The thank yous first:
Jean Bjorgen (nee Reagan) and Christine Beydler took over the Missouri leg work remaining on the bank story after my detour into Amputation World confined me to my home in Iowa.
Christine, my sister-in-law, earned her intrepid researcher badge by spending a cold March afternoon searching 90-year-old court records in the unheated, uncleaned and disorganized attic of the Vernon County Courthouse in Nevada while a 45-mile-per-hour wind found all the many entry points. She persevered, and emerged with records of the criminal cases against five Jerico bankers.
Kim Jeffries graciously shared photographs of old Jerico from her collection. She also shares them on a Facebook page, You Know You’re from Jerico Springs …
Sources
Sources are generally listed in the text as they’re relied upon. They include:
- The Jerico Springs Optic
- Goodspeed Publishing’s “History of Hickory, Cedar, Polk, Dade, and Barton Counties, Missouri”, printed in 1889.
- mypastpresent.com
- Multiple 19th Century issues of The Banker’s Almanac and Register,
- Multiple 19th Century issues of The Banker’s Magazine and Statistical Register
- Directory of Missouri 1887-1888.
- Multiple copies of the Biennial Report of the Missouri Banking Commissioner to the Legislature
- Vernon County Circuit Clerk
- Missouri Division of Finance
- Missouri Supreme Court
The Optic, a weekly newspaper published from 1888-1937 is a primary source for events after 1901, from which year microfilm copies of the paper exist, at the public library in Nevada.
Google Books’ Library Project made it possible to readily find and use 19th Century banking directories and other old materials.
Notes
The parade in the photo at the top of each site page is the Jerico chapter of the I.O.O.F on Aug. 11, 1914. The photo is from The Cedar County Historical Society’s Facebook page, where it was posted by Blackhawk Barber.
Jerico Springs on parade 