Page II I
During the Civil riar, Southwest Ni ssourl a nd especia lly Bar!y CUUJ.ty, h,.d found herself in the midst of the strugg le. The southern line of Enrry County borders on the Arkansas line a nd that. for the lllnst }Brt was southern t erritory . The territory to the north was considered as Norther n territory am' the county seat. Cassville was at vari ous times under the control of b,...,th armie s • . _ The Battle of Pea Ridge which wa s four,h t a t l:!lk Horn Tavern, just across the line in ARk;,nsas, re ', lly began "ith the bat.tle of Blockade Hollow at "ashburn , ~, O. Here the Southern Army, inretreat to the south succeeded in ha lting the Northern Army by felUng the heavy timber acros s the ro~, which a t this point followed a steep canyon. ';hen the Civil war ended, Barry County was an undeveloped c o untry a nd the few towns tha t were here then were i n their ea rly stages of growth. In 1870, the Atlantic and Pac ific Ra ilroa d had completed their tra ck to Kickapoo Prairie (later namea Springfie l d, i'or Springfield, Tenn .) and were pre}Bring to build on southwest following tile old Butterfield Stage Li ne. The Old Butterfield Stage Li~e ha d been established before the war a nd was thc first stare from St. Louis to San Franc isco. This stage line was founned ..in con j unction with ,;e 11s Fargo and followe
Page 112
'l'heSi:ory of beven Star Springs
Seven Star Springs are not the most healthful waters ill this, the "he«lth se ekers paradise." With the announcement of the discovery of the> mineral sprinbs, came the usual hoards of investors, bp6eulc.tors, hea lth seekers, and What h"ve you. First among these was Eli Albert, who purchased one acre in the southeast eorller of Soecion 10, Township 22, Range 29, directly adjoinitlf, th" spring. In the latter part of 1880, several transfers of land were made among the most prominent of whom were, Samuel Baker. William bimpsoll, R.K. Michael, Joseph Longshied &nd J.t.. Lovi'·g . On I·hrch Jl, 1881, the plat of the town, seven :Scar Sprin[s was pcknowledged and recorded. The original platt of the town to say nothing of the subsequent additions to i t were a tribute to the ability of Mr . Hodo to visualize the potential benefits to be derived from a spring that poured forth unlimitcd quantities of the hea lth g ivin~ waters. Realizing the necessity of d (. ing things riLht whon laying out the plans of wha t he had conceived as one of the greatest resorts for the afflicted in Southwest l>lissouri, Nr. Hodo called on the profeSSional knowledge of Mr. c.. C. Frost, who at th"t time was surveyor of llarry County. With the spring as a starting point, they.surveyed Main Street runnill6 due north from the spring directly across Star Hollow and endjng near the feot of the hill at,. the back of the field. now part of the farm of Mr. ~;>llace Snook. The prinCipal street running west from the spring WaS called Valley Stre"t and extended. due west from the spring for a distance of 1200 feet. The east and west streets in order from south to north were: Valley Street, Wa l nut Street, Ches tnut btreet, High Street and Hickory Street. 1'0 those of you who are famili ar with the road as it now runs across the old to;.;nsite, you will probG.bly r emembe r that it runs east and west along the top of a small cliff. This road is on the general course of High Street. By April 1881, A.B. Hodo began to realize tbat t.he development of such a rapidly expanding town, as Seven Stars promised to become, carried with it responsibilities too great for the shoulders of one man. So, after talkine it allover with his wife, they decided to accept one of the numerous offers tended them. The offer of partnership which met with their approval "as thht 0] A . J. Stewart. Accordil".gly, they , on April 26, 1881. deeded to said A. J. Stewart one fourth interest in all lots a nd unplot ted portion of the Northeast one fourth of' the Northeast one half Section 9, Township 22, Range29. From t his time on. Mr. Stewar t became the One ,.Man Chamber of Commerce for Seven Star Springs. Every day he could be fOWld on the down town corner of Main and Valley Streets inquiring of the numerous partakers of the se ~n pools as to just what miracles had been wrought. These stories were care>fully sorted and those that described in g lowing terms the "almost miraculous c ures" that had been derived from one of the> seven pools were sent post-haste to the surl.'oundine newspapers where it WetS arranged that they be given front page space . Needless to say, the few that were gathered from some individual who could not appreciate the opportunities to which he had access, found their WRY into the waste basket on Valley Street. During the spring and summer of 1881 the s a le of town lots and sites for business establistments got under way in earnest. The customer came fast and furious, each one determined to get an option on the more favorably located lots. By the first of Uctober 1881. the majority of the lots suu of Green B&ck Alley, which was the first Alley south of High Street had been sold. By this time, Hr. ";11 Albert had his livery stable open for business. This bUSiness was located on the Albert Block, just north of the spring. In May 1881, John ;';are, who had movee( from Washburn and opened the blacksmith shop, surveyed and platted Ware's Block which became an addition to the town. The Norman Addition Was surveyed and platted as part of the town Aug. 2J. 1881. Other additions also made in 1881 were the Estes, Carson & Hays Addition and the Clark Addition. So we find tha t by August 1881, the original town site of Seven Stars Springs had four additions surveyed a nd recorded to say nothing ~f a sister town of St. Jacob Springs. The town of St . Jacob Springs, directly adjoinIng Seven Star Sprinf,s was surveyed by E. C. Frost on the Northwest quarte r of the Scu'ln;.c st qtlaf';ter of Section 10, Toonship 22, Range
