to the Jefferson County Missouri
Heritage & Historical Society ... online!
The
emphasis of our organization is to collect, preserve and print historical materials,
to record
cemeteries, and to make the public aware of the rich heritage in Jefferson
County, Missouri.
All
transcriptions are copyrighted by the Jefferson County Historical Society and
are available for your personal use only.
They are not to be sold or reproduced
for any commercial purpose, or used on any other web site.
President: Bernard
Laiben
Vice
President: Bill Haggard
Secretary: Kay
Clerc-Fakhar
Treasurer: Lisa K.
Gendron
Jefferson County Heritage & Historical Society
meets every other month on the 2nd Sunday at 2:00 at the First United Methodist
Church, 113 Grand Ave, Festus, MO
April 10, 2022
June 12, 2022
August 14, 2022
October 9, 2022
December 11, 2022
Membership is $10 a year and everyone is welcome to attend!
The Jefferson County Museum is open on the first
Thursday of each month from 6:30 - 8 p.m. and the third Sunday of each month from 3-5
p.m.
Thursday April 7
Thursday May 5
Thursday
July 7 & Sunday July 17
Thursday
Aug 4 & Sunday Aug 21
Thursday
Sep 1 & Sunday Sep 18
Thursday
Oct 6 & Sunday Oct 16
Thursday
Nov 3 & Sunday Nov 20
Thursday
Dec 1 & Sunday Dec 18
DESTROYED JEFFERSON COUNTY CEMETERY!
In 2015, Ameren UE, and their subcontractor, Asplundh,
damaged the historic Smith Speed graveyard in Hematite by driving their heavy
equipment through it, crushing and breaking most of the stones. Ameren testified
in court that they didn't know the cemetery was there. However, In 1977, a
separate lawsuit was brought against Ameren for damage that they did to the
cemetery when installing their power lines. Documents, surveys, deeds, and
evidence from that case prove without a doubt that they most certainly knew of
its existence. The following aerial photo, taken by Peter Newton, clearly shows
the broken stones, and the machines tire tracks left in the cemetery.
More of the story can be read in
this article from the May 14, 2020 issue of the St. Louis Post Dispatch. Or
here for a .pdf version.
Please use this button if you would like to donate
funds to help the Historical
Society repair this cemetery!
JCHHS is proud to
present the new publication
Kennett Castle or
Selma Hall and the Families That Lived There
Lisa K. Gendron, author
The book tells the
story of the pre-civil war castle, built by Ferdinand Kennett on the banks of the Mississippi river
in Jefferson County. The author presents extensive research through
documents, stories and full color photos to illustrate the history of the
castle and the lives of those that have lived and worked on the estate from
the beginning, to the Union Pacific railroad.
The book can be
purchased on our publications page, or through Amazon.
The Grand Opening of our new county wide museum was fantastic!
If you missed it, we are open on Thursday evenings from 6-8 p.m.
First United Methodist Church of Festus-Crystal City,
113 Grand Avenue in Festus, Missouri.
Photos from the Grand Opening!
If you have historical items with Jefferson County MO significance from schools, churches, scout
groups, organizations, etc...
that you would like to display or donate
to the museum,
please contact Historical Society President
Bernard Laiben at
blaiben@outlook.com
Jefferson County celebrated its 200th year! We had some great events!
Bicentennial Facebook Page
June 16, 2018 - Wine & Beer Showcase - The Lalumondiere Mill & Rivergardens -
Byrnesville
Photos from the event!
July 21 - Parade - Hillsboro Business 21 to Fairgrounds
Jefferson County Fair/Bicentennial Art Contest - Hillsboro
August 4 - Living History Day - Northwest Library - High Ridge
August 25 - Bicentennial Car Cruise - De Soto
Photos from the event!
September 14 - Frisco
Hill Event
September 15 - Living History Day - Kimmswick
Photos from the event!
September 22 - Bicentennial Car & Motorcycle Show - De Soto
October 6 -
Bicentennial Expo - Hillsboro Civic Center
September 28 - October 28 (Weekends) - Pierce
Century Farm Bicentennial Corn Maze
(see the video
https://vimeo.com/288912941)
Our 200th Anniversary commemorative Bicentennial Coin is now
sold out.
