Carter-Ripley-Butler County MO Archives Obituaries.....WEBB, Franklin Pierce March 26, 1927 ************************************************ Copyright. All rights reserved. http://www.usgwarchives.net/copyright.htm http://www.usgwarchives.net/mo/mofiles.htm ************************************************ File contributed for use in USGenWeb Archives by: Dee Dee Webb Sparks http://www.rootsweb.com/~archreg/vols/00021.html#0005108 April 24, 2007, 10:40 pm Southeast Missourian , Hunter MO. Current Local Dated 26 March 1927 Van Buren, Carter Co., MO. U.S.A. Frank Webb Passes Away Frank Webb well known in this vicinity, passed away Saturday morning, and was laid to rest in the MacRone cemetery near Grandin, Sunday afternoon, surrounded by a large concourse of sorrowing relatives and friends. The following brief history was kindly furnished to us by J. N. Sparks. Frank Webb was my best friend for twenty-five years. I was a young man when I first met him in Grandin in 1901. For ten years we were together a great deal, but for the last fifteen years, our meetings have been casual. The things which I saw of his life, will be the impressions made on my mind of his character, I cannot recall dates & places. I merely give impressions and conclusions. Frank's parents came from the state of Tennessee, and settled in the vicinity of Grandin, at the time the deer and other wild creatures filled the surrounding forest. Here, Frank was born. He was one of a large family of children, and spent his early days on the farm. He hunted deer and turkey. He and his Brothers were noted for the amount of game they bagged. When the wild pigeons came into the wilderness south of Fremont, Frank and his brothers were among the first to shoot wild pigeons for gain. The pigeons were so thick they would break the branches of trees when lighting. The boys would shoot all night, and gather the dead birds in the morning. These birds were hauled to Piedmont, the nearest railroad point at that time, and shipped to St. Louis. Frank and others shot so persistently, that the pigeons migrated to the west coast of the United States. Frank learned a great deal about the pine forest on his hunting trips. He knew the land for twenty or thirty miles from their back yard. In the late seventies, or early eighties, J. B. White came to Carter and adjoining counties, looking for timber. He made the acquaintances of the people who lived on the small farms. Frank was one who appealed to Mr. White's mind as being exceptionally fitted to assist him in locating good tracts of timber, and Mr. White employed him. He started working as a guide for Mr. White and his associates, and those who are acquainted with the history of the Missouri Lumber & Mining Company know that Frank did a good job as guide. After the land had been acquired and logging operations started, Frank was promoted from one position to another until he was general woods foreman. After the Missouri Lumber & Mining Company was on a paying basis, Mr. White began looking out for interests in timber in other states. In doing so, he sent or took Frank with him. Frank cruised timber for Mr. White in a number of localities, from the east coast of Florida, to the Pacific Coast. On his judgment and integrity, Mr. White and associates invested hundreds of thousands of dollars. No man ever had the prestige and standing with the company that Frank had. He was trusted fully, and no one who knew him doubted his sincerity. No one was in doubt of where he stood on any question. Frank knew no middle ground; he was either for a thing, or against it, with all his might. In order to appreciate Frank at his true worth, one would have to consider the circumstances of his early life and environment. He worked out his own theories, was a close observer of nature, got his education in the school of experience, was a close student of bible, knew it as few logmen do, reasoned out his conclusions and when he decided to be baptized, no one doubted his sincerity. Frank Webb will be remembered by the people of Carter County. His friends were many, as were attested by the large gathering of people for the funeral. the old time honesty was a hobby with Frank, as he believed in paying to the last penny. He could not tolerate stealing or crookedness. Frank was an uncompromising Democrat, and was always in the game when an election was on. He never wanted public office, so far as I know, nor ever asked for personal favors of those whom he helped to elect. He worked for a candidate because he wanted to defeat the other fellow. Frank was a man who had warm friends. He also had his better foes, and in both he took great enjoyment. He was never more at himself than when in a campaign, fighting for his friends or for some measure he advocated. He was always in the midst of the fight as he was able to get about. His last few years were spent in the dark. He became totally blind a few years before his death, but he took this with that same fortitude that he faced the hardships of youth and early manhood. The family have the sympathy of all in this sad hour, differences of opinion are forgotten. All reverence to the faithful wife whose tireless years were spent around his bedside, and to the sterling character of Frank Webb, the father, husband, friend, and citizen. J.N. Sparks Additional Comments: Franklin Pierce Webb died in 1927 at the age of 72. He was probably the widest known of the brothers. His obituary appeared in several weekly papers in Missouri and Louisiana, also in ESSCO, a national lumbermen's magazine. When the Missouri Lumber & Mining Co. erected their big saw mill at Grandin in the 1880's and the railroad was attempting to lay its tracks to that thriving saw mill town, the engineers were stumped when they got as far as Copper Mine Hollow, declaring there was no way for rails to be laid over it. It was Frank Webb who "spot-sighted" a route, and the company was able to build its tracks to Grandin. The officials of the company were so pleased that they showered Mr. Webb with numerous gifts and insisted he accept the position as its woods superintendent, which he held down until the mill cut out in 1912. This was more vividly brought out in a obituary of Mr. Webb which appeared in the March 31, 1927, issue of the Southeast Missourian published at Hunter, a paper no longer existing. File at: http://files.usgwarchives.net/mo/carter/obits/w/webb125gob.txt This file has been created by a form at http://www.genrecords.org/mofiles/ File size: 6.6 Kb