The Turnbo Manuscripts
by Silas Claiborne Turnbo
1844-1925
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TAXES WAS COLLECTED IN THE EARLY DAYS
By S. C. Turnbo
In relating an account of the early history of Little North Fork of White
River, Tom McCullough, son of Pleasant McCullough, furnished me the following:
"I was 9 years old or in 1844 when my father and mother settled on
Little North Fork in Ozark County, Mo. Our family and Herrod Holt and family
and others came from Tenn. I remember that Jim Holt and I walked nearly
all the way to get to play together. We were from Coffee County and the
Holts were from Warren County. The first school house built on our creek
was built at the mouth of Otter Creek by my father and Herrod Holt, Gruff
Herrod, Jim Standfield, Billy Welch, and Amos Smith. After the wall of the
house was put up and covered with long boards the men cut down white walnut
trees and cut logs into the desired length and split them open and put the
slabs on rocks and chunks of wood and used them for seats on the dirt floor.
Mr. McCollough said that he was sent to the first school in this house which
was taught by Jim Stanfield, and he did not lack for plenty of whippings
from the teacher. Levi Barnette taught the second school in this same house.
The next school house built on Little North Fork was at the mouth of upper
Turkey Creek. This one was built by Sugar Jones, Simon Handcock and Dave
Smith. A man of the name of Alderson taught the first school here. Mr. McCollough
in giving an account of the ill conveniences then said that their nearest
post office was at the mouth of Bridges Creek near what was known as the
Jobe Tever Ball Place on Big North Fork 35 miles from where we lived. We
received a letter only ever we had no letter stamps and the letters were
sealed with wafers without envelopes, the letter postage was ten cents and
were usually sent unprepaid. In sending for our mail the men would go turn
about and bring the letters which were anxiously looked for from friends
and relatives back at our old homes in other states. The neighbors would
join in together and each man or woman would send a silver dime by the man
that was going to the post office to redeem a letter at the office if one
was there. We visited the office about once a month. News papers and magazines
were unknown to us then. Mr. McCollough stated that his father P. J. (Pleasant)
McCollough served a term as sheriff of Ozark County in the early days and
in the collection of taxes from the people would receive deer skins, fox,
coon or otter hides or fur hides of any kind that there was a sale for in
payment for taxes for money then was hardly to be had. When my father had
collected all the taxes that was due, he would have the furs and pelts hauled
to a merchant of the name of Shirley who sold goods at the head of Bryant
Fork and exchange them for gold and silver to settle with the treasurer
of the state. Mr. Shirley would send the hides to Saint Louis and exchange
them for goods and groceries."
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