Arrow Rock, Missouri

thumb|Boardwalk storefront on left, J. Huston Tavern on right. Stone gutters laid by slaves in 1858 line the street.

Arrow Rock is a village in Saline County, Missouri, United States, located near the Missouri River. The entire village is part of the National Historic Landmark Arrow Rock Historic District, designated by the Department of the Interior, National Park Service in 1963. It is significant in the history of Westward Expansion, the Santa Fe Trail, and 19th-century artist George Caleb Bingham. The town is well known for the Arrow Rock Lyceum Theatre, hosting over 33,000 patrons every year.

The first state-designated historic site is located here. Restoration of a 19th-century tavern in 1923 marked the beginning of historic preservation in Missouri. Many structures within the village are individually listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Several locations are also certified sites of the Lewis and Clark National Historic Trail and the Santa Fe National Historic Trail.

The village retains much of its 19th-century Boonslick character, and it attracts more than 100,000 visitors per year. Given the importance of heritage tourism to the village's economy, architectural ordinances implemented in 2004 provide guidance for both new construction and restorations of existing structures.

The town has numerous bed and breakfast establishments, and a modern campground nearby is maintained by the Missouri Division of State Parks. Local government consists of an elected five-member Board of Trustees. The Trustees elect their chair person (mayor).

Geography

According to the United States Census Bureau, the village has a total area of , all land.

Demographics

2010 census

As of the census of 2010, there were 56 people, 36 households, and 16 families residing in the village. The population density was . There were 61 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the village was 98.2% White and 1.8% from two or more races.

There were 36 households, of which 2.8% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 38.9% were married couples living together, 5.6% had a female householder with no husband present, and 55.6% were non-families. 47.2% of all households were made up of individuals, and 8.4% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 1.56 and the average family size was 2.06.

The median age in the village was 61.7 years. 1.8% of residents were under the age of 18; 0% were between the ages of 18 and 24; 12.6% were from 25 to 44; 44.6% were from 45 to 64; and 41.1% were 65 years of age or older. The gender makeup of the village was 46.4% male and 53.6% female.

2000 census

As of the census The two dominant Native American tribes in the area encountered by French traders early in the 18th century were the Missouria and the Osage.

The bluff continued to be a landmark to explorers and travelers for over 150 years. Lewis and Clark passed by on June 9, 1804, and noted "Several small Channels running out of the River below a Bluff [Cliff of rocks called the arrow rock] & Prairie (Called the Prairie of Arrows)". In 1808, William Clark passed through the area again on his way to construct Fort Osage noting a "Big Arrow Rock" and a "Little Arrow Rock" just upstream from it. He declared the area would "make a handsome spot for a town."

During the first half of the 19th century, this region of central Missouri was called "Boonslick Country" so named for the Boone's salt lick about four miles east of Arrow Rock in adjacent Howard County. The term "lick" derived from wildlife licking salt from the ground around the briny springs. Nathan and Daniel Morgan Boone, sons of famed frontiersman Daniel Boone, manufactured salt here from 1805 to 1812, shipping it to St. Louis. Their partners and co-operators, James and Jesse Morrison, continued the salt business until 1833. Salt boiling continued intermittently until the 1860s. The site of this early frontier industry is now managed as Boone's Lick State Historic Site by the Missouri Division of State Parks.

Euro-American settlers arrived in 1810, establishing small settlements several miles to the north and to the south of the Arrow Rock bluff and in the river bottoms on the opposite side of the Missouri River. During the War of 1812, these settlers built small defensive forts as protection from Ioway, Sac & Fox Indians allied to Great Britain. When Fort Osage closed in 1813, the fort's factor (trader) George C. Sibley moved his operation to the Arrow Rock bluff during the winter of 1813–1814 to carry on trade with the Osage Indians. This helped maintain their loyalty the United States during the war.

By 1815, a ferry was established at the site of Arrow Rock. Westbound settlers poured into the area, crossing the Missouri River on the Arrow Rock ferry. Santa Fe trading caravans departing from Franklin began crossing at the ferry in 1821. From 1819 to 1833, the ferry was owned by Judge David Todd, the uncle of Mary Todd Lincoln. Judge William B. Napton noted that 1827 was an especially busy year for the ferry as the population of Saline County swelled that year. In 1849 and 1850 the covered wagons of emigrants to California "were hardly ever out of sight at Arrow Rock." Several Arrow Rock residents continued to be involved in the Santa Fe trade as late as the beginning of the Civil War, 1861.

