Madison County, Missouri
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Madison County is in the southeastern part of the state in the foothills of the Ozark Mountains.
It is bound on the north by St. Francois County; northeast by Perry County; east by Bollinger
County; south Wayne County; and west by Iron County.
The first persons to explore Madison County were Renault and La Motte and their companies
about 1721-23. They discovered minerals, principally lead, but finding no silver ore did not
establish a settlement.
One of the first recorded settlement was in 1799. In 1806 the first brick house in the county
was built two miles west of St. Michaels.
Madison County was organized December 14, 1818 and was named for President Madison.
The county was formed from Cape Girardeau and Ste. Genevieve. The first county seat was
St. Michaels, but later moved to Fredericktown, 1819.
During the Civil War the county furnished soldiers to both Federal and Confederate sides.
The people of Madison County found themselves victims of guerrilla fighting and military
activity throughout the war.
The battle of Fredericktown was fought just south of the city along Greenville Road on ,
October 21, 1861
.
A reenactment of the Battle of Fredericktown is now held every other year during the month
of September.
Mining has been a key industry in this area with Madison County recorded as having the
oldest lead mine west of the Mississippi River.
Lead mined at the Mine La Motte has been used for the manufacture of bullets for every
military action of the United States from the American Revolution to the Korean Conflict.
The public school system was not started in the county until 1880.
The first newspaper was the "Espial", published in 1847, and is said to be the first Free
Soil paper in the state.
Items of Interest
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Adjacent Counties
Cities and Towns
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Castor Station |
Cobalt |
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Fredericktown |
Junction City |
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Marquand |
Millcreek |
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Mine La Motte |
Oak Grove |
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Saco |
Zion |
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All material posted to this site, unless otherwise credited, has been transcribed
and contributed by: Frances Cooley
Last updated: July 11, 2008
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