SkipCaptcha, Automoderated users, edit
1,631
edits
Changes
Jump to navigation
Jump to search
Line 8:
Line 8: + + + + + +
Added to page
The town enjoyed moderate prosperity during the antebellum era, but was heavily damaged during the [[Civil War]], in which, owing to its proximity to the lead mines and to the main overland routes south from [[St. Louis]], [[Union]] and [[Confederate]] forces fought several actions in the vicinity of Fredericktown between 1861 and 1864, including preliminaries to the [[Battle of Pilot Knob]] in 1864. Despite the devastation of the war, Fredericktown soon revived, especially after the completion of a branch of the Iron Mountain Railroad in 1869.<ref>Douglass, p. 267-68.</ref> The nearby mines, of lead as well as other valuable metals, would continue to be a source of local prosperity until after [[World War II]], though farming remained an important element of the economy as well. After the decline of the lead mines, Fredericktown's population and economic strength fluctuated some, but its function as a seat of local government and a regional trade center has helped maintain its stability.
The town enjoyed moderate prosperity during the antebellum era, but was heavily damaged during the [[Civil War]], in which, owing to its proximity to the lead mines and to the main overland routes south from [[St. Louis]], [[Union]] and [[Confederate]] forces fought several actions in the vicinity of Fredericktown between 1861 and 1864, including preliminaries to the [[Battle of Pilot Knob]] in 1864. Despite the devastation of the war, Fredericktown soon revived, especially after the completion of a branch of the Iron Mountain Railroad in 1869.<ref>Douglass, p. 267-68.</ref> The nearby mines, of lead as well as other valuable metals, would continue to be a source of local prosperity until after [[World War II]], though farming remained an important element of the economy as well. After the decline of the lead mines, Fredericktown's population and economic strength fluctuated some, but its function as a seat of local government and a regional trade center has helped maintain its stability.
==Geography==
Fredericktown is located in north-central Madison County, along and just east of U.S. Route 67 at its intersection with Missouri State Highway 72, which skirts the town on the north. It is the largest community along U.S. 67 between Farmington (to the north) and [[Poplar Bluff, Missouri|Poplar Bluff]] (to the south).
The city has a total area of 4.50 square miles, including 4.33 of land and 0.17 of water.<ref>https://web.archive.org/web/20120702145235/http://www.census.gov/geo/www/gazetteer/files/Gaz_places_national.txt</ref> Like the rest of the county, Fredericktown lies within the St. Francois Mountains, though it is on relatively flat terrain between Saline Creek, which flows east to west just north of downtown, and the Little St. Francois, which the Saline flows into a short distance to the west. Its average elevation is 741 feet. The city is surrounded on the east, west, and south by a portion of the Mark Twain National Forest.
==References==
==References==