Livingston county history
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| The Constitution was established in 1860 at a time when many newspapers were operating in the county, and the Tribune came about in 1868 after a group of men purchased The Spectator. The consolidation of The Constitution, a paper which had Democratic leanings, and The Tribune, a Republican newspaper, became effective on March 1, 1928.
James E. Watkins, grandfather of the late Watty Watkins, became editor and publisher of The Constitution in 1912. Clarence E. Watkins, son of James E. Watkins, became the sole owner of The Constitution-Tribune shortly after consolidation of The Constitution and The Tribune and he continued to publish a daily and weekly Constitution-Tribune until his death in the early 40’s. Charles E. (Watty) Watkins returned to Chillicothe to become publisher and editor following his discharge from the Armed Services in 1946 and continued in that role and as the majority stockholder until 1972. Douglas Pearson became the publisher in April of 1972, coming here from Cedartown, Georgia, when Inland Industries, Inc., of Lenexa, Kansas, and Smith-Walls Newspapers, Incorporated of Fort Payne, Alabama purchased the newspaper. The Smith newspaper group owns or manages twenty-two daily and weekly newspapers, including five in Missouri. Pearson resigned in April of 1980 to return to the South and a large newspaper and Charles (Chuck) Haney, a native of Chillicothe and a member of the C-T staff for sixteen years, was named president of Chillicothe Newspapers, Inc., and editor and publisher of the Constitution-Tribune and its weekly Shopper. The newspaper business office and plant have operated from its present location at 818 Washington, just a block north of the downtown business square since 1958. Shortly after the newspaper was sold in 1972, a new offset printing press and the most modern computerized phototype-setting equipment was installed. In late 1979 and in 1980 the newspaper updated its operation again, adding a complete computerized newsroom and composing room. Its bookkeeping and mailroom departments were also placed under a computer operation, giving the newspaper and its customers the most modern system available. Today, there are twenty-one fulltime and eight part-time employees at The Constitution-Tribune. The newspaper also employs nineteen area correspondents who report news from their communities and has an award winning woman columnist, Harverna Woodling, who writes a weekly column. There are thirty-eight boys, girls and adults who deliver and distribute the area’s largest and most modern newspaper and shopper. The newspaper recently has undergone some cosmetic changes featuring standard headlines, photos of some of its staff writers on sports and outdoor columns and new standing headlines calling attention to our sports, people, opinion, television and church pages. These changes were done to make the newspaper easier to read and to standardize all of our headlines throughout the paper. The ConstitutionTribune over the years has featured strong local and area coverage of news and sports events and has won awards from The Associated Press, The Missouri Press Association and Missouri Sportswriters and Sportscasters Association for its news and sports coverage. COOKE SALES & SERVICE The Allis-Chalmers franchise in the Chillicothe territory was purchased July 7, 1944, by Oscar 0. Cooke and his brother, Ernest Cooke, and was named Cooke Bros. Both partners had several years experience as employees of the Allis-Chalmers Manufacturing Co. and had made their way through the ranks to reach management positions. Oscar O. Cooke was manager of the Omaha branch and Ernest Cooke was a special representative spending several years in Australia, later returning to the Kansas City branch in a sales capacity. In 1945, Oscar O. Cooke purchased his brothers share of Cooke Bros. and the company name was changed to Cooke Sales & Service Co. At this time Cooke Sales & Service facilities consisted of a small building located in Chillicothe, Missouri. In 1952, branch facilities,were built in St. Joseph and Sedalia, Missouri. In 1966, land was purchased on the southeast edge of St. Joseph and the existing building on the Belt Highway was moved to the new site. In February of 1955, Oscar O. Cooke sold Cooke Sales & Service Co. to his son, Oscar M. Cooke. The following December Allis-Chalmers awarded eight new counties to the franchise and existing facilities established at Fulton, Missouri by Cooke Tractor Company was purchased by Oscar M. Cooke and added to Cooke