Early History - Franklin Township, Greene County, Missouri >From "History of Greene County, Missouri," St. Louis: Western Historical Company, 1883. ********************************************************************** Franklin township had as one of its first settlers, James K. Alsup, who came from Tennessee in 1831 and settled on the Little Sac, in section 17, tp. 30. An old gentleman named Daniel Johnson came the same year, and settled in section 7. Samuel Scroggins came also in 1831, and made an improvement on the Little Sac, on section 22, tp. 30. In the fall of 1832, John Headlee arrived from Maury county, Tennessee, and put up his first cabin on section 10, near the line between that and section 9. At the same time with Headlee came Benjamin Johnson and James Dryden, and settled on section 9. The widow Simms, the mother-in-law of Mr. Headlee, also came at the same time with him, and made her home in the township. Larkin DeWitt came the same year (1832) and settled on the Sac. Robert Ross, who came in 1832, lived farther east. Thos. J. Whitlock came to Greene county in 1832, locating first on the Kickapoo prairie, but soon after re- moving to this township, on the south side of the Sac, on section 21. Thomas James was an early settler of the township. He was born in North Carolina, afterward removed to Tennessee, and came to Greene county in 1835. Caleb Headlee, the father of Hon. Samuel W. Headlee, emigrated from Maury county, Tenn., in 1836, and settled in the town- ship. In the fall of 1834, David H. Bedell came from North Carolina and made a settlement in section 5, where he died in April, 1860. Nearly all the early settlers of the township were from Tennessee, but a great part had originally come from North Carolina before reaching Tennessee. The Headlee and Bedell families trace their ancestry back to New Jersey. In the southern part of the township David Roper and family came from East Tennessee, and settled just over the township line on the south. David Appleby and James Appleby with their families, came to section 33, from Bedford county, Tenn., in 1833. About 1835 C. C. Williamson came from Kentucky and settled on section 29. About the same time came Erastus McMurray and his mother and brother. Farther to the north, on section 7, came Daniel Johnson, from Illinois, as early as 1831. He made the first improve- ment on the prairie in that quarter. Drury Upshaw was another pioneer in the extreme northern part of the township, and the prairie now called "Upsher" prairie was originally named for him. Francis and Zachariah Simms and Henry Morrison, in other portions of the township, were early settlers. The first marriage in the neighborhood of the settlements in Franklin township was that of Lawson Fulbright and Elizabeth Roper, at the house of the bride's father, David Roper, in 1831. The ceremony was performed by Rev. J. H. Slavens, the pioneer Methodist minister. At that time, however, old David Roper lived in what is now Campbell township. This is claimed by some to have been the first marriage of white persons in Greene county, at least within the present limits. Probably the first marriage in this township proper was that of Harrison Joplin and Miss Sims, a daughter of the widow Sims (or Simms). This marriage occurred in 1833, at the house of Mrs. Sims, on section 4. Rev. Slavens officiated. The first death in the township was that of James Dryden, in August, 1834. The body was buried in the Mt. Comfort graveyard. Dr. C. D. Terrill, of Springfield, was the first physician who practiced his profession in the township, and Rev. J. H. Slavens held the first religious service. On Section 10, Township 30, Robert Foster taught a subscription school at a very early day. He received 50 cents per month for each pupil. The school house was built in 1837 by the contributed labor and mater- ial of the settlers. In 1835 a small log school house was built just across the township line, in Campbell township, and here David Appleby taught the first school, many of his pupils being from the settlements in this township. The house had no floor, and no patent seats or desks, or globes, or black boards, or any of the modern appliances, but Mr. Appleby taught a good school, and received $1 per month for each scholar as his compensation. Robert Foster received only 50 cents per scholar for his work. ==================================================================== USGENWEB NOTICE: In keeping with our policy of providing free information on the Internet, data may be used by non-commercial entities, as long as this message remains on all copied material. These electronic pages may NOT be reproduced in any format for profit or for presentation by other persons or organizations. 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