
History of Beckemeyer
Beckemeyer is located in the heart of Clinton County, Illinois. A growing rural community situated just 45 minutes east of St. Louis, Missouri. Because Beckemeyer is just 5 minutes from Carlyle Lake, it offers the option of outdoor entertainment along with the quiet of rural living. Major highways are a short drive away – Rt. 50 through the center of town, I-64 to the South, I-57 to the East, I-55 and I-70 to the North. Two airports serve the Beckemeyer area: Mid-America Airport located near Scott Air Force Base (30 miles away) and Lambert International Airport in St. Louis (70 miles away). Following is a history of Beckemeyer as compiled by Amy Kruse Froess as her high school research project in 1990. We thank Amy for compiling this history for us. If many people think that Beckemeyer has always been a dull village, they should think again. There once were many interesting places and things to do to occupy one's time. In my paper, I will explain Beckemeyer's history, with the many adventures that come with a growing and prosperous village.
S
Buxton began as a way
station on the Ohio and
Mississippi Railroad. In
1866 the way station was
organized and
distributed into two
lots by Zepher Case.
Zepher Case named the
small village "Buxton"
in honor of an attorney
of the railroad. This
attorney's name was H.P.
Buxton ("Beckemeyer, A
Progressive Village").
In 1880, there was a post office. It was located inside a box‑car along the Mississippi and Ohio Railroad tracks ("Beckemeyer, A Progressive Village").
Buxton did not show
promise of growing into
a bigger settlement
because it was too close
to the County Seat of
Carlyle. In the earlier
In 1894, Buxton's
population began to
rise. This was caused by
the discovery of a coal
vein underlying the area
("Beckemeyer, A
Progressive Village").
Back in the early 1900's
there were many
entertainment and
business shops in
Beckemeyer. These
included a barber shop,
a mill, a mine, a zinc
smelter, two banks, a
saw and grist mill,
three large general
stores, two smaller
general stores, two
hotels, one restaurant,
seven saloons, a
telephone exchange, a
large hardware store,
two lumber yards, t
One of the seven
saloons, named Zinschlag
and Strotheide, was
started in the year A. Beckemeyer and Son was one of the largest general stores and the oldest in Buxton. The store was two levels high and occupied a floor space of forty by eighty‑six feet. The upper level was used as a rooming or boarding house and was of the only boarding house of its kind in Buxton. A. Beckemeyer and Son was also adjoined by a warehouse on the south side. Oscar W. Beckemeyer was the active manager of the store. In addition to this, August Beckemeyer was a member of the firm to the store ("Beckemeyer, A Progressive Village")
The Beckemeyer
Methodist Episcopal
Church assembled in the
year 1904 (Methodist
Church Bulletin). As of February 26th, 1904, the mine shaft was down to a depth of eighty‑five feet, and there were three shifts of men working. Three weeks later, the steam engines that were to be used in the mine arrived, On July 15th, 1904, the vein of coal in the coal mine was reached. It measured eight feet wide, seven inches long. At this time it was reported that it had the most layers of coal in Southern Illinois. This is why Buxton proliferated. The coal mine created Jobs, which in turn brought more people to Buxton. As of January 20th, 1905, the mine averaged hoisting three railroad cars of coal daily. But the next day, January 21st, the mine had its first explosion. After a powder shot had been fired, a chain reaction was started, and a fire swept down the entry of the coal mine at a devastating rate. Many employees at the mine were badly burned.
A village election was held on Friday, March 10th, 1905. The results of the election were August Beckemeyer, president; F.C. Dalhaus, J.H. Clabaugh, H.H. Beckemeyer, John Peppenhorst, Peter Frey, and Amos Ingold, trustees to the village; William Meyer village clerk, and Fred Beckemeyer, treasurer. The salaries for the officers were petty back in 1905. The president and the village clerk; both received thirty‑five dollars annually, while the trustees received one dollar and fifty cents for each meeting they attended (Charter),
On
Friday, April 25th, 1905
a tornado, then thought
of as a cyclone, caused
200,000 dollars
worth of damage to the
village of Carlyle.
Buxton, now incorporated
into the Village of
Beckemeyer, suffered
minor damages when
compared to Carlyle. Beckemeyer's first baseball team was called "The Liberty's."