Sales & Service Co. as a branch. Since 1955, employment has risen from the 30’s to over 150 employees. A recreational area consisting of 50 acres was purchased, located seven miles northeast of Chillicothe. A lake and several raising ponds were constructed, providing swimming, private picnic grounds, and fishing for all employees. In 1968, 5600 feet of additional shop space was erected at Chillicothe for rebuilding used equipment. In 1969, 1500 feet was added for cleaning and painting. This building was also equipped with an automatic paint stripping machine. In 1972, 2500 feet was added to the rebuilding department for welding and fabricating. In 1976, a complete new undercarriage facility was built on the east side of Washington Street in Chillicothe. This building consists of 4500’ of shop space and 3900’ of warehouse space. Also, the existing building on this site was remodeled for an undercarriage sales office and warehouse for small parts. Cooke Sales & Service has been recognized by many of the companies they represent as being their outstanding Dealer of the Year, including winning the Top Dealer prize in 1962, for the best overall performance in service, parts, and sales penetration. They have also been recognized as being in the top ten for the United States, Canada, and Mexico in gross volume sales, and in 1979, were rated the top Fiat-Allis dealer in the United States, based on market potential. Several tracts of land were purchased on both sides of their current location on North Washington Street in Chillicothe and added to their existing facilities. Cooke Sales & Service continues to grow by adding such facilities as fuel pump rebuilding stand, dynamometer for running in both construction and farm engines, a substantial increase in investment in better equipped service trucks, including air compressors, generators, special oil reservoirs, cranes, etc. to maximize customer service, and a separate operation for rebuilding components such as engines and transmissions. DARR’S HOME FOR THE AGED Darr’s Home For the Aged, located at 300 J. F. Kennedy Avenue, is a Licensed Nursing Home, giving care to those that are unable to care for themselves. The Home was originally Fitzpatricks Home For The Aged. Mr. and Mrs. George Darr purchased the Home in October of 1968. They resided in a mobile home located on the same grounds and have cared for several aged persons from Chillicothe as well as surrounding areas. Mr. and Mrs. John Gallatin resided in the Home for many years. The oldest resident was Ida Leavell who was 105, and there have been many others that were near or past the century mark. Of the present nineteen residents ten are past ninety. With God’s blessing it is a service we desire to continue to give to those that cannot do for themselves. DR. PEPPER - ROYAL CROWN BOTTLING COMPANY In 1939 W. L. Shaffer, Jr. purchased the Nu-Icy Bottling Company, 1201 Washington Street, from A. G. Moyer, and re-named the business the Dr. Pepper Bottling Company. In 1970 W. L. Shaffer, 111, joined his father in the business, which includes the W. L. Shaffer and Son Vending Company. In 1978 the business moved to a new location on 415 Harvester Road and is known as the Dr. Pepper-Royal Crown Bottling Company. Other products include Canada Dry and Seven Up. EMERSON - PFAFF REALTY Emerson-Pfaff Realty, a franchisee of the Gaslight Real Estate Corporation, is located at 448 Washington Street, Chillicothe, Mo., and was opened August 1979. The Gaslight Corporation now has 30 offices in Western Missouri and Kansas. The owners of the Emerson-Pfaff Realty are John Emerson and Mrs. Toby (Marge) Pfaff and the secretary is Miss Sharon Pence. The Real Estate Associates are: Mrs. Cherry Evers, Mrs. Shirley Carr, Bud Griffin, Mr. Benny Littrell, Ms. Marsha Slater, and Rick Walker. Mr. Emerson has had an extensive agriculture experience in North Missouri, having been a field representative for the Olin Corporation for 18 years. Prior to entering the real estate business he was associated with Golden Harvest, Columbiana Seed Company, as a Regional Sales Manager. Emerson graduated from the University of Missouri, majoring in soils. He is currently the 1979-80 North Central Board of Realtors president. Mrs. Pfaff was formerly with the Gaslight Corporation and the Eugene Brown Company in the Kansas City area. Her residential sales repeatedly placed her in the “Million Dollar Producers Club.” She served on the Eastern Jackson County Board of Realtors from 1972 to 1977, as a director on the Missouri Real Estate Board for two years, and on the Independence Chamber Board