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Resources
About & History of Laclede, Missouri
Search Laclede County Pages
Please use the sitemap below as a Site TOC
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About & History of Laclede, Missouri
Laclede County, located in the beautiful Ozark
Mountains, was established in 1849. Carved from portions of
Camden, Pulaski, and Wright counties, it was named in honor of
Pierre Laclede, the founder of St. Louis. The county’s diverse
landscape features everything from rolling farmlands and
pastures to rugged, forested hills. Positioned approximately 155
miles southwest of St. Louis via I-44, it is a key part of the
24 counties that make up Southwest Missouri. The land was
originally home to Wyota, an old Osage village that was
abandoned by Native Americans as settlers moved into the area.
Laclede County borders Webster and Wright counties to the south,
Dallas County to the west, Camden County to the north, and
Pulaski and Texas counties to the east.
Laclede County's story began with Jesse Ballew,
the first white settler, who built his log cabin on the east
side of the Gasconade River in 1820. He was soon joined by a
growing community of pioneers, including Henry Anderson, William
Montgomery, and others. The land was surveyed from 1835 to 1840
before it was formally established as a county on February 24,
1849. The county seat, which we now know as Lebanon, was
initially named Wyota in tribute to the area's Native American
history. However, at the request of a local minister, it was
renamed in honor of his former home in Lebanon, Tennessee.
Early settlement in
Lebanon was a direct result of Laclede County's formation. Key
to its foundation were the pioneering families of Benjamin B.
Harrison and James M. Appling, who donated 50 acres of land to
the town. The community quickly grew, and by 1851, it had
developed a basic infrastructure, including a log courthouse and
a jail on the streets now known as Main, St. Louis, Broadway,
and High.
Laclede County's population during the Civil
War was diverse, with many families relocating from nearby
border states. Because of its strategic location, the region was
mostly occupied by Union soldiers. Following the end of
the war, the county was transformed by the arrival of the
railroad, which sparked a period of rapid prosperity and growth.
Laclede County lost a significant amount of its
historical records in a 1920 courthouse fire. The current
courthouse, now called the Laclede County Government Center, is
the third in the county's history. It was constructed in 1925 to
replace the earlier structure that had stood since 1894.
Genealogy Trails - History
Early Business in Laclede
The earliest businesses in Laclede County revolved around
agriculture, trade, and essential services. The local economy
was later greatly expanded and modernized by the arrival of the
railroad.
Places
to Check out in Laclede
Boswell Park
- 66 theme
Park, Lebanon
Route 66 Museum
Lebanon - 250th Year Celebration (2026)
Laclede County Fair
- Lebanon
Hidden Valley Outfitters
- Lebanon
Lebanon I-44
Speedway - Lebanon
Heartland
Antique Mall
- Lebanon
Bibliographies
Lebanon-Laclede County Library
- local history
A history of Laclede County, Missouri from 1820 to 1926,
by Leo Nyberg, 1Jan 1926 (at the
FamilySearch Library, check with Local Library for an
interlibrary loan
Early African American Families of Camden and Laclede Counties,
Missouri -
interlibrary loan
History of LaClede, Camden, Dallas, Webster, Wight, Texas,
Pulaski, Phelps, and Dent Counties, Missouri, from Earliest
Times to the Present, by
Goodspeed Publishing Company - interlibrary, Amazon, Missouri
Digital Heritage (online reading)
Laclede County, Missouri: History and Families.
Laclede County Genealogical Society. (Paducah, KY: Turner
Publishing Company, 2000), limited edition, probably out of
print.
Laclede County Missouri, old facebook
account, History and Families,1st Volume, Laclede County
Genealogical Society, google book preview, for purchase
Missouri County History Project - online
The First 100 Years, Frances Ethel Gleason,
out of print
The History of Laclede County, Missouri,
Lois Roper Beard, (Heritage Publishing Company, 1979), out of
print
National Historic District Register
Bennett Spring State Park
Ralph E. Burley House
Joe
Knight Building
Ploger-Moneymaker Place (aka Aambler)
Wallace House (Lebanon, Missouri)
Kidz Corner
Laclede County, Missouri
Maps
Missouri Railway Map
Laclede County, Missouri Map,
department of transportation
Laclede County Map (2024), US County Maps
Media Outlets
Newspapers:
Laclede County
Record,
Lebanon Daily News, Radio Stations:
KRES (104.7 FM) is a classic country station, and KJLU (88.9 FM)
(nearby counties)
Notables
Richard Parks Bland
1835-1889 - politician,
lawyer, and educator from Kentucky but settling
in Missouri in 1865 and establishing a legal practice in
Lebanon. Richard died in Lebanon.
