1962 Rich Hill Mining Review (Frank E. Ralston History Not Taught in School )

1962 Rich Hill Mining Review  (Frank E. Ralston History Not Taught in School )

Rich Hill was founded on the discovery of a great  coal field in southern Bates County. For a number of years this county ranked number 1 in the production of coal within the state.The Digging of the Coal was hazardous occupation and hardly a went went by but what some sort of mining accident was reported over the Rich Hill field,from a service injury to death, so we list a few of the accidents of record . August 2, 1891, a Negro boy 14 years of age was killed by a fall of slate in Gulf mine no. 5 October 7, 1890.Thomas Colburtu and Rufus Whitten lost their lives by a blast at Pacific shaft No.2.In the 1881-1890 period each miner did their own shooting down of the coal.The noon hour was the usual time until the regular shot firers began doing the same work at night. Usually two miners constituted a team of shot firers.The Blast was lighted about the noon hour and the two miners started for high ground when the smoke became so dense that they lost their way and headed back to their room when the second shot went off. Mr. Whiten died shortly after being taken out of the mine and Mr. Colburt lived until late in the day, dying at his home on West Maple street.

A waterspout "hit"Rich Hill directly after midnight,July 20th, 1892.The accepted rainfall in 3 hours was 6 inches. It caught the two shots fires,Charles Miller and Carl Bowers in Hines Brothers slope behind a wall of water.The entombed miners were in the mine for  36 hours before being rescued. They found a dry room they had a light all the while and spread their midnight lunch out so that they were not starved. The Hines Brothers slope was sold to Martin & Gee about 1893, who operated it for a number of years, and was located on the Spencer land just south of the Brick and Tile Plant was located. At lest 500 men and boys worked around the clock with buckets in order to lower  the water enough so they could be reached by the rescue parties. On the afternoon of the 21st with men being crowed around the air shaft, an "Old Time" coal miner from the Sprague coal field, George Bowman, jumped down the air shaft, 25 feet to 5 feet of water. He had told the crowd,"I an not afraid to go down and get them"He was overpowered by other miners,brought  back and taken to town and put in jail until he sobered up. When the rescue party reached the men there was a great of joy from the people on top, including DR. W.H. Allen, who "stood by."  He had a quart of whiskey and several wool blankets. After giving them " a stiff drink."he wrapped in the blankets and they where taken home.

Hill coal fields of when the Pacific mine No. 15 located a mile and a half south of Town, began operation.For 15 years this was the greatest coal producer in the State employing at its peak 550 miners and the records still stands of producing 72 Cars of coals in 8 hour period taken from a shaft.To answer this question we have before us a record showing as follows : { The contact for the new switch from the Missouri Pacific railroad to the new fields of the Rich Hill Coal Mining Company,south of town has been let to, Meers, Hopkins and Harrison.They started work on the switch November  14,1890.The switch will be a little short of 2 miles in length. It leaves the main line about a quarter mile south of the Pacific depot and runs southwest across the lands of W.K. Royce and Robert Massie to the new shaft.}


 

Local historian,blogger to address Settlers Society(Mining Review Aug11 2017)

Local historian,blogger to address Settlers Society

{Rich Hill Mining Review Aug 11, 2017}

If you were to ask a much younger Bart McClaughry if he enjoyed public speaking, chances are the answer would have been a resounding."No!"

As a student in Greg Brock's Science class, McClaughry was in strong disagreement with his teacher's explanation when requiring students to give presentations to the class. "Someday you may have to get up in front of a group and speak." McClaughry says,

 "At first I didn't agree with him and I didn't like it one bit. Then I developed a strong fondness for speaking to groups and I have had it ever since."

  Local historian and blogger McClaughry will be speaking at the 120th Reunion of the Bates County Old Settlers Society on Wednesday, Aug 23 at 1:00 P.M. where he will discuss pre and post-Civil War Bates County and how the railroad helped the area prosper. He has recently discussed area  history at the 2017 Rich Hill Alumni Banquet and gave a brief presentation during the Fourth of July celebration.

McClaughry finds the stories of Rich Hill fascinating and says the history of the town is often stranger than fiction."In my years working for the City of Rich Hill." I have often wondered when working on different projects, how things got this way? You can still look at Rich Hill's City Hall building on the east side and see a faint image where the door used to be,which they used to take the horses and the fire pump in and out of the building.

"You can look at the old power plant building on Maple Street and on the west side,"he continues,"and still see the doors where they used to shovel the coal in to run the steam powered generators. Another example is when you read about the baseball field, you find how excited everyone was to have an actual ball field built so they would no longer have to play ball in a cow pasture."
  
McClaughry keeps an online record of area history through his blog, "Rich Hill Missouri History." There he shares interesting articles and photos from old newspapers clippings and books. He says,"It is very rewarding to have people contact me and state how much they appreciate the blog, the interesting stories and historical information posted on it."
  