of Directors. She is a native of Livingston County and is the daughter of Clyde Alexander, Chillicothe. ENGELMANN’S SHOES In February, 1936, a new family shoe store opened in Chillicothe, in part of the present Penney Store location. The owner was Randolph Holt, of Maryville, Missouri. In 1938, a partner, J. D. Engelmann, joined the business. A native of Kansas, he had been associated with shoe stores in Oklahoma and Nebraska. In 1944, Mr. Engelmann went into the U.S. Navy and served in the South Pacific area. His wife, Ursula, operated the store, with two local employees, and some part time Chillicothe Business College students. In 1946, Mr. Engelmann returned, and the business prospered in the post-war years. Shoes were rationed during the war and continued to be very scarce and hard to acquire for some time afterwards. In 1949, the Engelmann’s purchased Mr. Holt’s interest in the store, and changed the name to Engelmann’s Shoes. Their principles of providing excellence in fitting service, with quality merchandise proved successful. Brand names like Red Cross Shoes, Cobbies, Nunn Bush, Child Life and Miller Barefoot Freedom were added to the well-known lines already carried, including Trim Tred, Poll Parrot, Rand and Star Brand. In 1952, Engelmann’s acquired Leon’s Shoe Store, and operated it also, as J.D.’s Shoes for two years, before combining both stores in the present location at Webster and Locust Streets. In 1964, Engelmann’s Shoes was honored with the prestigious Brand Name Shoe-Retailer-of-the-Year Award, given by the National Brqnd Names Foundation of New York, for the successful promotion of Brand Name merchandise. This award enabled Engelmann’s Shoes to further promote, through newspaper, radio and direct mail advertising, their merchandise and services available to the northcentral Missouri trade area. Russell’s Sport Shop, at the rear of Engelmann’s became available, and was acquired to enlarge the store in the early 1960’s. In 1975, Darla Macoubrie acquired the store, and it continues to operate with the same quality products and professional service, including prescription fitting of orthopedic shoes. The store presently employs five people, with a total of eighty years experience selling Engelmann’s shoes. They are Darla Macoubrie, 5 years; Frank Shannon, 30 years; Larry Saale, 29 years; Mary Frances LaFever, 15 years and Tammy Atwell, 1 year. Mrs. Keith Beardmore is the bookkeeper. FARMER’S STONE - TRAGER OUARRIES CO. Farmer’s Stone - Trager Quarries Company’s main office and yard is located in the Stone’s Addition in the western part of Utica, Missouri in Livingston County. This company is made up of two corporations in joint venture, Farmer’s Stone Products Co. and Trager Quarries Inc. Trager Quarries Inc., originated from Frank Trager Contractor in 1958 when Frank Trager Sr. divided his company into the construction division and quarries division. Frank Trager originally started in business in Kansas City in the early 1930’s with the delivery of material in dump trucks. This was followed by the assembling of his rock crushing plants. These plants were used in many parts of Missouri, Kansas, Arkansas and Illinois in the crushing of limestone by the Trager firm. In the late 1950’s the firm settled northeast of Chillicothe, Missouri and west of Trenton, Missouri to establish permanent quarries for the production of road stone and agricultural limestone used for local sales. Many projects of the local highway system were built by the Trager firm. In the mid 1960’s quarries between Braymer and Cowgill, Hamilton and Gallatin, and north of Gilman City were opened for local sales. In July, 1966, the assets of Farmer’s Rock and Lime, Inc., Cecil Moore and Howard Barnhart, officers and owners, was purchased by Frank Trager and his son Robert Trager. The firm was named Farmer’s Stone Products Co. and had quarries located northeast of Mooresville, Missouri, and northeast of Nettleton, Missouri. Later Farmer’s Stone Products Co. built a fertilizer blending facility in west Utica, Missouri. In 1974 Trager Quarries Inc. opened another new quarry in north Daviess County near Pattonsburg, Missouri. This later proved very convenient for the work involved in the fifteen mile construction of 1-35 in 1975 and 1976. The firm now operates seven quarries and one sand site from the Utica office. There is one quarry and a sand plant located in Livingston County. Three production crews are maintained by the firm which travel from one location to the other depending upon which side needs material produced. 67% of our total employed staff comes from Livingston County. The material produced by our firm is used in the construction of Missouri State Highways, city and county roads, parking areas, airport facilities, concrete structures, filter material, river protection stone and agricultural limestone. HARDEN, CUMMINS, MOSS & MILLER Harden, Cummins, Moss and Miller, Certified Public Accountants, was founded in the fall of 1947 by Ted J. Frick. Mr. Frick came from Kansas City to begin the one man operation, called Ted J. Frick, C.P.A., in the firm’s present location on the southeast corner of the square in the Citizens Bank and Trust building. When Frick opened his office, he hired William G. Cummins to manage another office in Maryville, Missouri. Cummins was later admitted as a partner and the name was changed to Ted J. Frick and Company. In the early 1950’s, Kenneth E. Harden, a Kansas City CPA and attorney, purchased an interest in the firm. During this time, Walter T. Miller and Bob R. Moss joined the firm as employees and were admitted to the partnership after obtaining their CPA certificates. In the mid-fifties, Frick left the firm and the name was subsequently changed to Harden, Cummins, Moss and Miller. In the early sixties, John E. Cook and W. Thomas Brown joined the firm as employees and subsequently became partners. Brown later transferred to Kirksville to manage a new office. Michael R. Council, a former staff member of the Denver office of Arthur Young and Company, joined the firm in 1975 and was later admitted as a partner. HCMM has grown in thirty-three years from a one man office to seven partners and thirty employees in the three offices which are located in Chillicothe, Kirksville and Maryville. The current partners are K. E. Harden, W. G. Cummins, B. R. Moss, W. T. Miller, J. E. Cook, W. T. Brown and M. R. Council. HEDRICK MEDICAL CENTER Since May 17, 1889, when the Sisters of St.,Mary received their first patient in a frame building on these same grounds, the Hedrick Medical Center (formerly named the Chillicothe Hospital), has strived to provide the finest patient care available. The Sisters enlarged their frame hospital twice, added new equipment and operated the hospital until 1916, when Drs. H. M. Grace and A. J. Simpson bought the hospital and continued its operation. In 1936, Dr. Grace and Mrs. Simpson donated the entire hospital plant and its grounds to the city of Chillicothe. A new 3-story brick hospital was built on the land adjacent to the original frame structure and that construction was completed in the following year, 1937. Two new wings were added in July, 1954. Additional property was acquired to the north, and in 1972, an entirely new 80 bed hospital facility was completed adjacent to the older building. At the new hospital dedication ceremony, the institution’s name was officially changed to “Hedrick Medical Center” in honor of Mr. Ira G. Hedrick and Mrs. Minnie B. Hedrick, founders of the Hedrick Foundation which made construction of the new multi-million - dollar facility possible. Following completion of the new hospital, the 1937 3-story brick structure was renamed Hedrick Office Building, renovated, and rented for physicians’ offices. INVESTORS (CHILLICOTHE) FEDERAL SAVINGS & LOAN Few businesses in the United States have a more interesting history thanthe savings and loan institutions.The first savings and loan institution in the United States was organized in 1831 when Andrew Jackson was president and there were only 24 states in the Union. Its birthplace was Frankfort, Pennsylvania, a borough of some 2,000 inhabitants a few miles northeast of the city of Philadelphia, then the United States of America’s largest city. The Chillicothe Federal Savings and Loan Association was organized on the3rd day of April, 1934.
P. Atwell, Earl Bradbury, Don Chapman, John Cook, E. O. Welch, F. M. McCall, Dr. R. J. Brennan, Fred Cornue,George Somerville, John Sigler, Marvin England, Ernest Shannon, F. A. Meinershagen, F. W. Gunby, Dick Curry.
Street, with Fred Gunby as the managing officer. ChillicotheFederal Savings andLoan Association grewsteadily under the guidance of Mr. Gunby for thirty years. At the end of the first year, the association’s assets totaled $10,142.46 and in 1940, the association reached over $100,000.00 in assets. In 1944, at the end of ten full years of operation, assets had grown to $135,282.51. In 1954, at the end of twenty full years of operations, assets had grown to $811,647.32 and the next year the association had over $1,000,000.00 in total assets and had over $2,000,000.00 by 1960. On December 31,1963, assets totaled $2,819,022.20.