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Page #3
The 5tory of Seven Star Springs
29, for Hiram Hurlbut and IUiza Hurlbut, who acknowledg.:d the platt on August 31, 1881. But getting back to our story of Seven Stars. on July 4th, 1881, t he business !lien of the town decided on a Grand Fourth of July celebration which proved to be a gre"t success. The peonle gathere d from far and near, and when all the horses and buggies had arrived, there was one tied to al",,,s1. every tree in the va lley. That afternc>on the sky became overcast and a bleck cloud rolled up from the west. The people being afraid of a storm fled to the protection of the overhanging bluff that bordered the town on the South. This storm d.id not prove, t o be very serious hut it brought home to some of the residents the possibility of wha t might happen if a water spout really came roaring down Star Hollow. When some of the citizens questioned Mr. lfodo and Mr. Stewart as to the arrangements for handling a flood, they repli ed the t they planned to turn the water over the hill and that, therefore, there was no danger of a flood. In spite of this assurance, some of the old-timers still grumbled and predicted thc:t !lathing good could C0me of a town built squarely across a valley. By the middle of August 1881, some three hundred lots had been sold, a lUlllher j'ard had been established, and the town waS in the midst of a building boom. Bill liorman bought the lots just east ·of the spring from his father-in-law , I!;li Alberts and had be"un the erection of a thirty-rive room hotel, this hotel faced the west and was set back into the hill; there was a stone wall built aroundthe small front yard raining it above the level of Valley Street. The stone wall sunounaiflt, the yare, i s still in pkce and the excavations for the botel nne still visible, Before this hotel was completed, it was sold to One Sye (hill) Davis, so called because he was blind in one eye. When the town first started, everybody tried to get a location as near the spring as possihle, as this was considered the center of business activity, later the main business section shifted farther north, The l.iavis Hotel had been built .. ith a dance floor and because of the floor and the fact that i t was favor.o.bly located., it became the center of much of the town social activity, it was here that many of the town dances were held. un one occasion at least. so we are told, one of the se a1 fairs almost became a riot ",hen a delegation of the boys from Cassville came do'·n to t : ke eve r the dance.; it appears th, t the decision was a uraw with both sides profusely dec <)rated with black eyee 2nd bloody noses. Judee Horine, meml~r of a prominent CsssviJle family, erected a bath house just west of the spring. The foundations of this Duil,;ing are still there. The next lot west of the !nth house was occupicd by the Boss Saloon which was set back in the hill. Main Street, running due north from the spring was the dividing line between the original town site and the Dave Norm'ln Addition to the to;",; as the town began spreading out the business section leped over cn the Norman Addition. 1'0 the east of If.ain Street >las located Che ws Store. Fisher and Boswell general stor~, Flys feed store, Stephensons Hall, which was used to hold court ant' for the public gatherings; Alberts Liv8ry Stablc, a lumber yard, the Mose Hodge Hotel, a picture gallElry, and Campbells }[;':ll in which was located the post office and the printing orrice. Campbell was also the postmaster. On the west side of ~lain Street wa located Lanums Furniture Store, Dink Jeffres drug store,Loving Hotel, Adamsons Livery Stable, Smith Hotel, Mose Hodee butcher shop. Doc Smith, who had come from Springfield, was a son-in-law of Tom Keets for whom Keetsville was named and Tom Keets furnished Smlth the money to build the hotel which \;;;S a forty room building and waS locat' ,d on the hill overlooking the 'al1;.ce Snook home. This hotel later burned down. One of the familiar ch~racters ar<)und Seven Stars, and a talented musician wns Snapping Wilson, so-called because he could playa tune by snapping his fingers. Mr. wilson was the leading musician at all the dances and social affairs and waS almost a one-man band. He and his wife lived in a sm.,ll house next to the Loving Hotel on Walnut Street. One night he told his wife he was going out to see about the stock and when he did not return that night, the neighbors sti.Lrted a search for him. One night, after Wilson had been ·gone for two or thrAe
Page #4
The Btr.>ry of Seven Star Springs
