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Tribune Travels
Morrison's history shaped by fire, water
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By Ra'Vae Edwards
redwards@newstribune.com
MORRISON, Mo. - Hank Rost could talk about his hometown for hours and never tell the same story twice. When it comes to the small Gasconade County town of Morrison, he's a wealth of knowledge.
Rost is 82 years old and has memories of growing up on a farm, going to a small country school and helping townsfolk through multiple floods. If it happened in Morrison, Rost probably knows about it.
The written history of the community is scarce. Very little is found about the town in the Gasconade County Historical Society or its history book.
However, Rost has the history stored in his memories and he is more than willing to share them.
According to Rost, a man named Robert Shobe was the first to build a home in Morrison, shortly after the Louisiana Purchase.
Shobe owned about 4,500 acres of land up and down the Gasconade River and he owned a sawmill in the neighboring community of Gasconade, a small town named for the county.
Rost said Shobe started construction on a home in Morrison in 1818. It took about two years to build the two-story log home.
“It was quite the house,” Rost said. “There was a hideout there in case of an Indian attack, can you imagine that?”
Shobe died at the young age of 35, about 34 years before Morrison was incorporated in 1869.
Rost said he believes the town was named after Alfred Morrison who once served as Missouri's Secretary of State.
“At one time, (Morrison) was a typical town,” Rost recalled. “There were four saloons, four grocery stores, two blacksmiths, a piston ring factory, two barbers, a watchmaker and two banks. That was just a part of it.”
A fire in 1909 devastated a large portion of the town's commerce, wiping out an entire side of the street. The fire was believed to have started when someone broke into the millinery shop, Rost said.
“The millinery shop and the Elmtree Saloon were the only two things that survived that fire,” he said.
Rost said he owned and operated a hardware store in Morrison from 1951 to 1993 when the flood wiped him out.
“(Water) was five-foot eight-inches deep in the hardware store,” he said. “I don't know how many other buildings got it, but it was pretty wild.”
In prior floods, Rost said, there was usually enough notice for residents to start sandbagging the levy of Bailey's Creek. But in the Flood of '93 the rain came on so fast there wasn't enough time.
Bailey's Creek runs along the edge of town, and when the Missouri River backs up, the creek floods, Rost said. He also remembers significant floods in 1951, 1967, 1989 and 1995
“When you hear the sirens, everyone comes running to fill sandbags,” he said. “That's a good example of how the town pulls together when it's needed.”
Rost said he would gladly recommend Morrison to anyone who asked about it.
“It's a lot different here from when I was growing up,” he said. “It used to be a booming little town. Now it's more of a ghost town, you might say, but it's still a great place to live. Everyone helps everyone whenever they need it.”
Correction: The original version of this article incorrectly identified Hank Rost. The error in his name has since been corrected in the above text.
Rost is 82 years old and has memories of growing up on a farm, going to a small country school and helping townsfolk through multiple floods. If it happened in Morrison, Rost probably knows about it.
The written history of the community is scarce. Very little is found about the town in the Gasconade County Historical Society or its history book.
However, Rost has the history stored in his memories and he is more than willing to share them.
According to Rost, a man named Robert Shobe was the first to build a home in Morrison, shortly after the Louisiana Purchase.
Shobe owned about 4,500 acres of land up and down the Gasconade River and he owned a sawmill in the neighboring community of Gasconade, a small town named for the county.
Rost said Shobe started construction on a home in Morrison in 1818. It took about two years to build the two-story log home.
“It was quite the house,” Rost said. “There was a hideout there in case of an Indian attack, can you imagine that?”
Shobe died at the young age of 35, about 34 years before Morrison was incorporated in 1869.
Rost said he believes the town was named after Alfred Morrison who once served as Missouri's Secretary of State.
“At one time, (Morrison) was a typical town,” Rost recalled. “There were four saloons, four grocery stores, two blacksmiths, a piston ring factory, two barbers, a watchmaker and two banks. That was just a part of it.”
A fire in 1909 devastated a large portion of the town's commerce, wiping out an entire side of the street. The fire was believed to have started when someone broke into the millinery shop, Rost said.
“The millinery shop and the Elmtree Saloon were the only two things that survived that fire,” he said.
Rost said he owned and operated a hardware store in Morrison from 1951 to 1993 when the flood wiped him out.
“(Water) was five-foot eight-inches deep in the hardware store,” he said. “I don't know how many other buildings got it, but it was pretty wild.”
In prior floods, Rost said, there was usually enough notice for residents to start sandbagging the levy of Bailey's Creek. But in the Flood of '93 the rain came on so fast there wasn't enough time.
Bailey's Creek runs along the edge of town, and when the Missouri River backs up, the creek floods, Rost said. He also remembers significant floods in 1951, 1967, 1989 and 1995
“When you hear the sirens, everyone comes running to fill sandbags,” he said. “That's a good example of how the town pulls together when it's needed.”
Rost said he would gladly recommend Morrison to anyone who asked about it.
“It's a lot different here from when I was growing up,” he said. “It used to be a booming little town. Now it's more of a ghost town, you might say, but it's still a great place to live. Everyone helps everyone whenever they need it.”
Correction: The original version of this article incorrectly identified Hank Rost. The error in his name has since been corrected in the above text.
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boxergal wrote on Jul 24, 2008 9:01 AM: