Camden County is a county located in the U.S. state of Missouri. As of the 2020 Census, the population was 42,745. Its county seat is Camdenton. The county was organized on January 29, 1841, as Kinderhook County and renamed Camden County in 1843 after Charles Pratt, 1st Earl Camden, Lord Chancellor of the United Kingdom and leader of the British Whig Party. Camden County is also the primary setting of the Netflix show Ozark.
History
Settlement and founding
There is no preserved record of the area that is now Camden County being inhabited before 1827, when Kentuckian settlers Harrison Davis and Reuben Berry pitched a camp on the Dry Auglaize Creek, eight miles east of what is now Linn Creek. Throughout the next few years, more settlers came into the area, and by 1831, there were thirteen families living near the Dry Auglaize. Records of settling the Wet Auglaize Creek date back to the beginning of 1832. The first school in Camden County was built on a farm in 1833.
Original county seat
The town of Oregon was established in 1841 and became the county seat. In 1843, when the name of the county was changed from Kinderhook to Camden, the name of Oregon was changed to Erie. In 1854, a cholera epidemic struck Erie, leaving only 7 survivors. As a result, the county seat was changed to Linn Creek in 1855.
American Civil War
Camden County saw some fighting during the American Civil War.
Battle of Monday's Hollow
On October 13, 1861, the Battle of Monday's Hollow took place. Colonel John Wyman led the 13th Illinois Infantry Regiment from the east towards Linn Creek, while the 13th Illinois Cavalry Regiment, consisting of Major Clark Wright's Frémont Battalion and Major W.D. Bowen's First Battalion headed southwest towards Lebanon. Bowen's forces collided with a Missouri State Guard cavalry unit commanded by Lieutenant Colonel J.M. "Myscal" Johnson. Bowen called for assistance from Wright and Wyman, halting near where Missouri Route 7 now crosses Murphy Creek. The Union forces saw Johnson's cavalry, and Wyman attacked, driving the Missouri State Guard in the direction of Lebanon.
Skirmish at Linn Creek
Wyman remained in his camp for several days after the Battle of Monday's Hollow. Southern partisans took control of an undefended Linn Creek. On October 14, 1861, the Frémont Battalion descended on the town and drove out the southerners, taking 37 prisoners.
Adjacent counties
- Morgan County (north)
- Miller County (northeast)
- Pulaski County (east)
- Laclede County (southeast)
- Dallas County (southwest)
- Hickory County (west)
- Benton County (northwest)
Major highways
- 20px U.S. Route 54
- 20px Route 5
- 20px Route 7