that the next morning, Norman, I,ho was a1!nost oj ind, ;,ent "lone to a cove in a box canyon just above the Charles Smith place and there fcund the body of Wilson hanging from a cliff just as he had dreamed. This canym is called. Dead Man Hl;l,llow. In December 1881, a petition. sit,ned by sevent.y-two ~"sidents of Seven Star Springs was presented to thp. ccurt askip.e for the incorporati0n of the to"!l. This petition was granted and A5 J . BOS"t.-ell ti M.C. Bf'~ty, C:i. M. 1!!vans. ~le S. Norris and A.B. Hodo were named the first board of trustees. During the summer of 1881, the people were arriving by dr oves and a p~eat many of' them Came 1n wagons bringing all their belongings .ith them. Houses were built at a rapid rate but not fe.st en'''ugh to take care, cf the increasing population. As a result, a great many people were living in covered wagons ,·· r:d tents. The mail for Seven Stars was ca=ied by star route down Su.r Hollow to Tribul ation, the later being located. "here 0.0. ~'ox now lives on Mikes on l':ikes Creek. The Post Office of Tribulat5,on was moved to various farm houses and finally abandoned and tte mall route extended to POllell. l""ny of the older ;:esidents who had been raised 1n the locality and knew the results of heavy r,lns on the tributaries of Star Hollow had been convinced ever~ince the tewn start~ that unless the city fath~rs put throll@1 a project tc turn the c eek across tho mountains, socner or l 'Lt er they would IMve a flood. One the night. of Jul y 17. 1832, heavy rains began falling on the head waters of the creek, and before morning the usually dry wash became a raging to~·rent. 'lhe residents in the low bottoms quit their beds in the middle of the night and hunted higher ground. The next morning the flood had subsided and. th e resident.s , amid a chorus of "I tcld you so", gathered along the bunks of the receding stream to survey the damage. The flood. d:.d not get as high as was foared at first and only those buildings tha.t stood. in the low bottoms and on the bank of the streaJll had been severly damaged. The Greatest d£Wllae;o w,,-s to th" t section l ;,yi!l{; betHeen Valley and Walnut Gtrel..-ts; here the channel of the creek had shifted to the north 2.nd a great many of the most valuable lots had become nothing more than a gravel bar. The next morn:.ng the board of trustees held a special meeting nith tho business men and it was decided that a little thing like a flood cculd in no way hinder the development of the town, so everybody turned to, in a determined effort tore pair the damaGe as soon as possible. The actual dallk-..ge was n t the worst thing they had to contend With, but rathE:r the fact th.J.t there had been created. in the minds of a great lliany people a. doubt and fear that tha worst was yet to ceme. But in the flm:'y of reconstruction that followed, these fears ~ere soon forgotten and the town WaS soon on its way to bigger and better things. A fe. of t.he property owners at thl.s time were: David lanUlo,G ••• ~!;i!Sler, l'.a.ry A. Kiplinger, H.S, Shroder, Cyrus Davidson, Mary Faleul!l. S.A, Street, J .A.Martin, \lull iam P. Morly. E.Olds. D.t'.Clevenger, D
Page #5
The Story of Seven Star Springs
one themse lves. This wa s located in the creek bottom, just 'lest of town and ju~t opposite of the Wallace Snooh home . It wa s here tha t the famous shirt tail f oot race w ~ s run. There had been a long drawn out feud between two of the local athletes as to which one was the best foot racer, there had been many hot a rguments a nd not a few wagers as which one was the best, so it was finally decided to settle it, once and for all; they met on the field and began stripping for acti on, the pistol was fired just ih time and the race was run in their shirt tails. I imagine t his was a stag affair. During the years that SeV!!n Stars had beenl flourishing, the Atlantic and P."cific Railroad had been renamed The ! risco and wa s building south from Plymouth Junction(J.a+.er Mmed Honett) aId in 1883 had reached the head of ~ ashburn Prairie. The:re had been the usual disagreement between the town of Washburn and the railroad over right of way and a s a result. the railroad followed the valley around to the west of what is now Old Town and built the depot where it now stands and named the ne . town O'Day in honor of the President of the Frisco railroad. Before the advent of the Frisco south from 110nett to the state line. the string of now prosperour little towns through which it passes had been only small country trading centers and Seven Stars had become with the exception of Cassville, perhaps the best town in Barry County, But. with th\'i completion of the railroad, the picture began to change. Exeter, O'Day and Seligman were growing rapidly :.nd the growth of these towns began to attract some of the investors tha t would have otherwise gone to Seven S~rs. As a result, the devel opment of the town slowed down and a s was later proven, it had reached it's zenith in 1883. The month of July proved to be Seven Stars Waterloo; the first threa t to the town came on July 4, 1880; the second on July 17, 1883 "nd the t.hUd and final blow struck exactly three years lat er. on July 17. 