Small Victorian houses dot the landscape leading into town and line the streets up the hill to the north from the town center. Several larger brick houses from the mid-19th century occupy the prominent hillsides. Built on the lot line, the mercantile building is one of only two such brick commercial structures in the town, the other was built as a bank to the northeast on Main Street.
The town is platted in a regular grid of nine blocks with Main and Washington as the primary commercial streets, the south boundary of town parallels the former Missouri, Kansas and Texas (MKT) railroad line. The mercantile is notable with its standing seam pavilion roof that shelters the assembly hall located on its second floor. A metal canopy shades the storefront and sidewalk that at one time led to adjoining but now missing wood frame commercial buildings. other commercial buildings were free standing scattered along Main Street to the east.
Across a small slough to the south is an open area that was the site of the railroad depot, water tanks and coal chutes. a grain elevator and livestock pens. It is now a gravel parking lot and way station for the KATY trail hike and bike path.
History The McKittrick Farmers Mercantile was the commercial and entertainment center of this small Missouri town that grew with the completion of the Missouri Kansas and Texas Railroad line in the 1890's
This two story brick building located on the prime commercial corner of Washington and Main served the trade needs of the local farming community housing a general store and post office on the first floor. The second floor with its stage and large assembly area hosted theatrical performances, church gatherings and community events. Built circa 1897, the period of significance is from its construction through c1945 when the store closed and the post office moved to a new location next door, now Joey's Birdhouse B&B.
Located on the north bank of the Missouri River, the area surrounding McKittrick had been home to farmers in the Missouri River bottoms and Loutre Island since the early 1800's. As was the case with early settlements, the first pioneers followed the Missouri River and its exploration. The island was first discovered by the French trappers and voyagers and by them called Loutre meaning otter, doubtless from the number of these valuable fur-bearing animals found in the the slough which surrounds it. Though called an island the area is a large swath of land sandwiched between the wide Missouri River on the south and the narrower Loutre river to the North.
Early Settlement
The earliest permanent settlers in this area were of English descent. Hal Talbot and his oldest son, Christopher (Kit) Talbott, were among the first to arrive in 1809 from Madison County, Kentucky, the rest of the family arriving the following year. During the War of 1812 Loutre Island was important to continued development of the area. The pioneers of Montgomery County were frequently attacked by the hostile Indian tribes from the north and for protection retreated to Ft. Clemson, constructed on the upper part of Loutre Island in what is now Warren County. The Talbott family prospered and played a role in the development of the county and state. Dr James Talbott was one of the first physicians in the area and a delegate to the state convention that framed the first Missouri constitution. One of the first three Supreme court Justices appointed in the state, was married to Elizabeth Talbott, a daughter of Col. Hal Talbott. Settlement and farming interests were initially located in the fertile Loutre bottoms until successive years of floods, culminating in the catastrophic flood if 1844, forced settlers to move to higher ground. In the 1850s the Talbot family built, a large brick house on the hill overlooking what would become the town of McKittrick. The 1878 Atlas. Montgomery County, Missouri shows the Talbotts owned hundreds of acres of land in the area and the landowners surrounding them were of English descent with names like Lee, Woodruff and Anderson.
German Settlement
Meanwhile across the Missouri River, the town of Hermann was founded in 1837 by the German Settlement Society of Philadelphia. With river bluffs and hills wrapping its site, Hermann lacked agricultural crop land and developed into a wine making community intent on preserving its German culture. Its location provided a riverboat landing with access to markets and distant destinations; adding to its commercial growth, a railroad was built through Hermann in the 1850s. The Herman Historic District in Gasconade County is listed on the National Register of Historic Places (NR2/1/1972, amended 10/30/09). Hermann's rich cultural and architectural heritage are there detailed. 3
Some of Hermann's early German settlers chose to take advantage of the fertile river bottom land on the north side of the river in Montgomery County and settled the town of Rhineland in the 1850s. Over time others of German heritage acquired land from the original American settlers, consistent with the development pattern of German American settlement along the Missouri River west from St. Louis. Rhineland and Hermann were the closest towns to meet the needs of those in the Loutre Island area. Rhineland was five miles to the east over dirt roads on horseback or in a wagon. Roads were bad, hub deep in mud in wet weather, dusty in dry...The road building binge of the nineteenth century did not last long, and in the 1880s roads were actually in worse condition than in the 1830s, railroads having preceded them. For most customers a trip of even four or five miles to a store in town was a great inconvenience. 4
A trip to Hermann required crossing the Missouri River, about a mile south across the river bottom from Loutre Island and the future site of McKittrick; the ferry's exact location on the north bank of the river varying on the conditions of the Missouri River, ever changing its banks with the formation of sand bars. 5
According to A Pictoral History of Montgomery County, a ferryboat was operated by the Ferry and Packet Company, owned by August Wohlt of Hermann. However, reaching the ferry could be a challenge in wet weather as horse and wagon would bog down in the deep gumbo mud. A long time McKittrick resident, Lenora Spencer. attended high school in Hermann, boarding there during the week and coming home only on the weekends . She related that her father would take her and other children down to catch the Ferry. Sometimes the mud was so deep the old horses could barely get through. During extremely cold weather, she and a friend would take a willow and loop it through the handles of their suitcases for a better grasp. 5
1. History of St. Charles, Montgomery and Warren Couties, Missouri 1885 St. Louis, MO Paul Cochrane. reprinted 1969
2. ibid, 753 NPS Form 10-900 OMB No. 1024-001 (expires 5/31/2012) United States Department of the Interior , National Park Service Register of Historic Places Continuation Sheet , Section nuber 8 page 4 McKittrick Farmers Mercantile.
