the traditional handful of dirt to the grave. A poignant reminder of the benefits of modern life.
The stories are carved in stone and in the memories of community elders. Take a quiet respectful walk through any of the many cemeteries around the area. Ponder their stories and the story you too will one day leave behind.
"His toils are past his work is done,
He fought the fight, the victory won."
by Ron Siller
The thought provoking, often simple names of Ozark places stimulate the imagination. Some place names are self explanatory, such as Ash Tree Ridge, Cedargrove and Bat Cave. Others are a little more complicated. The Encyclopedia Britannica states that the word Ozark is probably a corruption of "Aux Arc," the name of a French trading post established in the region in the 1700's. Another source has it that the Osage Indians hunted with long bows made from the wood of a tree known to the French as "Bois d'arc." Today we call it the Osage orange.
| Many names come from the early French explorers and trappers in the area. The trappers placed their traps in "La Riviere Courant," the "Running River." The Jacks Fork River was named by later settlers. According to local legend it is named for a Shawnee Indian named Captain Jack who camped along the river with his tribe. |  |
Troublesome Hollow got its name during the turbulent Civil War years. Lawless guerrillas, known as "bushwhackers," used the hollow as a base to cause nearby settlers grief and trouble during that unsettled time.
Meeting House Cave also takes its name from the Civil War period. According to legend, the cave was used as a hide-out during the war. Marauding bands from both sides of the conflict used the cave as a place to meet and lay low. Nearby Hospital Cave was supposedly used as a hospital during the war as well.
In the old days, farmers drove their wagon teams down the steep western bank of the river to reach a mill. Hauling a fresh load of meal back uphill was hard on the horses. The horses stretched their harnesses to the snapping point, it was a tight pull. Thus Pulltite.
Jerktail got its name from mule skinners who yelled "jerk tail" and the mules who strained hard to pull heavy loads of copper and iron ore up out of the river valley. The wagons were loaded at mines on the east side of the river.
The Osage Indians once made the Current River Valley their home. An Osage chief named Cardareva is said to be buried on top of the mountain known to this day as Cardareva Bluff.
Interesting and unique names add character and romance to the landscape of the Ozarks.They are a lasting record of the stories of the land.
by Bill O'Donnell
Over the years, Ozark springs have been used as campsites, power supplies for grist mills, tourist resorts and even hospitals. Hospitals?
Yes, hospitals. Back in 1913, an Illinois doctor named C.H. Diehl bought Welch Spring for eight hundred dollars. Dr Diehl believed that the spring water had healing properties and that cool, pollen free air coming from the adjacent cave would be beneficial for people with asthma, emphysema, and tuberculosis, which was called "consumption."
To tap this clean air resource, Dr Diehl built a hospital over the mouth of the cave. Welch Spring, which flowed from the cave, was dammed up so that water would close off the entrance. This was to force more air out through the cave opening into the hospital.
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Dr Diehl was not blind to the scenic values of the region either. He hoped to run a thriving campground resort to supplement his medical fees with tourist dollars. In time his healing resort expanded to a few small cabins, a campground, a show cave and even had an electric generator running off the spring. Unfortunately, the hospital and resort were not a big success. Other doctors wouldn't endorse Dr Diehl's methods and he therefore had trouble attracting patients. Roads in the Ozarks were rough and unpaved making it difficult to get into the Current River Country. Few tourists were willing to make the trip. By the time the doctor died in 1945, the project was being referred to as "Diehl's Folly." |
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Was Dr Diehl a charlatan or just a man ahead of his time? In time, tourists did discover the Current River, over a million come to canoe, camp, hike and fish every year. As for his medical ideas, he wasn't out of step with his times. Many people believed in the healing qualities of cave air and spring water. Years earlier a tuberculosis sanitarium had been built in Mammoth Cave, some three hundred feet underground.
| The hospital is a ruin today, but still stands next to the beautiful Welch Spring. It is located between Cedargrove and Akers on the Upper Current. It is best reached by canoe. You can drive to it also, go north from Akers on Route K. Turn left on the first gravel road past the Akers Group Camp. At the end of the road, park next to the river and walk a trail north along the river for about a half mile. At the end of the trail you will be able to see the hospital, although it will be across the spring from you. Please do not wade in the spring, metal debris from the hospital period may injure you. Springs are also delicate biologically and wading and swimming can cause damage. |
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by Becki Bulls and Bill O'Donnell
It was 1912 and the Twentieth Century was still young when a group of outdoorsmen gathered together and made a commitment to the future of Shannon County. They founded the Shannon County Hunting and Fishing Club, an exclusive group dedicated to enjoying the many outdoor pursuits the Jacks Fork offered and to its preservation for the future. They built ten cabins upstream from Rymers for the use of their members. They used their influence to promote the idea of a state park that would protect the Jacks Fork River. While Alley Spring State Park was established in 1936, it fell far short of protecting and preserving the entire Jacks Fork. It wasn't until 1964 that their dream was finally realized with the establishment of Ozark National Scenic Riverways. The Riverways encompassed not only the Jacks Fork, but also the Current River.
