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Poplar Bluff, Missouri (view source)
Revision as of 02:13, December 23, 2019
, 02:13, December 23, 2019Added to page
The original site of Poplar Bluff is a moderately high bluff on the west bank of the Black River, along the line where the Ozark Plateau drops into the Mississippi Alluvial Plain to the southeast. Despite the prominence of this spot, it is not known to have been frequented by Native Americans in the years before white settlement (although the Natchitoches Trail, an important long-distance path used by many Indian tribes, ran a short distance to the west). Several different native peoples dominated the region from time to time, the last being the Osage in the 18th and early 19th century.
The original site of Poplar Bluff is a moderately high bluff on the west bank of the Black River, along the line where the Ozark Plateau drops into the Mississippi Alluvial Plain to the southeast. Despite the prominence of this spot, it is not known to have been frequented by Native Americans in the years before white settlement (although the Natchitoches Trail, an important long-distance path used by many Indian tribes, ran a short distance to the west). Several different native peoples dominated the region from time to time, the last being the Osage in the 18th and early 19th century.
Although French fur traders made brief encampments on the Black River after about 1750, the first permanent settlements by incoming whites in what became Butler County did not occur until well into the 19th century, and most of those were centered on Cane Creek, northwest of Poplar Bluff. The development of a community there only came as a direct result of the organization of Butler County in 1849. Commissioners tasked with finding a permanent location for the county seat settled on the bluff, not only because it was roughly in the center of the new county, but because it was near the head of navigation for the Black River, providing opportunities for water transport, and because the high location would minimize the risk of flooding.
Although French fur traders made brief encampments on the Black River after about 1750, the first permanent settlements by incoming whites in what became Butler County did not occur until well into the 19th century, and most of those were centered on Cane Creek, northwest of Poplar Bluff. The development of a community there only came as a direct result of the organization of Butler County in 1849. Commissioners tasked with finding a permanent location for the county seat settled on the bluff, not only because it was roughly in the center of the new county, but because it was near the head of navigation for the Black River, providing opportunities for water transport, and because the high location would minimize the risk of flooding. It received the name "Poplar Bluff" from the many tulip or "poplar" trees that covered the high ground.<ref>https://collections.shsmo.org/manuscripts/ramsay/ramsay_butler.html</ref> The new community was officially designated as the county seat in 1850, with a post office and court sessions being established that same year.<ref>https://books.google.com/books?id=G-AlAAAAMAAJ&pg=PA293#v=onepage&q&f=false</ref>
Despite its opportunities as the seat of county government and a potential trading center, Poplar Bluff grew only slowly during its first years of existence. This was due largely to its remoteness from the center of settlement and the low population of the county overall, while the disorder associated with the [[Civil War]] left it almost depopulated. With the construction of the Cairo, Arkansas, & Texas railroad, however, which was extended west to Poplar Bluff in 1872, the town quickly boomed. Timber-clearing became a major economic livelihood, and steamboats began operating on the Black, which in turn sparked a number of other industries, including the making of wagons, barrels, furniture, and typewriters, among others, as well as whiskey distilling. By 1907, there were approximately 57 manufacturing operations in Poplar Bluff, employing nearly 1,400 persons.<ref>http://sites.rootsweb.com/~mobutle2/history/bc-collins.htm</ref>
The deadliest natural disaster in the city's history occurred on May 9, 1927, when a tornado struck the downtown section. 98 people were killed and about 300 injured, and property damage was estimated at $4 million, with most of the downtown businesses as well as the East Side School being heavily damaged or destroyed.<ref>http://ozarks-history.blogspot.com/2019/03/poplar-bluff-tornado.html</ref> It is tied for the seventeenth deadliest tornado in American history, and the fifth deadliest in Missouri history.
Poplar Bluff steadily improved and expanded during the 20th century. Streets in the downtown district were paved with brick in 1912 (replaced with asphalt in 1962), with drainage of the outlying area beginning around the same time. Several movie theaters operated in the city, the most famous being the Rodgers Theatre, an Art Deco building that opened in 1949 and closed in 1998, and was at one time said to be the finest theater between [[St. Louis]] and [[Memphis]].<ref>https://web.archive.org/web/20081003121909/http://poplarbluff.org/history/html/rodgers.html</ref> The city gradually expanded beyond its original boundaries, with growth fueled by the arrival of U.S. Routes 60 and 67 in the 1920s, while the upstream construction of Clearwater Dam in the 1940s controlled flooding on the Black and allowed heavier settlement in the low-lying areas east of the river.
Although its population growth has leveled off since the 1970s, the city's economic importance has continued, with a number of manufacturing plants still in operation, and a great deal of retail trade along the highways to the north and west. There are several active civic organizations, devoted to community life and historic preservation. Many local landmarks are now on the National Register of Historic Places, including the Butler County Courthouse, the Rodgers Theatre, two railroad depots, and several private houses.
[[Category:Missouri Cities and Towns]]
[[Category:Missouri Cities and Towns]]