The following are selected articles from a Newspaper titled, "The Higbee News" which was issued out of the town of Higbee, in Randolph County, Missouri from the years 1888 through 1953. The editors and owners were a wonderful man by the name of W. H. Welch and his son H. Scott Welch. This paper covered the Higbee area and also a great deal of the northeastern part of Howard county. It is because of my tremendous admiration for this father and son, that I am transcribing this paper and putting it in a more readable format, so that this work may again be brought to light, to entertain, and teach a whole new generation of the descendants of the inhabitants and neighbors of a little town called "Higbee." The copyright notice at the end of this transcript is there for the sole purpose of keeping this work free to the public, and to ensure that it is not harvested by a fee-based corporate genealogy site, or published in any format for profit. If you decide to use the information from this transcription, PLEASE LIST ME AS THE SOURCE, rather than the paper. My transcription is another generation removed from the microfilm, and would thus be a third generation copy of the original paper. I wouldn't want my own possible errors in transcription, blamed on the editors of the paper. For proper documentation, a researcher should obtain a photocopy of the microfilm for their own permanent records, and use my transcript as a guide or index. The microfilm is available for interlibrary loan through the State Historical Society of Missouri, and a copy is also on file at the Moberly Public Library, generously donated by the Higbee Historical Society. When the Higbee Historical Society disbanded, their material was donated to the Randolph County Historical Society and is still available there. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Thursday, 27 May 1926, Vol 40 No. 4, pg. 2, Col 1, 2 &3--A LETTER FROM W. T. DAMERON--Writes Entertainingly of Former Randolph County Citizen--Tulsa, Okla, May 20, 1926. To the Higbee News. I spent last Sunday at the pleasant and hospitable home of Mr. and Mrs. Wm. D. Crist, 1212 S. Florence Ave., Tulsa. Mr. and Mrs. Crist are formerly of Moberly. Mrs. Christ's father, Thomas Henry Holloway, who is now nearly 85 years old, also a former Randolph citizen, resides in the Crist home. Mr. Holloway's wife died April 3, last, aged nearly 79 years. Her remains were conveyed to Centralia, Mo., for burial. Her maiden name was Matilda J. Crosswhite, and she was born in Audrain county, Mo., on May 14, 1847. She was a sister of Mrs. Frank K. Collins or Moberly and Mrs. Waller C. Malone, now of St. Louis. Mr. Holloway is a native of Boone county, Mo., being born near Hinton, of October 9, 1841, and where he grew to manhood. His father, Calvin G. Holloway, was one of the pioneers of Boone county, having emigrated there from Kentucky. T. H. Holloway's father, as did his grandfather, died in 1848 of cholera, an epidemic that raged in that community at the time, within three days of each other. Mr. Holloway was married to Miss Matilda J. Croswhite on June 23, 1867, by Rev. W. T. Ellington, a prominent Southern Methodist minister of that day, who was living at that time at Sturgeon. Mr. Holloway says he and his bride traveled many miles that day on horseback from her parents' home to Sturgeon and to his old home, and says it was sure a hot day, too. Before his marriage Mr. Holloway had leased a 160 acres tract of "wild" land from Major Jas. S. Rollins of Columbia, fenced it and put some cattle on it to graze. But he and his bride however, went to housekeeping in a little hut on an 80-acre tract he purchased from a Mr. Culp, some miles away from the leased land. their household goods and cooking utensils were very scant, and occupied only a small portion of the space in the little hut, and with a small supply of food their "honeymoon" was spent happily in that little rustic home. Mr. Holloway says the day he took his bride to the hut to live he had to leave her to look after his cattle on the leased land. He left his bride sitting in the doorway with two faithful dogs lying on the ground near, the only living thing to keep her company. Wolves inhabited that neighborhood at that time. When he returned home some three or four hours later his bride was still sitting in the same place anxiously awaiting his return. She told him that wolves had made two attempts to reach the hut, but the faithful dogs fought them off each time. Of their marriage eleven children were born. Five are still living--Wm. D., Jesse D., and Thos. J. Holloway and Mrs. Goldie Brown and Mrs. Katherine Crist. After remaining on the 80 acres for about two years they moved on a farm over in Randolph county and later to a farm in Macon county, residing there about six years, then moved back to a farm in Randolph north of Clark, where they resided many years. About nine years ago they moved to Moberly, lived there seven years. In 1924 they moved to Tulsa to spend their remaining years with their daughter, Mrs. Crist. The 23rd of last June they celebrated their 58th marriage anniversary. Mr. Holloway says he and his wife in all their married life never had a quarrel. Very few couples that lived together for nearly 59 years can say as much. Like most men of his age, Mr. Holloway is failing some. But says if he can keep his present health he would like to live to be 100 just to see how a man of that age would feel. He says the first time he ever visited Huntsville was when Hade Brown was hung. He and his wife united with the Christian church at old Macedonia. His wife joined in 1866 and he in 1867. His membership is now with the Clark Christian church. Mr. Holloway was a warm personal friend of W. H. Welch, one of the founders of the NEWS, and father of its present editor. He says national prohibition has turned out as he expected--in endless litigation and with no improvement in the morals of the nation. In my talk with Mr. Holloway, our conversation drifted back to Civil War days. He had about 10 months' service in the Confederate army, and was in a federal prison for about eight months. In speaking of this he said, in substance: "Along in 1862-3 the war spirit was at times pretty rampant and exciting in our county and many of the