We hope you were able to purchase this great piece!
2018
COUNTY BICENTENNIAL CALENDAR!
This beautiful calendar features historic scenic photos of the county by
local photographers. These make great gifts and are only $10
We only have a VERY limited supply of these left! Each page is great for framing!
History of Jefferson County Missouri
By Lisa K. Gendron
Member Photos - New
photos added - Feb. 2020
Added:
April 2022 -
Masonic Fraternity,
Festus-Crystal City
February 2022 -
Hematite Christian Church
Pastors and Evangelists
January 2022 -
Ozark Highlander Store
November 2021 -
Donnell Mercantile Ledger 1869
March 2021 -
Gabriel Boyce Family & Cemetery
(with photos)
January 2021 -
Jefferson County Teacher
1926-27
January 2021 -
1850 Slave Owners
January 2021 -
1860 Slave Owners
October 2020 -
Charlotte's Pearls
Newspaper Transcriptions
April 2019 -
History of the Hematite
Nuclear Facility
August 2018 - History of Jefferson County
Missouri Emergency Services
April 2018 - Archaeology Sites added (more
added Sept. 2018)
December 2017 - 1963 Fox C-6 Teachers Association
Members added to Schools
December 2016
-
Former Circuit Court Judges 1819-1941
added to Court Records
September 2016
-
1859 Murder Case - Smith/Williams
added to Court Records
September 2016
- 1819 Territory of MO Slavery Issue
added to History Articles
April 2016
- I Remember When memories of long time members
Betty & Blaine Olson added with photos!
June 2015
- Alphabetized Last Name Index
to all burials in our database added to Cemetery
Transcriptions & "I Remember When" section added for local memoirs
May 2015
- Missouri State Penitentiary
records, tried in Jefferson County, MO added to the
Court Records.
April 2015
- Biographies
of prominent business men from 1820-1921 added
January 2015
- Caveland Skating Rink
history article added & State Hospital (Fulton)
1850-1910 added to Court Records
February 2014 -
Jefferson County Missouri Marriages from 1839-1850 have been added to the site.
August 2013
- Added Presbyterian Cemetery at Gamel and
the 1900 County Ward Book was added to History Articles.
February 2013
- Baker (aka Hillcrest) School article and photos have
been added to the "Schools" page.
November 2012
- Jefferson Co. Marriages through 1838 have been
added to the site.
June 2011
-
The Heritage News
Our society newsletters, containing interesting articles about Jefferson County, MO have been added to the site. Find the index in the menu on the left under "History Articles."
March 2011
- Passports have been added to the site! These records are from the early 1900's and include photographs of the applicants! Kay Clerc Fakhar has transcribed an index for this outstanding collection. Find them
in the
menu on the left under "Passports."
March 2011
-
1826 Petition to move the county seat from Herculaneum to Hillsboro, complete with signatures! Find it under the "Courts" section.
Sept 2010
-
John Linhorst has created a wonderful tool
by taking the 1876 & 1898 historical atlases of Jefferson County and creating a series of overlays for use within the Google Earth software. It gives the user a good look at
how things have changed (and how some things have not changed!) in Jefferson County.
Check them out under "Land Records, Maps & Place Names" on the menu at left.
July 2010 - The Old Settlers List 1864 - 1950 has been added to the site.
Transcribed by Betty Olson, find it under "History Articles." Also Carole Goggin has supplied us with
a Jefferson County MO Place Names list. Find it under
"Land Records."
Feb 2010
-
More cities have been added to the Historical Postcards and photographs on our site. More towns will be added soon!
Dec 2009 - Funeral Home Records have now been added to our site! These records are from the Mahn, Mothershead, Fink, and Dietrich Funeral Homes, and now include the older Coxwell and Stovesand records!
See the
Jefferson County Leader newspaper article featuring several of our members in their quest to find and replace the gravestone for former county collector John Williams!
The following members can be contacted for information concerning
Jefferson Co. Missouri history.
Bernard Laiben
blaiben@outlook.com (Museum &
Society Business)
Lisa K. Gendron lgendron@swbell.net
(Website & General)
Kay Clerc Fakhar
KayClerc@yahoo.com (Newspapers &
Genealogy lookups)
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