I found this in the Missouri genweb site in Saline Co. you might find this interesting, I did. happy hunting Joe SETTLEMENT of the "BIG BOTTOM" - In the fall of 1815, James Wilhite and Wm. Hayes came from West Tennessee to Cooper's Fort with wagons containg their families and all their household goods . . . During the winter of 1815-6 he [Wilhite] and Hayes crossed the riber and explored the country on this side to find homes for themselves. In October, 1816, they moved over with their families and settled near the lower extremity of the "Big Bottom." In the fall of 1817, Jacob Ish came into the settlement. The new colony had now a population of near three hundred. There had been a large immigration from Indiana and Kentucky the previous summer . . . pp149-150