boys of my age were organizing and going south to join Gen. Sterling Price's army. November 1, 1863, I with, other boys of Boone, Howard and Randolph counties joined a company under command of Capt. June Porter and later were attached to a small regiment under Col. Joe Porter, brother of June Porter. We started south with the expectation of uniting with Gen. Price's army. None, or few of us, had any arms at all. While passing through Morgan county south of the Missouri river, and while in camp preparing a snack to eat, a company of "shirt-tail" militia attacked us very unexpectedly. Most of us had good horses, and no arms, and all we could do was to outrun them or be killed or captured. Joshua Lumpkin and Asa Stone, an uncle of mine, were killed in this skirmish. Several other of our men never did show up, they being killed or captured. those of us who escaped went to West Plains Mo., went into camp and reorganized. We remained there about a week and then marched to Batesville, Ark., and went into winter quarters, and remained there until the spring of '64. By this time most of us had been furnished with arms of one kind or another. I was given an old rifle. Our next march was into Eastern Arkansas where we remained for several months. A lot of federals had come in from Iron Mountain, Mo., and in a skirmish with them we captured about fifteen commissary wagons drawn by mules rigged in new harness. We had plenty of bacon, such as it was, crackers and some other edibles then to last us for a good while. We moved north and Col. Joe Porter was killed in a fight with federals at Hartsville, Mo. My horse was killed and I had to foot it for awhile. "Among the mule teams we captured was a big white mule. My Captain said to me. "take that white mule and come on." I said all right, but that it would make a good target for the federals. (When Mr. Holloway mentioned "white mule" I smiled, and he said that mule, while it had a "kick," was no kin or type of the modern white mule "rode and sold" by bootleggers nowadays). On our march further north we came across a regiment of Confederate troops from Texas on the hunt of General Neil and his troops. But Gen. Neil, better known as "butcher Neil," made his escape north. Our company continued on to Southeast Missouri and got into a skirmish with some federal troops near Jackson, Mo., and six of us who had been cut off from the main body of our troops were captured and that was the last I saw of my white mule. We were taken to Jefferson City and confined in Gen. Parson's house as prisoners and kept under heavy guard for several months, and most of the grub they fed us on was sure hard. Later, they put me into a hospital there as a nurse, and in the way of eats I fared much better. On April 16, 1865 Major Jas. S. Rollins of Columbia, Mo., succeeded in having me released from prison; also Tom Baley of Randolph county. After arriving home, or soon thereafter, I leased the 160 acres of land from Major Rollins as I have mentioned," "Some years after the war," continued Mr. Holloway, "I met Charley Hance, who was circuit clerk and recorder of Randolph county many years, and in our conversation he alluded to a fight his company had with federal troops in Boone county in 1862, I believe, in which he was shot and lost an arm, and I learned from that that he was the wounded man who camped out in our woodland pasture for a while with some other confederates who were in the same battle." Mr. Holloway still wears a long white beard, stands erect and has the cast of a patriarch. Thursday, 27 May 1926, Vol 40 No. 4, pg. 2, Col 3--Birthday Dinner--Relatives and friends gathered Sunday at the home of Mr. and Mrs. Jas. Hamilton of near Clark. All came with well filled baskets. The occasion was the celebration of Mr. Hamilton's 46th birthday. All left at a late hour wishing Mr. Hamilton many more happy birthdays. Thursday, 27 May 1926--Miss Alberta Andrews, daughter of Mr. and Mrs. B. F. Andrews, who taught in the high school at Sutherland, Nebr, the past year, and who was re-elected for the coming year, but who declined to accept, desiring to go to a larger place, left last week for Los Angeles, Cal, where she will spend the summer. (Guest list omitted). Thursday, 27 May 1926, Vol 40 No. 4, pg. 2, Col 5--WEST POINT NEWS--Miss Jewel Chism, who is attending school in Kirksville, is visiting her parents this week. Thursday, 27 May 1926, Vol 40 No. 4, pg. 4, Col 1--Jas. A. Cox and family lived on an Arizona desert ranch. In the desert neighbors are few and miles apart. Cox had to leave the ranch for an absence of ten days and left his wife and two babies alone. Upon his return he found his family dead--al shot through the heart. A note left by the wife explained the tragedy. After the husband's departure the wife was bitten by a rattlesnake. To save her life she slashed the wound with a knife, and, cutting too deep, severed an artery. Sick from the snake poison and dying from the loss of blood the woman was unable to go for aid. Knowing that at her death the children would suffer the death of starvation, she took her rifle and shot each child through the heart and then turned the weapon upon herself. Thursday, 27 May 1926, Vol 40 No. 4, pg. 4, Col 2--To Spend Summer in California--Miss Albert Andrews, daughter of Mr. and Mrs. B. F. Andrews, who taught in the high school at Sutherland, Nebr., the past year, and who was re-elected for the coming year, but who declined to accept, desiring to go to a larger place, left last week for Los Angeles, Calif., where she will spend the summer. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Copyright notice: All transcriptions in this email are copyrighted by their creator. They may not be reproduced on another site or on any printed or recorded media, CD, etc. without specific written permission from Kathy Bowlin. Although public information is not in and of itself copyrightable, the format in which it is presented, transcriptions, notes & comments, etc. is. It is however, quite permissible to print or save the files to a personal computer for personal use only. Permission is granted to public libraries, and genealogical and historical societies to print and bind for the use of their patrons. Kathy Bowlin Additions, corrections, comments welcome.