Don't know when it was founded but this might be of interest. It was sent to the list by Lou Myers. -----Original Message----- From: Lou & Anna Myers [mailto:louann22@prodigy.net] Sent: Friday, March 10, 2000 1:12 PM To: Mohr, Peter; MORANDOL-L@rootsweb.com Subject: Re: [MORANDOL-L] Info about Higbee This is taken from the Higbee Centennial Booklet 1872-1972: Higbee is located in Moniteau Township in south Randolph County. Geographically it is 88 feet above sea level, the highest town site in the county. The earliest settlers migrating from Virginia, Kentucky, and Tennessee found the country well drained by the headwaters of the Moniteau, Bonne Femme and Silver Creeks. White and black oak timber for building and fuel was plentiful and bottom lands were deep in rich soil. The "Westward Ho!" travelers simply stopped,took a deep breath of good mid-Missouri air and 'Stayed put". Two farms of these early pioneers joined and in due time were separated by a sturdy fence running east and west. To the south of this fence lay the farm of Joseph W. Burton. On the north side of this fence was the farm of Edward Owen. This fence row was destined to become "the street called straight" as it was the first street in the town of Higbee. It was called Division Street, thus separating the town into a north and south ward. In the pre-civil war days settlers were occupied with clearing the land, building cabins and raising practically all of their food supp,.lies. Renick and Roanoke were mail and trading posts. During the Civil War sentiment leaned toward the Confederacy and bushwhackers were about the only past of the war that came near the Higbee area. The town proper when named was neither Burton, because there was already a Burton a few miles to the south; nor was it named Owen or Owenville. Why,no one knows! The town did take its name from a church, the Higbee Christian Church,. which stood where the J. E. Lessly farm, now owned by Mr. and Mrs. Finis Thompson is located at the end of the mile lane lowest of Higbee. J. Higbee, an early pioneer, had given his name to the church and thus to the town. Lou Myers