The Missouri in the Civil War Message Board

Old Military Road

As well I have been able to easily determine, the old Military Road went from Bainbridge to Jackson, thence to Dallas (Marble Hill), then to Lowndes area and across to Greenville MO on the St. Francis River. At Greenville it was joined by the road from Fredericktown which is sometimes also known as the military road. From old Greenville it continued southwest to the Black River and on to what is now Fairdealing and crossed the Current River near the AR/MO border. It is well documented in AR, not so much in MO.

I have traced sections of it that are still intact (original road bed). Some are county gravel roads, other sections are state highways (e.g. MO Rt 34), and in other places it has just disappeared. Many times you can trace the disused segments on satellite imagery (Google Earth) and see the route as it crosses what is now pasture land.

On certain USGS topo maps it is labeled as the Old Military Road, which is pretty cool. It is frequently well-known by locals; it really needs documentation, which is something I am starting to do. There are occaisonally burials along the route such as near Williamsville (Military Crossing Cemetery) west of Marble Hill, and at the Military Cemetery near Beaverdam Creek and Little Black River in Butler County.

Mostly, the route was disused by the time of the Civil War but I have not seen the exact records. It was definitely a route taken by the Cherokees, mostly as part of Benge's Route, the more "successful" of the routes (fewer people died).

The whole topic of roads and routes in southeast/southern Missouri is one that deserves a serious study, as the location of these roads had much effect on the routes taken by units during the war.

Scott House

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