Balltown Little Osage "Balltown" Osage Township
The village of Little Osage -- or "Balltown," as the place was for many years better known -- is located on the south bank of the Osage, in the western part of the township (southeast quarter of southwest quarter of Section 18, and northeast quarter of Section 19, Township 37) about midway from north to south ... It was both a grist and saw mill ... Austin's Mill was a well known institution to the first settlers of Vernon and Bates Counties. Mr. Austin died at Balltown in 1852 ... The first settlement on the site of Balltown was made by Daniel H. Austin, a member of the Harmony Mission Company, who in the year 1836 came over from the Mission and began the erection of a water mill on the Osage ... But the real founder of Balltown was Cecil D. Ball, a nephew of Rev. Nathaniel Dodge, who in the year 1837 came to the county first on a visit to his relatives ...
In the meantime he went to St. Louis ... He returned to Austin's Mill in 1839 and decided to engage in business and permanently locate at that point. He first purchased and then repaired and reconstructed Mr. Austin's Mill ...
The locality was a first called Austin's Mills; then Ball's Mills; then Balltown. But in 1851 Mr. Ball entered the land and laid out a town which he called Little Osage. In about 1842, the post-office was established and called Little Osage, having previously, about 1840, been located at the residence of Dr. Leonard Dodge, who was the first postmaster. This was the first post-office in Vernon County.
Immediately after the Civil War Little Osage became a place of some importance. It was the only village in the county worthy of the name, for Nevada and Montevallo had been shriveled up in the flames of the conflict. It was temporarily the county seat, until a suitable place could be found for storing the records and for transacting the public business at Nevada. At one time a railroad route was surveyed through the village, and it was believed the Lexington and Southern road would be built via Balltown, but the location of the road a mile and a half to the east permanently injured the condition and prospects of the place and it gradually passed into decay. At present (1887) there is one store and but a few old houses. (--History of Vernon Co., 1887, pp. 387, 388, 392.)
Balltown, see Little Osage. (--Gazetteer of Missouri, Campbell, 1874, p. 624b.)
John R