During July of 1905 the
first school and library
were
A contract for a new school building was awarded to Amos Ingold for $3,040. The now school was to be opened on October 1st, 1905, and H.H. Beckemeyer was to be the principal. In 1905 the first Sunday school classes for the Methodist Church started (Methodist Church Bulletin). They were held in the home of Mrs. Cleona Clabaugh, who was the first Sunday school superintendent. A majority of the Sunday school members were the miners' children (Methodist Church Bulletin).
The first Reverend was
E.W. Grupe. He
contributed to and
helped organize many
deeds for the church.
These contributions
included organizing the
church, the Sunday
school, and the Epworth
League. The Epworth
League was a young
person's organization.
In addition, some people
believed the Reverend
Grupe started the
church's first Lad In the early times of the Methodist Church, a revival was held. It was thought to be the biggest and the best revival in the church's history. During the revival, the Sunday school members contributed many objects to the church. These objects included a clock, a baptismal font, and an electric cross. On August 11th and 12th, a Quarterly Conference was hold. At the conference, C.W. Scott and August Beckemeyer were appointed to a committee to borrow funds for the church to liquidate the debt of the church and to have the property insured (Methodist Church Bulletin).
In the early days of
Beckemeyer, there was
no Catholic church.
Reverend
The ground for the church, formerly a potato patch, was donated by John Taphorn, Senior. The work on the church, done by farmers and other laborers, occurred mostly by moonlight. On December 19th, 1905, the church was dedicated by Reverend Bishop Jansen. The Catholic school opened on December 25th, 1905. Sister Leonora was the first sister who taught school. The average number of children in attendance was 125. The first chair consisted of fourteen girls and seven boys.
The first bank in Beckemeyer was organized in 1906. The bank was a branch of the Carlyle's Farmers' and Merchants' Bank and was a private banking institution. The bank's equipment included a safe and a burglar and fire‑proof vault. Mr. Mahlandt was the bank's cashier ("Beckemeyer, A Progressive Village").
During the year of 1919 oil was discovered in Beckemeyer, and was wrongly predicted to become the greatest oil center in the state. In the hope of becoming rich from the oil, many prospectors bought options and leases for the land surrounding Beckemeyer. This period was known as the boom, but when the true amount of oil was known, the boom receded ("Beckemeyer, A Progressive Village"). In 1911 a now convent was built for the Sisters of the Catholic church. In 1912 there were twenty‑five producers of oil. The Ohio Oil Company purchased fields of oil from many owners.
In 1912 St. Anthony's
Hall was built. In the
hall, many
In 1912, Fred Beckemeyer
became the sole owner of
the lumber yard. Some of
the lumber yard's
products included laths,
shingles, mill work,
building material, lime,
cement, and plaster. The
lumber that was produced
at Beckemeyer, was
shipped all over the
southern and eastern
part of the country (“Beckemeyer,
A Progressive Village"). Ben Hoffman started a livery and sales stables in the year 1912. In addition to this business, Hoffman ran an automobile for the accommodation of passengers. He carried the passengers all over the county ("Beckemeyer, A Progressive Village"). There were six societies in the Catholic Church. They included St. Joseph's Men Society, St. Ann's Ladies Society, St. Aloysius Young Men's Society, St. Agnes Young Ladies' Sodality, St. Anthony's I. & E. Club, and Branch Number 107. As of 1912, there were 125 Catholic Church members, who were mostly native Americans of German descent. In 1927, the foundation for the now church was laid, and in 1930 the silver Jubilee was celebrated for the erection of the new church (The History Of St. Anthony's Church, Beckemeyer). On March 5th, 1933, a fire destroyed the Beckemeyer coal mine screening plant. Herman Dalhaus, engineer, saw the flames and summoned help. In the same month, on the 23rd, the air shaft at the mine caved in and had to be reconstructed before the mine could be placed in operative condition. In 1935 the mine closed down. Beckemeyer has a monument near the American Legion, dedicated to the village members lost in the mine that year (see history of Miner Monument). Beckemeyer continued as a rural, farming community until the boom of the 1990s when new businesses, stores, restaurants, hotels and industry grew up all around Clinton County. Today Beckemeyer offers the quiet life of living in the country, along with the opportunities of nearby major cities. Beckemeyer is where charm and country come together. |