McClaughry invites interested readers to share his passion at the 120th Reunion of the Bates County Old Settlers Society on Wednesday, August 23, at 1:00 PM. in the old Butler gym, which is air-conditioned.

Food Fair in the 70's

James Wayne "Red" McCune Obit

Wayne"Red" McCune of Rich Hill, MO, passed away on December 27th, 2018.Wayne was born on April 19, 1937 in Nevada,  MO,  to Virgil Franklin McCune and Jessie (Osborne) McCune. His early years were spent in Nevada, MO. before moving to a farm in Walker, MO. in 1943. He attended high school in Walker and graduated salutatorian with the class of 1955.
     Wayne's graduation was his second date with Wanda Emerson. By December 28th, 1958 they were married and remained married married for almost 60 years until his death.
Wayne and Wanda made their first home in Eureka Ks.In building Wayne's experience in the grocery business, they moved to Emporia, KS, Nevada, MO., Springfield, MO, and finally settled in Rich Hill, MO. in 1972.
     Wayne started working in the grocery business as a teenager. He managed his first meat department by the age of 20 and his first grocery store by 24. By 1970,Wayne was Vice President of Ramey's --a large grocery chain based in Springfield,  MO. In August of 1972, Wayne and Wanda fulfilled their dream of owning their own store when they bought the Rich Hill, MO. store from Fred Marquardt. This is where they would settle with their family and Wayne would become known as "Red". Throughout the years, Wayne would own a share of partnership stores in Golden City, MO; Lamar, MO; Butler, MO; Nevada, MO; LaCygne, KS and Mound City, KS (which both began as joint ventures with longtime friends Fred and Billie Lee), and Pleasanton, KS.
     Wayne loved being involved in his community, his church, and his country.  He was an active member in the Lion's Club, spent two years as President of the Chamber of Commerce, and many years as a director on the board of Security Bank of Rich Hill and eventually Citizen's Bank. He served as a Trustee and Deacon for the First Baptist Church for over 25 years.  Wayne proudly served in the National Guard; first based at Camp Clark in Nevada, MO and eventually based at the Springfield Aviation Repair Depot where he became a helicopter mechanic. Wayne enjoyed telling stories of his time in the National Guard like when he became a driver for several VIPs or worked as a cook and earned the name "Pepper Red".
    Wayne had a variety of hobbies. He enjoyed traveling and took his family all across the United States. He was an avid water-skier and boater and spent many days on the lake with friends and family. He loved slalom skiing and sharing the experience with others. Wayne's passion for farming saw him spend many years acquiring and developing land and raising cattle. Hauling hay was a family outing everyone was able to enjoy.
     Anyone that knew Wayne knew of his love for cars. He attended auto shows and antique car sales. Throughout the years he acquired several classic cars and won a few trophies in local shows and parades.
     One of Wayne's greatest passions was helping others--whether it was a child having a bad day at the store, an individual a little down on their luck, or someone needing advice or help in their business endeavors. Wayne knew what it took to succeed and gladly shared that knowledge with anyone who wished to do the same.

     Wayne loved his family and in later life savored his role as great-grandfather. He leaves behind his wife: Wanda Sue (Emerson) McCune; a son: Bruce Allen McCune; a daughter; Beth Ann McCune; a granddaughter: Candace LeAnn (McCune) Wilson; and two great grandchildren: Bailie and Bryson. Also surviving is his sister: Joyce Trujilio of Cheyenne, WY. Wayne was an incredible man that will be greatly missed by his community, his friends, and most importantly, his family.

"How lucky I am to have something that makes saying goodbye so hard." -- A.A. Milne
   

E-Mail from Tom Wescott

Hi Bart, I love your blog. Have for years and I applaud your efforts with it. Attached are some matchbooks from Rich Hill. The Bo-Peep Motel is one I'm very curious about! Also is a strange RH postcard from 1913, front and back. I cribbed these from eBay. Feel free to post them if you'd like. 

Best wishes, 

Tom Wescott

Historical Notes of Reva Stubblefield #2

Historical Notes of Reva

Historical Notes from Reva Stubblefield 1974

Among the early settlers was a man by the name of O. Spencer, a well educated man from Kentucky and a Methodist minister, who had a love of fine horses. He settled on a farm near Rich Hill, where he divided his time between farming and preaching. Later he became engaged in the coal business and began breeding fine race horses. Many of his horses won recognition on the great tracks of the country. He was instrumental in establishing a race track in Rich Hill which became one of the best known tracks in the country.

Mr. Spencer was a good friend of Major G. I. Lynch, who resided in Butler but owned and operated a deep pit mine in Rich Hill. His operation was known as the Bates Coal Company. There was a track running into the mine and the coal was hauled out in coal cars by a small donkey. Mr. Lynch, from Boston, was also a lover of fine horses so the two had much in common. The race track became part of the large fair ground on the east edge of the city.