Teegarden, a Chillicothe nativeand graduate of Chillicothe High School, had been previously employed by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation as an Assistant Bank Examiner since his graduation in June of 1960, from the University of Missouri in Columbia, where he earned his B.S. degree in Business Administration. Growth in assets, employees and service to the community continued and by 1969 assets were over $5,000,000.00. The $10,000,000.00 mark was achieved by 1972 and the $20,000,000.00 mark by 1976. By 1978, the association had over $30,000,000.00 in total assets and the present footings exceed $38,000,000.00. On May 25, 1965, the association’s board authorized the purchase of the library building at the southwest corner of Washington and Jackson streets from the Livingston County Memorial Library, and after extensive remodeling, moved into the present location of 522 Washington Street in September, 1966. On September 25, 1974, a special meeting of the members of the association was convened. The purpose was to change the name of the association to Investors Federal Savings and Loan Association. This name change would enable the association to establish branches in nearby communities and use a neutral name. The first branch office was opened April 15, 1975, at 305 North Davis, Hamilton, Missouri, and the next branch was opened for business May 18, 1978, at 104 East Grand, Gallatin, Missouri. The following have served as Chairman: Allen Moore, 1977-1978; Robert T. Fairweather, 1978. The following has served as Vice Chairman: Edward P. Milbank, 1980. The following have served as President: F. A. Meinershagen, 1934-1949; J. D. Rice, 1949-1958; George W. Somerville 1958-1966; Allen Moore, 1966-1977; Earle S. Teegarden, Jr., 1977. The following have served as Executive Vice President: Fred Gunby, 1964; Earle S. Teegarden, Jr., 1972-1977. The following have served as Vice President: J. D. Rice, 1934-1949; George W. Somerville, 1949-1958; Claude Botsford, 1958; Allen Moore, 1958-1966; Robert T. Fairweather, 1967-1978; Edward P. Milbank, 1978-1980; Larry Johnson, 1980. The following have served as Secretary-Treasurer; F. W. Gunby, 1934-1964; Earle S. Teegarden, J r., 1964-1972; Larry Johnson, 1977-1980. The following have served as Treasurer: Mildred Thomas, 1972-1976; Dale L. Bowe, 1980. The first Board of Directors was as follows: F. A. Meinershagen, 1934-1949; F. W. Gunby, 1934-1964; Claude Botsford, 1934-1958; George W. Somerville, 1934-1966; J. D. Rice, 1934-1958; R. J. Brennan, 1934-1936; John G. Sigler, 1934-1939; F. W. Cornue, 1934-1967; W. G. Keith, 1934-1935. Other directors have been: E. W. Shannon, 1935-1938; F. M. McCall, 1936-1973; Don H. Wiggins, 1938-1949; Robert E. Blaun, 1950-1953; Lee Meek, 1953-1965; Allen Moore, 1958-1978; Ted Barnes, 1958-1977; Earle S. Teegarden, Jr., 1964; Tom Botts, 1966; Robert T. Fairweather, 1966; Morris Willis, 1968-1980; Edward P. Milbank, 1974; Armand J. Peterson, 1978; George Shepard, 1978; Rex Smith, 1980. The present officers are as follows: Chairman, Robert T. Fairweather; Vice-Chairman, Edward P. Milbank; President, Earle S. Teegarden, Jr.; Vice-President and Secretary, Larry Johnson; Assistant Vice President and Treasurer, Dale Bowe; Assistant Vice President and Branch Manager, John Saccaro; Loan Officer and Assistant Secretary, Charley Merrill. Other employees are: Patsy Ripley, Debbie Surber, Ruth Pennington, Mari Lynn Estabrook, Sandy Wheeler, Janet Adkison, Dixie Vanatta. The men and women working in and charting the course of this financial institution have had one basic assurance which surrounds the future with light even if it could not present a crystal ball. They have found the strength and the wisdom to surmount the many difficulties and grasp the unparalleled opportunities presented in the last 46 years. There is every reason to think that they will not be daunted by the new decisions faced in the years ahead and that Investors Federal can become yet a more effective instrument for improving the lot of the citizens of those communities in which it serves, as the 20th Century rolls into its last two decades. JOHN GRAVES FOOD SERVICE, INCORPORATED John Graves Food Service, Incorporated, was founded by John Graves with one truck and one assistant, Wilbur Parrish, in Chillicothe, Missouri. Mr. Graves, formerly employed as a salesman for Swift and Company, moved to Chillicothe with his wife, Evelyn, and a six year old son, Jon Richard (Dick) to go into business for himself in the late summer of 1947. In 1951, a building for the business was erected at 245 S. Washington Street. In 1968, a move was made to a new location at 725 Industrial Road, where the Corporation now in 1980 operates with 35 employees and 18 vehicles, including one tractor trailer, seven sales cars and ten delivery trucks. The business, during the years, has changed from service to local grocers and restaurants in Chillicothe and surrounding towns to Institutional trade in Missouri, Iowa, Illinois and Kansas. The John-Graves family, in 1948, added a daughter, Lynn, to its numbers. At the present time, May 1980, Jon Richard (Dick) maintains a residence in Jefferson City with his wife Suzy and three children, Chip, Lolli and Tucker. Lynn resides in Houston, Texas, with her husband, Robert M. Hardy, Jr., and one daughter, Anna. 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