188{i. Fortunately for the people, the 1886 flo od came in the day time when they were fore-.arned and had a chance to escape to higher ground. In apparent contempt for those -" ho had defied her and built their houses ,.on, tJ1~ sand, nature sent her flood waters roaring down the canyon, carrying all ma nner of debris and, like a battering rum, tore through the very center of the town. The entire creek bottom from the hill on the south to the stone cliff on the north was under water. A great many of the buildinrs were entirely washed away a nd those left standing were badly damaged. One of the saloons had been built on the bank of the creek and the f oundations were washed out from under i t a nd it was left standing on snd. Chews store was in the path of the flood and a lmost the ent ire stock of goods were l ost; dry goods we~~ scattered through the underbrush a ll the way to Mike's Creek. For da ys the people searched the c reek. bottoms for their belongings but very few were found as they had been swallowea up i n {he shifting gravel a nd sand. Y~ny of the people had been living in tents and covered wagons and une of the wagons in which "bio women were living was ca UGht up by the flood and the first thing they knew. the wagon bed with them in i t was floating down the stream. They were standing up in the wagon bed. screaming for dear life, when they mc, naged to catch hold of some overhanging tree limbs and held on until help arrived. Mr. George ~illiams had just an:ived in to.n and was camping in the creek bottom. He had heard some stories of horse thieves tha t were going around, so, to be sure tha t his mules never got away from him, he had locked them to some trees with chains around their necks. In the excitement or the flood,he lost his key and as there was not time to go for a hack saw. he had barely time to IB't to safety without his mules. Needle s s to say, the mules were a total loss.
It was a sad a nd discoura~ people that gathered ueside the receeding stream that July 17, 1886. The bUSiness men of Seven Stars had really believed in the future of the town; they had envisioned a thriving resort town in the heart of the Ozarks a nd they had put everything they had into it; they had blazed a trail into th e heart of the mounte.ins and sought to establish a prosperous tow n in the face of the greatest natural handicaps. Truly, t hese men were pioneers; they had put their all into the undertaking; they were leaders in the d~velop&ent of Barry County and Southwest Missouri. The greater part of these men and women have passed on but some of them are still living andto these pioneers, both living and dead, we dedicate this brief description of Seven Stars so that what our forefa thers did here will not be forgotten.
Page #6
The Story of Seven Star Springs
They had realized for some time tha t the town was on the downgrade. A number of the people who had watched the town spring up in their midst had never had a great deal of confidence in the future of it; they continually sought to point out the reasons why the town could not succeed; they had predicted all manner of disaster and a lthough we are forced to admit that at least they were partly right, we salute those men and women who kept doggedly on with their efforts to do their part in the building of an empire. Even the stout-hearted f a lter when confronted with overwhelming odds and so these people of Seven Stars now begun to realize that the final blow had been struck. Once before . the town had been damaged and promptly rebuilt but now the people II"re interested in the towns along the new railroad o.nd even before the:;" s\. flood, some of them were moving to O'Day. Some twenty yelj,rs before, lead and zinc had been discovered at Granby and everybody had been wondering if there was not ore deposits ·around Seven Stars; there had been a great deal of prospecting in the surrounding hills and finally it was announced that a rich strike had been made in the hills, some miles from town. This strike started a stampede to the mines and although they later found that the rich ore had been hauled from Granby in a wagon and dumped in the shaft, this proved to be only another blow at the town as it served to hasten the departure of a number of people. Many of the people began tearing down their houses and moving them to washburn and to surrounding farms where they became farm homes. At one time, there was a great many of them standing at various places in the country about; today, with the exception of the house on Bill Stephens place on Mike's Creek and one standing west of wheaton, they have been torn down or burned. In 1886, Judge Horine moved his bath house of .the O' DaY Globe. The Smith Hotel stood on most of the town had disappeared, then in one thereby ringing down the curtain on the final ,.
to O' Day and rebuilt it as the office the hill overlooking the valley until last blaze of glory, it burned to the ground, chapter of Seven Star Springs.
Within the space of a few years, the thriving little resort town had all but vanished, the primitive forests were again coming into their own. The once busy streets are overgrown with underbrush B.nd the story of it' s rise Lnd fall has become almost a legend .Ii th the younf,er generatlon. The huge limestone s th?t were once the foundations of business buildings are still there; t he floods of flfty yea r s have poured ove r them, great elms have grown over them and nature has again reclaimed the town Site. The seven pools are still there and the waters of Seven Stars flow eternally on.
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MAT8HIAL GATH15Ri!:D AND COMPIWJ) BY RALPH AND HEVA SCAm'LII' IN 1939.