The town was founded in June 1829 and originally called "Philadelphia". Some documents refer to it as "New Philadelphia". However, in 1833 the state legislature changed the name because the locale was better known as 'Arrow Rock'. Joseph Huston, one of the town commissioners, built a two-story brick building in 1834. Due to Arrow Rock's location on the Missouri River and along the Santa Fe Trail, travelers undoubtedly asked Huston for overnight accommodations. He began building frame or log additions to the brick building and by 1840 was widely known as a hotel-keeper. The J. Huston Tavern also housed a store and a ballroom used for dances and a meeting hall. As the building passed to other owners, it became known as the Neill House, Scripture House, City Hotel and Old Tavern. The J. Huston Tavern houses the oldest continuously operating restaurant west of the Mississippi and is today operated by the Missouri Division of State Parks in partnership with the Friends of Arrow Rock, Inc.

Settlers in the Arrow Rock area were predominantly migrants from the Upper South of Virginia, Kentucky, and Tennessee. They brought slaves and southern culture with them. The town developed as a thriving river port, exporting tobacco and hemp from plantations in the region. Hemp was the most important cash crop in Saline County. Before the Civil War, hemp was made into ropes and bags for baling cotton. Wheat, corn, beef, pork and mules were also shipped from Arrow Rock to supply the cotton districts of the Mississippi delta. The agricultural production of the Boonslick Country depended on slave labor just as cotton production did in the South. This symbiotic relationship led most residents of Arrow Rock and the Boonslick Country to support the South during the Civil War. Saline County and other Missouri counties with a high population of enslaved African Americans later became identified as “Little Dixie.” According to historian Dr. Christopher Phillips, Arrow Rock represented a unique blending of western frontier idealism and southern traditions.

During the town's early decades, it was the site of a slave market, and the auction block continued to stand on the river bluff in front of the J. Huston Tavern for many decades after the Emancipation Proclamation and the U.S. victory in the Civil War eradicated human enslavement. Because of the slave market's prominence, the large bend in the Missouri River below the town was known as "N***** Bend."

January 1849 “Be it ordained &c that any one guilty of fighting, or loud and boisterous quarrelling, or engaging in any mob, or making unusual noises, furious or violent riding within the corporation, upon conviction before a magistrate shall be fined in any sum not less than two dollars and fifty cents and not more than twenty dollars." Although the music center closed in 1972, it gave impetus to development of other artistic venues in town.

The Arrow Rock Lyceum Theater was established in 1960 in the abandoned Baptist Church. Missouri's oldest repertory theater, the Lyceum now produces Broadway caliber musicals and plays from June through September with special holiday productions in December. Actors come from as far away as New York and California and audiences are drawn from across Missouri. A 408-seat auditorium was added in 1995 and the old church building itself now serves as the box office and concession area.

In 1973, a musical version of Mark Twain's "Tom Sawyer" was filmed here. The movie, Tom Sawyer, starred Johnny Whitaker as Tom, Jeff East as Huckleberry Finn, Celeste Holm as Aunt Polly, Warren Oates as Muff Potter and Jodie Foster in her third movie role, as Becky Thatcher. Many of the town's buildings and landscapes are recognizable in the film. The following year, Jeff East reprised his role in Huckleberry Finn which was partially filmed here. Paul Winfield co-starred as Jim and comedian Harvey Korman as The King. On July 4, 2007, the town also celebrated the 35th anniversary of the film. One hundred people participated in a parade and well over 2,000 spectators lined Main Street from the old schoolhouse to Second Street. Johnny Whitaker, Jeff East and Celeste Holm served as parade marshals and shared their fond memories of making the film with the crowd, and renewed acquaintances they had made with local residents during filming.

In addition to being the home of the Lyceum Theatre, Arrow Rock continues its tradition of supporting the arts by periodically hosting art and crafts shows and workshops and special concerts throughout the year. The second full weekend of each October the town hosts the Fall Heritage Festival hosting a wide variety of craftspeople, artisans, reenactors and musical entertainment.

Parks and public lands

Established in 1923, Arrow Rock State Historic Site is administered by the Missouri Division of State Parks. It was one of the first three units to come into the Missouri state park system. The 169-acre site overlooks the Missouri valley and encompasses about one-fourth of the village. The site contains a large visitor center/museum complex, four-acre fishing lake, picnic area with a playground, miles of hiking trails and a 48-unit campground with modern amenities.

The state historic site is adjacent to the 1,871-acre Jameson Island Unit of the Big Muddy National Fish and Wildlife Refuge, administered by the United States Fish & Wildlife Service. Established in 1994 following the disastrous flood of 1993, the wetlands and waterways of the refuge provides critical habitat for endangered species such as pallid and lake sturgeon. The refuge also benefits numerous other wildlife species. The area has seen the resurgence in deer, turkey, beaver and otter populations. Species that were absent such as bobcats, Mississippi kites, bald eagles and pileated woodpeckers have returned in recent years. The refuge has minimal development and offers opportunities for hiking and bird watching. Hunting and fishing are also permitted in accordance with state regulations.

Education

It is in the Hardeman R-X School District, an elementary school district.

