On March 8, 1859, Christian County became the 113th of Missouri's 114 counties. It was carved from portions of Greene, Taney and Webster counties. Only Worth, the state's smallest county, and the independent city of St.
Louis were created later.
Mrs. Neaves, a landowner hesitant to lose her citizenship of Greene
County in order to join the proposed county, agreed to do so if it
were
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named for her former Kentucky residence, Christian County.
The first few early arrivals to the area left when the federal government moved numerous Indian tribes from the east here in the early 1820s, but returned when the natives were removed to Kansas City and the area re-opened for settlement in 1833. Although
the earliest families were from Ohio and Indiana, soon most settlers were arriving from Kentucky, Tennessee, the Carolinas, Virginia, Maryland, Alabama and Mississippi
Water formed the land and the lifestyle here with the valley-spanning entrance to Smallin Cave, the water mills along the James and Finley rivers where settlements began, and the hills and hollows along Bull Creek, Swan Creek and lesser streams where
residents sometimes supplemented their incomes with illegal stills and legal spas that thrived in the 1880s near springs at Reno and Eau de Vie.
In Christian County history, lead mines, dairy farms, cheese factories, farming, tie and timber companies, tomato farms, canneries, logging, oak furniture manufacturing and gristmills have each enjoyed economic predominance over the years.
The city of Springfield was incorporated
in 1829 and has evolved as a tightly knit community ever since.
Despite its reputation as a rapidly growing urban center, the citizens
of our metropolitan area maintain a friendly attitude toward anyone
who wants to stop by or move on in.
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