So that the cultural aspect of the city would not be neglected, a library association was organized and incorporated August 12, 1882. W. T. Tygard was elected President; S. Cain, Secretary; and S. G. Morrison, Librarian. They started with one hundred books. In 1974 the library is still in operation with books and __________________________________ an adequate supply to meet the towns needs but they proved to be disappointing, so he built an artificial gas plant that made enough to light the city. A double row of gas lights with large white globes decorated Park Avenue from the entrance gate on the east park to Park Place on the west. It was a beautiful sight when lit at night and was heralded far and wide as the “Great White Way”. Later, electricity was brought in and the town was a blaze of light!

Ad to those already listed a cigar factory, an ice and refrigeration plant, two wholesale beer houses and a daily newspaper, The Rich Hill Gazzette, which was started August 5, 1880, by George P. Huckeby. It was republican and was started with the promise that a postmaster job would be granted him to assure a living.

Of course, the picture couldn’t be all this rosy. Many of the miners brought in were of foreign descent and great beer drinkers. There were man from Belgium, Austria, Italy, Wales and Ireland. At one time there were seven saloons doing a thriving business. The miners worked hard, drank hard and played a bit rough! It was a wide awake, rootin’ tootin’ western town in the evenings when the miners were in between shifts. On Saturday nights, which was pay day, there was usually a fight or two, with possibly a knifing and occasionally a shooting so a jail house became a necessity. It is still standing, and in use, when necessary. It looks as though it could do a good job of corralling the boistrous and unruly.

It looked so stout and dungeon-like that we asked to view the interior. So several of us ladies were given a personal tour by the present police officer, Lester Fenton. We found it to be swept clean, in fore ways that one. It was scrupulously clean, painted white and very bare! There were four cells with iron gates. One cell contained a stove, another was the toilet room, and two were reserved for prisoners. Each contained a bare bed made of bars and a folded blanket on each. The bull-run, or large room you enter was for any females who might be brought there, and contained two bunks spread with blankets. The small openings called windows, seen in the picture, were hidden by a lowered ceiling, so one could not see the sky, and the walls were of stone, hewed at least eighteen inches to two feet thick. About the only thing any one could do in such confinement would be to repent of ones wicked ways and vow never to get caught again! 

Rich Hill Tigers--WEMO Surprise Team (The Cass County Democrat Missourian ,November 16 1979

Rich Hill Tigers--WEMO Surprise Team 
(The Cass County Democrat Missourian ,November 16 1979 ) 

 When school opened, first year Rich Hill Football Coach John Denny must have been more concerned about fielding a team than how many games they’d win. You see, at the time Denny only had 12 able-bodied players competing for 11 positions. Forget the platooning, we don’t play 6-man football in the state. The situation improved. About a Nineteen “newcomers” joined the team over Labor Day weekend. 12 players “stuck”. “We worked real hard on conditioning”, Denny Said. “Some of them left us.”

  

 When the Tigers traveled to Adrian Sept. 7, only the “original 12” were eligible to play. “I fully expected us to get clobbered,” Denny admitted, “But somewhere along the line the kids didn’t expect it.” Rich Hill lost 13-0. Adrian finished the season at 7-2.The Tigers practiced Saturdays and Sundays to get in the allotted number of sessions so the rest of the players would be eligible to play the second game. They fell to Windsor 7-6 in game two.

  

Then Midway came to town. The Vikings, of course, are defending Class 1-A state titlists. Midway won 13-0, but it was only 6-0 until the closing seconds of play.“Midway didn’t play very well,” Deny acknowledged, “I think (Midway Coach Laural) Hobick’s a tremendous coach. It’s an honor to be on the same field with him.” The Midway loss was a costly one. Doug Isaacson, the Tigers’ talented running back, broke a bone in his shoulder, but Phil Kesterson stepped in for Isaacson and picked up over 800 rushing yards in 6 ½ ball games.

  The freshman really came through,” Denny said. Freshman quarterback Tom Sutcliffe and classmate Brain Tabor teamed for the winning score in the 34-28 victory over Osceola- Rich Hill’s first. The same duo accounted for the go-ahead score in their 20-6 victory over Miami.

   Denny said of 180-pound senior linebacker-fullback Roger Rigdon, “He was more than just a key for us. I can’t say enough about him. We wanted to give him the ball more but he was just so good at blocking.” Denny called 175-pound junior slotback-running back Bill (Bubba) Sutcliffe the second best athlete on the team. He expects big things from him next year. Chuck Duffield, a 220-pounder and Ray Audula, a 195-pounder were the Tigers top live men but Denny was proudest of Bart McClaughry – a 6’1”, 130-pounder who was called upon to play offensive tackle. He’d never played football before, but he worked real hard. He did it on all guts alone.”

  I think we have super kids here,” Denny said. “The kids deserve all the credit. Maybe he was being a bit modest. The former Lillis High School mentor should be commended for motivating his youngsters to “give their all. Following a 44-0 victory over winless Kansas City West Friday, the Tigers finished the year at 4-6. Included among their victories was a 12-7 triumph over the Archie Whirlwinds- contestants in the Class 1-A state play-offs.