3. JR Dolan, The Yankee Peddlars of America, 264
4.. Wilbur Bezold interview, December 31, 2009
5. Lenora Spencer interview, Hermann Advertiser Courier, June 8, 1988
The town is platted in a regular grid of nine blocks with Main and Washington as the primary commercial streets, the south boundary of town parallels the former Missouri, Kansas and Texas (MKT) railroad line. The mercantile is notable with its standing seam pavilion roof that shelters the assembly hall located on its second floor. A metal canopy shades the storefront and sidewalk that at one time led to adjoining but now missing wood frame commercial buildings. other commercial buildings were free standing scattered along Main Street to the east.
Across a small slough to the south is an open area that was the site of the railroad depot, water tanks and coal chutes. a grain elevator and livestock pens. It is now a gravel parking lot and way station for the KATY trail hike and bike path.
History The McKittrick Farmers Mercantile was the commercial and entertainment center of this small Missouri town that grew with the completion of the Missouri Kansas and Texas Railroad line in the 1890's
This two story brick building located on the prime commercial corner of Washington and Main served the trade needs of the local farming community housing a general store and post office on the first floor. The second floor with its stage and large assembly area hosted theatrical performances, church gatherings and community events. Built circa 1897, the period of significance is from its construction through c1945 when the store closed and the post office moved to a new location next door, now Joey's Birdhouse B&B.
Located on the north bank of the Missouri River, the area surrounding McKittrick had been home to farmers in the Missouri River bottoms and Loutre Island since the early 1800's. As was the case with early settlements, the first pioneers followed the Missouri River and its exploration. The island was first discovered by the French trappers and voyagers and by them called Loutre meaning otter, doubtless from the number of these valuable fur-bearing animals found in the the slough which surrounds it. Though called an island the area is a large swath of land sandwiched between the wide Missouri River on the south and the narrower Loutre river to the North.
Early Settlement
The earliest permanent settlers in this area were of English descent. Hal Talbot and his oldest son, Christopher (Kit) Talbott, were among the first to arrive in 1809 from Madison County, Kentucky, the rest of the family arriving the following year. During the War of 1812 Loutre Island was important to continued development of the area. The pioneers of Montgomery County were frequently attacked by the hostile Indian tribes from the north and for protection retreated to Ft. Clemson, constructed on the upper part of Loutre Island in what is now Warren County. The Talbott family prospered and played a role in the development of the county and state. Dr James Talbott was one of the first physicians in the area and a delegate to the state convention that framed the first Missouri constitution. One of the first three Supreme court Justices appointed in the state, was married to Elizabeth Talbott, a daughter of Col. Hal Talbott. Settlement and farming interests were initially located in the fertile Loutre bottoms until successive years of floods, culminating in the catastrophic flood if 1844, forced settlers to move to higher ground. In the 1850s the Talbot family built, a large brick house on the hill overlooking what would become the town of McKittrick. The 1878 Atlas. Montgomery County, Missouri shows the Talbotts owned hundreds of acres of land in the area and the landowners surrounding them were of English descent with names like Lee, Woodruff and Anderson.
German Settlement
Meanwhile across the Missouri River, the town of Hermann was founded in 1837 by the German Settlement Society of Philadelphia. With river bluffs and hills wrapping its site, Hermann lacked agricultural crop land and developed into a wine making community intent on preserving its German culture. Its location provided a riverboat landing with access to markets and distant destinations; adding to its commercial growth, a railroad was built through Hermann in the 1850s. The Herman Historic District in Gasconade County is listed on the National Register of Historic Places (NR2/1/1972, amended 10/30/09). Hermann's rich cultural and architectural heritage are there detailed. 3
Some of Hermann's early German settlers chose to take advantage of the fertile river bottom land on the north side of the river in Montgomery County and settled the town of Rhineland in the 1850s. Over time others of German heritage acquired land from the original American settlers, consistent with the development pattern of German American settlement along the Missouri River west from St. Louis. Rhineland and Hermann were the closest towns to meet the needs of those in the Loutre Island area. Rhineland was five miles to the east over dirt roads on horseback or in a wagon. Roads were bad, hub deep in mud in wet weather, dusty in dry...The road building binge of the nineteenth century did not last long, and in the 1880s roads were actually in worse condition than in the 1830s, railroads having preceded them. For most customers a trip of even four or five miles to a store in town was a great inconvenience. 4
A trip to Hermann required crossing the Missouri River, about a mile south across the river bottom from Loutre Island and the future site of McKittrick; the ferry's exact location on the north bank of the river varying on the conditions of the Missouri River, ever changing its banks with the formation of sand bars. 5
According to A Pictoral History of Montgomery County, a ferryboat was operated by the Ferry and Packet Company, owned by August Wohlt of Hermann. However, reaching the ferry could be a challenge in wet weather as horse and wagon would bog down in the deep gumbo mud. A long time McKittrick resident, Lenora Spencer. attended high school in Hermann, boarding there during the week and coming home only on the weekends . She related that her father would take her and other children down to catch the Ferry. Sometimes the mud was so deep the old horses could barely get through. During extremely cold weather, she and a friend would take a willow and loop it through the handles of their suitcases for a better grasp. 5
1. History of St. Charles, Montgomery and Warren Couties, Missouri 1885 St. Louis, MO Paul Cochrane. reprinted 1969
2. ibid, 753 NPS Form 10-900 OMB No. 1024-001 (expires 5/31/2012) United States Department of the Interior , National Park Service Register of Historic Places Continuation Sheet , Section nuber 8 page 4 McKittrick Farmers Mercantile.
3. JR Dolan, The Yankee Peddlars of America, 264
4.. Wilbur Bezold interview, December 31, 2009
5. Lenora Spencer interview, Hermann Advertiser Courier, June 8, 1988