Although the cabins have since fallen down and been removed for safety reasons, anyone can now visit the once exclusive spot and see why they chose it for their riverside hideaway. The Hunting and Fishing Club was located right along the Jacks Fork River, for easy access to the area's renowned fishing and hunting. Nearby is a fascinating natural feature called Ebb and Flow Spring.
As you enjoy this beautiful spot, give some thankful thought to the Shannon County Hunting and Fishing Club who started the process way back in 1912 that would eventually lead to the establishment of Ozark National Scenic Riverways and the protection of these lovely Ozark Rivers for everyone to enjoy.
The southeastern Ozarks were long isolated from outside influence due to the rugged nature of the environment and the lack of improved transportation routes into the region. Scotch-Irish settlers began to filter in shortly after The Louisiana Purchase in 1804 and by the 1850s most lands in the river valleys were occupied by subsistence farmers. The Civil War brought devastation to the region and economic recovery was slow to come. It was not until the 1880s that major change began to occur with the coming of railroads and large lumber companies. Railroads provided economical transportation for goods into and out of the southeastern Ozarks. The lumber companies established large mills and millions of board feet of native pine lumber were sawn and shipped out, mostly to rapidly growing towns on the Great Plains. Timber was rapidly stripped from the Ozark hills and wildfires consumed most of the rest, reducing the Ozark to a barren wasteland hardly capable of supporting the people who stayed behind when the lumber companies left. Rains washed topsoil into the rivers and gorged them with gravel. The region became poverty-stricken and only the sheer determination of the Ozark people kept them on their farmsteads to eke out a meager living.
Amid this misery a conservation ethic was generated, not by the Ozark residents but people from far beyond the hills. The Current and Jacks Fork Rivers had been recognized by outsiders for their scenic beauty and abundant wildlife as early as the 1870s and with the railroads came urban sportsmen bent on hunting and fishing experiences in this remote area. Urban businessmen formed several hunting and fishing clubs filled with members from Kansas City, St. Louis, Springfield, and beyond. Following the lumber era, such individuals were concerned that game fish and animal populations had been decimated.
In urban areas automobiles started to grow in numbers following 1910 and by the 1920s such motorized vehicles were abundant and there followed a demand for better roads leading into the Current River country to bring tourists for sightseeing and sporting. In 1909 Missouri Governor Hadley took a float trip on the Current River which drew national attention. Roads were improved and more outsiders came and vacationed in the southeastern Ozarks. In 1919 the Missouri State Fish and Game Commission was established. Between 1920 and 1935 several conservation writers such as Aldo Leopold and Leonard Hall drew attention to the need for better management of the resources of the Current River Country. And, there was a movement to acquire lands in the region for construction of state parks. In 1924 state parks were established at Round Spring, Alley Spring, and Big Spring. Ambitious development of these new parks was quickly dampened by The Great Depression that struck in 1929. Fortunately, as part of The New Deal put in place by President Franklin Roosevelt, the Department of the Army, the U.S. Department of Agriculture, and the U.S. Department of the Interior, Civilian Conservation Corps camps were established for conservation objectives. Some of their labor was expended at the these three state parks, the most ambitious being the development of Big Spring State Park near Van Buren where numerous stone and wood buildings were constructed which remain today. It was during this time that a concept was developed for a linear park encompassing a large section of the Jacks Fork River. This idea remained only an idea at the time but resurfaced decades later as part of Ozark National Scenic Riverways.
In 1933 large tracts of land were purchased in the region for the Clark National Forest which today is part of Mark Twain National Forest. In 1936 the Missouri Department of Conservation was established and game laws became more rigidly enforced in the region. It was also during the 1930s that the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers began studies in earnest for the damming of the Current River for hydroelectric plants. In 1941 plans were moving ahead and had it not been for WWII, it is likely that at least one dam would have been built. Following the war, plans to dam the river once again resurfaced but in the early 1950s an anti-dam movement by conservationists became so strong that it finally squelched any further plans to harness that magnificent free-flowing stream. Conservationists had other intentions for the Jacks Fork and Current River and created for them a lasting destiny in the form of Ozark National Scenic Riverways.
| In 1956 The National Park Service conducted a study and issued a report calling for establishment of a corridor park along the Current and Jacks Fork Rivers and in 1960 momentum grew when Congress appropriated funds for a feasibility study for the establishment of Ozark Rivers Monument which included the Eleven Point River. There was stiff resistance to the formation of such a park from many local residents, particularly landowners who did not want to lose their family farms and county officials who did not want to lose a large portion of the tax base. In 1962 President John F. Kennedy endorsed the formation of Ozark National Scenic Riverways. Secretary of the Interior, Stewart Udall and other officials visited the region and floated the Current River. Following his strong endorsement, a bill was submitted and passed by Congress for the formation of the park. President Lyndon Johnson signed it into law and Ozark National Scenic Riverways became a reality. A formal dedication ceremony was held at Big Spring in 1972 presided over by Patricia Nixon Cox who cut the ribbon. This act officially opened the park to millions of visitors, like you, who have come in subsequent years to enjoy all that it offers. |
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