James Everett Bohannon
(Jim) 1944-2022 - born in
Oregon and raised in Lebanon, Missouri, American broadcaster who
worked in television and radio.
Justin Britt
- former professional football player
who was a center in the National
Football
League (NFL) 1991- was raised in Lebanon, Missouri.
Philip
Matthew Donnelly 1891-1961 -
politician and 43rd Governor of Missouri, born
and died in Lebanon, Missouri.
Michael Scott "Mike" Hopkins 1968- - United States
Space Force colonel, former NASA astronaut, and
special assistant to the Vice Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of
Staff, born and raised in Lebanon, Missouri.
General John Joseph Pershing
(aka Black Jack) 1860-1949 - born near Laclede and raised in
Laclede, army general, educator, and founder of the Pershing
Rifles
William Tecumseh Vernon 1874-1944 (born to
former slaves took Owners last name and named after Union
General William Tecumseh Sherman) - educator, minister, and
bishop who also served as a director of the U.S. Treasury
Department
Jerald Lee Schoonmaker (Jerry) 1933-2018 -
professional baseball player, born in seymour, missouri and
raised in Lebanon, Missouri.
Betty Ann Wagoner, 1930-2006 - American baseball
player, born and raised in Lebanon, Missouri.
Lanford Wilson
1937-2011 - American playwright and
a Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright; born and raised in Lebanon,
Missouri.
Harold Bell Wright
- 1872-1944 -
best-selling American writer of fiction, essays, and nonfiction
and Minister, known for The Shepherd of the Hills and The
Winning of Barbara Worth, Minister of Christian Church in
Lebanon, Missouri in Lebanon, Missouri in 1902. The novel
Calling of Dan Matthews, drew parallels to Lebanon, Missouri,
was written after Harold left Lebanon for California.
Transit
OATS Transit
(bus, train, van)
Laclede’s Landing MetroLink Station
Laclede Municipal Airport
- limited
flights; most flights take Harry S. Truman International Airport
(officially called Kansas City International Airport "KCI")
Wildlife Refuge and Conservation
Areas
Coleman Memorial
Conservation Area
Bear Creek Conservation Area
Additional Laclede County, Missouri Resources
Cyndies List
- Laclede County History
Facebook - Memories of Laclede County
(courthouse fire)
FamilySearch - Laclede
County
History
GenGateway
- many American links, none to
Laclde County
HathiTrust
- contains many online books
Internet Archive &
Wayback Machine
- contains many online books, contains books
that can be rented
History Hub
Laclede - The Early Years
Laclede County
Missouri Governement Center
Laclede History in the Civil War
Lebanon Missouri Government
Lebanon Missouri
- history of Laclede
Missouri Digital Heritage,
Research Requests
Random Acts of Genealogical
Kindness (RAOGK)
WikiTree - Leclede County, Missouri
Zaba Search
Transcribed by foster mom, Kimberly Taylor Morgan
We strive to document sources that will assist
you in locating your loved ones. My name is Kimberly Taylor Morgan, and I
am the foster mom for Laclede County, which is currently "up for
adoption."
If you have a local connection and would like to
volunteer your time and talents to adopt the county, the requirements are
simple. Please review the
Requirements & Time Commitment and MOGenWeb
Policies and
Procedures. If you are still interested in adopting, please
contact
Bob
Jenkins.
For
additional counties available for adoption, please click on the "Friend of
MOGenWeb" link below. We also have a
resource
to assist you with website design.
We would love
to have you!
State Coordinator -
Martha A. C. Graham
Lead ASC -
Bob
Jenkins
ASC -
Troy
Hogg
ASC -
Kimberly Taylor Morgan
ASC & Technical Advisor -
Lynda Peach
We
encourage everyone in our community to be courteous and respectful. If
you're using someone else's work, please be sure to give them the credit
they deserve. Thank you for helping us maintain a positive and
collaborative environment!
We appreciate your contributions! Please
note that all donated data will stay with the County even if the
coordinator changes. If you ever wish to have your submitted material
returned, we will be happy to do so upon your request.
We're happy to provide this information for
your personal genealogy research, completely free of charge. Please be
aware that this material cannot be used for any commercial purpose where a
fee is involved.
Our sincere
thanks to the former Laclede County Coordinators for their dedicated work
and contributions.
This page is
currently being updated by foster mom,
Kimberly Morgan. Please check back soon.
MOGenWeb Genealogy Project
Copyright 1997-
Last Edited:
20 Aug 2025
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