Historic properties

Arrow Rock State Historic Site and Arrow Rock Historic District

J. Huston Tavern (1834) Considered the signature building of Arrow Rock, the Federal-style brick architecture demonstrates the southern heritage of early settlers. In addition to dining facilities, several rooms are restored to their early appearance.
George Caleb Bingham House (1837) Noted artist George C. Bingham built this house in 1837. Bingham traveled extensively and was seldom in Arrow Rock for any lengthy period, but his family continued to occupy the house. He sold the house in 1845 but retained the deed until 1857. The Bingham House has its own separate designation as a National Historic Landmark.
Dr. Mathew W. Hall House (1846) This Greek Revival style house was built by Dr. Hall a noted civic leader and physician.
Old Jail aka Calaboose (1873) A log jail was burned by an arsonist in 1872 and replaced with this stone arch vault jail.
Courthouse (1834) Log structure restored to represent the county courthouse of 1839-1840 when Arrow Rock was the Saline County seat of government.
Lawless House and Farmstead (1903) A turn of the century Queen Anne/Eastlake farm home sporting modern amenities such as carbide lights and a water pump in the kitchen.
Big Spring (1829) Burton Lawless granted free use of the spring to the town in 1829. Tradition states that early Santa Fe caravans watered their stock here before heading west.
Academy Boarding House (1829) The Arrow Rock Academy (no longer standing) was a private school incorporated in 1843 and students boarded in this two story log house.
WPA Shelter House (1936) The Works Progress Administration made improvements to parks during the Great Depression such as this stone picnic shelter.
WPA Gazebo (1936) The Gazebo functions as a small picnic shelter.

Friends of Arrow Rock

Log Cabin (1830) Originally located southwest of Arrow Rock, it was relocated here to save it from destruction.
Masonic Lodge Hall and Craft Shop (1868) Arrow Rock Lodge No. 55 built the structure in 1868 and met on the second floor until 2009. Craft Club members have sold handmade items on the lower level since 1961.
Miller-Bradford House (1839) Sam Miller built this house then sold it to Dr. Charles Bradford, a grandson-in-law to Dr. Sappington. Restored in 1959 by Bill and Cora Lee Miller, it was the first private restoration in the village.
Christian Church (1872) Johnny and Nanny Sites donated property for this church. Now a restored museum, the church was the scene of Tom Sawyer's funeral in the 1972 film. The church is still used for weddings and receptions.
Brown's Chapel Free Will Baptist Church (1869) African-Americans built this church north of city limits. It served as the first school for African-Americans and in 1870 had 66 students. Zack Bush used a team of mules to move the church to its current location in 1881.
Black History Museum/Brown Lodge (1881) Following emancipation, freed slaves moved into town and began purchasing their own homes and developed their own social institutions such as this Masonic Lodge. This was considered the most important of several fraternal lodges within the black community.
John P. Sites Gun Shop (1866) Sites learned gunsmithing from his father and moved to Arrow Rock in 1844. His first shop on Main Street was possibly destroyed by a guerrilla raid in 1864. He moved to this location which is the only known functioning restoration of a 19th-century gunsmith's shop in the United States still in its original location.
John P. Sites House (1838) Sites purchased this house next to the gun shop in 1866 and by 1872 had raised the roof and made additions to it for his wife Nanny.
Dr. John Sappington Museum (1974) This modern Georgian style structure houses exhibits which interpret the life and medical contributions of Dr. Sappington.

Private

Arrow Rock Lyceum Theatre (1872) originally a Baptist church, since 1960 this professional repertory theater has been producing Broadway-caliber plays and musicals. A 408-seat auditorium was added to the rear of the building in 1993.
Boardwalk Storefronts (1902) Fires in 1872 and 1901 destroyed the original two story structures from the 1850s. The rebuilt single story stores now house a variety of antique and gift shops and post office.
Arrow Rock Cemetery (1849) Still an active cemetery, many names familiar in Arrow Rock history are found here.
Sanders A.H. Townsend House (1860) The Ancell Lumber Company of Arrow Rock was engaged by Saunders Townsend to build this Greek Revival house as a wedding present for his son Sanders.
Prairie Park (1849) This two and a half story mansion is one of the finest surviving examples of 19th century Greek Revival architecture in Missouri. It was built by William B. Sappington, businessman, farmer, banker and community leader.
Old Schoolhouse (1923) The white public school was built on this site in 1892 but burned in 1910. The second building burned in 1923 and was replaced with the current structure. The school closed due to consolidation in 1954. The building now houses village government offices and the Stolberg-Jackson Community Center.
Federated Church (1852) Originally the Methodist Episcopal Church, this church still has an active congregation.
Zion Church (1870) The congregation is no longer active and the building now serves as the Masonic Lodge Hall No. 55
African Public School (1948) The black school was first built in 1892 from materials salvaged from the white public school when it was torn down and moved. The black school burned down and was rebuilt as brick in 1939, burned again and was rebuilt in 1948. Schools were integrated by 1956 and the African school became a private residence which it is today.